How should we teach?

[Simon_Peter]

religion is flawed, so should we make a new one ?

[Simon_Peter]

Should we have religion ?

[Simon_Peter]

How should we teach religion safely?

Hello Everyone,

Firstly religion is the center of much controversy, therefore, the State should be separated from the Church or churches. There by allowing the state to be devoid of any arguments concerned with such issues. However, some people believe this separation does not go far enough. There are specialized schools such as all Christian or all Muslim schools. In displaying a faith’s text it is effectively endorsing it. The state is secular: government schools may teach religion, but not preach it. It is clear that displaying the Commandments is intended not merely to inform students of their existence and meaning, but rather to instruct them in and promote Christian belief. For those that believe, faith is an integral part of life. It is not separable from one’s working or studying life. Parents have a right to ensure that their children receive religious instruction. How can a nation that says ‘in God we trust’ truly be called secular?

Attempting to improve behavior should not mean imposing a particular set of religious beliefs. We need to teach children to respect others of all faiths, not only those of our own religion. Schools need to teach students morality for the modern world, and there’s no better source of moral values than the Ten Commandments. Many schools wishing to display the Commandments point to the moral emptiness of children such as those that massacred their fellow students at Columbine as a motivating factor.

Schools ought to teach moral values and if they do not, they are failing in their responsibility not only to educate young people but also to make them responsible and moral adults. Many faiths are practiced in the UK – it is an increasingly multicultural country. To single out one faith and raise it above all others is wrong. The only possible solution would be to feature the fundamental beliefs of all faiths on school walls – few schools are big enough for that!

Other faiths are positively insulted by the state adopting one faith in schools. The Commandment says, ‘thou shalt have no other Gods but me.’ What is a tax-paying Hindu UK citizen to make of this? The Ten Commandments contain a set of moral principles that are universal. The Commandments are ideal tools for teaching moral values. Their principles can be appreciated by those of other faiths. The vast majority of students in schools wishing to display them are either Christian or without faith – neither are (nor should be) offended by their display.

Even if one is a Christian, why would one want the Ten Commandments displayed on a wall, when they ought instead to be in the curriculum? Many schools might adopt their purely symbolic display as a substitute for proper, rigorous Christian instruction. Displaying the Commandments and teaching Christian beliefs and philosophy are not mutually exclusive. therefore knowing the commandments, one should know the reason to follow, but also the reason why they exist in society. But this is classed as preaching. Merely knowing the commandments does not make you a better person, you also need to have empathy for others and judge your surroundings to create your own ethical code, as you progress through life. This is more a philosophy, however this can lead to segregation of other religions. Some acknowledgment of religion's power and wisdom is better than none at all. In any case, England was founded by God-fearing people who viewed their actions through the prism of the Ten Commandments, and based their legal system upon it. Even those people today who do not share such beliefs must accept their importance in our historical, cultural and legal heritage. Displaying the Commandments acknowledges their importance to our society.

It is unlikely that refusal to display the religious text will result in the drastic action of parents withdrawing a child from school. Ultimately, parents have a right to home school or educate their children wherever they wish – if this means they exercise that option, then so be it. Much home schooling is dedicated and successful. Refusing to allow the display of the Commandments will ensure that some Christian parents will take their children out of school. This will encourage extremism and sectarianism, as Christians isolate themselves from the community. In many circumstances it will lead to worse education for the children concerned.

The state would be hypocritical to supposedly endorse a Christian ethic, when it does so much that it contrary to it. It opens its shops (and its schools hold sporting events) on the Sabbath, though we are told by the Commandment to respect it. The basic moral rules of the Ten Commandments provide clear guidance on right and wrong. Issues like Sunday trading are much more peripheral. There’s no problem with the death penalty in America, as the state has a right to execute people, and individuals do not – but that’s a different debate.

If the Commandments are to be displayed, which version will be used, of the three in the Bible? Which interpretation – the Protestant, the Catholic, or the Jewish? The equivalent passages from the Qur’an? How will this be decided? Will denominational schools that hold alternate versions have to display a (not yet agreed) ‘standard’ version? It is hardly a marginal issue. The original Hebrew says “thou shalt not murder,” not “thou shalt not kill.” Every time the Ten Commandments are displayed, someone is making a choice – a choice about which social, linguistic, cultural interpretation to favor. Who will (or can) make this choice on behalf of all the peoples of the nation, as represented by their children?

This is an attempt to confuse whether there is a right to show the Ten Commandments, with the issues involved after that right has been accepted as existing. Even if the practicalities prove as difficult as the proposition says, that’s an irrelevance as to whether one is allowed to show them or not. That having been said, it is very unlikely that it would be a complicated business, anyway. For a start, why should a standard version have to be displayed - couldn't schools or school boards agree on the most appropriate for their own communities?

How should we teach religion safely, without having consequences of isolation, and without discriminating against other belief systems, or leading to extremist views ?

Regards,
Simon

[Nick_A]

Simon

How should we teach religion safely, without having consequences of isolation, and without discriminating against other belief systems, or leading to extremist views ?

It cannot be done anymore. We've sunk so low that as a whole we can no longer appreciate the big picture so it is impossible for any meaningful progress spelling psychological doom for many of the young . The best that can be hoped for is the influence of private schools that have not yet lost the big picture because they are supported by people with understanding.

It is possible for public education to admit to the necessity of teaching that which feeds the soul along with what supports society. But this would require people who know what this means to be a dominating force in education. It would require teachers to understand how to leave Plato's cave rather than passing along the dictates of the cave. Simone Weil describes the problem

Weil lamented that education had become no more than "an instrument manipulated by teachers for manufacturing more teachers, who in their turn will manufacture more teachers." rather than a guide to getting out of the cave.

The essence of religion is for the purpose of creating individuality capable of freedom from cave restrictions and serving a higher purpose than merely secular. Public education in contrast enforces the guidelines necessary for success in the cave.

It may have been possible in the past to unify these life goals but those days are over. Of course I hope I'm wrong but I do not see any hopeful signs. Continuing as we are, the opportunity will not come again until after we've hit bottom and the necessity becomes obvious.

If you want to get laid, go to college. If you want to learn something, go to a library. -- Frank Zappa

This seems to be getting more true each year.

[QED]

Topic moved to "Politics and Religion" as it is not really appropriate in "Science and Religion".

[Nick_A]

Topic moved to "Politics and Religion" as it is not really appropriate in "Science and Religion".

I know it was unitentional QED but you've just summed up the essence of the problem. Education for the sake of individuality teaches HOW to know. In this way it is psychological as well as scientific. The secular influence has made education a means to condition WHAT to know. This kills the spirit but has become the norm. The topic doesn't belong in Politics and Religion but it is doomed to be a part of it non the less simply because education has been captured by politics.

[Antagonist]

I don't think there should be a new religion. I'm already quite fed up with the ones existent at present time. We need a little bit less instead of a little bit more.

If everyone would be an Atheist there would be a lot less problems.