Covenant of Life Together

The Covenant for Life Together

                 Carl C. Lundquist

From the very beginning of our story, our leaders were always striving to create a community that reflects Jesus Christ. John Alexis Edgren was a man who continually trusted in Christ and aimed to integrate faith into education worked alongside Baptist General Conference which became a big part of what Bethel is. Likewise, Carl C. Lundquist was another leader who “would set the tone
and dynamic of the two schools for over a quarter of a century” (Spickelmier). This commitment brought the mission of Baptist General Conference (BGC) to Bethel. In 1965, Bethel moved to its Arden Hills location. The land was

beautiful and Lundquist wanted it to be a place to “foster a sense of community, and to advance the idea that ‘God is strong’ and is to be worshipped and served” (Spickelmier). After Lundquist’s presidency ended, George Brushaber was next but the BGC were skeptical of Brushaber because he wasn’t associated with BGC and had no connection to Bethel. Like previous leaders, Brushaber brought change to Bethel especially in the area of math and sciences unlike most other Christian colleges. Many other changes came as Bethel grew.

At first, the covenant was not called “The Covenant of Life Together”. It was called the “Lifestyle Statement”. It was essentially the same thing, except it was not as explicit as it is now. The Clarion 1982, Volume 57, Number 22, addresses the fact that the Lifestyle Statement was not clear in what it was trying to achieve. The statement was vague and gave off a negative feeling. Before this, the statement was not really written down. When applying to Bethel, this lifestyle was implied.

2004 Clarion Vol. 80 No. 6

Throughout the years, there have been many instances where there is conflict regarding the covenant. Jumping to more recent times, the 2004 Clarion Volume 80, No.6, gives a little insight to the times at Bethel. There was conflict in regards to alcohol and how the covenant played a role in that. The Clarion mentioned, “neighboring colleges have witnessed the erosive quality of alcoholism when lifting sanctions on consumption” (Clarion Vol. 80, No. 6). Jim Beilby suggested that there be a system where individuals could write personal lifestyle statements as a way to interact; “this would attempt to make Bethel a place where true interaction and growth would take place, rather than an institution strictly asserting rules” (Clarion Vol. 80, No. 6). In comparison to today, the covenant is grace-filled, peaceful, and a set of standards that the Bethel community holds themselves to. Faculty and staff clearly explain the intention of the covenant, in that it is not to be a set of rules that must be followed with severe consequences, rather that it is what sets the community apart from the world. That concept ties all the way back to our founders and leaders.

 

The covenant shapes and has been shaped to create the community known today. The Covenant of Life Together in 2017 Bethel culture is what we hold ourselves to. It helps us to be accountable to one another, to help each other grow, to reflect the image of Christ and to set us apart. It does not, nor should it, divide us but teach us to be graceful to one another the way God is graceful to us.

 

The Academic Catalog of 2009

 

 

 

One thought on “Covenant of Life Together

  1. Abby, I learned a lot about our institutional history from your blog post! You nicely synthesized materials from the Digital Library from a broad range of dates here. Well done!

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *