I am always willing to listen sincerely to any complaint about a Bible course I teach.

However, many of Mr. Farr’s complaints misrepresent critical aspects of that course. Upon taking that course, Mr. Farr stated his goal was to learn “how others interpret the Bible from a literary position.”

I am not certain what “others” means to Mr. Farr, but I presume it means people other than the fundamentalist Christian position he apparently prefers. If so, then the class studied in detail a number of other viewpoints, including Jewish and secular viewpoints.

Some of those other viewpoints do indeed uphold that a Christian fundamentalist interpretation of scripture contains contradictions. Thus, to be truthful and as comprehensive as possible, such views about contradictions must be reported.

So, how is it interjecting an instructor’s opinion to report what “others” believe? How else does Mr. Farr intend to report that “others” believe that there are contradictions in Christian interpretations of scripture?

While one can never claim that all students will be satisfied with any course all the time, Mr. Farr’s experience does not represent the majority of the over 1,000 students who have taken Bible courses from me.

In some cases, Mr. Farr might be alone altogether. Otherwise, how does Mr. Farr explain the fact that twice since I have been here, 100 percent of my students, most of them Christians, have given me the highest score as an instructor in course evaluations?

And how does Mr. Farr explain that I have been nominated Professor of the Year twice by students who included Christians, and that in 1996, I was given this honor for the entire university?

Mr. Farr claims many Christians drop the course because they feel uncomfortable. Yes, about four to six students drop the course every semester, as may be the case in many other courses of comparable size, but it is far exceeded by the number of students who request to take the course every semester.

The semester he enrolled in the course, there were 88 unmet requests to enroll. And this does not count the number of Christian students who continue to take other Bible courses after their first one.

So, might it not be that Mr. Farr is simply unable to study opposing viewpoints in a manner that other Christians welcome?

Many Christians who take my Bible courses appreciate learning the best arguments an opposing viewpoint can provide. Many Christians tell me one cannot claim to have a true faith until one has examined other viewpoints.

Their faith grows as a result.

A Bible course, like many other controversial courses, should allow students to make informed choices about their viewpoint whatever that might be.

Dr. Hector Avalos

Associate professor

Religious studies