Months after winning a national title, Harvard's debate team faced their toughest opponent yet—a group of prison inmates from New York. An article in the British newspaper The Guardian reported: "The showdown took place at the Eastern correctional facility in New York, a maximum-security prison where convicts can take courses taught by faculty from nearby Bard College, and where inmates have formed a popular debate club. Last month they invited the Ivy League undergraduates and this year's national debate champions over for a friendly competition. A three-judge panel concluded that the Bard team had raised strong arguments that the Harvard team had failed to consider and declared the team of inmates victorious." The Harvard team posted a note on their Facebook page graciously congratulating the inmates.

Possible Preaching Angle:

The prison team certainly isn't a stand-in for the church, but you have to love the way that God chooses the "foolish things" of this world to shame the wise. This story also shows why showing partiality () may lead to some wrong conclusions about who is up and who is down.

Source:

Lauren Gambino, “Harvard's prestigious debate team loses to New York prison inmates,” The Guardian (10-7-15)