Teach the Classics in All Fields

I don't see how teaching religion can be mandatory in universities. By then people specialize and many would be unlikely to sign on for a course which included a compulsory element in religion.

But in schools it seems to me that the teaching of religion in the broadest sense is vital. We live in a world where religion of all sorts is making a comeback, even where secularism thought it had won the field.

It isn't, in other words, just a small-scale and rather odd private hobby, but something which affects the lives of millions. It is as vital to a young person growing up to understand what religion is and how it functions as it is to understand geography, electricity or biology.

This, however, masks the real problem, which is: How do you teach religion, given that this word covers everything from Russian Orthodox Christianity to New Age crystal-mongering? It is possible to teach it all from a secular point of view ('these are the peculiar things some peculiar people like to do and teach'), but that is about as much fun as taking a course on the history of music from someone who's tone deaf.

But if the teacher, or the course organizer, has a particular religious commitment, they are of course 'biased' . . . perhaps just like the music teacher who adores modern jazz but has to teach about Bach and Beethoven as well. A good teacher will still bring the classics alive even if her real passion is jazz (or vice versa), and perhaps some good teachers of religion can help pupils get a real understanding of, say, Islam, even if they themselves are Hindus.

This is a real challenge for our time, and the fact that so many people assume a meaning for religion, which comes to us courtesy of the muddles of the 18th Century, really doesn't help!

In the ancient world, of course, religion was something done by the whole community, involving state affairs, marriage, daily life, high and low culture, war, you name it, not just 'private spirituality'.

This, apart from anything else, is worth remembering when we read the New Testament with our historical eyes open.

By Nicholas T. Wright | March 8, 2007; 7:39 AM ET Save & Share:
Previous: The Only Sensible Response | Next: Teach Our Children Well

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Tom

First, I'm not sure the "ancient world" should be our model in the area of religious culture nd education anymore than in anythig else. The world/kosmos is a system of opposition to God and we need thus to be carefull of backing plans for religious education that it would be comfortable with.

It is ironic of course that the knowledge of God, the beginning of any knowledge or wisdom, is outlawed by our school system. But the Church of Jesus Christ is building a new system and a new world.

But let me address a deeper question: Why is it Tom and not "Nick" Wright???????

Posted by: Bill S. | March 17, 2007 1:35 PM
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Tom,

I think this is still thinking "how something cannot be done." It is critical, in the words of one thoughtful observer reflecting on the culture, "we are a nation of Biblical idiots." Then it is time to think about how we can do something. Many of the night battles going on in which we mostly talk past one another might be alleviated with some actual understanding and awareness of religion or Christian faith.

In most communities there are associations of religious leaders that could think about providing resource people for this purpose: do some team teaching (e.g. a Jew and a Christian and balance each other), do it by turns depending on what or who is available, if there is a well respected person available he or she could direct it and do the main part but have people come in from vaious groups when their faith will be directly presented and have a part in presenting etc. The aim is to serve the coming generation and keep it open and fair. There is a better way ... that can shed some light in this present darkness.

Ben W

Posted by: Ben W | March 16, 2007 5:54 AM
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Watch this video from a US soldier about atrocities he and other US soldiers commit on a daily basis in Iraq against innocent people:
http://www.turntoislam.com/forum/showthread.php?t=4315

Posted by: Ashfaq | March 12, 2007 11:18 PM
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Tom - good thoughts -- would you allow a high school music teacher to only expose the kids to jazz? A biology teacher who only taught about plants because he didn’t know much about animals? An English lit teacher who only taught Shakespeare because parents were opposed to teaching Milton? An English grammar teacher who only taught irregular verb conjugations because she didn't believe in regular verbs? An arithmetic teacher who only taught subtraction because he thought addition was an abomination?

It wouldn't matter what the parents' or teachers' prejudice or ignorance about the subjects were, would it? The educational system would demand that students be given a full perspective on every subject.

Posted by: E favorite | March 9, 2007 9:51 PM
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"It is possible to teach it all from a secular point of view ('these are the peculiar things some peculiar people like to do and teach'), but that is about as much fun as taking a course on the history of music from someone who's tone deaf."

That's precisely how it should be taught. The things that cultists do and believe ARE damn peculiar. Cultists should be studied like a slice of leaf on a microscope slide. Would you have leaves teach Biology??

Posted by: Tom | March 9, 2007 9:33 AM
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B'Gone you had me worried with no link to your site... I get worried about you when I see more than two posts in a row with no link... LOL

Posted by: Greg | March 8, 2007 11:49 PM
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http://www.hoax-buster.org

Posted by: BGone | March 8, 2007 8:01 PM
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Greg, I've noticed it's already a hyprocracy. What does it take to change one of them into a theocracy?

Hey! That can be the title for the new subject in the public schools, religious education. "Hyprocracy 101" a survey of how faith is used to create everything from kingdoms to evangelical empires. Then comes the advanced course, "Hyprocracy 201" parlaying the kingdom of God into ungodly earthly wealth. "Hyprocracy 301" for eclesiastical majors who intend to create their own empires.

The Bible is actually ancient history with a twist. http;//www.hoax-buster.org in case you don't already know. If it's factual then it belongs in the history class already.

Posted by: BGone | March 8, 2007 7:59 PM
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Bgone,
GWB is leaving 1/21/09 and the new president will take over at that point. So I doubt this republic will become a theocracy.

Posted by: Greg | March 8, 2007 6:54 PM
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Jolly old England may be able to teach religion to youngsters but Yanks have a problem that most everyone has noticed. Teach what?

Evoltion vs a litnany of crawlers like "Creationism" "Intelligent Design" already has school boards in a tizzy. Now we can add "Faith Healing" to Health? Good luck all.

You must be talking about England with "religion making a comeback." It's been in America from the beginning, like a bad habit.

Religion isn't compatible with democracy and did take a big hit with the constitution replacing the Bible as the law of the land. Your favorite American general, Eisenhower changed that, 1956. At present, we're planning on turning this one, (democracy) into the "Kindgom of George" preparing the way for rapture and the return of Jesus, if Muhammad's gang leaves enough for the king of kings to rule.

I suppose the teaching of religion could be justified by "know thy enemy." Patton read his Bible with that thought in mind, every day so I've heard.

Posted by: BGone | March 8, 2007 2:32 PM
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ALM, for a one clicler to your ref:
http://www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/articlerender.fcgi?artid=1392413

Posted by: BGone | March 8, 2007 2:16 PM
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Teacher,
HS English actually. I know it's different for different areas. One of my professors teaches English in the LV Valley and moved from Michigan where things are more controlled and the envoirnment is different. But I have talked with elementary teachers and they all have freedom to tweak and alter to make the lesson plans work.

And Clark County has the 5th largest district so we can comapre apples to apples, your's is just a bit bigger. LOL

PS Ever read Educating Esme? You would love it...

Posted by: Greg | March 8, 2007 2:06 PM
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Greg, as one who has studied to be a teacher and has taught in the public school system for a number of years (in two different states), I'm going to disagree with you and agree more (though not totally) with what Bobster said. Perhaps you are studying to be an upper-level teacher? I taught elementary school and in my district (the second largest in the nation), principals were allowed to mark down a teacher's evaluation if he or she did not say exactly what the scripted text told that teacher to say (and my principal did that, unfortunately, to a teacher). We ARE spoon feeding our children, much to the chagrin of most teachers and parents.

Posted by: teacher | March 8, 2007 1:16 PM
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Hi Ba'al,

You didn't provide the link to the article cited above. (OK, maybe I AM spending too much time at this site!) Here it is (and I was heartened to see that NIH has it in the public domain)
www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/articlerender.fcgi?artid=1392413

Posted by: ALM | March 8, 2007 12:17 PM
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Twisted Sage

I for one would argue in favor of including this classic from my field, sometime before Confucius, but after Bertrand Russell, say in the 9th grade:

A quantitative description of membrane current and its application to conduction and excitation in nerve. By A L Hodgkin and A F Huxley, Journal of Physiology volume 117 pages 500-44, 1952.

By god, it would put hair on their chests!

Posted by: Ba'al | March 7, 2007 11:01 PM
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Twisted Sage,

Your last sentence is just right - perfect!

Posted by: Norrie Hoyt | March 7, 2007 3:54 PM
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Bobster,

Uh there's no polite way to say this but you're wrong. Cirriculms are not prepackaged and then spoon fed by teachers to students. Teachers have a good deal of latitude when it comes to the classroom. There are standards that have to be met and departments do have things that everyone covers and for good reason.

Critical thinking is not dead despite what you think. I know because I am studying to become a teacher and I have been in the classroom obsvering first hand what happens. My classes that I take now have vibrant discussions that can get quite heated and the professors simply tend to moderate them and correct errors. What I have seen are teachers that have a vast library of resources they use to teach (English in this case) their students. They discuss and challenge their students to actually think. There is of course rote learning, how else can you learn to spell and learn vocab?

Posted by: Greg | March 7, 2007 2:41 PM
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Teach the Classics,

You would have a hard time finding an agreement on what "The Classics" are. Many of the classics would be unintelligible to the students anyway. Are the Confucian Analects Classics? What are the classics in computer science, or any of the sciences for that matter. A few years ago every archeology text said that the America's were first inhabited by the Clovis culture. Then a few years ago it was proven that his was wrong by tens of thousands of years.

My point is that many of the classics are so dated they are wrong or irrelevant, you could not get a group of any significant number to agree on what they are, and every year the ALA sponsors the annual banned (burned) book month and most of the books on the list are considered classics like Huckleberry Finn.

The best things schools can do is teach us to read give us a library card then leave us alone.

Posted by: Twisted Sage | March 7, 2007 2:31 PM
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Many people have become so partisan in their beliefs that what you suggest would be heresay.
the public schools teach a "closed curriculum". Teachers have become like a food server at a fast food restaurant. They rarely deviate from the prescribed course. The material is all pre-packaged and ready for instant consumption by the student. Critical and deep thinking are not encouraged. Even at the college level professors tend to teach only their own beliefs. And to squash any open and civil debate in the classroom. Could you imagine a closed minded liberal, and or conservative attempting to teach religion from a nuetral stand point? It would be the same old thing. A one sided argument blaming the "another religion", "the other political party" and or God for all the worlds ills. Its really too bad though such topics cannot be taught in our schools.

Posted by: Bobster | March 7, 2007 11:58 AM
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Bishop Wright,

My impression is the Britain would be more receptive to public school teaching about religion than the U.S., where religious controversy is always at a fever pitch, a tinderbox just waiting to be ignited.

I know that posting the same comment on multiple threads annoys some posters, but here's what I posted elsewhere in relation to the U.S.:

If I were an adherent of any religion I wouldn't want it taught in the public schools. The teacher, if not of my faith, wouldn't get it right.

Think of the poor teachers. Every sect will be after them incessantly and vociferously to have their faith taught about in a certain way. And probably to have other faiths presented in a derogatory way.

Also, it's impossible to teach in school about every religion and sect - there are too many of them.

So who gets left out and doesn't benefit from the free public school P.R.? The Buddhists, the Wiccans? (Try getting a school board to approve teaching about Wiccans or Druids!)

If you think the religio-cultural wars are bad now, just wait until the public schools teach "about" religion, and the kids fight each other over religion on the way home.

All this stuff can perfectly well wait until college.

Posted by: Norrie Hoyt | March 7, 2007 11:45 AM
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There are many places in the United States where attempting to do what you suggest at the K-12 level -- with the best and most open intentions -- would force a teacher to walk a minefield.

Posted by: Ba'al | March 7, 2007 10:25 AM
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Nicholas T. Wright

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