No. 1181 -- TEACHING BIBLE IN OUR SCHOOLS!
No. 1181
Jim Davidson...NEWSPAPER COLUMN
TEACHING BIBLE IN OUR SCHOOLS!
There is an old saying that goes, “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.” Of course the flip side of this coin says, “If it’s broke, then fix it.”
I believe it’s safe to say that today our schools are broke, and it’s high time that we fix them. When we have school shootings on the average of one a week during the first five months of 2018, then you know something is terribly wrong. While there are those who disagree, I believe it is high time we teach the Bible in our public schools. There are already a few states that allow the teaching of the Bible in some form, and I predict there will be many more in the near future.
Please understand that I am not advocating an evangelistic approach to teaching the Bible to students, but rather an historical approach, especially the Ten Commandments. Here they are in the short-form, and especially note number six.
1. You shall have no other gods before Me.
2. You shall not make idols.
3. You shall not take the name of the LORD your God in vain.
4. Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy.
5. Honor your father and your mother.
6. You shall not murder.
7. You shall not commit adultery.
8. You shall not steal.
9. You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.
10. You shall not covet.
It is safe to say that desperate times require desperate measures. The Separation of Church and State and its many ramifications is an issue that has been debated from the Supreme Court, to the halls of Congress, and into every state house and court room in our nation, and I am not going to debate it here. I just know that all of our children must be taught that murder (save for capital punishment court decisions) is wrong, and what better place to teach it than from the Bible? If you have read my column for very long you know that I don’t propose a lot of things from an intellectual standpoint, but rather just some plain ole common sense.
For the past several decades we have had people more interested in profit than the loss of human life, and we now have a moral crisis that must be corrected for the sake of future generations, even those yet unborn. And yes, our government does this to collect tax money. People, let’s wake up. We must teach our children morals, character and ethics, and the sanctity of human life. We must not wait any longer to get started. Our future depends on it. There are many curriculums already developed that will accomplish these objectives without infringing on anyone’s personal rights, and there are many qualified teachers who can achieve the desired goals that I have been talking about.
Here is one suggestion: teach it as a course of “Bible Literature” and make it an elective class. Here are the goals for such a class. 1. To equip students with literacy forms and symbols in the Bible, that is constantly referred to in art, music and literature. 2. To give the student understanding of the influence of the Bible on history, law, community and cultural life. 3. To give insight into the founding father’s world views taken from the Bible promoting human rights, women’s rights and social justice. 4. To provide knowledge of Middle-Eastern history (Jewish-Arab), conflicts, geography, and religions. 5. To teach students how to learn and use multiple and complex reference skills.
My prayer is that the right people will read this and have the position and authority to take action. One school shooting is too many, and we must take positive steps to end them, because we all have a stake.
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(Editor’s Note: THE DEAL OF THE CENTURY – Begin your day on a positive note – 365 days for $12. This will benefit the Bookcase for Every Child project. Go to www.apositivemomentwithjim.com to subscribe.)
