Have you ever heard about the controversial research of Dr. Harry Harlow? He conducted experiments on rhesus monkeys in the 1950’s and 60’s. I remember the first time I learned about these experiments. I was a freshman in college, taking a psychology class at Mt. Hood Community College in Portland, OR. Ironically, it was an independent study class made up primarily of watching videos in the library.
Because it was a video-based class, I was required to watch footage of Dr. Harlow’s experiments with these tiny monkeys that he kept in cages. He was researching the concept of “love” by studying the relationship between baby monkeys and their mothers. He watched how their behavior was influenced by depriving the young monkeys of the care of their mothers, replacing the mothers with synthetic alternatives that allowed the infants controlled aspects of maternal care: a wire-mesh mother that only provided milk, another one that only provided soft contact, etc.
As I watched the film, I was fascinated and horrified at the same time. I was fascinated by what he was discovering about the factors that allowed the monkeys to thrive, but horrified by what happened to them when they were deprived of maternal care and normal interaction with other monkeys. And I was horrified even more as these studies led to increased social deprivation experiments with these animals.
The science of maternal care, human interaction, and social deprivation has come a long way in the last 6 decades, and now we have mountains of evidence exposing the destructive nature of social deprivation and the positive benefits of in-person interaction. We now know that human contact increases our levels of oxytocin and serotonin, and this in turn influences our immune system and helps to fight off illnesses and infections. We are now beginning to understand the correlation between personal contact and social interaction to mental and emotional health. And we are now realizing the sad and devastating impact of isolation and loneliness on our ability to live and thrive as human beings.
This should come as no surprise to those of us who believe that the Bible is the inspired Word of God. The Bible teaches that we, as human beings, are created in the image of a Triune God (Genesis 1-2). Christians see in the Bible a description of God as a community of three divine Persons: the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, who live in an eternal relationship with one another, characterized by self-giving love and mutual edification. As creatures who have been fashioned in His image, it makes sense that we are designed to live in community with one another, and that we will only thrive as we reflect that self-giving love and interaction with one another (John 17).
What does this mean for Covenant Bible Seminary?
Yes, I know this is quite a jump, but here it is:
- It means that we are now allowing food and beverages in our classrooms 🙂
- It means that we are trying to encourage students to attend classes in-person whenever they can.
- It means that we will put resources into things like a remodeled kitchen, events with meals, and that we will make adjustments wherever possible to encourage fellowship, interaction and community.
We understand that some students and professors cannot attend in-person, and we will continue to make classes available remotely for anyone who is unable to come to the campus. We welcome and value your participation, and we thank God for you!
For those who are able to attend in-person, we hope that you will make the trip, shake a hand, share a meal, and give a hug to another person.
Yours in Christ,
John Golling
Registrar / Director of Student Life | Covenant Bible Seminary
Faculty Mentor | Kairos University