My girls attend a ballet studio that offers a class for homeschoolers, and our girls go to that class this year. The other day I sat in there with another mom who told me that the reason she wanted to homeschool is because she wanted her kids to have prayer in their school. We started talking about how devoid of spiritual things the state schools are. It got me thinking about how our initial reasoning for wanting to homeschool was the incorrect version of, and cruddy way they teach, history in schools. As we researched other reasons people homeschool, our vigor and resolution become ever more firm. I have to admit that prayer in school only seemed like a nice perk and it didn't really cross my mind as a sole reason. I am almost ashamed to say that because as I grow as a mother in this increasingly wicked world my children's spiritual development and understanding has become the number one concern I have and temporal education is becoming less important. I'm beginning to find more and more flaws in myself and desiring to be a better example to my children in all that I do. This also means I beat myself up more now. :)
As we pledge the flag of the United States of America, we all are in the same place every morning. This is my son, W's, point of view while he pledges the flag.
Today, after said the pledge, he declared, "I love that when I look at the flag I can see Jesus as if he is presenting the flag and saying, 'I give you this free country'." It made me smile and feel good that he understands things in that way.
This is just a small representation of what happens all the time in our studies. When we study history or science my kids sometimes ask spiritual questions or I feel inspired to elaborate or pull out the scriptures. This causes me to reflect on my own education, because that's really the only inside view I have of the public education system (and I think it's the most important point of view), and I NEVER received spiritual understanding while learning temporal things at school. That came later as an adult. The two were always completely separate to me. Oh how wrong this seems! I feel like starting our official studies with prayer really helps spiritual learning and temporal learning to coincide. And that's how it SHOULD be! God put us on earth to have a learning experience. Are we suppose to say to our children that they should have to go to a place to learn that excludes God? All things come from God and without that perspective as we learn, we cannot be strong in our journey back to him.
I'm so grateful to live in a country that gives me parental rights so that I can have full parental choice in my child's education, and I will fight any effort to take that away and dishonor the Constitution of this land. Homeschooling is the only way to give me that full parental choice, any other educational avenue makes decisions for me as a parent and that I will not do. My children are mine and they will have prayer in their school.
I love what you wrote. Up to the time I was in 4th grade we had prayer in school. I have to say that I felt uncomfortable because the prayer that was being said was one that the school approved. In other words, it was a short memorized poem, of sorts, that didn't feel like the praying I had been taught at home. I sat quietly during this state-authorized prayer because that was what the teacher expected me to do, but I don't remember folding my arms and bowing my head. That reverence was associated with addressing Heavenly Father and closing in the name of Jesus Christ--and the school prayer did not have those elements. As I've matured I see that prayers actually come in a variety of forms and I appreciate when someone says a prayer at a public event, no matter what format is used. I'm grateful the act of prayer is used and that there is an invitation for God's hand is invoked at any time and in any place. But, as a child I didn't understand it. My point is that if we have prayer in school there needs to be instruction on spirituality, tolerance, the nature of God and all the other religious concepts associated with the diverse audience in public academia. So--my vote is to keep it out of schools. I would not want the state to make a decision on spiritual or religious content related to the types of prayers that are said. It's a shame we have become so secular but it makes the case for the need of parents to teach their children at home.
ReplyDeleteI also love saying the pledge. That was part of my school experience and I liked that.