The
battle cry of conservatives whenever slain children’s bodies hallow hallways, “Put
God Back into Schools” mystifies me. For thirty-five years I’ve worked within
the public-school systems. I’ve stood reverently through daily rituals of
moments of silence and respectfully kept mute as faculty members and staff
openly pray “in Jesus’s name.” I’ve watched students bow their heads before
taking major exams and preach personal beliefs to their friends.
These
people don’t understand that the business of public schools isn’t to
proselytize. That responsibility lies with parents, family, communities—religious
leaders. Many educators’ strong beliefs seep out of their pores. They may not
sermon while in front of the classroom, but their religious agenda pervades and
influences how they approach everything they do. Anyone observing within the public-school
system knows that the students most oppressed are those with no faith.
I feel confused
that anyone’s religion professes that if the Ten Commandments aren’t posted in
the classrooms of public schools, the punishment of an avenging God is a
logical result.
What kind of God
do these people believe in?
The Bible is not the perfect revelation of God: Jesus is. Jesus is the only perfect theology. Perfect theology is not a system of theology; perfect theology is a person. Perfect theology is not found in abstract thought; perfect theology is found in the Incarnation. Perfect theology is not a book; perfect theology is the life that Jesus lived. What the Bible does infallibly and inerrantly is point us to Jesus, just like John the Baptist did. That is not for public school to teach; that is the clergy and parents job to do. Teachers are to educate and prepare students with core skills and knowledge for adulthood and functionality to be contributing members within society; not augment pulpit sermons from Sunday morning.
ReplyDeleteThe Old Testament tells the story of Israel coming to know the living God, but the story doesn’t stop until we arrive at Jesus. It isn’t Joshua, the son of Nun, who gives us the full revelation of God but Yeshua of Nazareth. It’s not the warrior-poet David who gives us the full revelation of God but the greater Son of David, Jesus Christ. We understand Joshua and David as men of their time, but we understand Jesus Christ as “the exact imprint of God’s very being” (Hebrews 1:3).
Once those that believe realize that Jesus is the perfect icon of their living God, they should be forever prohibited from using the Old Testament to justify the use of violence. Using Scripture as a divine license for the implementation of violence is a dangerous practice that must be abandoned by anyone who walks in the light of Christ. If they continue to hold to the bad habit of citing the Old Testament to sanction violence, how do they know that they won’t use those texts to justify a new genocide?
Seems to me, many believe their "rights" outweigh the rights of others just because they are a follower of Christ.,
A perfect response! Thank you, Danny.
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