![](\"https:\/\/trinities.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/Dr-James-Spiegel-speaking.jpg\")
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Taylor University in Indiana, which self-identifies as a Christian college, just fired Professor James Spiegel (Jim), a philosopher who is one of the best-known scholars (the best?) on campus. He has a website<\/a> where you can find his CV <\/a>(his resume) and the blog he runs with his wife, Amy<\/a>. I met him at a philosophy conference where he was the keynote speaker some years ago, and was impressed by how gracious and humble he was, and how kind to me, an economist doing amateur philosophy. Spiegel is mild in manner, but he has long irritated the administration of Taylor University, which is liberal despite Taylor being so conservative traditionally that students– and faculty– must pledge not to drink alcoholic beverages and dancing is strictly regulated (see the Life Together Covenant<\/a>) . Taylor is not what it was. I know only one recent graduate; she went in a fundamentalist, and came out a bisexual social warrior. Religion News Service<\/em> writes <\/a>on Friday, September 4: <\/p>\n \nHe wrote a petition opposing plans to bring Starbucks to campus because of its \u201cstands on the sanctity of life and human sexuality\u201d and signed onto another supporting Vice President Mike Pence\u2019s invitation to speak last year at graduation<\/a>. Taylor’s president resigned a month after Pence’s visit, which sparked sharp disagreement on campus. ########################################<\/p>\n The article with the most detail is in The New York Post<\/em>, by Justin Lee, September 4, 2020, ########################################<\/p>\n This blogpost is a bit of a hodgepodge, because I’ve got lots of irons in the fire. I hope to have put lots of material here that journalists, Taylor University people, and others can use. <\/p>\n There is a long history of friction between the Administration and Professor Spiegel, a history worth looking into. He was involved with an anonymous conservative newsletter on campus<\/a> which the Administration attacked (which clearly had to be anonymous, since Christianity comes under fire at Taylor). He opposed putting a Starbucks on campus because of Starbucks association with homosexuality, and the previous President tried to fire him in 2019 because of that. Spiegel said,<\/a> “Taylor is pro-life and affirms traditional marriage, while Starbucks is actively pro-choice (a strong supporter of Planned Parenthood) and pro-LGBTQ (endorsing many LGBTQ causes).” But of course Starbucks does not sell beer, and it is not known for endorsing dancing; Taylor may support abortion and sodomy, but it does have some limits to its gracious acceptance of alternative lifestyles. Presumably Provost Hammond does oppose gay bars, especially if they encourage dancing. <\/p>\n Spiegel supported the decision to invite Vice-President Pence to speak at graduation<\/a>. The faculty voted 61-49 to denounce the invitation to invite the former Governor of Indiana, known for his Christian faith. The 2018 commencement speaker was Norm Miller, chairman of Interstate Batteries (“Since Miller assumed the roles <\/a>of President and Chairman in 1978, Interstate has become the number one replacement battery in North America,” so having just a Vice-President must have been a bit of a letdown for Taylor.)<\/p>\n ########################################<\/p>\n Spiegel writes mainly books, not articles. His most recent is the 2020 reprint of his 1999 book, Hypocrisy: Moral Fraud and Other Vices.<\/em><\/a> His most-cited article is “Open-mindedness and intellectual humility<\/a>,” James S. Spiegel (2012) Theory and Research in Education,<\/em> 10: 27-38 (March 2012). The keywords are: belief, fallibility, humility, knowledge, open-minded, virtue. The abstract is<\/p>\n
########################################<\/p>\n The Little Hitler video is at https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=GTk5eB-ZN7U<\/a>. Much may be made of that song. It is about the classic doctrine of The Depravity of Man. “There’s a little Hitler inside of you. There’s a little Hitler inside of me.” Very good words, in the style of Tom Lehrer, and, actually, just the kind of rational argument you’d expect of a philosophy professor with a guitar. I think this is actually a huge divide in how people think, an aspect of Thomas Sowell’s Conflict of Visions idea of the Constrained versus the Unconstrained visions. The constrained vision is the calvinistic, economistical, Christian one that all men are sinners, motivated be self-interest, who can be constrained by laws and moral rules but cannot be made truly good, even though respectable people seem good. Instead, we must always watch out for temptation (cf. VP Pence’s much mocked not lunching with ladies other than his wife), we will often give in, and we would murder little children if we were paid enough and weren’t as cowardly as we are. We need to throw ourselves on God’s mercy, and Jesus needed to die on the cross to pay for our sins, because we can’t do it. Read Tolstoy’s Father Sergius<\/em><\/a> for a Russian take on that; it isn’t just a Protestant idea, it’s conventional Bible-Augustine-Aquinas-Calvin theology. The unconstrained vision thinks that Man is perfectible, and utopia will arrive if good people just try hard enough. We ourselves are good people, though our enemies are evil and must be destroyed, and we good people do not need to worry about temptation, because we’re not like Hitler at all. He was German, after all, and lived in the benighted 1930’s; we are Americans and live in 2020. Anybody who thinks he might be tempted into adultery is obviously a creep, because only creeps get tempted, and any decent man has no reason not to go on business trips with a beautiful young co-worker, and nobody should think anything of it if he does. Many people really do think like that. See Luke Barnett on Twitter<\/a>: “If I was a new student, looked up my professor to find his song from the basement about \u201ccross me and I\u2019m tempted to do things that would make Jeffrey Dahmer blush\u201d, I\u2019d sure think twice about where my money went.” and<\/a> “I do not believe that if I didn’t have Jesus I would want to do things that would make Jeffrey Dahmer blush.” Pride before fall. <\/p>\n ########################################<\/p>\n Spiegel fired due to controversial videoTenured professor terminated after disagreements with administration<\/a> The Echo <\/em>(campus newspaper), by Sam Jones, September 4, 2020. <\/p>\n ########################################<\/p>\n The Taylor administrators, Trustees, and other bigwigs, the villains of this piece, are listed at The Board of Trustees looks rather large. It is probably on the “large donors, meet for lunch once a year, kept in the dark by the President” model, but people who agree to let their names be used need to realize they are morally responsible for the bad actions of the organization. Your reputation is on the line if the President turns out to be a scoundrel. You are his boss, after all– the buck stops with you, not him. If you believe, along with impartial observers, that the President and Provost are engaged in unjust, unchristian, and unlawful behavior, you must speak up or resign. Silence means agreement. The Trustees are (with details on a few where it seemed especially interesting): ######################################## Rod Dreher,Defending \u2018Little Hitler\u2019<\/a>, American Conservative, Sept 7, 2020 has a great idea for student protest: <\/p>\n \n Last year, I visited Rudolf Dobias, an 84-year-old Slovak former political prisoner, sentenced to 18 years of hard labor in a uranium mine on a false accusation that he had drawn a cartoon making fun of Stalin and Czechoslovak communist leader Klement Gottwald. After release from prison, Dobias and his family lived a life of internal exile; he couldn\u2019t get a decent job, his kids suffered from their father\u2019s punishment, and so forth. All because of a single joke, one that he didn\u2019t even tell! After our interview, Dobias mentioned to my Slovak translator that he was in constant pain now, the result of all the beatings he took in prison as a young man. Christian University Fires Professor Over \u2018Little Hitler\u2019 Song<\/a> \n \u201cJust as we as individuals are all called to seek restoration of damaged relationships, the biblical principles embodied in Taylor\u2019s Life Together Covenant compel us to do the same corporately within the University,\u201d Taylor administration officials wrote in a letter to faculty members<\/strong>. \u201cThat process was followed,<\/strong> engaging faculty leadership, the academic department, and the administration seeking to restore what was damaged. In this case restoration was not possible.\u201d
Report: Tenured Professor Fired From Christian University Over \u2018Little Hitler\u2019 Song Warning Of Hatred, <\/a>Sin \n Spiegel explained his reasoning for writing the song<\/strong> when he uploaded it on Youtube back in mid-August: \u201cMany years ago, while hiking in Colorado Springs, I came across a group of campers where a folk singer was singing song after song which exalted human nature in the most grandiose terms. I was struck by how the singer and his songs did not recognize that humans have a fundamental moral problem, what theologians call a \u2018sin nature.\u2019 It was in response to this that I wrote \u2018Little Hitler\u2019 \u2014 as a theological corrective to such unabashed (and dangerous) humanism. In this video I perform the song with the same corny exuberance that that folk singer displayed.\u201d<\/strong> \n
########################################<\/p>\n Longtime Professor Jim Spiegel Out at Taylor University After \u2018Little Hitler\u2019 Video<\/a>, Emily McFarlan Miller, September 8, 2020. Ministry Watch. <\/em><\/p>\n ########################################<\/p>\n The You-Tube page where the Little Hitler song is played<\/a> has lots of comments. Xavier Carr says: <\/p>\n \n I’m an atheist, but I don’t have issues with most believers. I’m saddened to hear you were fired for this \ud83d\ude41 I’m probably not the first to point this out, but I’m reminded quite a bit of “People II: The Reckoning”<\/a> by Andrew Jackson Jihad. There’s a lyric in that song that goes,
Anonymous people say:<\/p>\n \n So a Prof. sends out a warning that each human being is capable of the worst of sin, which is biblical, and a Christian University fires him for it…. Unless there is some relevant detail(s) that I do not know, then this is beyond absurd.
and<\/p>\n \nAs an alum, I can attest to the fact that Administration and Student Development have both succumbed to the leftist agenda to a certain extent. However, most of the professors and students retain orthodox beliefs. If we were able to clean out admin and student development, we would be in a much better place.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n and <\/p>\n \nI’m not even religious, in fact I’m as fierce an atheist as it gets, and I find this song an extremely important reminder on human nature, delivered with style. You have another random stranger’s support from the other side of the globe.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n and<\/p>\n \nWell, the university just proved this song right. Now you can add new verses. and <\/p>\n
Ryan Pflum says: <\/p>\n \nHonestly, I regularly read Flannery O’Connor. So, the idea that intense language can jolt us into spiritual recognition is familiar–and crucial–for me. Oh, and also reading Jesus.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n Mark Mohrlang says: <\/p>\n
Peter Grice says: <\/p>\n \n“Ordinary Men”<\/a> by Christopher Browning. ’nuff said.\n<\/p><\/blockquote>\n John Schober says:<\/p>\n \n Bravo my brother in Christ. Keep up the good fight. While I agree with others that maybe some gospel in the song would have helped. But that really wasn’t the point. This is a conversation starter and should be discussed as so, especially in academia… Alas modern academia has been over run with leftist who refuse to talk. <\/p><\/blockquote>\n Eric Johnson says: <\/p>\n \nI’m utterly dumbfounded as to how a Christian could be offended at this admittedly shocking, but soundly Christian, truth-bearing song, expressing with dark humor (how appropriate!) the dark side of human life referred to in Matthew 5:11, 15:19; Romans 3:1-10; Romans 7; and the like. I understand how secular humanists, pop psychologists, hypocrites, and Pharisees wouldn’t like it, but we Christians are supposed to be more aware of our remaining sin than the typical humanist or Pharisee, right? God, have mercy on your people and your higher education institutions! Come and bring us renewal, or we will perish! God bless you, my friend, We have proven ourselves unworthy of your gifts.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n ########################################<\/p>\n What is happening (once again) at Taylor University? <\/a> (September 4) and \nShould he be fired for \u201cLittle Hitler\u201d? I can\u2019t answer that question. I would need to know more about the local culture on campus at Taylor and the way Spiegel and his song fit into that culture. Perhaps there is a larger story here. Maybe this is more than just an academic freedom issue. I wish he’d tell us why this thinks Provost Michael Hammond is a good man with the best interest of Taylor in mind. Perhaps he knows him personally and has stories he could tell, but for the rest of us, who don’t know either Professor Fea or Hammond, just saying so it isn’t really useful. ########################################<\/p>\n Professor Spiegel’s September 7 song, “Jesus Never Let Me Down”:<\/a><\/p>\n Some people have it in for me. They\u2019re setting traps and taking shots. Some days I swear it seems like the darkness is my only real friend. The accuser prowls like a hungry lion seeking someone to devour. ########################################<\/p>\n Brian Leiter writes on September 9 in Leiter Reports,<\/em> \n…for what is clearly lawful, extramural speech that could not be sanctioned at any school with normal tenure and academic freedom standards. (A bit more detail here.) But Taylor’s rules provide that a tenured faculty member can be terminated for “[f]ailure to meet professional, moral, philosophical and\/or spiritual standards for faculty.\u201d … The bottom line is that no university with academic freedom or real tenure regulates faculty this way, and the result is the fiasco before us. It’s all the more startling because there was not even a semblance of due process before termination.\n <\/p><\/blockquote>\n ######################################## DONALD L. HUGHES says in Does a spiritual community exist at Taylor University? I question that.
########################################<\/p>\n Philosophy Professor Fired After Posting Song on YouTube<\/a> September 15, 2020 One thing I found out after a teaching at two Christian colleges (one as an adjunct and the other as a professor), is that the powers-that-be do not want faculty to stand out. Whereas a secular institution is generally happy if faculty are out there making news, the leaders of many Christian colleges don\u2019t want faculty angering anyone who might withhold donations as a result. ######################################## ########################################<\/p>\n
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\nHe also was one of the authors of an anonymous conservative newsletter that popped up on campus with complaints that the school had become too liberal.
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\nSpiegel told<\/a> Taylor\u2019s student newspaper, The Echo,<\/em> that he was fired after he posted and declined to remove a YouTube video two weeks ago in which he performed an original song titled \u201cLittle Hitler.” The professor claimed the school had received a harassment complaint about the video. He also said he previously had performed the song at chapel and at a faculty retreat, according to The Echo.
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\nThe song includes the lyrics: \u201cWe\u2019re appalled at injustice and oppression and every atrocity that makes the nightly news, but just give it a thought: If you knew you\u2019d never get caught, you\u2019d be thieving and raping and murdering, too.\u201d
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\nSpiegel had posted the video on a YouTube channel called “Picking Your Brain.” Other songs on the site, including “Mr. Government Man” and “Let’s Start Our Own Country,” feature the professor singing songs under the stage name “Philonous” that appear to be political commentary.\n <\/p><\/blockquote>\n
\n “Christian college fires professor for warning against hate with \u2018Little Hitler\u2019 song<\/a>.” <\/p>\n
\nAbstract
\nAmong those who regard open-mindedness as a virtue, there is dispute over whether the trait is essentially an attitude toward particular beliefs or toward oneself as a believer. I defend William Hare\u2019s account of open-mindedness as a first-order attitude toward one\u2019s beliefs and critique Peter Gardner\u2019s view of open-mindedness as a non-commital posture and Jonathan Adler\u2019s claim that open-mindedness is a second-order recognition of one\u2019s fallibility as a knower. While I reject Adler\u2019s account of open-mindedness as a meta-attitude, I affirm his intuition that there is a closely related second-order intellectual virtue pertaining to the attitude we take toward ourselves as knowers. However, this trait is intellectual humility not open-mindedness. I explain why both of these traits are intellectual virtues and how they properly build off one another in the virtuous mind.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
\n at https:\/\/www.taylor.edu\/about\/leadership<\/a>. They need to be named and shamed. The “Interim President” is Paige Comstock Cunningham. The Provost is Michael D. Hammond. The Dean of Arts and Humanities (who also took responsibility for the firing) is Tom Jones. <\/p>\n
\nAngela Angelovska-Wilson
\nJonathan V. Beukelman
\nCarl L. Chapman, Chairman, President, & CEO, Vectren Corporation
\nMinda Chow
\nMark T. Davis, A member of the Standards Committee of the Evangelical Counsel for Financial Accountability and on the National Commission on Religious Policy and Accountability for ECFA.
\nChris Goeglein
\nErik Hotmire
\nRhonda F. Jeter
\nStephen L. Johnson
\nHeather Larson
\nSusan McCabe
\nGregory A. Poland
\nManuel Rosado
\nDouglas L. Rupp
\nTamara Shaya Hoffmann
\nMark W. Soderquist, Administrative Pastor of Westlawn Gospel Chapel in Chicago, Illinois,
\nKathleen E. Stevens
\nMark D. Taylor, President, Tyndale House Publishers
\nKaren E. Thomas
\nP. Eric Turner
\nNicholas J. Wallace
\nShani P. Wilfred
\nDaniel Wolgemuth<\/p>\n
\n
\nMATERIAL ADDED MONDAY September 7 and later. <\/em><\/p>\n
\n
\nObviously \u2014 obviously \u2014 Jim Spiegel is not Rudolf Dobias. As more than a few Rudolf Dobiases told me for Live Not By Lies, free people have to resist this stuff the moment it starts. Jim Spiegel was absolutely right to refuse to take down his satirical song. The prissy authoritarians at Taylor University ought to apologize to him and hire him back. And they had better make it clear that they have done so, because this is a black mark on the school\u2019s reputation, and a warning to students about an emerging climate of censorship, at a time when liberal arts colleges cannot afford them.
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\nIf I were a Taylor student \u2014 presuming that they are back on campus this fall \u2014 I would gather with a group every day outside Provost Michael Hammond\u2019s office, and sing \u201cLittle Hitler\u201d cheerfully, to cause Hammond and the university\u2019s leadership to reflect on the nature of what they have done to a professor who has wronged no one.\n<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
\nbyPenka Arsova, LaCorte News, September 7, 2020:<\/p>\n
\n…
\n\u201cSome may see this through a political or ideological \u2018left-right\/liberal-conservative\u2019 lens. <\/strong>In the world today that is an ever more common… way to view a decision-making process. Taylor is not a political enterprise, nor was this an effort to silence disagreements with the University and\/or its leadership.\u201d<\/strong>\n<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
\nBy Eric Quintanar Sep 6, 2020 DailyWire.com.<\/p>\n
\n
\nAn excerpt of the lyrics includes: <\/p>\n
\nThere\u2019s a little Hitler inside of you
\nThere\u2019s a little Hitler inside of me
\nThere\u2019s a brutal killer within everyone
\nThe hatred grows inside us naturally
\nWe\u2019re appalled at injustice and oppression,
\nAnd every atrocity that makes the nightly news,
\nBut just give it a thought, if you knew you\u2019d never get caught,
\nYou\u2019d be thieving and raping and murdering too
\n<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/blockquote>\n
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\n“But there’s a bad man in everyone
\nNo matter who we are
\nThere’s a rapist and a Nazi living in our tiny hearts
\nChild pornographers and cannibals and politicians too”
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\nOf course, they weren’t cancelled! Probably because they’re not conservative, but that shouldn’t matter given that both songs share the same message: everyone has the potential to do terrible things. Either way, I’m stunned and horrified they’d let someone go after two and a half decades for THIS! Wishing you all the best.\n<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
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\nThey’d really dislike Paul’s “tirade” in Romans 3:
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\n“\u201cNone is righteous, no, not one; no one understands; no one seeks for God.
\n All have turned aside; together they have become worthless; no one does good,
\n not even one. \u201cTheir throat is an open grave; they use their tongues to deceive.\u201d
\n\u201cThe venom of asps is under their lips.\u201d \u201cTheir mouth is full of curses and bitterness.\u201d
\n \u201cTheir feet are swift to shed blood; in their paths are ruin and misery,
\n and the way of peace they have not known.\u201d \u201cThere is no fear of God before their eyes.”\n<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
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\nThere’s even a little Hitler inside of a Christian university. Who fires a professor for no reason cant you see. Their on their way to hell as everyone can tell, there’s a little Hitler inside the Christian university.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
\nJohn 7:7 The world cannot hate you, but it hates me, because I am testifying about it that its deeds are evil. &
\n 2 Corinthians 2:15 For we are a sweet aroma of Christ to God among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing\u2013 16 to the latter an odor from death to death, but to the former a fragrance from life to life. \/\/
\nThe fact that the school fired this professor on account of this song tells us all we need know about which side of the fence these “Christian University” leaders stand. The “Cancel Culture”, MSM lies and smears, etc. is driven by the desire to silence the truth that, indeed, we are evil and are in desperate need of a savior.\n<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
\nAnd in my best behavior
\nI am really just like him
\nLook beneath the floor boards
\nFor the secrets I have hid”
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\nSufjan Stevens<\/a> – in a song about mass murderer John Wayne Gacy\n<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
\nRod Dreher defends the \u201cLittle Hitler\u201d philosophy professor at Taylor University<\/a>
\n(SEPTEMBER 8, 2020) Professor John Fea: <\/p>\n
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\nI do know, however, that Taylor University Provost Michael Hammond, a historian of American evangelicalism during the civil rights movement, is a good man with the best interest of Taylor in mind.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
\n########################################
\n There is a GofundMe campaign to raise money<\/a> to keep Professor Spiegel going now that he’s lost his salary and health insurance: <\/p>\n
\nThey don\u2019t have the guts to show their face, but one day my misery will be their lot.
\nThey slander in the name of love and criticize what they don\u2019t understand.
\nThey cry for justice while they try to destroy an innocent man.
\nBut I know my Lord won\u2019t let them put me in the ground.
\n\u2018Cuz Jesus never let me down.<\/p>\n
\nWhen will the light finally dawn, and when will my trouble ever end?
\nIt seems the wicked prosper with impunity.
\nBut my righteous Judge will set things right. He always does he eventually.
\nWhen I cry out to my Lord, I know he hears the sound.
\nAnd Jesus never let me down.<\/p>\n
\nHe makes trouble now but someday soon will come his final hour.
\nIn his twisted mind what\u2019s bad is good and out of his mouth come only lies.
\nHe makes virtues look absurd and foolish ideas seem wise.
\nBut there is no devilish plot the Lord cannot confound.
\nYeah, Jesus never let me down.<\/p>\n
\nEvangelical university, Taylor U in Indiana, fires tenured philosophy professor…<\/a><\/p>\n
\nwhatyareckonMy blog on religious and secular issues of the day.<\/a>
\n########################################<\/p>\n
\nTaylor University Fires Professor Over Free Speech Issue<\/a><\/p>\n
\nAn authentic spiritual community does not suppress free speech.
\nA spiritual community does not capitulate to contemporary social or political pressure.
\nA spiritual community does not purportedly bear false witness (insubordination, and a harassment complaint) against a member of their community.
\nA spiritual community does not cut off a respected, tenured professor with one week\u2019s pay.
\nA spiritual community does not deny family health insurance benefits.
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\nSomething awful has happened at Taylor University. It appears to be so egregious that it will probably end up in civil court. However, as a Christian educator and journalist, I would encourage the Taylor University Board to restore Professor Spiegel to his position immediately before they further stain their reputation.
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\nAlso, I suggest the Board simultaneously institute a \u201cProfessor James Spiegel Integrity Award.\u201d It should go to a graduating senior each year, in perpetuity, who does not cower in the face of adversity and steadfastly exercises their right of free speech.\n<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
\nBy Justin Weinberg, Daily Nous philosophy blog:
\n########################################<\/p>\n
\nPress is right to ask: Why was that video about ‘Hitler’ offensive at a Christian college?<\/a>
\nJulia Duin<\/p>\n
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\nSo if you wonder why so many faculty at Christian colleges appear to be a bland lot, that\u2019s why.
\n…
\nLast week, Christianity Today came out with a piece about Christian colleges being \u201cin crisis\u201d because of declining enrollment and the resulting layoffs. It makes a good argument for why Christian educational institutions are undergirding the church by producing literature, scholars, spiritually alive students and keeping the culture of the faith alive.
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\nSadly, the article doesn\u2019t get at the real monstrosity eating away at Christian colleges: The petty criticism of any professor who stands out; the slavish catering to the wishes of donors and the evisceration \u2013- even by means that go against the very written policies of that institution \u2013- of professors who are just too much trouble.
\n…
\nSome faculty don\u2019t want to work at a place that doesn\u2019t have their backs. At the various newspapers I\u2019ve worked at, the top brass usually had your back as a reporter, so when the mayor \u2013- or whoever \u2013- showed up to complain about your story, that person was politely told off. But in Christian academia today, the attacks will often be inside jobs.\n<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
\nTaylor University Fires Beloved Conservative Christian Professor<\/a>
\nTodd Starnes Show.
\nSep 9, 2020<\/p>\n