Education at Covenant Christian Academy is not only classical in method, but also classical in content. This is primarily noted in the area of history, with associated fine arts: music, literature and art. Students move through their study of history chronologically, starting with ancient Egypt, Greece and Rome and moving through the Middle Ages, Renaissance and Reformation to the colonization of America and contemporary culture.
This study naturally includes some encounter with the art of each time period, for it is often in the art where we see the expression of the true heart of a culture. The great works of the classical masters will become familiar to students from the very early years of their education.
Much of this art, from the primitive ceramics of ancient prehistoric civilizations to the exquisite sculpture and painting of Renaissance Europe, reveals the human figure in various degrees of nudity. Sometimes it is stylized and exaggerated; other times very earthy and realistic. This nudity was often a reflection of the religious or philosophical atmosphere of the time and frequently adorned cathedrals, monasteries, and other sacred buildings and sites.
While art containing nudity will not be displayed in any public forum at CCA, parents should be aware that students at or above the third grade level will incidentally encounter clear reproductions of these works in their entirety in many of the excellent supplementary resources which we make available for reports and reference. Students with questions which arise as a result will be referred to their parents.
Therefore, we strongly encourage parents to counsel their children to approach these works with appropriate maturity and respect. Students should not attempt to draw inappropriate attention to or make inappropriate comments about such art as they encounter it. Behavior which violates this standard will be admonished and immediately reported to parents.
This policy does not include contemporary "art" which uses religious symbols, events, people, or man (who is created in the image of God) in a clearly deprecating or disparaging way. We do not intend to honor such "art" with a viewing of any kind at CCA.
It should be concluded that our standard is always to think upon what is excellent and praiseworthy, according to the exhortation found in Phil. 4:8.