Christian Carnival CLXXII
May 16th, 2007 by Amanda
This week’s carnival is up at Crossroads. Highlights:
- Ishtar reflects on her mom and cancer in Back to Square One.
- Jennifer writes An Open Letter to the Pastor and explores some pretty tough issues that can be found in church.
- Lingamish explores the meaning of the word “tempt” in I have a problem with temptation.
I don’t usually post when I disagree with an article in the Carnival, but I have to say something about Defense of Public Schools??? Elizabeth takes a look at five “common” Christian defenses of Public Schools and essentially tears them apart. Her stance in the end is that Christians shouldn’t send their kids to public school because “it’s hard for me to understand sending children to spend at least six hours a day in the midst of temptation.”
My early childhood is somewhat fuzzy. I’m not positive of how the timeline went, but I do know that I went to a Christian school for half of my kindergarten year and was homeschooled for the rest of it because my parents couldn’t afford the private school. I also remember that while my class was learning how to read “See spot run,” I was reading Little House on the Prairie. My mom homeschooled me half of kindergarten and all of first and second grades. Curriculum wise, I was six years old and had completed the second grade. My parents opted to send me to public school after that, and because of my age they placed me in the first grade. Obviously I was bored to tears because I was ahead of what they were doing. So they moved me into a combination first and second grade class. Technically, I was in the first grade, but they had me doing second grade work (still bored). The next year, they put me in 3rd grade. My transcripts show that I skipped the second grade. During that school year, I ended up back in Christian school. I don’t remember anything I was taught that year except that I was paddled for lying to the teacher, when in reality it was a miscommunication. I also remember that the pastor/principal of that church/school told my dad that he should do a better job of controlling my mom and that when they got divorced that year he told my dad he was going to hell for not keeping his family together.
That was the last time I went to Christian school.
I graduated from public school, more educated than friends I had who did go to a Christian school. My faith was strong and intact. And I have every intention of sending my own children to public school. If parents aren’t teaching their kids in the home how to keep their faith strong in the midst of adversity, then the problems they have run deeper than whether or not to send their kids to public school.
I suppose you probably guessed already, but the author with whom you disagree has been scheduled for a poo sandwich. Her “How Darwinism Hurts Women” post is absolutely reprehensible… and has *gasp* nothing whatsoever to do with actual evolutionary theory. However, since her info came from the Institute for Creation Research, I’m not surprised.
I went to Christian Schools from elementary through 10th grade.
At the 10th grade level I was expelled from my christian school because I challenged their stance on not questioning the pastor and my teachers.
I question all sorts of things but that’s what I feel the Bible instructs us to do, and not be robots.
I went to Public SChool for 11th and 12th grade and found it a much better learning environment, and more credible teachers.
I definitely like both in some ways, but the public school was better organized and if you wanted to work the system and get into a big college, you could get it for free.
Oh well. I can’t say that it works for everyone.
I went to a Christian school for a good part of my elementary years. Then I went public from 6th grade and on.
All I can say is, public school keeps kids from being sheltered in a bubble.
When I graduated high school I had the option of attending Biola University. I decided not to even apply.
While I say it’s good for Christians to learn and to learn with each other, I also have to say that we live on a planet full of different people and different beliefs. It’s one thing to study with other Christians. But it’s another to be constantly surrounded by nothing BUT other Christians. How else are we to go out of our comfort zones if we keep ourselves isolated all the time?
I hate to say this, but that Christian school I went to ended up going bankrupt and closing down. The pastor cheated on his wife and embezzeled funds. And then most of the kids I knew who went there, grew up to be the biggest hypocrites I know.
Christians shouldn’t be afraid to be out in the world. How else would you or your children get strong? Hiding your kids from temptation that they’ll end up facing eventually??? You just got to raise them to be strong enough to simply say, “No.” It only makes them stronger, as a person and in their faith. We aren’t ever given to face a temptation that is stronger than us anyway.
Her argument bites.
I can honestly say that any apologetics that I have ever learned have been by sitting in a secular university and having to defend what I believe, sometimes vigorously.
When we create bubbles of Christian thought in the middle of chaos we introvert and only focus on ourselves and forget the greatest mandates of our faith “love thy neighbor” and “go unto all the world making disciples”.
In the end we will look just like them, and that is a bad thing.
Carmel, you sure we didn’t go to the same school? I went to a Christian school up until sixth grade, and an affair (pastor’s wife and a boy from the youth group) plus some sneaky money lifting basically killed off the school. Their hiring of someone not remotely certified to teach even basic breathing skills was the final nail.