Bible College – The Exodus, Part Three
The next 10 days or so were, and were,
a blur. The administration took my words as a challenge to its policy of segregation,
and it also apparently took issue with my theology of the indwelling Christ. I
was approached by older students in the dorm with questions about my beliefs. I
particularly recall that the issue of capital punishment was raised – why I
don’t know, but it was. At the time I was reading Bonhoeffer’s The Cost of
Discipleship, and I had questions about capital punishment – so when asked
about the subject all I could say was that I didn’t know.
It strikes me that during this
time not one adult talked to me about what I had said in my devotional. Not one
adult talked to me about my beliefs. Not one. Not a professor, not someone in
administration, not the dorm parents (there was an adult couple living in the
dorm). This is nuts, isn’t it? One of the school officials had a son attending
the Bible College, and I recall questions from him – but of course he was
another student.
On Tuesday, January 10, 1967, I
was summoned to the president’s office. The president said to me, “Brother
Withers, I understand that you’ve been teaching false doctrine. You either
conform to the teachings of this institution or you will be forced to leave.”
Those were pretty much his exact words – I’ve never forgotten them.
“How soon do you want me to go?”
I replied.
“Immediately.”
I didn’t have the presence of
mind to inquire as to the false doctrines I was allegedly teaching, and I don’t
suppose it would have done any good – but it would have been nice to know, if
for no other reason than I could share them with you.
George Will was also expelled. I
don’t recall if he went first or if I did, it happened so fast. George was
expelled because he had been a bad influence on me – see, I told you in an
earlier post that George had ruined my life. Bad George, bad bad George.
I just noticed that January 10, 1967
was the day Lester Maddox was sworn in as Georgia’s segregationist governor,
kind of ironic isn’t it?
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