I recently stumbled across Harvard’s mission statement issued in the year 1642: “Everyone shall consider as the main end of his life and studies, to know God and Jesus Christ, which is eternal life.”

This, of course, is based on a scripture from the gospel of John: “And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent.” Harvard’s original purpose — grounded in scripture — was to help students know God and thereby obtain eternal life.

My, how things have changed.

And, of course, it’s not just Harvard that’s changed. It’s essentially every public university and public school everywhere. God has been escorted out the door in the name of “separating church and state.” And therefore, the rising generation is growing up with the prime purpose of education — and the prime purpose of life — omitted from the whole of their educational experience from age five upwards.

A thundering message

In considering his educational upbringing, professor Chris Schlect said,

In not mentioning God, my public school teachers preached a thundering message daily. By implication, they taught that God is not relevant to most areas of life… [W]ith every lesson, in every class period, all day every day for 12 years, I was being taught to think like an atheist in the academic realm and didn’t even know that I was being indoctrinated.

Centuries before kindergartners and preschoolers were subjected to sexual debauchery and high schoolers were instructed to take pride in sexual deviance, reformer and revolutionary Martin Luther foresaw the end of the road for schools in which belief in God was divorced from education. In 1537, he wrote:

I am much afraid that schools will prove to be the gates of hell unless they diligently labour in explaining the Holy Scriptures, engraving them in the hearts of youth. I advise no one to place their child where the Scriptures do not reign paramount. Every institution in which men are not increasingly occupied with the Word of God must become corrupt.

And by and large, they have. The idea of the Scriptures reigning paramount in schools is laughable today, even to people who believe in them.

Close to home

Near the end of the last school year, I had a conversation with my young son about remembering God and making good choices every day at school. He looked at me and said, “I don’t think about Jesus ever while I’m at school.”

This hit me hard: My kid doesn’t think about Jesus all day long.

But then again, what is there in the typical school environment that would lead my son’s mind to God? Almost nothing. It could be argued that he should carry God with him wherever he goes, but is it really fair for me to talk to my seven-year-old for a few minutes every day about God and then send him into a godless environment for seven hours a day and expect him to keep God close to his heart?

I don’t need school to be just like Sunday school, but I need my son to spend his days in a place that builds faith while teaching him to build things. I need him to stand in awe alongside awestruck teachers who acknowledge the grandeur of God in everything — the symmetry of flowers, the masterful design of the human body, the curling of the planets through space. I need an educational paradigm that understands that all truth belongs to God and that our quest is to discover it and live according to it.

Aristotle said, “The fate of empires depends on the education of youth.” Is our current system of educating youth leading to the rise of moral empires erected by moral people who are grounded in the celestial reality of God? Or is it leading to the fall of empires that celebrate and advocate every form of selfishness and godlessness?

If you’re increasingly feeling like you’re sending your children through a prelude to the gates of hell — or at least the gates of confusion, doubt, and despair — when you send them off to school, perhaps you should send them somewhere else. Start looking for alternatives. I did. If you cannot find a teacher who lets God prevail in his own soul and inspires his students to let God prevail in their souls, keep looking.

Making changes

As you explore education options for your child:

• Consider what is most important to you regarding your child’s immediate and long-term well-being.
• Consider all your options — your strengths, your assets, your current limitations, and what your gut is telling you to do. Options could include a greater focus on the things of God at home, switching schools, joining an education co-op of like-minded people, educating your child yourself at home, finding tutors or mentors for your child, banding together with a couple of families in your neighbourhood, or something else you feel driven to do.
• Read articles and books about education philosophies, including A Thomas Jefferson Education by Oliver DeMille. Here is a short list of resources to get you started. And here’s a beautiful curriculum that might be useful.
• Finally, begin to act. You don’t have to plan your child’s entire educational journey right now. Decide where to start, and start! Even small steps can lead to momentous changes for your child, your family, and for the world.

Our children may choose heaven or hell in the end, but our job is to point them toward heaven.

We are up to the task.

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This article was originally published on Mercator under a Creative Commons license (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0).

Image credit: Pixabay