RELIGEON in PUBLIC schools

Amen.

Indeed. Thats the problem most of us have, I'm sure. Further, I don't like the thought of comparing (and by default, presenting) Christianity alongside other world religions as if they were comparable and meritorious. It might be OK as required for some college coursework or for a discussion with former atheist turned theist Antony Flew, but not schoolchildren, IMHO. We do well to remind ourselves that other religions are counterfeits and satanic in origin.

I couldn't be more thankful for you and others like you, my dear. It is a great battlefield and we need you - I only wish there were more of you. I don't know about the rest of the country but an antichrist religion is, in effect, being taught everyday in the public schools here in the Atlanta area, through a prescribed mix of godless worldviews and philosophies. Children at every level are being taught not how to think, but what to think and how to feel about those who think differently. Words like 'brainwash' and 'indoctrination', far from being harsh or unfair, are terms that accurately describe what is happening to our children, sad to say. I have 2 nieces/nephews in elementary school and 2 in high school (with unregenerate parents) and it is a very painful thing to watch. So I thank God for every godly influence on our schoolchildren.

 

I agree, Scarlet! I am truly thankful you and others who are teaching our children in public schools. There are many Christian teachers who need our support.

Teaching religion in public schools seems to be a very "touchy" subject. For most, it is all right if "their religion" is the only one taught.

I think that a comparative religion course would probably be best taught at the university level, but could be taught in the last two years of high school. If it is taught, then it should be informative as to what the different religions believe.

If parents give a good Christian background to their public school children, then there should be no concern. They should encourage their children to discuss these ideas and beliefs with them.

The problem as I see it is that these classes could turn in to heated debates among students of different religions. This would be up to the teacher to keep this from happening. I can remember the heated debates in my high school classes among Church of Christ students, Methodist students, and Baptist students. So there are debates even when we tend to be on the same side.

 

I see nothing wrong w/teaching INFO about the various religions, I.E. "Islam was founded in the 600sAD by an Arab named Muhammed, Buddhism was founded by a man named Siddhartha Gautama", etc. the course should include the disclaimer, "Since religion is an individual set of beliefs, we are not advocating any one religion; we are merely making you aware of their existence. It's up to each of you to learn more about any given religion, if you wish. While in this school, each of you, as well as each faculty member, will respect the religious beliefs of every other person in this school."

 

I think that TOE should not be taught in schools either. for the reason Athiesim is a relegion and athiest Teach TOE as factual instead of theroy only.
If toe is allowed to be taught in publick schools equal time should be given to teach creation.

let the Child decide which they believe to be true and not brainwash them in hearing only one side.

 

You're comparing apples and oranges. If that were the case, then Buddhist creation stories should be taught as well. So should Shinto and Hindu origina beliefs.

Sorry, but science classes should be teaching science. Evolutionary theories are the prevailing scientific theories, and, like all prevailing scientific theories, should be taught, regardless of whether one agrees with them or not (so long as they're taught as theories.

However, this is not a topic intended for the creation/evolution debate. Please refrain from hijackign the thread, and take that topic to a related forum. The topic here is the teaching of comparative religions. Please stay on topic.

 

I would have to agree. But should humanistic beliefs, worldviews and philosophies be taught, both directly and indirectly, as if they were as important as math, science, or grammar?

And isn't the result of that practice the equivalent of a religion?

 

The religion of Secular Humanisim is already being taught in our public schools. With the exception of people like Scarlett O, Public schools should stay away from Comparative Religeous classes. Not everyone who teaches our kids "UNDER THE TABLE" are good influences. Look what they are already trying to do to our kids!

I had no choice but to take my daughter out of public school and put her into private. Everything she was being taught at church and at home was being undermined.

Kids should be allowed to have clubs after school if they want. If you can have a chess club then have a bible study club if wanted.

I just think that until we get the public school system to stop indoctrinating our kids with Secular Humanisim, they should stay out of the rhealm of religion all together.

 

Well that is a problem to be sure. SH is the mindset by most in the Public School system. But that is no reason to exclude the study of religion.
The fact is; religion is a social paradigm which has great influence on any given society. Therefore, in order for a kid's education to be a well rounded education, he should have studied the basics of any given religion as it pertains to the society he has studied. I mentioned earlier that this could be taught as a subsection in a History or Social Studies class. I say this because religion, per se, has had/still has tremendous influences on every society on this planet. To prohibit such a study is to give the kids an inadequate education; for they have an incomplete knowledge of society as a whole.
JMO

In HIS service;
Jim

 

Exactly That's basically what I was going to say.

Church is church and school is school. That is how it should stay.

 

To add to my point here, how many of you would like to have Joshua Villines, a Baptist Pastor, teaching your children about theology, or religion. Not for me. I will pass.

Joseph Botwinick

 

Administrator's Note:
Joseph B. got Rev. Joshua's permission to use his name in this or other discussions and forwarded the original email with headers to me.

Diane

 

Would you mind sharing some specifics?


My children graduated from public school; my grandchildren are attending public schools; I have taught in public schools; my husband has taught in public schools; my step-daughter teaches in public schools.

My grandchildren have also attended private Christian Schools. They seemed to do well in both schools.

Sometimes, parents tend to expect the schools to teach EVERYTHING to their children. Parents have a responsibility in the education of their children.

Oops, this tends to get off the original subject of the thread. The person who started this thread wanted information about teaching religion in public schools.

 

Posted by Thankful: Would you mind sharing some specifics?

She was being taught the theory of evoloution as fact. Nevermind that she knows it to be false. She was still forced to study and take tests on an entirely FALSe concept.

Was taught that we all need to be open to our gay communities. That it is simply another lifestyle that we need to accept and not discriminate against.

We will not discriminate in the work place but will not accept this lifestyle as NORMAL. It is not normal or God honoring!

In 7th grade she has been taught about "safe sex", condoms, and planned parenthood. She has been taught that abortion counsilling can be obtained outside of parental consent.

The entire arena of sex education is none of the public schools business.

I will raise my daughter as I see fit without the help or influence of the public school system.

Being in a private school she has a dress code. My religeous beliefs are upheld and they concentrate on grades. If there are issues they are discussed with the parents instead of trying to hide things from them.

I know it is difficult for many people to put their kids in private school or to home school. I believe that if there is a good homelife and solid church life that a child can survive public school. I am a single parent and am not up to the challenges of patching my daughter up all the time from the damages done in public school.

 

Thank you, Soulman. I can see why you were concerned and found it necessary to take your daughter out of the public school.

 

It's being done all over the country.
My Dad teaches two high school elective courses in religion in the Richmond, VA area.One of them is a New Testament survey. He also teaches in the community college system there. He says the high school kids are his best students.

 

Different parents have different situations, so I can see why you did what you did, Soulman. However, a "dress code" is a form of unconstitutional control, unless the school pays for every...EVERY...article of clothes, shoes, etc.

I've seen some Christian schools that have MEANT well, but have taught their students that they are merely cogs in a wheel instead of INDIVIDUALS.

 

Posted by robycop3: "dress code" is a form of unconstitutional control, unless the school pays for every...EVERY...article of clothes, shoes, etc. I agree with you as far as uniforms are concerned. In my daughters school they have the young ladies dress like young ladies (blouses and skirts below the knee), and young men like young men (shirts and tie with dress slacks)

I agree with that type of code because it has been proven that when you don't overly stand out there is less rebellion. It probably has a down side somewhere but my daughter is so used to dressing this way that she wouldn't think of dressing in some of the worldly styles out there.

I do let her wear loose fitting capris and jeans at home as well as shorts in the summer. I just agree with dressing her properly.