What do Georgetown College, Wake Forest University and Furman University have in common?  They are among the dozen colleges and universities that have cut ties with the Southern Baptist Convention in recent years, according to The New York Times.

The issues vary from state to state. But many Southern Baptist colleges and their state conventions have been battling over money, control of boards of trustees, whether the Bible must be interpreted literally, how evolution is taught, the propriety of some books for college courses and of some plays for campus performances and whether cultural and religious diversity should be encouraged....

"The convention itself in its national and state organizations has moved so far to the right that previous diversity on the faculty and among the trustees is no longer possible,'' said Bill Leonard, dean of the Divinity School at Wake Forest. "More theological control of the curriculum and the faculty has been the result.''

David W. Key, director of Baptist Studies at the Candler School of Theology at Emory, put it more starkly. "The real underlying issue is that fundamentalism in the Southern Baptist form is incompatible with higher education,'' Professor Key said. "In fundamentalism, you have all the truths. In education, you're searching for truths.''

That is true for all types of religious fundamentalism - Christian, Islamic, Jewish, Hindu, etc.  Education becomes less important than indoctrination and critical thinking (a skill we would hope all institutions of higher learning help foster) is to fundamentalism what Kryptonite is to Superman.  Here's hoping the educators win.   

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