The Bible warns us to beware of hollow and vain philosophies that are patterned after human traditions and the elemental spirits of the world. In this we understand that the learning process is not a neutral endeavor. There are competing ideas which are antithetical to one another vying for the mind. Since this is so—and since it is important that Christ be Lord of all, it is important to build a philosophy of education that is distinctly Christian in its orientation. The above words come from the introduction to the philosophy of education that I created when I first began teaching my home education courses. I went back to review this statement after a conversation with some old friends who are now educators in the government schools. The conversation began over this article, "Public Education: A form of child sacrifice." It's a real zinger of a title, I know. But the article outlines well how antithetical the public schools are to the Christian faith, and how this alternative discipleship is emptying out our churches. As my public school teacher friends conversed over the article, I was surprised at how they expressed exactly what I was trying to warn against. Though they probably did not know it, they demonstrated that their understanding of education was not based in a Christian principle. One said that she loves teaching evolution without understanding that the system is radically antithetical to the Christian worldview. Another expressed that school was not a place for teaching Biblical principles--which essentially is an atheistic statement. At the very least, it is an outright denial of Deuteronomy 6:5-9. All this is to say that there is a form of education that is distinctly Christian and there are many philosophies of education that will destroy faith due to their unChristian basis. Some of this can be witnessed in the two classes that I taught in the last year. In my Public Speaking class, we began by looking at the foundation of communication. We discussed that speech isn't even possible without a Triune Creator. We looked at different Scriptures that provide understanding on the right use of the tongue and discussed how that serves as a guide for public debate. Throughout the class we used the Apostle Peter's words as a guide, "Be ready to give a response to the one who asks you for the hope that lies within you, and do this with gentleness." Ultimately, for the Christian, learning the arts of public speaking is for the right communication of the gospel! Obviously, you wouldn't get this in a public school. My creative writing class was also developed from a distinctly Christian standpoint, with the fear of God guiding it. In our poetry section we did not just learn basic structures of meter and foot. The students created hymns! We discussed the nature of art and beauty and sought to express how such things were to bring glory to God. We also looked at other famous works of poetry and prose and discussed how each writing "teaches" because it comes from a distinct worldview. (See an example here.) Of course, these were only a sample of the various ways Christianity shaped each of my classes. I could also go on to talk about literature classes, science/health, history, mathmatics and such. The point I'm trying to make is this: when one teaches, one aims at the heart. In the end, that heart will either be led to Christ or away from him. It all depends on whether or not the fear of God informs the teacher's content and methods. If your teaching has nothing to do with Biblical principles or communicating principles that are antithetical to the faith, you shouldn't be surprised if kids do not grow up in the fear of God.
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Recently the board members of Ashland Christian School decided to extend their educational services into the upper grades by creating Veritas Classical Christian Academy. I had a chance to speak with Director of Development, Rich Policz, and get the scoop on the new high school that's coming to town this fall.
1. Why VCCA? For nearly 40 years, Ashland Christian School has considered options for a high school. Here in an era where young men and women are leaving the church in droves, all while national standards in education are slipping, a school like this is critically needed. VCCA will exist to sharpen young minds with rigorous program of study and prick young hearts to contend for the faith in an intelligent and winsome manner. 2. What's a Veritas anyway? Veritas means “truth” in Latin. We picked that name because as a classical school we will teach Latin, but more importantly, truth is such a vital concept in Scripture. Jesus describes His purpose in John 18: “For this purpose I was born and for this purpose I have come into the world— to bear witness to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth listens to my voice.” The once-great colleges like Harvard have “Veritas” as a motto (Yale is “Lux et Veritas” or Light and Truth), and in a sea of moral relativism they have robbed it of its meaning. We like the idea of picking up this discarded word from the dustbin, and affixing it to our school as a symbol that the Truth of Christ is central in all that we teach. 3. Don't we have a perfectly fine high school already? I guess that depends on what you mean by “perfectly fine.” It is not the primary responsibility of the state to educate our children. I believe that parents are called to be diligent teachers to their children, and that the most important thing to teach is the character and nature of God—His righteousness which demands justice and His love which provides the sacrifice which sates his righteous judgment. A Christian education ought to come alongside parents in disseminating these transcendent truths. They are the key to everything we learn or do. I think its fair to say that this transcendent view of God is not preeminent in our current local high school options. This is to take nothing away from the Christians who serve as public school teachers---often they are muzzled lions, sprinkling in truth where they can. My fondest hope cannot be for schools to “allow” prayer back in or for the 10 commandments to be posted. My colleagues and I are not content to be sprinklers of truth—we are made to sing it out as loudly as we can, and in doing so be a stone on which future generations can sharpen their swords. That’s the kind of tool that parents deserve to have in their job of raising the children in the fear and admonition of the Lord. 4. You intend to be a "classical school." What is that and how is it different from what we typically understand as school? In many ways a classical education is your grandparent’s education. It hearkens back to an older style of teaching and focuses on things that have been forgotten by newer “innovations” of modern education. There is a strong emphasis on Latin, logic, great books, and scientific and mathematical progression. In the end, we are teaching students “how to think” rather than just processing information. In a world where technology puts endless scads of information at our fingertips, it is vitally important that we learn how to assemble that information and use it in a meaningful way to understand what is true, just, and beautiful—with the ultimate understanding that Christ is at the center of such things. 5. I hear that all the course books will be on iPads? Is this true? Yes, this is indeed the case. After talking about your “grandparent’s education”, the iPad is one innovation that we can get behind. Each student is required to have their own iPad for most of our classes (Rhetoric/Debate being one notable exception). Students will be able to download all of the reading materials, and in some cases lesson notes that they will need for their courses. The iPad reader apps allow the students to mark their books and fill them with notes in a way that a traditional textbook would not allow. The school saves money in that we don’t have to buy physical books, keep track of them, and find a place to store them. Also, digital editions are often much more affordable and since much of our curriculum is old enough to be in the public domain, many of our texts are free! Beyond that, students will be able to keep their books with them forever. 6. How does a Christian worldview play into the daily classroom activity? No education, no matter how hard it may try, is neutral. We will be teaching from a explicitly Christian (that is to say Biblical) view of all of life. A Christian ought to view math as part of God’s revealed truth and part of his common grace. A Christian ought to have a different perspective on life than non-believers and this should affect how their lives are lived. There should be a discernable difference as someone “watches their life and doctrine closely.” This is one of the core ideas behind VCCA—one which we hope spreads beyond the walls here. 7. Take me through a normal day/week at VCCA. Our prescribed courses are laid out in more of a collegiate format, so Mondays and Wednesdays will be alike and Tuesday/Thursdays will be alike. Our class periods will be much longer than a typical school, weighing in at an hour and fifteen minutes. This allows for instructors to both lecture and have the opportunity to work alongside their students. Our lunch time will be an opportunity for faculty and students to eat together and discuss life. Fridays will be different from all other days (not dissimilar to the workplace!) and will feature an hour of life-on-lives mentoring in the morning, in which a godly man or woman from the community will meet with 2 young men or young women respectively to share life with a focus on Scripture. It’s critically important to teach the coming generations, but it is equally important for investment of time and influence in their lives in a relational manner. Fridays will also feature a school wide chapel. Another key feature to VCCA, is that Friday afternoons will feature a series of guest lecturers across all of our disciplines, who will instruct our students in an area of expertise. We have university professors, pastors, entrepreneurs, and community leaders who have all volunteered to participate in this innovative endeavor—all men and women who boldly profess Christ and live a vibrant faith. 8. Tell me about the teachers at VCCA. Most of our core area teachers have a masters or a doctorate in the area of study. They are university professors, pastors, experienced high school teachers, with interesting life stories. All are eminent in their qualifications. Many of our specialties teachers (computer, music, art, etc) while carrying a level of expertise, are much younger and bring with them the zeal of youth which will lead to great connectivity to our students. If we had a million dollars and were tasked with starting a small community college, I doubt we could do much better than this staff. 9. What is your expectation once students graduate? In short, we expect to produce students who are able to think and are rich in integrity. So that no matter what our graduates set out to do from technical skills, entrepreneurial ventures, or collegiate studies, they will have the means to acquire the necessary knowledge to be successful and spiritual depth to leverage that success into positively impacting their community. 10. Can anyone be a part or is this just for Christians? As it currently constructed, VCCA falls under the major policies of Ashland Christian School. As such, VCCA is only open to parents who are professing Christians who attend a church. Discipleship is our principal aim. Having said that, discipleship is not so far removed from evangelism… 11. How can one get their kids enrolled at VCCA? They can contact the school office at 419-289-6617 or email me personally at [email protected] I've been pounced upon because I expressed that public education is killing the church. The public school advocates say that God doesn't belong to this sphere and that teachers work is purely secular. However, my daughter's lesson yesterday proves how religious views can and must be integrated into a child's education if you are going to raise a child in the fear of the Lord. My wife and daughter were studying the sufferage movement and the rise of feminism for history. The book was obviously coming at it from a distinctly unChristian perspective. They compared the previous ways of women to that of slavery because women were expected to obey their husbands, were not allowed to vote and did not seek life in the corporate world. They were oppressed by men because they were viewed as having a distinct role within the home and with children. My wife had a great opportunity to do some rather heavy discipleship. They talked about the textbook's rather weighted opinions and then went to the Bible to read passages about real womanhood, like Genesis 2, Titus 2:3-5, 1 Peter 3:1-6, and Ephesians 5:22-24. I'm pretty sure that you would never hear that in a public school. I don't think any public education teacher would dare say that a woman's God given role is to be in the home with her children while lovingly submitting to her husband. They also talked about Margret Sanger (the founder of Planned Parenthood), and my wife said, "I'll tell you, this woman is evil." Imagine hearing that in a government run school. You wouldn't since the government not only supports the education, but also the mass extermination of children that Sanger sought. So don't tell me that education is to be off limits for Biblical truth. You are either for Him or against Him. There can be no middle ground. God is either pushed out of education so that you can be discipled in the ways of Satan or you can allow Him to enter the sphere of intellectual development so that He can be All in all. [The following article was submitted to the Ashland Times Gazette editorials]
With the recent decision to reconfigure the city schools, the thought of home schooling your child(ren) may have crossed your mind. If it has, you may like to know that you are not the only one. Moreover, you may like to know that the Ashland area has a thriving home school community that can assist both you and your child in this joyous endeavor. For over 25 years hundreds of us have been bringing our children home to strengthen the family bond and provide the mental, emotional, and spiritual nurture our children need. One of the benefits of this heritage is that a solid home school network has emerged. Our group, having a great deal of experience upon which to draw, is able to assist you in the transition to, and success in, home education. The Ashland-Richland home school website (www.archenetwork.weebly.com) will reveal some of the vital resources that are available. To begin with, the site offers guidance on how to get started in home education. For instance, there are resources to help you navigate curriculum choices and state regulations. The site will also show you some of the many educational opportunities available for home schoolers in our area. A few examples include our home school gym class, Spanish class, and public speaking and creative writing courses. Of course, we also enjoy many fun filled field trips, picnics, and play events throughout the year. While you may still be hesitant, I can assure you that the rewards of home education far surpass the drawbacks. Some of the rewards include the ability to tailor your children’s education to fit their interests and particular learning style and set your own hours. The fact that kids can typically finish a whole day’s schooling in just 2-3 hours also appeals to them! Above all, homeschooling fosters the relationship you have with your children. As you work and learn together the bond between you cannot help but be strengthened. The home will become the central focus of life and the family will have opportunity to interact on a deep and meaningful way on a daily basis. In sum, home education is a terrific option for parents who find the recent reconfiguration problematic for their families. With all the support that is available, and given the benefits to be reaped, you may rest assured that it is most definitely a viable option. If you would like to talk more about this option, please feel to contact me at [email protected] or 419-289-2552. Matt Timmons Ashland “It is worth while to be a Shorter Catechism boy. They grow up to be men. And better than that, they grow up to be men of God.” These were the word of famed Princeton theologian B.B. Warfield. We might also say that truer words have never been spoken.
For over 350 years the Westminster Shorter Catechism has been used to train children (and parents!) in the truths of the Scripture. This teaching tool has helped to ensconce many souls in the historic doctrines of the faith. For this reason I want to introduce you to the Shorter Catechism (SC) and, Lord willing, give you some reasons why you might consider adding it to your child’s daily curriculum. Since some of you might not be familiar with it, let’s begin by giving you a quick summation of what it is. I. A quick synopsis of its make-up If you want a quick breakdown, I might put it like this: the SC an easy way to study and commit to memory the main doctrines of the faith. It contains a simple question and answer format that facilitates memorization.[1] For instance, the famous first question of the SC goes like this: Q. 1. What is the chief end of man? A. The chief end of man is to glorify God and enjoy him forever. So you see, it’s simple, it’s short, and it really packs a wallop! If you ask any average Joe on the street what his purpose in life was, most likely you’d get a blank stare. The same may be true for a lot of Christians! At best, the untrained Christian would say something like, “Praise God.” But, as the SC points out, that’s only half the answer. Life isn’t fulfilled until we actually enjoy God. Let me give you a few more examples. I particularly like question and answer number four because it packs so much into a brief statement. It deals with the greatest question of all time, and answers it in a simple, yet profound, manner. Q. 4. What is God? A. God is a Spirit, infinite, eternal, unchangeable, in his being, wisdom, power, holiness, justice, goodness and truth. It’s not just hard core theology though. The SC deals with some of the most practical aspects of the Christian faith. For instance, in the second section it details in systematic fashion the meaning of each of the 10 commandments. So if you ever wondered what is encapsulated in the third commandment, you got a good start in the catechism: Q. 54. What is required in the third commandment? A. The third commandment requires the holy and reverent use of God’s names, titles, attributes, ordinances, Word and works. Q. 55. What is forbidden in the third commandment? A. The third commandment forbids all profaning or abusing of anything whereby God makes himself known. The third and final section of the catechism deals with prayer. It summarizes the meaning of each line in the Lord’s Prayer, and provides you with a wonderful way to make the most of your prayer life. Q. 101. What do we pray for in the second petition? A. In the second petition, which is, “Thy kingdom come,” we pray that Satan’s kingdom may be destroyed; and that the kingdom of grace may be advanced, ourselves and others brought into it, and kept in it; and that the kingdom of glory may be hastened. Perhaps the greatest attribute of the SC though is that it is flush with Scripture. Each Q. and A. typically has several proof texts that accompany it. So when one studies the catechism, what they are really doing is studying the Bible and asking, “What does the Bible say about this subject?” In sum, the SC is a tool that help us (and most especially our children) understand the main doctrines of Christianity. Or, to put it another way, the SC provides you with those essential tenets necessary for a robust and distinctly Christian worldview. Now that I’ve introduced you to the essence of the catechism, let me give you a brief synopsis of its history. II. A quick look at its history Life in Europe during the 15th, 16th, and 17th centuries was a little crazy, to say the least. The Catholic church had over time developed a number of problems, both doctrinally and ethically. In the 1500’s some men who wished to reform the church started to rise up. This didn’t sit well with the Catholics, and a long battle ensued between the two. But in 1643 the Parliament in England called for an assembly of divines (or pastors) to help promote the reformation of the Church of England. These men created a number of documents, including the SC. Westminster Assembly created this document because they desired a tool parents could use as they trained their children. The land had been ravaged with doctrinal errors, and they knew that the best way to preserve the faith was to commit it to the children. As a matter of fact, the assembly stated in another doc how important it was to teach children at home. The church said that parents who failed to teach their children at home ought to be excommunicated! It probably sounds rather stringent to us today. Rarely do we see any teaching going on at home in our contemporary context. But you can understand the assembly’s mindset: If parents were not training their own kids, they were guilty of nothing less than paganizing their children (even if they were faithful in bringing them to church each week!). Persecution in England drove many Christians to America. When they came, they brought their shorter catechism and it became a stable of American life. It was so widely acclaimed that it was part of the first text book printed in America, The New England Primmer (1690). The founding fathers of America were raised on the Primmer. As such, it became one of the primary documents that shaped their minds for freedom. It is something to note that in 1900 The New England Primmer started to be laid aside. The Dick and Jane books came along and took its place as the primary reader. It has often been noted that this was a crucial turning point for America as Dick and Jane is a book that is purged, not only of real intelligence, but of Scriptural substance! Yet the Primmer was the life shaping document for freedom minded people in the colonies. Political revisionists will tell us that the formative books of America were books by John Locke, Blackstone, and various pagan authors. They will repeatedly fail to mention the Primmer (and the SC within it) as a key component of equal, if not greater, weight. Perhaps by now you are starting to note that the catechism has some real merit. But let me highlight for you something of its value. III. A quick look at is value I do want to encourage you to use the catechism, at least to some degree, in your children’s education. For it helps us to do three things. It helps us define, defend and declare the belief we as Christians hold. The catechism is invaluable merely for the fact that it helps us define our faith. From the very beginning it was designed to help young people understand what a Christians is to believe. You might even say that it sets out in 107 questions and answers the whole counsel of God. This is what we need too. After all, Jesus told us that we are to “make disciples, teaching them all that I have commanded you.” The easiest way to communicate the “all I have commanded” is by catechizing because the whole bible is summarized for you in just a handful of Q & A’s. What’s more is that today’s youth are submerged in a secular and humanistic culture. Studies show that most kids who go off to college don’t stay with the church. The few who do likely do not know the slightest about major aspects of the faith, such as the Trinity, Creation, or any of the 10 commandments. If our kids are steeped in the SC though, they will have a sound foundation for knowing the particulars of our faith. On a side, let me give you a personal testimony here. I became a Christian when I was about 13. But it wasn’t until college that I actually started learning actual doctrine. When I entered seminary, I was still fairly ignorant. When my daughter came along, we were very dutiful to start her in the catechism. I now say that she knows more about the Bible at 7 than I did at 27. All that is to say that the catechism will help you immensely when it comes to knowing the truth of Scripture.. But not only does it help us define our faith, it helps us defend our faith. The church has always been subject to heresies. It’s no less true today. Satan and his minions are seeking to storm the fortress of Christ on a daily basis. And it is important that we be able to stand our ground. This is especially true for our kids. Our job is to prepare them for life on their own. Education is nothing more than training our kids for life. But will our kids be able to defend themselves when they come out from under our wings? If they have been grounded in the SC, they will. Certainly I’m not saying that if your kids memorize the SC they will automatically become Christians. I am saying that it can’t hurt them. And if they learn it, they will be able to spot imposters and errors a whole lot easier. A couple of years ago the book, The Shack, hit the shelves and was an overnight success. People hailed it as one of the best Christian books of all time. The only problem was that it contained massive theological errors. I’m not just talking about baptism or mid-tribulation rapture type errors. Big ones, such as the doctrine of atonement and the exclusivity of Christ for salvation. Sadly, many were led astray. We don’t want that to happen with our children. Moreover, even in the more particular aspects of the faith we want them to be able to discern right from wrong. If they are firmly planted in the SC, they’ll be less apt to be deceived. Last of all, let me just say that the catechism helps us deepen our faith. As you become more aquainted with the truths of the SC, you will find yourself becoming more enthralled with God. As your children grapple with the truths contained in the SC, you will find them becoming more and more devoted to the God to whom the SC points. I started out with the quote from B.B. Warfield: “It is worth while to be a Shorter Catechism boy. They grow up to be men. And better than that, they grow up to be men of God.” That’s so true. The SC digs deep into theology, but it ends up deepening your faith. I don’t want to sugar coat it. It’s not altogether easy. After this I don’t want you to have some romantic notion that studying the catechism with your children will be all joy and without difficulty. It most certainly will have some rough going. But the time you spend grappling with the doctrines and talking about them with your children will pay off immensely. You will be building spiritual muscles…muscles that (you’ll notice) others in your church won’t have. Let me conclude with this to show just how much impact the shorter can have. A general officer of the United States Army was in a great western city at a time of intense excitement and violent rioting. The streets were over-run daily by a dangerous crowd. One day he observed approaching him a man of singularly combined calmness and firmness of appearance, whose very demeanor inspired confidence. So impressed was he with his bearing amid the surrounding uproar that when he had passed he turned to look back at him, only to find that the stranger had done the same. On observing his turning the stranger at once came back to him, and touching his chest with his forefinger, demanded without preface: “What is the chief end of man?” On receiving the countersign, “Man’s chief end is to glorify God and to enjoy him forever” — “Ah!” said he, “I knew you were a Shorter Catechism boy by your looks!” “Why, that was just what I was thinking of you,” was the rejoinder.[2] Such is the “indelible mark” of the Shorter catechism. It makes one’s faith in God that strong. [1] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Westminster_Shorter_Catechism [2] B. B. Warfield, "Is the Shorter Catechism Worth While?" in Selected Shorter Writings of Benjamin B. Warfield, Vol. 1, ed., John E. Meeter (Phillipsburg: Presbyterian and Reformed Publishing Company, 1980), pp. 383-84. |
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