Best Law Schools for Born-Again Christians Forum

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AlexdKJV

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Best Law Schools for Born-Again Christians

Post by AlexdKJV » Sat Feb 22, 2014 9:13 pm

Hello Everyone,

I am new to this site and would like to introduce myself as well as ask for advice.

My name is Alex and I, as you may be able to guess by my username and subject line, am a born-again Christian. I am taking the LSAT in June and plan to enroll in law school in 2015. I hope to be able to use my future J.D. for the ministry.

I am an Independent Fundamental Baptist (yes, one of those "crazy" fundamentalists as many here have called them in previous discussions within this forum) who stands for the precious Authorized 1611 King James Bible, old-fashioned hymns, hard preaching, soul winning, modesty, separation, the local church, and high standards. Knowing that I will be in a very small minority in terms of my beliefs virtually anywhere I go to law school, I would nevertheless like to be at a school that has some like-minded people or at least a sizable born-again population (NOT Catholic, Mormon, etc. - Yes, I am strongly opposed to ecumenism).

Additionally, I am very politically involved. My political views are a bit more libertarian than those of many born-again Christians and conservatives particularly on foreign policy and "national security" issues. I believe that the US government should return to the gold standard, withdraw from the United Nations (and force the UN off of our soil), stop starting needless wars in foreign countries, fully restore the people's Second Amendment rights, stop the warrantless data mining/wiretapping of the communications of private citizens, fully restore the Biblical separation of church and state (i.e. end the "faith-based initiatives" programs), and fully restore the sovereignty of the individual state and local governments. Essentially, I agree with the US Constitution Party on most political issues and would like to see someone like Ron Paul (if he were younger), Rand Paul, or Ted Cruz (if he is eligible) become President in 2016. As with Biblical doctrine, I do not believe in compromise within the political arena.

That said, I was wondering which law schools would be most likely to have individuals such as myself within their student body. I would assume that most such schools would be in the South. Baylor looked like a fairly decent fit upon first glance since despite the fact that they are Southern Baptist they do have a sizable number of born-again Christians within their student body and faculty. I am sure there are some other schools, including public schools, that lean to the right politically and have a sizable number of born-again believers. I would be curious to know what any of them are. (NOTE: Please do not recommend BYU or Notre Dame - I refuse to even consider going to either!)

Again, I know I will be in a very small minority anywhere I go, but I have learned to deal with the scorn and ridicule of liberals quite well. I would be happy if there were even five other students very similar to me. Of course, the more like me, the better.

Anyone is welcome to give their feedback. Yes, I still love those whose persuasions are different than mine and will respect their right to disagree with me as well. I have nothing against being friends with people who have different viewpoints - I just will not compromise the Truth and the Constitution for the purpose of appeasing others! Just to clear up any doubts...

Thanks!

-Alex

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ScottRiqui

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Re: Best Law Schools for Born-Again Christians

Post by ScottRiqui » Sat Feb 22, 2014 9:23 pm

Regent University springs to mind as the obvious choice, unless you'd like to actually get a good-paying job after graduation or anything crazy like that.

Since you already know you'd be part of a tiny minority no matter where you go, why not go the the best law school you can get into, notwithstanding the religious makeup of its students, and just hang out with like-minded people during your off time?

moralsentiments

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Re: Best Law Schools for Born-Again Christians

Post by moralsentiments » Sat Feb 22, 2014 9:23 pm

respect their right to disagree with me
Glad to see you will respect others rights to disagree, unfortunately they won't respect yours. It's called the paradox of tolerance. Honestly, you're entering a forum of mostly left-minded individuals, into law school which is comprised of those mostly left-minded individuals, and into the legal profession which is mostly comprised of left-minded individuals.

Go to whatever school is going to give you the best employment/salary prospects and keep your political and religious opinions to yourself. For your sake and theirs.

If you plan to use your legal education to benefit ministry, then you will be surrounded by like-minded people professionally. Until that day, keep it to yourself.

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butt-head

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Re: Best Law Schools for Born-Again Christians

Post by butt-head » Sat Feb 22, 2014 9:25 pm

tl;dr
yale

Mal Reynolds

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Re: Best Law Schools for Born-Again Christians

Post by Mal Reynolds » Sat Feb 22, 2014 9:25 pm

Lol

I hate those asshole Catholics too.

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arklaw13

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Re: Best Law Schools for Born-Again Christians

Post by arklaw13 » Sat Feb 22, 2014 9:25 pm

Smells like flame, but I'll bite.

I can honestly say that I have no idea what the religious beliefs of 99% of my classmates are. I'm sure this is true for most people. My school has a Christian student group that seems pretty active. I'd bet most schools have one.

I don't know what exactly you think law school will be like, but there are rarely times for deep political discussion in class. Maybe in Con Law, but I haven't taken that yet, so I don't know. I don't know the political beliefs of 99% of my classmates either. Students and faculty generally lean left everywhere, but it isn't really overt.

Tl;dr: you'll be fine. You'll have much more to worry about than whether people don't like you because you're too religious. Once the questions of where to draw the lines start coming up, you'll have little else to think about.

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sublime

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Re: Best Law Schools for Born-Again Christians

Post by sublime » Sat Feb 22, 2014 9:27 pm

..

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leavingalabubba

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Re: Best Law Schools for Born-Again Christians

Post by leavingalabubba » Sat Feb 22, 2014 9:28 pm

moralsentiments wrote:
Go to whatever school is going to give you the best employment/salary prospects and keep your political and religious opinions to yourself. For your sake and theirs.

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anyriotgirl

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Re: Best Law Schools for Born-Again Christians

Post by anyriotgirl » Sat Feb 22, 2014 9:28 pm

Have you started studying for the LSAT yet? The test definitely has a bit of a liberal bias; a conservative guy in my LSAT class sometimes had a hard time with questions that used premises, etc. that ran counter to his beliefs. He really had to make an effort to get into the right frame of mind to take the test. /anecdata

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anyriotgirl

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Re: Best Law Schools for Born-Again Christians

Post by anyriotgirl » Sat Feb 22, 2014 9:28 pm

sublime wrote:Liberty or Regents come to mind. Believe it or not, there are law schools full of you people.

Maybe even Pepperdine (how do you feel about Jesuits?)
Jesuits are Catholics you heathen

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goldeneye

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Re: Best Law Schools for Born-Again Christians

Post by goldeneye » Sat Feb 22, 2014 9:29 pm

As with Biblical doctrine, I do not believe in compromise within the political arena.

Is this a thing?

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sublime

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Re: Best Law Schools for Born-Again Christians

Post by sublime » Sat Feb 22, 2014 9:29 pm

..

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sublime

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Re: Best Law Schools for Born-Again Christians

Post by sublime » Sat Feb 22, 2014 9:31 pm

..

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jn7

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Re: Best Law Schools for Born-Again Christians

Post by jn7 » Sat Feb 22, 2014 9:31 pm

ScottRiqui wrote: Since you already know you'd be part of a tiny minority no matter where you go, why not go the the best law school you can get into, notwithstanding the religious makeup of its students, and just hang out with like-minded people during your off time?

snagglepuss

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Re: Best Law Schools for Born-Again Christians

Post by snagglepuss » Sat Feb 22, 2014 9:32 pm

This reeks of Poe's Law flame.

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Dingo Starr

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Re: Best Law Schools for Born-Again Christians

Post by Dingo Starr » Sat Feb 22, 2014 9:37 pm

How about Yeshiva... I mean Cardozo?

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anyriotgirl

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Re: Best Law Schools for Born-Again Christians

Post by anyriotgirl » Sat Feb 22, 2014 9:39 pm

sublime wrote:
anyriotgirl wrote:
sublime wrote:Liberty or Regents come to mind. Believe it or not, there are law schools full of you people.

Maybe even Pepperdine (how do you feel about Jesuits?)
Jesuits are Catholics you heathen

That's right my bad.

OP's problem is that all the more reputable schools that are closest to OP's ideology are catholic/jesuit or mormon. But there is always regents and liberty.
Interestingly enough, catholics are pretty liberal compared to other types of christians (with some high profile exceptions). Church has been cool for evolution for like decades now, and despite the birth control kerfuffle going on right now, I would be shocked if you could find a catholic who has never used a condom/taken the pill, or even waited for marriage. The pope doesn't even subscribe to biblical literalism. Fundies are a whole nother ballgame, and tend not to be so great at establishing reputable schools at all levels of education for obvious reasons.

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anyriotgirl

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Re: Best Law Schools for Born-Again Christians

Post by anyriotgirl » Sat Feb 22, 2014 9:40 pm

goldeneye wrote:
As with Biblical doctrine, I do not believe in compromise within the political arena.

Is this a thing?
unfortunately. see: congress

Lord Randolph McDuff

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Re: Best Law Schools for Born-Again Christians

Post by Lord Randolph McDuff » Sat Feb 22, 2014 10:01 pm

AlexdKJV wrote:Hello Everyone,

I am new to this site and would like to introduce myself as well as ask for advice.

My name is Alex and I, as you may be able to guess by my username and subject line, am a born-again Christian. I am taking the LSAT in June and plan to enroll in law school in 2015. I hope to be able to use my future J.D. for the ministry.

I am an Independent Fundamental Baptist (yes, one of those "crazy" fundamentalists as many here have called them in previous discussions within this forum) who stands for the precious Authorized 1611 King James Bible, old-fashioned hymns, hard preaching, soul winning, modesty, separation, the local church, and high standards. Knowing that I will be in a very small minority in terms of my beliefs virtually anywhere I go to law school, I would nevertheless like to be at a school that has some like-minded people or at least a sizable born-again population (NOT Catholic, Mormon, etc. - Yes, I am strongly opposed to ecumenism).

Additionally, I am very politically involved. My political views are a bit more libertarian than those of many born-again Christians and conservatives particularly on foreign policy and "national security" issues. I believe that the US government should return to the gold standard, withdraw from the United Nations (and force the UN off of our soil), stop starting needless wars in foreign countries, fully restore the people's Second Amendment rights, stop the warrantless data mining/wiretapping of the communications of private citizens, fully restore the Biblical separation of church and state (i.e. end the "faith-based initiatives" programs), and fully restore the sovereignty of the individual state and local governments. Essentially, I agree with the US Constitution Party on most political issues and would like to see someone like Ron Paul (if he were younger), Rand Paul, or Ted Cruz (if he is eligible) become President in 2016. As with Biblical doctrine, I do not believe in compromise within the political arena.

That said, I was wondering which law schools would be most likely to have individuals such as myself within their student body. I would assume that most such schools would be in the South. Baylor looked like a fairly decent fit upon first glance since despite the fact that they are Southern Baptist they do have a sizable number of born-again Christians within their student body and faculty. I am sure there are some other schools, including public schools, that lean to the right politically and have a sizable number of born-again believers. I would be curious to know what any of them are. (NOTE: Please do not recommend BYU or Notre Dame - I refuse to even consider going to either!)

Again, I know I will be in a very small minority anywhere I go, but I have learned to deal with the scorn and ridicule of liberals quite well. I would be happy if there were even five other students very similar to me. Of course, the more like me, the better.

Anyone is welcome to give their feedback. Yes, I still love those whose persuasions are different than mine and will respect their right to disagree with me as well. I have nothing against being friends with people who have different viewpoints - I just will not compromise the Truth and the Constitution for the purpose of appeasing others! Just to clear up any doubts...

Thanks!

-Alex
University of Oklahoma.

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bearsfan23

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Re: Best Law Schools for Born-Again Christians

Post by bearsfan23 » Sat Feb 22, 2014 10:10 pm

OP seems like a lot of fun at parties

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cotiger

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Re: Best Law Schools for Born-Again Christians

Post by cotiger » Sat Feb 22, 2014 10:12 pm

Baylor. Baptist as fuq.

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Ohiobumpkin

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Re: Best Law Schools for Born-Again Christians

Post by Ohiobumpkin » Sat Feb 22, 2014 10:34 pm

If you are considering going into ministry, I would recommend a law school where you could pursue a J.D/M. Div. or Ph.D. in theology. M.Div. sounds like it is more up your alley if you plan to do ministry work. Yale and Harvard both have excellent J.D. and M.Div. programs. Duke and Notre Dame also have great law and M.Div. programs, but I don't know if you have reservations about attending Catholic schools given your evangelical protestant background. Either way, I would strongly recommend you choose a law school whose broader university also has a college that offers M.Div. or Ph.D. degrees in theology. Best of luck!

AlexdKJV

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Re: Best Law Schools for Born-Again Christians

Post by AlexdKJV » Sat Feb 22, 2014 10:43 pm

Hello Everyone,

Thanks for the feedback - good, bad, ugly, etc.

Just so all of you know, I am not a troll, or "flame" as this site calls it. You may view my Twitter profile to verify: @AlexdlT1611 All tweets, followers, and following are public and real, and I follow back anyone who follows me and is not a spammer or someone who only posts vulgar messages (they get blocked and reported), so I follow plenty of liberals too.

To reiterate for the third time, I know I will be in the minority anywhere I go. I would prefer to be around born-again Christians though I will love and try to be friends with anyone around me, including those who do not think so warmly of me. That said, I will not compromise my stand for the Lord and associate myself with worldly activities in accordance with 2 Corinthians 6:14-17. I do not worry about political correctness; I just call 'em as I see 'em, as the expression goes. I do not intend to offend people with my stand, but if I do, so be it.

Different opinions do not bother me one iota, nor do people who mock and ridicule my opinion. His Word promises, in many places, that I and all born-again believers who are living for the Lord will be mocked, ridiculed, and in many cases, as the Apostle Paul and others of the early church were, tortured and even executed for their faith. I do not imagine I will ever be in the latter category, but I certainly have gotten my share of opposition and much of it has been fierce. I am secure enough in my salvation to not let these petty attacks bother me:
For the which cause I also suffer these things: nevertheless I am not ashamed: for I know whom I have believed, and am persuaded that he is able to keep that which I have committed unto him against that day. - 2 Timothy 1:12; written by Paul very shortly before he was executed.

Those people who let other people's attacks on their opinions bother them are insecure. I will treat those who disagree with me with respect, and certainly would appreciate it if such favor were returned, but if it is not returned it will not bother me. As someone who bases my viewpoints and opinions on facts rather than feelings, I am not concerned about what my fellow sinners, including fellow believers, "think" of or my beliefs or how they "feel" about them. I am only concerned about what is - and will forevermore be - the Truth.

As far as the politics go, I mentioned my beliefs in-depth because I would like to give people a picture of where I stand. I do not expect to be discussing politics every class or even in most classes in law school, but the sad fact is that the far left within academia have inserted their biases in teaching many disciplines (or areas of law in this case), even within the most seemingly innocuous and apolitical subjects. I sincerely wish I did not have to worry about politics being brought up in the classroom - a professor's job is to teach the subject matter of the class and not to indoctrinate - but the reality is that I do.

Additionally, I would like to get politically involved with politically like-minded individuals, including those who do not share my doctrinal beliefs, during my very limited spare time when I am not in class, in church, studying, sleeping, or working (I intend to work the twenty hours per week that law schools allow). Therefore, I felt it would be appropriate for this reason as well.

As a final thought, I sincerely do not believe that I am "better" than anyone, and I certainly am not "perfect." I am a sinner just like everyone else on the planet. I do not always live up to my principles and convictions and it grieves me very much when I do not. I sincerely regret if I come across as patronizing - again it is not my intent to offend (though it does happen).

I will respond to a few individual posts that I have not addressed herein as well.

Thanks!

-Alex

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xRON MEXiCOx

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Re: Best Law Schools for Born-Again Christians

Post by xRON MEXiCOx » Sat Feb 22, 2014 10:47 pm

BYU

AlexdKJV

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Re: Best Law Schools for Born-Again Christians

Post by AlexdKJV » Sat Feb 22, 2014 10:49 pm

moralsentiments wrote:
respect their right to disagree with me
Glad to see you will respect others rights to disagree, unfortunately they won't respect yours. It's called the paradox of tolerance. Honestly, you're entering a forum of mostly left-minded individuals, into law school which is comprised of those mostly left-minded individuals, and into the legal profession which is mostly comprised of left-minded individuals.

Go to whatever school is going to give you the best employment/salary prospects and keep your political and religious opinions to yourself. For your sake and theirs.

If you plan to use your legal education to benefit ministry, then you will be surrounded by like-minded people professionally. Until that day, keep it to yourself.
The dearth of Christian attorneys out there is precisely the reason I intend to enter the profession.

Seriously? What are you waiting for?

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