Gregg Eugene Harris (born November 23, 1952, in Dayton, OH) was a pioneer in the Christian homeschooling movement from 1981 through the mid-1990s and now serves as a teaching elder at Household of Faith Community Church, an experiment in locl church reform. His work helped launch the Christian homeschooling movement in the United States, Canada, Australia and Mexico. Over 180,000 families attended his seminars. His book The Christian Home School was a Christian Booksellers Association best seller in March of 1988.
Gregg lives with his wife Sono and their five younger children in Gresham, Oregon. He is the director of Noble Institute for Leadership Development, a non-profit educational organization. Noble Institute's current projects include the launching of the NobleBooks.org online store, The Rebelution Tour conferences for teens, and the coordination of Good News Project, a newspaper evangelism outreach in Portland, Oregon.
Delight-Directed Study
One of the main ideas promoted by Gregg Harris in his seminars, books, and teaching is the principle of delight-directed study.
Delight-directed study is based on Psalm 111:2, "Great are the works of the LORD, they are studied by all who delight in them." Harris proposes that because God is good, everything that is necessary for human life is also a source of great pleasure. It is when the pleasure is separated from the purpose that an activity becomes sinful, "God dishonoring" and self-destructive.
Harris argues that learning is no exception. The principle of delight-directed study holds that boredom is the absence of learning (or mental hunger) and loneliness is the absence of social connectedness (or social hunger). Therefore, education and study, for good or ill, is nurtured best through what he calls the "power of companionship" among "fellow enthusiasts." This universal method of learning can result in either wisdom or foolishness. As it says in Proverbs 13:20, "Whoever walks with the wise becomes wise, but the companion of fools will suffer harm."
According to this principle, many social ills are actually the negative consequences of delight-directed study among foolish, often age-segregated people, while many of the greatest human accomplishments are the consequence of delight-directed study among wise, age-integrated people. Harris argues that this is why academic clubs are often more effective than classes on the same subject. The social forces in a classroom are often at odds with its very purpose, whereas the social forces in a well-run club are supportive of excellence in the topic of interest to the club.
Delight-directed study is a driving conviction behind Harris's homeschool, child training, and church reform activities. He looks for ways to achieve and maintain age-integration and a high level of freedsom, allowing students of all ages to "delight" in preparing and presenting the results of the studies or labor in a supportive and encouraging social context.
The Harris Family
The fruit of Gregg Harris's ideas can be seen in the lives of his children.
His oldest son, Joshua Harris, is the best-selling author of I Kissed Dating Goodbye, Boy Meets Girl, Sex Is Not the Problem (Lust Is), and Stop Dating the Church, the first of which has sold over 1 million copies. Joshua now serves as Senior Pastor of Covenant Life Church in Gaithersburg, MD.
His second son, Joel Harris, is an accomplished worship leader and director of The Northwest Worship Academy.
His twin sons, Alex and Brett Harris, age 18, are the young hosts of The Rebelution, one of the most popular Christian teen sites on the Internet, and the lead speakers for The Rebelution Tour conferences for teens. The Rebelution is defined as "a teenage rebellion against low expectations."
His only daughter, Sarah Harris, age 16, authors the blog Fearlessly Feminine, on femininity as God intended it.
His 13-year-old son, Isaac, co-authors the blog LiteraryInk, which exists "to shine light on edifying books."
References
- Harris, Gregg, The Christian Home School, Noble Publishing Associates, Rev. & Updated edition (March 1988), ISBN 1-56857-025-2
External links
- NobleBooks.org - Purchase Gregg Harris's seminars in MP3 format.
- Household of Faith Community Church - Download Gregg Harris's sermons.
- Covenant Life Church - Church where his son, Joshua Harris, pastors.
- TheRebelution.com - Online home of his sons, Alex and Brett Harris.
- Good News Project - Innovative evangelism from Gregg Harris.