By Tare Youdeowei

TRuth and absolute truth resides in God”. This was the conclusion of Professor Ademola Tayo as he challenged government to actively promote national educational goals. Professor Tayo who delivered the second inaugural lecture of Babcock University on Thursday harped on the need for a committed and consistent harmonization of national educational goals with the nation’s philosophy of education.

In his lecture entitled “the truth about truth: post modernism and its epistemological implications for Christian education”, Professor Tayo noted that though there were several theoretical shifts in the thinking of scientists, philosophers and theologians on the subject matter, the views of Plato and Aristotle are the two dominant competing epistemological views for two millennia.

Regardless of the various cerebral postulations of philosophers across the ages, Professor Tayo noted that the Bible remained the only source of truth and most essential epistemological authority for Christians.

He pointed out that while Christian educators say there are other sources of truth apart from the Bible, they affirmed that other sources of truth must, however, be tested and verified in the light of scripture that is all God’s truth.

Dwelling on the implications of postmodernism to Christian education, he said postmodernists insist on tolerance, justice and democracy as moral values to judge the existing society rather than absolute truth.

Professor Tayo advised the Nigerian government to actively promote national educational goals, which are derived from Nigeria’s philosophy of education.

He urged Babcock and other Christian institutions to further increase the tempo of integrating faith with learning in every aspect of social life

According to him, Christian educators worldwide should help students acquire the techniques of identifying faulty assumption, which, if not challenged can invariably lead to a faulty world view.

Professor Tayo who also is the Dean, Babcock School of Postgraduate Studies stated that “truth is what works and what works today may not work tomorrow, hence a priori and absolute truths may have no place in the pragmatists’ thought.

“Truth is relative and location specific and different situations may bring up the truth, which may not be applicable in another context,” he said.

Notwithstanding, he said pragmatists have influenced the practice of education in the contemporary era through contemporary theories like reconstruction, futurism, and educational humanism.

“The traditional philosophers like Aristotle and Thomas Aquinas held that the universe contains truth of an apriori and objective nature that can be discovered and transmitted by teachers that serve as authourative persons,” he said.