Why Private education matters
The adage is timeless and true, “that those who have the youth have the future.” By “have” I mean those who have their attention. And no one has the attention of the youth more, than the schools. Children spend more time-consuming information from their schoolteacher than anything or anyone else. The school is the training ground for the next generation in our society and the typical child now spends a third of their life at school from the age of 2 to 18 years old. That is an incredible amount of time in the most formative years of a child. It is obvious that most of what is taught, will be caught in their minds.
Here is the problem: education in the UK is one of the worst (academically) in the world, and it is increasingly antithetical to the Word of God. Let me explain. If I send my son to a Muslim school that had the best math lessons in the world, many Christians will tell me that I have done a foolish thing because I have placed him in an institution that teaches and encourages that which is against the Bible. No body would care that the math was the best. It wouldn’t be a fair trade off. Islamic schools teach from an Islamic world view. Jewish schools teach from a Jewish world view. Government schools teach from a government world view. The government world view is not atheistic. If it were atheistic, God would not be mentioned at all. The government world view is antithetical to the Bible. It overtly goes against what the Word of God teaches and seeks to disciple the children to be wealthy, materialistic, sexually explorative humanist. They disciple the children to consume information and to never think critically or challenge the status quo. Thus, sculpting their own perfect civilians for the future. Many governments around the world have caught on to this.
Adolf Hitler said, “When an opponent declares, ‘I will not come over to your side…I calmly say, your children belong to us already. What are you? You will pass on. Your descendants, however, now stand in a new camp. In a short time, they will know nothing else but this new community. The Reich will give it’s youth to no one, but will itself take youth and give to the youth its own education and its own upbringing”.
Since the World Wars, home education has been illegal in Germany. The methodology of, “no private education” stayed the same, though the ideology may have changed to fit their view. Now there are 30 countries that have made home education illegal. 30 countries where it is a crime for parent to have influence on what is taught to their own child. On top of that, Finland has made all private schools illegal. And the UK is flirting with this idea. Our government education system has gone awol. They are telling children that creation came from a big bang; that Stephen can be Susie; that Santa is real, and Jesus isn’t. And that is not okay. The line of non-negotiables has been crossed, and private Christian schools and home education are the only tenable options. Education is not neutral and Christian parent’s ought to give their children a distinctively Christian education. Asking Johnny what happened at school won’t be enough because the bible describes children as being like those who are tossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by human cunning, by craftiness in deceitful schemes. (Eph 4:14).
The last decade has seen a sharp increase in home education and Christian private schools. There are many who would love to send their children to a private school or home educate but can’t because the current Labour government is doing everything it can to make it financially impossible. Christians who are challenging the Government’s VAT charges on private schooling have responded to the news that four times as many pupils have now left private education. Andrea Williams, chief executive of Christian Concern said: “Parents, not politicians, are responsible for the upbringing of children. Private education, particularly through low-cost schools, is a vital guard against state-sponsored ideology. Many Christians are appalled by the promotion of transgender ideology in some state schools and want to ensure their children are protected and brought up in line with their Christian beliefs. The scheme is being exposed as an irrational and disproportionate attack on families. The sooner it is reversed, the better.”
We must pray for continued liberty to teach our youth the truth of the Word of God. Pray that the church body will be united in supporting new parents to raise their children in these last days.
Pastor Joshua
