First of all, it means that PLU is part of an educational tradition that stretches back to and was profoundly influenced by Martin Luther and the Reformation. The Reformation was, at least initially, a university event, launched by a cadre of intellectuals at the University of Wittenberg. It must also be remembered that PLU is a university. A university is not a convent or seminary as John Henry Cardinal Newman wrote in his classic The Idea of a University. Neither is it a Bible college of the contemporary American sort marked by fundamentalist triumphalism.
Universities are places where scholars communicate to others the fruits of their study.
That study requires freedom. It cannot be defensive or simplistic, and in the 21st century it requires a diverse student body and faculty. It is part of God's creation. The Reformation historian Roland Bainton has written in his typically earthy and compelling way that Luther embraced secular life-the wonders of nature, eating and drinking, whining dogs, screaming children, married love, intimate friendship, and the necessity of education. Education is demanded by God and is part of the fundamental structure of creation.