David Crabtree

David Crabtree is one of the founders of Gutenberg College, where he is the president and a tutor. He has also been a teacher at McKenzie Study Center, an institute of Gutenberg College, since 1982. The focus of David’s teaching at MSC has been deriving doctrine from exegesis, biblical languages, Genesis, church history, and philosophy of education. He is a co-author of The Language of God: A Commonsense Approach to Understanding and Applying the Bible. He has an M.A. in classical Greek and a Ph.D. in history.

Below you will find the following materials by Dr. David Crabtree:

Articles
Audio files

Articles

History Lesson. Describes how historical assessments can differ so dramatically. (1/11)
President’s Address to the 2010 Gutenberg Graduates. Explains the significance of a Gutenberg education. (8/10)
Do the Liberal Arts Still Matter?. Makes a case for the importance of teaching liberal arts, both for students and our culture. (11/10)
Fifteen Years of Gutenberg. Describes the education students receive at Gutenberg College and how it differs from most other colleges. (8/09)
State of the College 2007. Describes the state of Gutenberg College in October 2007 and reaffirms the faculty's reliance on God. (12/07)
Gutenberg Update 2005. Describes the beginnings of Gutenberg College and addresses the future of the college (from October 2005). (12/05)
Recognizing God. Discusses the nature of the “clues” the people at the time of Jesus had for recognizing Him as the Messiah and draws a lesson for believers today. (1/07)
Gutenberg Update 2004. Reports on the accomplishment of a significant milestone in the history of Gutenberg College and offers thanks to supporters. (10/04)
A Different Drummer. Reports Gutenberg College's progress and describes what makes it unique. (10/03)
Academic Freedom. Gives a historical perspective on the concept of academic freedom and shows how it manifests itself at Gutenberg College. (12/02)
Coping with Culture. Discusses how a Christian can relate to culture without compromising himself. (9/02)
Answers to Chapter Two. Provides answers to the study questions at the end of chapter two of The Language of God. (2/02)
Answers to Chapter Three. Provides answers to the study questions at the end of chapter three of The Language of God. (2/)
Answers to Chapter Six. Provides answers to the study questions at the end of chapter six of The Language of God. (2/02)
Answers to Chapter Seven. Provides answers to the study questions at the end of chapter seven of The Language of God. (2/02)
Engaging the Culture. Discusses how parents can protect their children against cultural seduction. (10/01)
The Camera Lies. Examines the problem of knowing the truth about our leaders in a media culture. (9/98)
Preparing for Y2K. Assessed the real dangers of the Y2K problem. (3/01)
The Importance of History. Discusses the nature of history and the proneness to revisionism in the writing of history. (11/93)
At the Feet of the State. Describes the shift of our government from protector to social engineer. (3/91)
Modern Madness. Explores how moral relativism has contributed to our inability to understand the world. (6/93)
The Obstacle of Affluence. Shows the difficulties of growing up to learn responsibility in an age of affluence. (4/00)
How to Prepare for College. Argues for the priority of character development in preparing for college. (9/99)
Why a Great Books Education is the Most Practical!. Challenges the perception that a great books education is impractical in today's world. (3/96)
Rethinking Education. Discusses the goal of education and its implications for teaching strategies. (2/92)
The Lesson of the Exodus. (Exodus) Draws the analogy between how God dealt with Israel in the exodus and how He deals with us today. (9/97)

Audio Series

An Anniversary Medley (Oktoberfuss 2004). On the occasion of McKenzie Study Center's 25th anniversary and Gutenberg College's 10th, Gutenberg tutors present "An Anniversary Medley" of talks at the 2004 Oktoberfuss:
Jack Crabtree reflects on the nature, role, and value of personal Bible study.
R. Wesley Hurd proposes that all forms of art are formed by the interplay of the artist's beliefs and the effort to create meaningfully.
David Crabtree argues that our understanding of the oft cited analogy of the human body's "organization" has significant implications for the individual's life in the Church.
Ron Julian takes a balanced look at the argument of the very popular book The Purpose Driven Life. (Also on iTunes)
Coming to Truth. Gutenberg tutors and others within the Gutenberg College community describe the intellectual journey that led them to conclude that Christianity is true. (This series was presented in Winter 2008 as an evening class of McKenzie Study Center, an institute of Gutenberg College.) (Also on iTunes)
Democracy: A User's Manual (SI 2010). We all love America's Founding Fathers, but what did they really say? Does their plan still work? Gutenberg tutors discuss the history and future of American democracy. These talks were giving as part of Gutenberg College's 2010 Summer Institute. Modeled after Gutenberg College's "Great Books" approach to education, small group discussion of historical, contemporary, and biblical authors is the heart of the Summer Institute. Daily lectures (available here at iTunes U) help put the topics and readings in perspective. Works discussed at the 2010 SI: The Brothers Karamazov (Fyodor Dostoyevsky); The Federalist Papers (James Madison); Individualism and Economic Order (F. A. Hayek); Democracy in America (Alexis de Tocqueville); The Political Illusion (Jacques Ellul). (Also on iTunes)
Doing Christianity. What is a follower of Christ supposed to DO? This course presents a three-part picture of Christian discipleship: "Knowing the Truth," "Embracing the Truth," and "Living the Christian Life." (This series was presented in 2003-2004 as an evening class of McKenzie Study Center, an institute of Gutenberg College.) (Also on iTunes)
Easter. Talks given at annual Reformation Fellowship Easter celebrations. (Also on iTunes)
Exodus. Talks by David Crabtree on the book of Exodus, given at Reformation Fellowship. (Also on iTunes)
Freedom of Thought: Hollow Slogan or Purposeful Practice? (Oktoberfuss 2008). Freedom of thought has been a long cherished tradition in Western society, especially within the academic and scientific communities. Is it still? At Gutenberg College's 2008 Oktoberfuss Conference, Gutenberg tutors survey various arenas where freedom of thought ought to be esteemed and treasured. (Also on iTunes)
Genesis. Talks by David Crabtree on the book of Genesis, given at Reformation Fellowship. Genesis is foundational to an understanding of the rest of the Bible; David's talks explore the implications of the text as well as the issue of how biblical narratives should be understood. (Talk 16 on Genesis 15 is missing.) (Also on iTunes)
How Jewish Was Jesus? (Oktoberfuss 2011). Jesus and all of his Apostles were Jews. Yet by the second century, the church had begun to turn its back on its Jewish origins. The 2011 Oktoberfuss Conference explores the significance that this "divorce" from Judaism and the text of the Hebrew Bible had on the development of Christian thought. (Also on iTunes)
Isaiah (1998). Talks on the first part of the book of Isaiah, chapters 1 through 14:27, given by David Crabtree at Reformation Fellowship. (Also on iTunes)
Isaiah (2012). Talks on the the book of Isaiah, given by David Crabtree at Reformation Fellowship. (Also on iTunes)
Joshua Narrative. Talks by David Crabtree on the narrative portions of Joshua, given at Reformation Fellowship. Joshua is an important transitional book from the books of Moses to the histories of the Judges and the monarchy; these talks explore the implications of the text as well as the issue of how biblical narratives should be understood. (Also on iTunes)
Kierkegaard's Coffee House. Often called the first existentialist philosopher, Kierkegaard has influenced both Christian and non-Christian thinkers. In these talks (given at Imago Dei Church in Portland, Oregon, on April 14, 2007), Gutenberg tutors explore the relevance of Kierkegaard's project to the Christian believer. (Also on iTunes)
Numbers Narrative. Talks by David Crabtree on the narrative portions of Numbers, given at Reformation Fellowship. Numbers is sometimes a neglected book of the Bible; these talks explore the implications of the text as well as the issue of how biblical narratives should be understood. (Also on iTunes)
RF Talks: Other GC Tutors. Individual talks given by Gutenberg College tutors at Reformation Fellowship, a church in Eugene, OR. (Also on iTunes)
Samuel (Book 1). Talks by David Crabtree on 1 Samuel, given at Reformation Fellowship. The story of David and Saul is a fascinating one; these talks explore the implications of the text as well as the issue of how biblical narratives should be understood. (Also on iTunes)
Samuel (Book 2). Talks by David Crabtree on 2 Samuel, given at Reformation Fellowship. The story of David and Saul is a fascinating one; these talks explore the implications of the text as well as the issue of how biblical narratives should be understood. (Also on iTunes)
Understanding and Living with the Dynamics of Sex. McKenzie Study Center staff explore the question of how a Christian deals with the dynamics created by the fact that we are sexual beings. The 9th class, an open discussion, was not recorded. (This series was presented in Fall 2007 as an evening class of McKenzie Study Center, an institute of Gutenberg College.) (Also on iTunes)