Christian Education, Part 2
Posted on April 12, 2007
Filed Under Worldview |
We are considering, for a few days, the criticality of Christian education. Yesterday, I made the proposition that the founders of this country viewed it as an imperative for the future of the republic. That would raise eyebrows and ire today. Let me give you some historical evidence.
First, whether you look at the early textbooks or the early academic institutions you will find a very clear and common theme: the Bible and Christian principles drawn from the Bible. The New England Primer, which was the primary textbook from which children were taught to read, teaches the alphabet this way: “‘A’, in Adam’s Fall, we sinned, all.” It included lessons such as “Love God” and “Fear God” and “Take not God’s name in vain”. It taught the catechism, a question and answer format that students would memorize, all of them teaching biblical truths. The original “Rules and Precepts” for Harvard University stated this:
“Let every student be plainly instructed, and earnestly pressed to consider well, the main end of his life and studies is, to know God and Jesus Christ which is eternal life (John 17:3) and therefore lay Christ at the bottom, as the only foundation of all sound knowledge and learning.”
Princeton’s founding statement was:
“Cursed is all learning that is contrary to the Cross of Christ.”
And so it went…from the McGuffey Readers to Columbia University…all with similar themes and founding principles.
Okay, I gotta run, but tomorrow I want to consider the founder’s statements regarding education and then we will look at why they thought having this kind of deep Christian training of children was critical for the life of the republic.
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Dr. Del Tackett is president of the Focus on the Family Institute and Senior Vice President to Focus on the Family. He is also the architect and chief spokesperson for Focus on the Family's The Truth Project--a nationwide initiative designed to bring the Christian worldview to the body of Christ.
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