Is there room for a higher power in the classroom?

Its sad to read the irreverent comment about Jesus ...True God....The Messiah and soon coming King....the bible says that one day every knee will bow and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord....by your own mouth you will condemn yourself to Hell and destruction...I hope and pray that you will repent and ask Jesus for forgiveness....

I remember going to Religious Instruction when I was 5 (in 1986!). My parents always made me go, right throughout school, because they wanted me to learn about religion. I always asked questions and I always found it interesting, although never convincing. I seriously think it's worth going - or sending your children along - to learn a few things about Christianity, but I have a vehement wish that our schools would offer children the opportunity to learn about other religions in schools too. What would be wrong with having Muslim or Jewish or Hare Krishna(for example) people come along and teach children about their beliefs for an hour or so every six months? I think it would encourage tolerance and curiosity about other people. The more people know about others' beliefs, the easier it is to get along.

Spare the rod and spoil the child. This applys to ALL!! aspects of every childs educational/learning life, today, ESPECIALLY in the classroom, and I don't mean by physical corporate/corporal punishment either, like how we had it, or might've had it, in our days, as very little children, growing up in near similar curicumstances. But the world, and the NZ schooling education system has moved on, and is an ABSOLUTELY AND COMPLETLY DIFFERENT "Classroom" today, than what we were brought up in ourselves. The debate is wether or not to teach religion in schools. Bibles In Schools, or CEF today, has been taught in schools for, well, nearly two decades now, if not longer than. Today, childrens easily imprssionable minds are bombarded with what to do, say, think, act, feel, why are they like they are, how to find out, how to look, what to wear, who to be friends with, who to avoid, what kind of car they should drive, what subjects/exams to sit, what teacher/school-friend to trust/not trust,how to use modern equipment readily available to them to help them make up their minds on all these things, AND SO, SO MUCH MORE!!. Christianity Goals and Lifes Values taught in schools, would be an immense start on helping them break the barriers of mayhem in life, right down, bring a sense of much badly needed peace and normalacy, calmness and rationale in to their ever hectic and overcrowded, ever channing lives. Give this a chance, and see the hollistical betterment in your chlids, young adults lives, and theit famalies too.

From the last census, there were still over 50% of people who claimed to be 'Christian' in whatever shape or form. Many of these represented, I would imagine, would not be regular church going people. I would therefore argue from a purely democratic point of view that there is nothing sinister nor unreasonable about allowing a Christian Religious Education perspective in the classroom, as some appear to imply. The CRE programme represents the values that 50% + New Zealanders hold to & believe are important. These values derive from this Christian belief system. I would therefore argue that these beliefs 'do have a place geing taught in schools to minds so impressionable'. Parents are free to withdraw their children from the classes if they so choose. The Board of Trustees have the freedom to choose whether or not to include CRE in their school. For that matter, the BOT can include other faiths if they wish to. You 'cannot leave the child to make up their own mind' if they are not aware of nor have been taught the options available. The Christian Religious Education programme is simply presenting the Christian worldview & the values that come with it, something that 50% + of Kiwis believe to be important.

At the end of the day we need to look at the big picture. Im just pleased to see that there is forms of good values being taught at schools. Though some responsibility does need to lie with the parents. But at the end of it all, If my child comes out of one of these lessons having learnt how to be a better citizen of the world isnt that enough?

The values we all admire and want people to have come from Christian teaching. These are the same values all schools are encouraging. I believe that when we know and fear God, we are more likely to hold to these values. This is a wise thing to do. The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.

Geoff, check again, evolution has nothing to do with the Big Bang. You’re confusing biology with cosmology. As for science, I’ll believe scientists over ‘people’. As for where the energy came from, perhaps from quantum fluctuations, perhaps from another universe, perhaps it has always existed. This makes more sense than trying to explain where your god came from. Who or what energy created him? If he has always existed, it’s far more believable to say the universe has always existed than a barbaric, jealous god.
Wills, can I back up my claim that there is no God? Of course, just look around. Just like the tooth fairy, there is no evidence or need for a god. Again, ask the folk in Ch’ch where he was in their time of need, or the 230,000 dead in the Haiti earthquake. Not a good advert for a loving god.

trevor - Your priviledge and arrogance is apparent when you consider christianity--not spirituality as a whole, but CHRISTIANITY, the other side of a scale with the big bang. Not to mention your unwillingness to consider that there is room for a creative force in the world as well as the big bang. John - You really think that the best way to encourage people to religion is out of fear? Really? Attend church not because they truly believe in a higher power, but just in case? Steptoe - Those lessons can be taught without religion as a basis. If you think otherwise then I feel bad for you. LG - The comments made by Rachel later sum my feelings up so I am just going to go with 'what she said'. Jason - Troll harder. I'm curious about whether or not this class is compulsory or you choose to opt in to it. If it's the latter, I've got no problem with it (even if I wonder what the blogger is doing sending her kid to it in the first place.)

Thanks for your comments Jason, I didn't realise that an earthquake conclusively proves that there is no God. The last time I checked, evolution was still a theory which lacked answers to certain questions (where did the matter for the big bang come from?, or where did energy come from as it cannot be created or destroyed; without an outside supernatural force). Evolution is NOT the 100% proven fact that all scientists agree on, as many people seem to believe.

Can you back up your claim Jason?