COVID-19 Community Update – April 10, 2020
Dear Northwest University community member,
The university is closed for the Good Friday holiday, but since I didn't get all my work done yesterday, I'm happily typing on my laptop at home. I just told my grandchildren a home-made "Buster and Phillie" story about two imaginary children who closely resemble them and live near a wood like Watershed Park, which is just a couple of blocks from the university. I hope you are enjoying time with people you love today, and especially with The One who loves you most. I have two academic announcements that will affect many of you.
1. At the start of summer term, which comes as soon as April 27 for some programs, courses that are typically offered face-to-face (whether undergraduate or graduate) will be taught remotely. Whether these courses can shift to meeting face-to-face during the term will depend on many factors, including how late in the term social distancing restrictions are lifted over the summer.
2. Given the unusual circumstances of this semester, we have decided to extend the course withdrawal deadline for the Traditional Undergraduate program to Friday, April 24 at 5:00 PM (PST). This extended time will allow students the additional time to make an informed decision regarding their progress in their classes. Students will need to notify the Registrar's Office, {encode="registrarsoffice@northwestu.edu"}, with their request for a course withdrawal. While no refund is possible, students who for any reason have found it impossible to succeed in their classes will have an opportunity to withdraw.
I wish you a safe and peace-filled weekend as we remember the atoning sacrifice of Jesus on the Cross and his glorious resurrection on Easter morning. I'll be preaching in Spanish in Ecuador via Facebook Live on Sunday morning, and I'll be talking about Jesus' words to Mary Magdalene in John 20:17: "Don't cling to me," Jesus said, "for I haven't yet ascended to the Father. But go find my brothers and tell them, ‘I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.'" Meeting Jesus changed Mary's life forever, and then his death did the same. When he appeared to her alive after the Resurrection, she thought things would go back to the way they were —sweet friendship in close proximity. But the Resurrection and ascension meant that things would never be the same again. "Don't cling to me," Jesus said, but rather "go and tell."
Many Christians —and for pretty much all churches —are realizing that COVID-19 means our relationship with Jesus will never be the same again. Perhaps before, many imagined that we could enjoy a close-but-private "personal relationship with Jesus" that we could pretty much keep to our ourselves. "Religion," as we have been told over and over, "is a private matter." But with the specter of death hanging over our world and the rising tide of fear, churches are forgetting about their four walls and sharing their faith online more vigorously than ever before! Individual Christians are sharing the reason for their hope more boldly also. I know I feel a new Gospel urgency in these times. Let's celebrate the "sure and certain hope of eternal life" this weekend, and share it with others!
Sincerely,
Joseph Castleberry, Ed.D.
President, Northwest University