Everett Piper
Columns by Everett Piper
What college campuses can reveal
D. Michael Lindsay, president of Gordon College, wrote recently in an article that he penned for The Gospel Coalition, "Every higher education institution has a [hidden curriculum]. It's not the catchy slogan emblazoned on campus merchandise, and it's not necessarily in an admissions counselor's spiel. Published April 29, 2018
Open season on Christianity and the Constitution
It's morning in America, and a look back on the week's news proves it is open season on Christians and the U.S. Constitution. Published April 22, 2018
Human decency is not about weapons, but about ideas that guide moral direction
The BBC News reported last week that the London murder rate has overtaken that of New York City: Published April 8, 2018
Fighting the darkness in search of freedom lights the way
In "The Silver Chair," the fifth book in the "Chronicles of Narnia" series, we follow three main characters, two children named Scrubb and Jill and a Narnian friend called Puddleglum, as they venture into a dark underground world in search of Rilian the Prince of Narnia who is being held captive by none other than an evil witch. Published April 1, 2018
How today’s identity politics is fueled by hypocrisy
Two weeks ago, I wrote a column titled "Conversations About Sex." In this article, I asked this basic question: If our culture has decided there is no such thing as an objective moral standard pertaining to sexual behavior then on what basis can we make any moral judgments about any behavior? Published March 25, 2018
The devilish details of Oklahoma’s religious freedom measure
On March 15, Oklahoma's Senate was scheduled to vote on SB 197, the Protection of Freedom of Conscience Act. This act sought to codify into law the rights and protections of all Oklahomans to express and practice their religion freely in the public square without fear of government penalty or government coercion. The Oklahoma Senate is composed of 48 members, 40 of which are currently Republican. Published March 18, 2018
How amorality thrives on college campuses
"The Lottery" is a classic short story written by Shirley Jackson in 1948. It's the tale of a rural, farming community in America of about three hundred residents. The town seems normal by all accounts as it prepares for a traditional, harvest-time event known as The Lottery. Published March 11, 2018
Why sexual immorality should be repudiated rather than debated
As a college president, I'd argue there are some things that should be confronted, some that should be confessed and some about which we can have a conversation. As a teacher, it is my goal to produce students who are able to distinguish between these three categories. Published March 4, 2018
How Oklahoma Wesleyan University spurned the Obama administration’s ‘guidance letter’ on sexual misc
In 2011, every college and university in the United States received a "guidance letter" from the Obama administration's Department of Education declaring that all colleges and universities across the land, from Brown to Berkeley, were required to immediately amend their policies and procedures for responding to any claims of sexual harassment and sexual assault on their respective campuses. Published February 25, 2018
More laws do not a moral people make
This past Valentine's Day, Nikolas Cruz entered a classroom in Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, and proceeded to murder 17 people and wound 15 others. Before any meaningful criminal investigation could even begin, our nation's cultural elites rushed to their respective podiums, finding fault and casting aspersions. Scoring political points is the name of the game. Removing personal rights embedded in our Constitution and replacing them with more laws and less freedom seems to be the only way they know to keep score. Published February 18, 2018
How integrity unifies the human race and identity politics divides it
C.S. Lewis told us in "God in the Dock": "Put first things first and second things are thrown in. Put second things first and you lose both first and second things." In his publication titled First Things, Richard John Neuhaus warned, "One must never underestimate the profound bigotry and anti-intellectualism [of second things]." Published February 11, 2018
Cosmopolitan magazine cover reveals everything wrong with the popular culture
Have we completely lost our minds? In a word: Yes. Cosmopolitan Magazine has released its February issue, featuring the most recent transgender poster child Laverne Cox on its cover. There is so much wrong on this one page that it makes one's head spin. Published February 4, 2018
Walking in God’s image
As the president of one of the dozens of universities in the United States that carry the "Wesleyan" name I have often been asked: "What's a Wesleyan?" Likewise, hardly a day goes by where I am not asked what seems to be one of the most seminal questions of our time: How should the church respond to our society's tsunamic shift toward the celebration and acceptance of the broader LGBTQ agenda? Published January 28, 2018
HHS ushers in the Division of Conscience and Religious Freedom, thank God
This past week I was invited to speak in our nation's capital at the Department of Health and Human Services' ceremony announcing its new Division of Conscience and Religious Freedom. Here is what I said. Published January 21, 2018
Oklahoma teacher’s union calls for boycott of Christian college students
The Oklahoma Council for Public Affairs reports that a collective bargaining group representing public schools in Bartlesville, Oklahoma, is calling for a boycott of student teachers from the local Christian university. The reason for the proposed shunning? Oklahoma Wesleyan University's president (yours truly) dared to suggest that the bad ideas presently being taught in our nation's schools might, at least in part, be responsible for the bad behavior we are seeing in our national news. Published January 14, 2018
A dialogue with someone on Facebook with opposing views
Piper: It's not about gay or straight, it's about the definition of what it means to be human. Even Gore Vidal said, "there is no more such a thing as a homosexual person than there is a heterosexual person, these are behavioral adjectives." We are not defined by our desires. It's about our behavior. It's not about our being. Published January 7, 2018
Teachers: Don’t buckle to ‘snowflakes’
In C.S. Lewis' "The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe," Susan, upon hearing of the great lion from across the Eastern Sea, asks whether Aslan is "safe." Mr. Beaver responds: "Who said anything about safe? 'Course he isn't safe. But he's good.' " Published December 31, 2017
How Christmas changed the world
Christmas Day has come and gone and once again, the headlines of the holy-day season have been awash with stories of the secular intolerance of Christ's mass. Published December 25, 2017
Christmas brings hope even in grim news cycle
In C.S. Lewis' "The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe," there is a scene where we find the children standing fearful and confused in a land that is frozen and nearly lifeless. A lamppost stands somberly in a windless forest that is blanketed with snow and the few creatures the children do encounter are frightened and paranoid. Published December 17, 2017
Statements from Washington Surgi-Clinic deserve harsh judgment
The Washington Surgi-Clinic in Washington, D.C. is now on record saying that, for a modest fee, it will perform a late-term abortion on a healthy, viable baby boy or girl. Published December 10, 2017
