The philosophy of Talent Development is based on principles found in the Bible. We believe that the Word of God has the answer to all of life’s problems and thus should be the basis for all education. To learn how to test for your child’s talents and develop a program to assist them in their homeschool education, contact us today at 828-435-0670, or you may live chat with us, just click on the orange button on your screen.

As Christian parents we must see that our children have the benefit of a Christian education. If our children have special educational needs, they still should have access to a Christian education. Until recently, there has been very little available within the Christian school movement for the child with special needs. It is for that reason we are writing this booklet. We hope to share with you, the reader, the necessary steps for building a truly effective Talent Development program within your Christian school.

Isaiah 54:13 contains this command: “And all thy children shall be taught of the Lord and great shall be the peace of thy children.” This verse includes every child and thus, so should our school ministry. Developing a Talent Development division takes time and though our final goal is to minister to all children, it may take several years to reach that goal.

Concerning how and when our children should begin instruction, Isaiah 28:9-10 is quite clear.

“Whom shall he teach knowledge? and whom shall he make to understand doctrine? them that are weaned from the milk and drawn from the breasts. For precept must be upon precept; precept upon precept; line upon line, line upon line; here a little and there a little.”

According to this Scripture, instruction should begin between the ages of two and five. The subjects covered should be knowledge (academics) and doctrine (God’s precepts). The method of instruction is that of logical sequential lessons. These same principles are applicable with the Talent Development student, but more time is required for the mastery of basic skills.

The school is the secondary educational influence in the child’s life. Scripturally, parents are the primary educators, the father being held accountable for the major portion of the instruction. Deuteronomy 6:6-9 and 11:18-20 are clear concerning the continuity of instruction necessary in educating children.

“And thou shalt teach them [God’s laws] diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thy house, and when thou walkest by the way and when thou liest down and when thou risest up. And thou shalt bind them for a sign upon thine hand, and they shall be as frontlets between thy eyes. And thou shalt write them upon the posts of thy house and on thy gates.”

As familial education has for the most part, in our society, been appropriated to the school, it is evident that the Christian school plays a key role in helping parents (fathers) fulfill their Biblical mandate. Based upon Scripture, every child deserves a Christian education if his parents desire it. It then becomes critical that Christian schools prepare themselves to serve parents and children with special needs. Can we expect them to violate their God-given mandate and go to the world system to get this needed help?

By establishing and maintaining strong ties with the home, optimum improvement can be expected in each child within our ministry. The threefold cord of home, church, and school is one not easily broken. As we cooperate to ensure each child’s spiritual, physical, and academic growth, we become a team, building each child to be all that God intends for him to be. (Ecclesiastes 4:12b)

How could this philosophy have helped our hypothetical Mikey described earlier? The primary place that this would have helped Mikey is in his home. Preparation for the day should have included spiritual preparation in the form of prayer and family devotions. Extra time should have been provided by rising earlier to establish a more relaxed routine for the morning. An atmosphere of acceptance and support in matters of dress and hygiene would also have benefited Mikey. Attention to these areas would have avoided the difficulties on the bus, the forgotten lunch, and the fight before school.

The other place that his philosophy would have been helpful to Mikey is in his classroom. The teacher should have shown more consideration for Mikey’s academic difficulties by selecting a paragraph prior to the reading class and then letting Mikey practice reading it before he had to read it in front of the class. In regard for the spiritual worth of others, laughing at the difficulties of another should never have been tolerated. Thoughtful placement within the classroom also helps eliminate disturbances; this can be accomplished by placing the distractible child near the front of the class and near the teacher. Punishment should be administered fairly but should never attempt to diminish or restrict a talent given by God from being developed in that child. The wasting of time should never be allowed. Children with special needs must make use of every available moment if they are to progress in a manner pleasing to God.

To be meaningful, evaluation must be based on understanding of children as learners, reading as a learning process, and learning to read as a long-term developmental process.

Principles:

1. Learning to read is a complicated process and is sensitive to a variety of pressures. Too much pressure, or the wrong kind of pressure may result in non- learning. Sources of pressures on children experiencing difficulty in reading: Pressure from home and parents. Parents are ego- involved in their child’s success. Pressure from the child himself (stems from ego-needs and concept of self). Pressure from school. Children’s attitudes result from the competitive atmosphere fostered by adults (parents,school, teacher) and from the conformity pattern imposed by society.

2. Learning to read is an individual process. Grouping children is of negligible value unless the teacher adjusts learning situations to each child’s need for instruction.

3. Pupil differences must be a primary consideration in reading instruction. It is hypothesized that any home/school will house children/pupils whose present achievement and instructional needs vary greatly.

4. Reading instruction should be thought of as an organized, systematic, growth- producing activity. Sound instruction will start from the premise that the environment is an integral part of instruction.

5. Proper reading instruction depends on the diagnosis of each child’s weaknesses and needs. Diagnosis has become associated too often with cure or remedy rather than with preventing the development of poor reading. To establish the fact that a child is reading below what might be expected is not diagnosis. It is an invitation to diagnosis.

6. The best diagnosis is useless unless it is used as a blueprint for instruction. When test results are not used for instructional purposes, the educational objectives of the testing program are defeated. Any skill not mastered, or only partially mastered, may be instrumental in producing other reading problems. Intelligent instruction must be based on accurate information regarding the children s present accomplishments and weaknesses. In this sense, a thorough diagnosis is a blueprint for instruction.

7. No child should be expected or forced to attempt to read material which, at the moment, he is incapable of reading. All curriculum study and the placing of learning tasks at different points on the educational continuum are related to this principle. The principle should be followed in all areas of child growth and development \emdash physical, social, emotional, intellectual. The principle amounts to a rejection of the myth that \ldblquote the child is a miniature adult.

This principle is also related to the fact that different children develop at different rates and that the growth pattern of an individual child is not uniform. It is not conducive to social, emotional, or educational growth to subject a child to failure experiences, because he is physically present in a home school environment/classroom where arbitrary achievement goals are set.

8. Reading is a process of getting meaning from printed word symbols. It is not merely a process of making conventionalized noises associated with these symbols. Reading is more than a mechanical process, even though mechanics are an essential part of the process. Creativity and versatility are basic requirements for successful teaching.

9. Any given technique, practice, or procedure is likely to work better with some children than with others. Hence, the teacher of reading must have a variety of approaches. “There is no one best method of teaching.” When a parent/teacher becomes enamored of one method to the exclusion of others, she shuts out the possibility of adjusting the method to the individual child’s needs. Although such a parent/teacher may be highly successful with some children, she will inevitably produce a number of frustrated, unhappy misfits. Some of her children/pupils will develop behaviors which result in such labels as “bad”, “dull”, “dreamers”, “lazy”, and “anti-social.” These behaviors, instead of being interpreted as the logical outcomes of failure, frustration, and tension evolving from the reading situation, become in turn, the explanations of why the child failed in reading.

10. Learning to read is a long-term developmental process extending over a period of years. This rests on two promises. First, every aspect of the instructional program is related to the ultimate goal of producing efficient readers. The second, that the child’s early attitude towards reading is important from the educational standpoint. It can influence a student’s habits for life.

11. This concept of readiness should be extended upward to all grades. There should be as much concern with readiness at all levels as there is at the first grade level.

12. Early in the learning process the child must acquire ways of gaining independence in identifying words whose meanings are known to him, but which are unknown to him as sight words. Pronouncing words is not reading, but sounding out words not known as sight words is essential to independent reading.

13. Children should not be in a formal learning situation if they have emotional problems sufficiently serious to make them uneducable at the moment, or if they interfere with or disrupt the learning process. Just as the practice of “beating the devil” out of the “obsessed” came to an end, so, I pray, will we stop trying to beat learning into a child who is at the moment uneducable.

14. Emphasis should be on prevention rather than cure. Reading problems should be detected early and corrected before they deteriorate into failure -frustration – reaction cases. Sound principles of reading instruction should apply with equal validity to any instructional approach; and by definition such principles cannot reflect what might be called an either-or bias as to particular methodologies.

Parents Certainly Are Misunderstood!

By Steven C. Staats

You thought you were happily smiling at your child from a hard stadium seat or a hot packed auditorium, But your child looked at your face and saw approval of him and joy in what he was doing.

You thought that you were just patting him on the back or on the head, or just ruffling his hair, But your child cherished the warm loving touch and his heart was brightened.

You thought you were reading a bedtime story with all the funny and scary voices, But your child enjoyed the fact you read every word even though he had heard them a hundred times before.

You thought you were letting your child help paint the house even though the paint got kind of runny and drippy in places, But your child knew that you were working together as a family and felt a sense of accomplishment as a family.

You thought you were singing silly songs or counting the cows on a long boring trip, But your child learned that it was fun being together no matter where you were.

You thought you were spending a few minutes of your time by throwing a ball n the back yard or baking some cookies, But your child, who realized that your time’ is precious, knew you were investing it in him.

You thought that you asked your child’s opinion about something that wasn’t too important, But your child thought you asked because his opinions and thoughts were important.

You thought you were being a good host by inviting your child’s friends in for a cool snack on a warm summer day, But your child knew that his friends were important to you and always welcome in your home.

You thought the tears in you eyes went unnoticed when your child accomplished an important goal in his life, But your child knew that he was deeply imbedded in your heart and you sensed his accomplishment.

You thought that the refrigerator was as good of a place as any for hanging all the art work and “well done” papers that came home from school, But your child felt important when he came home from school each day with something to show you and tack up in his personal hall of fame.

You thought you gave your child some simple chore or job to do and told him, “Well done.”, with a smile when he did it, But your child learned responsibility and began to realize he could tackle even tougher things.

You thought you were helping a troubled restless child get some sleep by fixing a cup of hot cocoa, But your child felt that you were opening your heart around a kitchen table and making all the problems a lot smaller.

You thought the vacation wasn’t much of a success because the fish didn’t bite and the sun didn’t shine, But your child still remembers everything that happened and he still laughs at all of the funny parts.

You thought you were just pointing out the words in the church hymn book with your child’s finger as he tried to sing along, But your child learned that singing praises to God in worship was important.

You thought you were just giving him a quick hug at a special moment or “just because”. But your child carried it with him for a long time, Because what you really said was, “I’m proud of you!”, or “I love you!”

You thought you were just giving him a little kiss on the cheek to tell him good bye as he left for school, But your child felt warm and loved because he knew there would be another one waiting for him when he got home.

Come to think of it, there are a lot of times when parents really are misunderstood!

(This may be copied, reproduced, or freely distributed for all non profit purposes without consent of author as long author’s name remains attached.)

By Dr. Paul Cates

The prophet Hosea warned, My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge because thou has rejected knowledge, I will also reject thee, that thou shalt be no priest to me: seeing thou hast forgotten the law of thy God, I will also forget thy children. Deuteronomy 6:7

Education is defined as the task of changing someone’s behavior. It has also been called “brain washing.” There is nothing neutral about education. Everyone involved in education has an agenda and a purpose. That purpose can be for good or evil. Moreover, God said, learn not the way of the heathen. Jeremiah 10:2

In 1964, our Supreme Court took prayer out of the public schools. It removed the moral fiber of our country by replacing the Ten Commandments with “situational ethics.” It made a liar out of our Savior who said, I am the way, the truth and the light (John 14:6). He could no longer be presented as He presented Himself. He now became just a teacher and maybe a prophet, a religious leader.

How did all this come about? Instead of teaching our children as instructed in Deuteronomy, we allowed others, those with alien doctrines, to teach them. Instead of our children knowing right and wrong, everything became “relative.” We did what Ephraim did, … he hath mixed himself among the people. We lost our identity. We allowed what Ephraim allowed, strangers have devoured his strength, and he knoweth it not… Hosea 7:9.

The Romans did the same thing. When the empire was at its height, they were too busy to train their children. So, what did they do? They hired Greek teachers and philosophers to teach their children. In less than two generations, the Roman children no longer thought as Roman citizens; they thought like their Greek teachers and philosophers. The Greek teacher and philosophers did not set out to destroy Rome. They simply taught what they believed, and the Roman children became like their Greek teachers. Rome fell.

American people want education, but they want someone else to do it: some Greek teacher or philosopher.

American education has been on a decline since 1963. “A Nation at Risk” says, “…the educational foundations of our society are presently being eroded by a rising tide of mediocrity that threatens our very future as a nation and a people.” “Some 23 million American adults are functionally illiterate…” “About 13 percent of all 17-year-olds in the United States can be considered functionally illiterate…” “International comparisons of student achievement…reveal that on 19 academic tests American students were never first or second and … were last seven times.” [A Nation at Risk, 1983 report of the National commission on excellence in Education.]

American people want an end to pedagogical fads and experimentation and a return to educational basics. They want to strengthen the “Five New Basics”: English, mathematics, science, social studies and computer science. They want more homework, a longer school day and school year, stricter discipline, tougher standards for teachers, more challenging curricula, and better textbooks.

What are the American people getting? Not the above; rather, they are getting OBE (Outcome Based Education).

Total transformation: Educational reform through OBE (Greek teacher and philosopher) is a major part of a sweeping Orwellian plan to radically restructure all of American society along revolutionary, socialist lines from top to bottom. Shirley McCure says, “what we’re into is the total restructuring of society.” [Address: 1988, National Governor’s Conference, Wichita, Kansas.]

Education is not simply a chance situation in the usual sense of change. It is a total transformation of society. Our society is in a crisis of restructuring, and you can not get away from it. You can not go into the churches, you can not go into government or into our courts or into business and hide form the fact that what we are facing is the total restructuring of our society.

The OBE transformationists envision their role as one of completely redesigning society. The OBE plan calls not only for radically changing what is taught in the schools and how it is taught, but for tying every child into a master computer system that will continuously track not only his academic progress but his beliefs, values, attitudes, medical and health records, and family history.

Under OBE, schools are scheduled for expansion not only to include day care, but to be merged with health, employment, and other social service agencies.

Parents will be drawn into OBE through mandatory “parent training” classes and a “life long learning” program that will require continuous retraining and recertification for every job.

OBE is operating in its various forms: Outcome Based Instruction – Outcome Driven Development Mode, Performance – Based Curriculum, Competency – Based Education, PACOS (People, A Course of Study), MACOS (Man, A Course of Study), and at one level or another in most of the state school systems of this country. What is amazing is that this revolutionary plan has progressed so far with so little opposition.

This educational revolution has radically altered our former republic. The thing that is impressive is that it has been peacefully accomplished by a technique that has included rewriting the English Language and altering operational definitions. Thus a delusion has been created so that the American public thinks they are talking about the same things as the educators because they are using the same words. By altering the operational definitions of words, opposite and violently hostile ideas have been presented by the same word signs. This has been America’s first experience with dialectic language used by Hitler, Marx and Lenin.

OBE is one of the latest American experiences with the Marxian dialectic. “OBE means focusing and organizing all of the school’s programs and instructional efforts around clearly defined outcomes we want tall students to demonstrate when they leave school.” [Address by William Spady, Director of the International Center on Outcome-Based restructuring (widely acknowledged as the architect of O.B.E.), 1992.]

Sounds Good?! Watch their interpretation of the above statement. Words take on meanings entirely divorced from those traditionally associated with them. Orwell’s “Newspeak” is alive and flourishing in OBE.

Defining outcomes: Most of us would “assume” it refers to the demonstration of discreet knowledge. For instance, first grade, the ability to recite, recognize and write the letters of the alphabet or numbers from 1 to 100. Not OBE. OBE is an agent of change. “The purpose of education and schools,” “…is to change the thoughts, feelings and actions of students.” School is a change agent – and the specific focus is on changing people. “The goal is to develop a new kind of elementary school teacher who…engages in teaching as clinical practice…and functions as a responsible agent of social change.” [B-Step (Behavioral Teacher Education project, 1967, U.S. office of Education, Contract # OEC-0-9-320424-4042) states in the project’s goals, “The primary goal of this influential program is stated as:”]

Rather than being taught facts, as mentioned under 1st grade, information, concepts, and essential skills in reading, writing, and arithmetic, children are engaged in supposed “higher order thinking skills,” ignoring the self-evident truth that it is impossible to employ “higher order thinking” without a base of factual knowledge. This has been forced on education by a group of pseudo-science and passing it off on society as a “higher science” when in fact it is a false religion with atheistic beliefs, doctrines and premises. Psychology was established along with sociology, to replace Christianity and by using the vehicle of education, is doing the job.

OBE curriculum is tilted heavily to the affective domain in order to manipulate and change feelings, attitudes and values.

An OBE objective for grades 9-12 states, “The student will develop communication skills, including being able to talk with one’s actual or potential partner about sexual behavior.” In the first grade, “The student will identify different types of family structures, so that no single type is seen as the only possible one.” “Write a new U.S. Constitution.” (They don’t even understand the present one.) [Oklahoma’s OBE State Guidelines.]

In OBE, “All students understand and appreciate their worth as unique and capable individuals, and exhibit self esteem.” [Statement from Pennsylvania State OBE.] What” wrong with that you say! Our leading “Christian” psychologists write and expound the same philosophy. So they do. But scripture says He must increase, but I must decrease. John 3:30. The scriptures say the opposite, but through the false religion of psychology, a lie is made into an acceptable truth.

In teaching reading, phonics is excluded. The “whole language” and “look-say” method are accepted. These methods are responsible for our pandemic illiterate society today.

“Cooperative learning” is stressed by organizing virtually all learning activities in group activities. Individual excellence is discouraged as the group is allowed to progress only as a unit. When every child has mastered the stated behavioral goals, they can move on. “Group think” is in, individuality, competition, personal striving is out.

A permanent computer file or “portfolio” is established for each child, complete with detailed school, health, medical and family records. The student is trapped in a computer-driven behavior modification curriculum. This is just like Dr. Skinner’s pigeons. This is just like Hitler’s, Stalin’s, Lenin’s and others’ Marxian philosophy.

Teachers are likewise trapped in this computer-driven, behavior modification curriculum. If their students don’t “successfully” achieve or “regurgitate” the “correct” response, the teachers will lose their teaching credentials and be weeded out of the “teaching,” “brain washing,” “behavioral modification,” “false-religion” profession.

In OBE, parents are required to take “effective parenting” classes. “Community service” is required for both children and parents. Training for “global citizenship” is established as the primary purpose.

As Rome saw her country destroyed and her children turn against her, so will “outcome based education’s” objective be achieved in American education, or should I say formally American education.

They are now training and producing the citizen of the new “one world order”!

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[Dr. Paul Cates holds a B.A.-Psychology, M.A.-Special Education: Teaching the Child with Learning Disabilities, and a Ph.D.-Curriculum & Instruction.

“YOU WILL SURELY NOT DIE,” THE SERPENT SAID TO THE WOMAN. “FOR GOD KNOWS THAT WHEN YOU EAT OF IT YOUR EYES WILL BE OPENED AND YOU WILL BE LIKE GOD” (GENESIS 3:1-15).

The NEW-AGE MOVEMENT is an umbrella referring to a variety of people, organizations, events, practices and ideas. Theologically speaking, it is not a centrally organized movement with one human leader…rather, it is a constellation of like-minded people and groups all desiring a spiritual and social change that will usher in a new age of self-actualization.

1. NEW – AGE DEFINITION

The following is a brief overview of the basic teachings of the majority of New-Age groups.

1. All is one. All reality is a unitary whole.

2. Everything is God (god) and God (god) is everything.

3. You (as an individual) are God. You are divine; God is within you.

4. You will never die; you lived before and you will live again (reincarnation).

5. You can create your own reality or transform your own consciousness.

6. All religions are true and, therefore, one.

7. A new age is coming, a new age is dawning.

Eldon K. Winker (The New-Age is Lying to You, St. Louis, Concordia Publishing House, 1994) states “The New-Age Movement is an eclectic, occult-based evolution-promoting, man-centered, self-deifying, pervasive world view (philosophy of life) that seeks, through the transformation of individuals, to bring about a transformation of society in order to achieve the ultimate goal of a new world order of complete global harmony”

11. THE SIX SUMMARY PRINCIPLES THAT UNDERLINE THE NEW-AGE PHILOSOPHY

(Studied in conjunction with six corresponding Orthodox Christian principles)

1. ALL IS ONE; THEREFORE ALL IS GOD.

The core teaching of the New-Age…Monism-good and evil have no real existence, for all is one. What is sinful for one is not necessarily sinful for another. Only what you perceive exists. There is no objective reality.. The divine mind, universal energy, “The Force”…there is no difference between God, a tree or a human being. What makes New-Age philosophy so attractive..New-Age “Pantheism.”

ALL IS NOT ONE; ALL IS NOT GOD.

The biblical God is distinct and separate from his creation (Colossians 1:15-17)…the Creator is far above his creation (Romans 1:25)..God is personal (Matthew 6:9)…(John 20:17).

2. MANKIND IS DIVINE AND HAS UNLIMITED POTENTIAL.

You are God in the same sense that Jesus was…being one’s own god, each person creates his/her own reality..Erhart’s Seminary Training (EST)…The Forum.

MANKIND IS NOT DIVINE; HIS POTENTIAL IS LIMITED.

The meaning of “the image of God”…the shattering of the image of God..God alone is God and there is none other beside him (Genesis 1:26-27)…(Deuteronomy 32:39)…(Isaiah 45:5-6).

3. MANKIND’S BASIC FLAW IS THE IGNORANCE OF HIS DIVINITY.

The force of human problems..the problem is not sin for there is no personal god to whom we are held accountable..we are ignorant of our status as gods…Tal Brooke, “When the world will be as one” summarizes the second and third principles of the New-Age:

The mystery of man’s ultimate identity is finally revealed as the divinity within. This is a basic tenant of Pantheism, the core belief of Hinduism: all things are one. Since all things are made of God, man in his deepest self is none other than God, but without “enlightenment,” he does not know this and, in effect, lives as an amnesiac.

MANKIND’S BASIC FLAW IS NOT IGNORANCE OF HIS DIVINITY; IT IS SIN.

Looking within does not provide the answer…looking within provides the problem (Matthew 15:19)..the result of mankind’s original sin is summed up in (Ecclesiastes 7:20)…(Romans 3:23).

4. MANKIND’S BASIC NEED IS PERSONAL TRANSFORMATION PRODUCED BY CONSCIENCENESS-ALTERING TECHNIQUES.

Mankind needs no savior, mankind needs ENLIGHTENMENT…meditation, creative visualization, yoga, reflexology, iridology, acupuncture, the martial arts, therapeutic touch..higher touch.

MANKIND’S BASIC NEED IS NOT ENLIGHTENMENT, BUT SALVATION BY GRACE THROUGH FAITH.

Humanity does not need enlightenment: “living in darkness” (Matthew 4:16), we need to begin to “walk in the light” (1 John 1:7)..the coming into relationship with the one who is the light of the world(John 8:12)…

The doctrine of justification: central to humanity…

Jesus becomes our sin, we become the righteousness of God(2 Corinthians 5:21).

Christ is the atoning sacrifice for the whole world (1 John 2:2).

He came not to be served, but to serve (Matthew 20:28).

We who are sinners and enemies of God (Romans 5:8, 10) have become saints through Christ (Revelation 7:14)

5. PERSONAL TRANSFORMATION IS THE SPRINGBOARD TO GLOBAL TRANSFORMATION.

The future depends on our accepting our role as creators of reality..Christian “dabblers” and New-Age “dabblers”..serious Christians versus serious New-Agers …the goal, the global village.

NOT PERSONAL TRANSFORMATION, BUT GOD’S CREATION OF A NEW HEAVEN AND A NEW EARTH WILL BRING GLOBAL TRANSFORMATION.

Global transformation will not happen prior to the Second Coming (Matthew 24)..the day of judgment will bring about the destruction of the heavens and the earth and a new heaven and a new earth, the home of righteousness, will be brought forth (2 Peter 3: 12-13).

6. ALL RELIGIONS ARE ONE AND LEAD TO COSMIC UNITY.

This teaching is identified as SYNCRETISM (a fusion of religions)..the distinctive and exclusive nature of Christianity is denied..the hidden teachings of Jesus excluded from the Bible.

The New-Age version of the teachings of Jesus Christ…

1. Jesus taught that all is one, all is God, and man is God.

2. Jesus taught and believed in a unity of world religions.

3. Jesus taught that he was not uniquely God, but was a human being who became “enlightened”.

4. Jesus taught that he was way-shower for humanity, not a savior.

5. Jesus taught that every human being has the potential and ability to save himself.

6. Jesus taught that esoteric knowledge is all-important to man’s self-salvation (Gnosticism).

7. Jesus taught that part of man’s self-salvation involves a transformation of conscienceness.

8. Jesus taught and believed in God the Father, and God the mother (the Gaia hypotheses).

ALL RELIGIONS ARE NOT ONE. ONLY ONE RELIGION LEADS TO THE RENEWAL OF ALL CREATION.

All religions are not one, all religious teachings do not lead to “At-one-ment” with God…salvation is found in no one else (Acts 4:12)…Jesus’ claim concerning himself is exclusive (John 14:6)…the stumbling block and foolishness of the cross (1 Corinthians 1:23).

111. THE NEW-AGE MOVEMENT: EASTERN RELIGIONS IN WESTERN DRESS.

1. HINDUISM

400 Million people with no formal belief structure, no single founder, no single book as source of doctrine…Vedic literature…the two chief elements of Hinduism…extraordinary variations of belief…the basic concepts of Hinduism..the many heavens and hells..Hindu worship…the “guru”…westernized Hinduism: transcendental

meditation..the Hare Krishna sect.

2.TAOISM

More a philosophy than a religion…Tao, the Way…Yin (good, light, life, masculinity)…Yang (evil, darkness, death, femininity).

3. BUDDHISM

Developed out of Hinduism..the Eight-fold Path to Enlightenment and the removal of all desire…the illusion of man’s existence.

THE APPEAL OF EASTERN RELIGIONS.

Greedy western consumerism.

The modern church’s drift toward liberal theology.

The inability of science and technology to answer life’s most basic questions.

THE CHRISTIAN RESPONSE TO EASTERN RELIGIONS.

God is deeply concerned about your present and future life(John 3:16)

God has already reconciled you to himself (2 Corinthians 5:18-19)

Our purpose in life- live for him who died for you (2 Corinthians 5:15).

IV. THE ALL-PERVASIVE INFLUENCE OF THE NEW-AGE MOVEMENT.

1. NEW-AGE ENTERTAINMENT.

The Star Wars saga…the Force…the Pantheistic, Taoist theology of George Lucas..the God of New-Age theology…The empire Strikes Back…Raiders of the Lost Ark..the Star Trek series…”innocent”children’s Saturday cartoons…New-Age personalities…Barnes & Noble, B. Dalton and Waldenbooks…New-Age music.

2. NEW AGE ENVIRONMENTALISM.

The Green Movement, the healing of Mother Earth…the judean Christian tradition is the primary cause for the environmental crisis…manipulating ecological crises…Albert Gore “Earth in the Balance”.

3. NEW-AGE POLITICS/GLOBALISM.

No deity will save us; we must save ourselves…(Humanistic Manifesto)…motivating people and nations to unify against the new common enemy…the meaning of “zero population growth”…the role of the United Nations…Clinton’s new guidelines on US nuclear weapons doctrine…the implications of New-Age politics for Christianity.

4.NEW-AGE EDUCATION.

Values-neutral educational philosophy..the double standard in matters related to religion and spirituality…Christianity rendered invisible..getting in touch with your feelings…Whole Language.

5. NEW-AGE HEALTH CARE.

Holistic health and the occult…growth of New-Age health care…sickness and disease are an illusion…occult leanings for chiropractic?…beware of therapies that manipulate “life energies”.

V. A CHRISTIAN RESPONSE TO THE NEW-AGE MOVEMENT.

1. Grow in grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ (2 Peter 3:18).

2. Christians must become informed about the basic ideas of the New-Age Movement.

3. A Christian needs to be alert and discerning as to how the New-Age affects personal circumstances (public education).

4. Christians need to stand firmly on the truth of the Gospel as it applies to a given situation.

5. Christians must pray that God will lead his redeemed to grow in grace and knowledge and be kept in the faith (1 Peter 5:10-11).

Mathematics: What Do Our Children Need?

This is the third and last of a series of articles focused on the kind of mathematics our children need. The first article dealt with the reasons to teach mathematics and suggested some non-typical reasons. The second article discussed how our world is changing and the impact such changes will have on our children. This article will examine teaching methods to prepare our children for the 21st century.

In the 1980’s, every industrialized nation in the world was about the business of educational reform – every nation, that is, on different and diverse courses, tenure issues, year round school, middle school vs. junior high school, bilingual education, multilingual education, integrated curriculum and on and on.

Each of these issues by itself has value, but is it where we should focus our attention? American education should be about the business of educating our people; it’s not about the business of teaching; it s not about courses; it’s not about majors; it’s about teaching people to work smarter. Granted, in 1989 the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics (NCTM) published the NCTM Mathematics Standards. These standards were an attempt to define the mathematics curriculum desired for the 21st century.

However, in two separate research studies, it was found that only 15% of the K-3 teachers and 50% of the secondary teachers were even familiar with these standards. I ll bet that less than 10% of the homeschoolers have even heard of the NCTM Standards. I believe the Standards to be a good document and all math educators should know what is stated and aim toward those objectives.

What about those people who call for a “Back to the Basics” movement? My first question is, “What are the basics?” Is reading, writing, and inventing mathematics basic? Is problem solving basic? Is finding square root without a calculator basic? Is computer knowledge basic? What is basic? Is it possible that we need some basics but not the same old basics of 20 years ago.

I believe the truth of the matter is we don t really know exactly what the basics of mathematics will be in the year 2010.

But I believe we know several things it won t be:

• It won’t be long division without a calculator.
  It won’t be adding long, large columns of figures without a calculator.
  It won’t be memorizing a bunch of math rules.
  It won’t be about solving a meaningless set of exercises.

We know that calculators and computers will be basic necessities not only in the workplace but also in our homes. We need to get down to business and look around our world.

Before we proceed further with this discussion, let us examine some myths about mathematics and in particular about manipulatives.

Five Myths about Manipulatives:

Myth #1 It’s nice to use manipulatives if you have the time, money and patience, but they are not essential to achievement.
Just the opposite is true. Research clearly shows that using manipulatives makes lessons stick and boosts achievement. Manipulatives model abstractions and help students build concrete visual images of what’s going on with numbers and shapes.

Myth #2 Manipulatives are appropriate only in the very early grades.
Not true! In fact, learning math requires active participation by learners of all ages.

Myth #3 The teacher s role in the use of manipulatives is minimal. A child s own discovery is what manipulatives are all about.
Simply not true! While discovery is important, it s the teacher who focuses attention on the math concept being explored, who encourages students to think as they work, who helps students make the connection between the visual models and the symbols.

Myth #4 Manipulatives are hard to manage.
Manipulatives do add more activity and noise, require space and more organization, but they are not hard to manage. Simple rules of courtesy, responsibility and cooperation can make it easy.

Myth #5 Picturing manipulatives on a computer and manipulating those images is just as good as hands on.
Absolutely false! Nothing can replace a child’s hands-on experience with manipulatives which model mathematical ideas. The computer is a marvelous device and is wonderful for repetitive rote memorization, simulation problems, etc., but not as a substitute for hands- on. The computer and technology are vital but cannot replace hands-on!

Mathematics can be defined as the science of patterns and relationships. If mathematics is a science, then should it not be taught as a science? I believe it should. So, what basic things does a scientist do? Allow me to suggest four things:

1. Explores or experiments
2. Observes
3. Generalizes or draws conclusions
4. Verifies conclusions (proves)

Yes, your mathematics “classroom” should contain these four components. The NCTM Standards gives five goals for ALL students. Students should be able to:

1. Think and reason mathematically
2. Solve problems
3. Communicate mathematically
4. Have confidence in their mathematical abilities
5. Value mathematics

In reality, no one can TEACH mathematics. Effective teachers are those who can stimulate students to LEARN mathematics themselves. Educational research clearly shows that students learn mathematics well only when THEY construct their own mathematical understanding. That’s where the manipulatives come in. Furthermore, we must stress true problem solving. There is a big difference between giving our children exercises and giving them problems. Let me illustrate:

An example of an exercise:
Kim went to the store and spent $.95 for milk and $1.10 for bread. How much money did she spend?

I view this as a mere exercise. Let’s look at a problem using the same data.

Kim went to the store and spent $.95 for milk and $1.10 for bread. The clerk gave her change for $3.00 If she received change in only nickels, dimes and quarters, how many coins could she receive? Explain.

This, my friends, is a good problem!

An exercise is a question which can be answered without much thought. The operation is usually obvious and this type of question is typically done for drill and practice.

A problem is a question which seeks an answer which is not obvious nor is the procedure

A good problem will contain a number of the following components:

• 1. Answer is not obvious.
  2. There is more than one way to solve it.
  3. There is more than one answer.
  4. There is extraneous data.
  5. It challenges the student.
  6. It requires some thought.
  7. It may not contain sufficient data.
  8. It is of interest to the student.
  9. It is within the student’s ability to solve.
  10. It spawns other questions.

Another good problem:
Examine and explain your thinking. What is the relationship between perimeter and area? That is, if the area remains the same, will the perimeter remain the same or change?

Here’s a good algebra problem.

Use only these numbers to fill in the blanks. You cannot use any numbers except those in set S.

S = {0,1,2,3,4,6}
x = _______ x + y = _______
y = _______ 5y = _______
x2 = _______ y – x = _______
xy = _______ y2 = _______

Answers: x = 4, y = 6, or: x = 0, y = 6

The new learning holds that math can be learned more efficiently in groups: hands-on is better than hands tied behind the back. And counting on fingers is evidence that a child is “trying to figure it out” – a thought process to be encouraged rather than punished. It further establishes that reading and writing are as essential to learning math as they are to the study of any other subject. Blocks, games, puzzles, balance beams, fraction pies, calculators, and computers – these “manipulatives” and new tools of math have made its study the most enjoyable part of the day for children in schools that are engaged in this new learning.

Yet, whereas it is true that every child can learn math, it is a fact that under the present math program few of them do. Small wonder. We teach a math program consisting of nine years of drill in arithmetic, followed by algebra taught as a foreign language in the old way – by memorizing word lists and grammar.

For most students, the final bow is inflicted with a blunt instrument: plane geometry which is too abstract and difficult for many survivors of the death march from arithmetic to algebra. This course has a reputation so bad that less than half of U.S. students even attempt it, and of those who do, most do not learn it. This must and need not continue. First, the calculator and the computer have made skills in rapid paper-and-pencil computation, flash cards, and “rote and drill” obsolete. Second, the ability to analyze real- life problem situations and to express them in mathematical terms has become far more purposeful than the ability to apply the right formula to obtain the correct answer to a textbook math problem.

For these reasons, problem posing, problem solving, and collaborative learning are at the heart of the new learning in math.

Each day, nearly all children are subjected to instruction in the old-style math, and few of these children are learning it.”

-From Everybody Counts

Theon to Hypatia once said, “Reserve your right to think, for even to think wrongly is better than not to think at all.”

B.F. Skinner said, “Education is what survives when what has been learned has been forgotten.”

Oscar Wilde said, “Education is an admirable thing, but it is well to remember from time to time that nothing that is worth knowing can be taught.”

Folks, we must change our educational system. We must change the way most of us homeschool. We must change before it’s too late. We can no longer teach our children the way we were taught. You can’t just give a child a workbook or a textbook or a video and walk away thinking everything will be okay.

My father once said that if we always do what we’ve always done, we ll always get what we’ve always got…And that’s no longer good enough.

There are four basic skills though that every child will need in the 21st century:

• 1. The ability to think.
  2. The ability to use logic and reasonableness skills.
  3. The ability to effectively and efficiently communicate.
  4. The ability to get along with others in a group.

Mathematics can help children accomplish some of these objectives but remember, “Not everything that counts can be counted and not everything that can be counted counts.”

Make your mathematics “classroom”:

• * Discovery orientated
  * Problem solving based
  * Logic centered
  * Reasonableness assured
  * Thought provoking

Mathematics, part 2
by Dr. Carl H. Selzer

In the first part of this series of articles, I focused on the real reasons why we study mathematics. In this article, I would like to examine how our world is changing, and how that will impact our children.

Our world is changing! In 1982, there were 32,000 robots in use in the United States. In 1989, there were 1,333,000 in use; and in 1995, that number leaped to 24,000,000. By the year 2000 it is predicted that there will be 100,000,000 robots being utilized in the United States, alone.

Why are we putting so many robots into service? To answer that question, let’s look at a typical example. In 1985, QR Industries employed over 300 people making clamps for General Motors cars. If a clamp was 1/100 of an inch off, the company was severely penalized. In 1986, 5% of their clamps were rejects, so QR Industries had to improve the process or lose the contract. They robotized the assembly line, and now only one out of 10,000 clamps is rejected.

QR Industries now has 17 employees. The accounts payable clerks are gone. Many other office jobs are gone. All have been replaced by computers. Yet, one of the largest enrolled courses in junior and four-year colleges is ledger accountants, accounts receivable personnel, and accounts payable careers. Between 1950 and 1990, we have seen major changes in business but very little change in our business colleges.

Our world is changing! Today the largest employers in the United States, listed respectively by the number of people employed, is as follows:

1. McDonalds
2. Burger King
3. U.S. Government
4. Sears

Twenty-two of the top twenty-five employers are in the retail and service sectors. Yet, the food industry is quickly becoming automated. In Ohio, there is a fast food restaurant where you push the button to select a hamburger, another to indicate what you want on it, and another to deposit your money or insert your charge card. In thirteen seconds you get a hamburger cooked like you want it, untouched by human hands.

Why are fast-food restaurants moving to robots? Simple. Because fast food restaurants have gotten sick and tired of trying to attract quality workers that can do the level of work they want, for a price they are willing to pay. Yet, these restaurants will pay a German technician $30.00 per hour (that’s over $60,000 per year) to keep the high speed laser cooker system working. If it goes out, they’re out of business.

Our world is changing! What’s happening in the service sector? It is becoming automated. How many of you use an Automatic Teller Machine? In 1982, there were no ATM’s. In 1988, 55% of all customer banking transactions were done at ATM machines. Where are all the tellers? In 1990, their positions were reduced by 40%, in 1993 by 80%. In the year 2000, who knows? The banking industry is becoming automated! Oh,yes, but the banking industry is seeking employees. They’re scambling to hire technicians to maintain those Automatic Teller Machines. And where are these technicians coming from? Not the United States. Why? Because none of our colleges or universitites are producing a single technician who can run the ATM system.

One of the fastest growing companies in the United States, according to the Wall Street Journal, is the Checker Robotics Company with main offices in Deerfield, Florida. Guess what Checker makes? Right, robots! Actually, Automated Roboticized Checkout Counters. Push your grocery cart to the check out counter, and a robot arm reaches out, picks up your 16-ounce bottle of Diet Pepsi, reads the bar code, packs it in a bag, and tells you how much you owe. It even packs the heavier items on the bottom and the lighter items on top–what a novel idea that is!

In 1985, all Checker employees were working in the United States. In 1996, 2% of Checker employees work in the U.S. Where did they all go? Answer–China, Korea, Japan, and Germany. Why? Because they could not find the labor force in the U.S. who could do the work.

In 1992, American industry imported 1,000,000 foreign-born, foreign-educated workers with no work experience. These people are serving as well-paid technicians at Citibank, Checker Robotics, and technicians for fast-food restaurants. Is your son or daughter being prepared for this?

Our world is changing! Look at what is happening in the information sector. According to the U.S. Department of Labor, by the year 2000, 11% of all workers in the United States will be in the business of collecting, analyzing, synthesizing, and retrieving data.

How many of you can type — not well, just type. Typing (or keyboarding) is an important skill, but what about the keyboard you are using or learning to use? Did you know the most frequently used letters of the English alphabet are “a”, “e”, “i”, “o”, and “u”? But on American keyboards, the most frequently used letters are not the most accessible. Not only that, but 72% of the keystrokes are hit with the left hand. Why? Because we made our old typewriters that way to slow down the pace so the typewriter keys wouldn’t jam. It is doubtful that the left hand situation was even considered. Yet, we are still using the same old keyboard. Research shows that by simply changing our present keyboard, productivity increases by 36%. Yes, new keyboards do exist, and they recify this problem. So why do we still use the same old keyboard and continue to teach students the same old thing even when we know better?

Any computer manufactured in America since 1988 has two keyboards imbedded within. Word Perfect, for example, has two keyboards; the U.S. model and the rest of the world’s model. Does this remind you of the metric system vs. the English measurement system? Changing how we teach math is a good parallel.

The fact that 44% of the jobs in America are going to be about the business of collecting, analyzing, synthesizing, storing, and retrieving data has nothing to do with this issue – nor should it! The world is changing, folks, and we must change with it.

In 1950, 60% of the jobs in the U.S. were unskilled. In 1989, 35% of the jobs in the U.S. were unskilled. In 2000, we estimate 15% will be unskilled. What are we doing about this?

One out of five students drop out of high school. Another one out of five graduate, but they come from what is known as the “general track”; we all know what that means. Another 20% go to college but last less than one year. What percent of Japanese students do you think complete college? It’s not 100%; it is only 98%. In Germany, it is 96%. In China, it’s only 92%. In America, it is less than 50%.

We live in a Global Economy, and the most important single resource product we have is our work force (our people). Today, North America, Europe, and Japan account for 20% of the world’s poplulation. By 2010, it is projected that North America, Europe, and Japan will only account for 10% of the world’s population. The rest of the world – the other 50% today and 90% in 2010 – have an average salary of 50 cents an hour. How can we compete with that? We can’t!

It costs $9.80 to type one page of print in the U.S. and only $1.18 in China. We cannot compete with that. So we must work smarter! We must teach our childen

How to Think
How to Communicate Their Thinking
How to Reason Logically
How to Get Along with One Another
How to Solve Problems

To do this we must change the way we teach. Our methods of teaching mathematics are just about as obsolete as our typewriters. In the next article, we will examine how to do this.

Mathematics, part 1
by Dr. Carl H. Selzer

This is the first in a series of mathematics articles that I’ve agreed to write for “The Homeschooler”. I sincerely hope these articles will be of a significant resource to you as you contemplate the teaching of mathematics to your child (children).

Mathematics may be defined as the science of pattern and relationships. As a science, the “mathematics classroom” should be a scientific laboratory where children experiment, explore, observe, draw conclusions, and verify results. Problem solving should be the main focus of any mathematics program.

Having defined mathematics, the next question is why do we study mathematics? I believe that we’ve been incorrectly answering this question. Traditionally we’ve answered the question, why study mathematics, as follows:

1) You need it in later math courses.
2) You need it for college.
3) You need it to function in the real world.
4) You need it for specific careers.

These reasons are not convincing to me, nor are they convincing to children. Actually, these aren’t really the reasons at all. Rather, I’d like to suggest that we study mathematics because in mathematics we learn how to answer every important generic-type question. The skills obtained by answering these questions are applicable to almost every profession or career.

People need mathematics and mathematical skills and abilities when they encounter questions like:

1) How can this information be sorted, organized, grouped and visualized?
2) Does it follow? Can you verify that fact?
3) What are the possibilities?
4) What strategies are available?
5) What are the chances? What are the risks?
6) Can we simulate or model the situation?
7) A small part of the situation is visible, but what is “actually” there?
8) Why does this work?
9) Are these figures accurate? Do the books balance?
10) What’s missing? What’s extra?
11) Are these two things related? Does one factor influence the other?
12) What are the extremes? What is most likely? How much variation can we expect?
13) Is that reasonable? Do I have enough?
14) What are the ground rules? What limits do they impose?
15) Is there a different way to look at the situation?
16) What if? What are the possible consequences? Have we explored every possibility? Have we missed something?
17) How much is necessary to complete the task?
18) Does this problem behave like any other situation? What’s the same? What is different?
19) Can it fit in the available space?
20) How fast is the situation changing?
21) Have we reached the maximum or minimum? Can things get better or worse? What’s best?
22) Can the situation be visualized?
23) Can we create a scale model?
24) Will our proposed change really make a difference? How can we tell?
25) How do you know it’s true? How can you be sure?
26) What is the result of this series of actions? Are the steps reversible?

These are surely not the only questions studied in mathematics, but will give you a good idea of what our children need to learn.

Next issue topic–What kind of mathematics for our children’s future–a look at the REAL world.

“It is unlawful to learn, even from an enemy.” When the Communists took over Russia, the Communists still remained Russian, and they still wanted Russia to be the leading nation of the world. They were determined to provide the Russian people with the best type of education. They had heard so many glowing commendations for John Dewey and his great system of education, called Progressive at Teachers College, Columbia.

They arranged with John Dewey to set up his discipline-less, progressive education on a national scale in Russia in 1920.

At the time, in Teachers College there was another progressor named William Bagley who was a great champion and defender of mental discipling and classroom discipline in education. He reminded John Dewey that his progressive education would be thrown out of Russia in ten years.

John Dewey, beginning with 1920, had the full cooperation of a totalitarian government to put his progressive education through a great experiment. However, in 1932, the government of Russia informed John Dewey that his progressive education was a failure.

It did not educate the children, but it developed a nation of juvenile delinquents. Bagley had prophesied that progressive education would be thrown out. He further specified the time – ten years. That was really close; it was actually 12 years.

Let us look at the patriotic Russians who discovered that Dewey’s theory of permissiveness and opposition to discipline did not educate. They discovered that discipline was necessary by practical experience in educating children.

In sizing up and evaluating the professors of progressive education at Teachers College, it can only be concluded that these progressive professors are not interested in education for its own sake. They are only interested in education as a means of propagating their atheistic religion of evolutionism. In almost every class, evolution is brought up and proposed as an explanation of many things.

The promulgators of progressive education are opposed to discipline because they seem to be convinced that the only reason that their super-man has not yet evolved, is due to the restrictions imposed by every preceding generation on the succeeding one. And these restrictions were transmitted through the rules and regulations imposed by the school, the church, and the home. This goal appears to be their great dream. If they could eliminate the discipline imposed by these three agencies, nature would be free to continue its process of evolution.

It can readily be understood that with such an obsession Dewey and his progressive education would not be blamed for the failure in Russia; the blamed would be put on the Russian people who were too ignorant and too uneducated to appreciate the great benefits of the atheistic, materialistic, educational concoction of John Dewey. The American people were thoroughly brainwashed by the worshipers of John Dewey. The progressives had acquired such a strangle-hold in the field of education that no one could expect to advance in that field unless he or she burned incense to John Dewey.

It took the uneducated but genuinely patriotic Russians only 12 years to realize what a big fraud progressive education is. They had the courage to give a great atheistic philosopher, John Dewey his dismissal papers.

The great education professors and educators who have obtained many American college degrees have not yet succeeded in putting the soulless education of John Dewey out of American education. It is now over 55 years since the Russians showed us what to do. And now, the graduates of our grade schools and high schools are so uneducated that colleges have to have corrective courses in the fundamentals, and juvenile delinquency is on the increase.

Another important factor must be considered. The Russians have learned what a fraud this much-advertised type of American education is.

Their great love and great patriotism for their country, Russia, gave them the insight and the courage to learn the truth about progressive education. Their great patriotism and love for Russia inspires them with the hope that those responsible for education in the United States will continue the idolater of progressive and behavioristic worship. This may also account for the confidence that the Russians have that they can outwit us in all types of negotiations. They conclude that we are the victims of an educational system that does not educate. How many times have our great statesmen been outwitted and tricked by the diplomats of Russia?

Footnote; John Dewey’s progressive education was not the only American idea tested by Russian experiments. The Russians took on also classroom sex education. The date on which it started, I do not know. But I know it ended in July, 1949. They discovered that classroom sex education was destructive of family life and detrimental to society. So by national decree they gave that instruction back to the parents. Those who admire patriotism will not blame the Russians for rejoicing that progressive behaviorists are paid tax payers money to have children classroom-sex-educated in the United States.

WHAT IS THE VERDICT?

When the state takes YOU to court, what will the verdict be? But you say, “It will never happen to me!” This is what the hundreds have said that have already gone to the courtroom for their religious freedom. It did happen to them!

If someone had said to you twenty years ago that in 1995 there would be hundreds of cases pending against churches and pastors in the United States; what would you have said? You would have probably said, “You’re crazy!” You would have thought that even if the state did take a church to court, the Christians would rise up in a massive revolt. But hundreds of churches have now already been sued and most Christians have not even found it objectionable. Most of us have simply been content with living our lives in another direction. We have been content to let the state’s grip tighten on our faith and religious freedom little by little.

The purpose of this article is to show you the real issues that face the Christian at this moment. We want you to be able to give the Biblical explanations for the stand that you take. We want you to have a strong Godly conviction: about your actions in the ministry of the Gospel. In Hosea 4:6, it says, “My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge.” When the test comes to your home, will you stand or will you fall to the control of the state?

SEPARATION OF CHURCH AND STATE

The first principle that we as Christians must know and understand is that the Constitution of the United States and the Bill of Rights say that there is to be a separation of church and state. This is found primarily in the First Amendment.

The First Amendment. The First Amendment has two religious clauses: (1) the non-establishment clause and (2) the free-exercise clause. The first clause has little to do with most of the law suits right now. It says that government will not become involved in the “establishment” of a religion. They are not to do anything that will help religion. They are not to finance it, foster it, or further it. The one danger with this clause that has turned up is that if you do take the government s money, you have no right to object to the government’s controls. But since we don t believe that Caesar (the state) has any business financing the Church anyway, we do not accept the State’s money. (Do you?)

The second clause, the free exercise clause, is the issue in almost every case across America. It says simply: “There shall be no law abridging (depriving) the free exercise of religion.” This was worded exactly right by the framers of our Constitution. The word “exercise” is the outgoing, or the putting into implementation of our faith. In communist lands, they say they have religious freedom, but that is only to “think” whatever you want. In America, however, we have (by the First Amendment) true freedom of religion. The test for religious freedom is in action and not just in thought.

The Biblical Base. We cannot “believe” in the Constitution. The Supreme Court changes it nearly every week. But there is a document that we can believe and you will be asked this in great detail in the courtroom. They will turn to you and ask, “Is there a book which contains every single one of your beliefs without exception?” “Yes. The Bible.” “Are there any other documents; or are there any other persons living, about to be born, or past lived who can give you a further amplification of those beliefs or curtail any of those beliefs?” “No. There is even a curse on the one who adds or subtracts from the perfect revelation as we have it.” In a court of law our beliefs must be contained in full in the Word of God.

In Romans 13:1, Paul said that there is no authority but that which is given from God. And Jesus, in Matthew 22:21, voiced the fact that God reserves certain matters to Himself. Matters of faith and worship have not been given to government. The Church and Her actions in the gospel ministry are governed by God, and the government dare not meddle with these areas. These are the foundations on which the framers of the Constitution founded the philosophy of church-state separation. They believed the Bible to be the only document containing perfect truth. They knew that the Constitution must agree with the Word of God.

DEFINITION OF THE CHURCH

Now, if our Constitution guarantees us separation of church and state, we have to define these two entities. The state had trouble defining itself. If the state is all the people, how can all the people sue a few of the people? So the Supreme Court chose to define the church. The surprising thing is that they agreed perfectly with the Word of God.

First, they explained what a church was NOT It is not a church because of its title or name. Just to put the word “Church” with a group of words does not make a church. A church is not a church just because of its organization. It is not a church because of its building. Really, a church does not need any of these three things. The Supreme Court said simply that a Church is “the BELIEFS and the BELIEVERS.”

But now the Supreme Court went one step further. They not only defined what the Church was, but they also defined which beliefs are legitimate. They developed a test that each of us must go through and pass in a court of law. Following is that test; a test impossible to cram for; a test that we must be able to pass before we go to court.

EXPLANATION OF THE TEST

The Supreme Court said that a belief must be something that you as a believer can make oral. You don t have to be eloquent, but it must be more than an (it seems to me) a hunch. Also, you as a believer must have a knowledge of that belief. This is to prevent people from hiding behind a title. To say “I m a Fundamental Baptist” doesn’t give you beliefs.

In 1972, in a case involving education, the court came up with the ultimate test to determine which of these beliefs were legitimate and which were not. They classified beliefs in one of two categories; “convictions” or “preferences”. Convictions are protected by the First Amendment, and preferences are not. Below is this test in brief.

Preferences. A preference is a very very strong belief held with great intensity and strength. You might give your entire life and go into full time service in the name of a preference. You might give all your wealth to this belief. You could be energetic in spreading and propagating this preference (hand out tracts, go on soul-winning, visitation, etc.). You could even want to teach this to your children. But the one thing that makes a preference different from a conviction is that under the right circumstances, you will change a preference.

The court has noticed five areas where you would be most likely to change. These five areas are (1) peer pressure, (2) family pressure, (3) the threat or the carrying through of litigation (law suits), (4), jail for your and your wife (your children being taken by the state), and (5) death. If any of these things would make you change or even bend just a little, then your belief was a preference, and will not be protected by the First Amendment. Think seriously about these five areas. Before too long, many of you will be called on to give your beliefs.

Convictions. A conviction is different in primarily one way: it is a belief that you will NOT change; a belief that you can not change. There are four things that make up a conviction. The three Hebrew children are excellent Biblical examples of these four qualities.

First, a conviction is caused by a man who thinks that his belief is a commandment from God. It must be God-ordered. The Hebrew children had been commanded of God in Exodus 20:3 that they should have no other gods before them. We, too, have been commanded in the Scriptures that certain things are wrong. Just as the Hebrew children in Daniel, chapter three, refused to bow to the golden image made by Nebuchadnezzar, we must refuse the state in matters not pertaining to it. A God-ordered belief will give us the strength we need to withstand the test for conviction.

Second, a conviction must be a personal belief. It must be a belief that you as an individual holds and will hold even though no one else stands with you. The three boys in Daniel stood when everybody else bowed to the image. Where were all the other Hebrews? They were complying with the state. But these boys had purposed in their heart not to defile themselves long before the test came. Would you stand alone against the state on a God-ordered commend? Remember, God plus one is a majority.

Third, a conviction must be non-negotiable. In Daniel, the king gave these boys a second chance, but they said, “We are not careful to answer thee in this matter. If it be so, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us…but if not, be it known unto thee, O King, that we will not serve thy gods, nor worship the golden image which thou hast set up.” (Dan. 3:16-18). No amount of talk was going to change their minds. Are your beliefs non- negotiable?

Fourth, convictions must be unconditional. By this is meant that no matter what the outcome is, you will not change. If you must be guaranteed a victory before you take a stand, your belief is a preference. The Hebrew boys were willing to die before they would bend to the wishes of the state.

These are the four qualities that make up a conviction. It must be a belief that is God- ordered, personal, non-negotiable, and unconditional. Only this type of belief is protected by our Constitution.

Lifestyle Consistency. There is one more part to the Supreme Court’s test between conviction and preference. It is based on the philosophy that a man’s conviction will show up in his life. This test is also Biblical. James said it best: “Faith without works is dead” (James 2:20). The way we live our life must be consistent with our beliefs. When the court tests you, they will delve into literally every area of your life. There is no one part of your life that is secular and another that is sacred. Every part of you belongs to God and must be lived in accordance with His Word. They will search the use of your finances; the use of your time; your recreational activities and your reading materials; every area!

One example of how the court might question you is in regard to the television. Cases have been lost by the following line of question. “Is it true that one reason for your child going to a Christian School is so he will matters of pornography, obscenity, and nudity? (Yes) “Is it true that it is so he will not see unrighteous upheld nor righteous themes debased?” (Yes) “Sir, do you own a television?” (Yes) “How much did it cost?” ($200- $500) “Where do you keep it?” (The living room) “And why is that?” (It is most traveled) “Sir, isn t it true that a TV can not affect you unless you turn it on?” (Yes) “now, do you ever hear obscenity, see nudity, and view righteous themes debased as well as unrighteousness upheld?” (Yes, sir) Your conviction has just been destroyed.

This area of lifestyle consistency is a little deeper than most would think at first. You are challenged to think seriously about the ramifications this could have in your life.

One other matter concerned with your lifestyle is on the other side of the coin. If convictions are God-ordered and come from the Bible, what is it to disobey them? It is sin! You must not only believe; you must say that the opposite of a conviction is a sin. Pastor, do you preach that public education is sin? If not, you have only a preference. Parent, do you teach and train your child in the steps of Christ? Do you have a daily family altar? If not, your conviction that your child is lent to you by God to train in the paths of righteousness is simply a preference.

When the test comes down to you, what will the verdict be? Will the court find you protected by our Constitution, or will it find you unprotected? Will you have a conviction or a preference? Will you be consistent in your walk, or will you be found with a contradiction in your lifestyle?

Before you continue, check your understanding of these ideas by answering the questions below.

• 1. What is the issue protected by our First Amendment?
  2. What document holds all of your beliefs and is unalterable?
  3. What is the Biblical base for the philosophy of church-state separation?
  4. What is the Church?
  5. What is a preference?
  6. What is a conviction?
  7. What is a lifestyle consistency?

Answers: (1) The free-exercise of our religious beliefs. (2) The Bible. (3) Romans 13:1 and Matthew 22:21. (4) The beliefs and the believers. (5) A very strong belief that can and will change under certain circumstances. (6) A belief that is God-ordered and therefore cannot change. (7) When you live what you believe and believe the opposite of a conviction, it is sin.

Pastor Need

How Home-Schooling Affected My Life

Shondra Hayes

I attended public school through the 6th grade, a private church school in the 7th grade, and the rest of my I scholastic endeavors in a homeschool environment. For me, this was a time of learning, of finding out who I was and what I believed, of deepening my walk with my Lord, and in learning study skills that would benefit me throughout the coming years.

In separating my scholastic and social lives, I learned a valuable lesson you must be focused on the task at hand, whether it be a trigonometry problem or a lasting friendship. Since I normally took ten or eleven subjects per year, I divvied up my schedule into more manageable chunks; i.e., I found out how many pages per week I bad to complete to get through a particular course and then further broke it down into pages per day. This type of scheduling taught me that when a task seems too daunt- ing, you merely take apart its components until you have a realistic goal. Not only is there a finish line in sight, but you gain a sense of accomplishing something worthwhile.

In this homeschool environment, I was not pushed nor was I held back; instead) I learned at my own pace. Rather than spending 50 minutes on a subject I was proficient at (English), I could finish that relatively quickly and devote my energy on a subject that was more difficult for me (Math). I discovered that there was no one to make me do my schoolwork. If I did not finish in the allotted time, it became homework; if I did finish, then I was free to pursue other interests.

Learning to be self-motivated and responsible helped me during those sometimes trying, yet always exciting, collegiate years. Many a valedictorian I saw drop or flunk out, because they did not know how to study. They could not, or would not, face the challenge of learning on their own. College offers many new activities, new faces, and new subjects. Without the ability to schedule your time effectively, due dates often sneak up on you.

Being alone is another area where homeschooling holds an advantage. In this fast-paced world we live in, solitude is often rare. We live in a society that fears aloneness – for if one is alone, one might have to face himself. We live in a time of quickness; a time of faxes, television, telephones, where someone around the world is as close as a phone line. Here you learn to be alone, to become comfortable with yourself. This means facing your own personal demons and working them out with the Lord.

You are not constantly bombarded with people, with peer pressures, or with negative socialization in a homeschool environment. Instead, I was able to choose my friends and intimates based on who they really were, rather than merely if they were popular. Because of the flexibility my schedule allowed, I was able to immerse myself into many community activities; i.e., piano, voice, community theatre, my church, a friend’s youth group, and a job with the local Recreation & Parks Department. I had the freedom to become friends with people all over the city, instead of staying within a little clique at school.

I strongly believe that it is the parents’ responsibility to make sure that their children are not isolated; however, I also hold to the fact that there is no reason to subjugate them to pressures that are beyond their level of maturity. It takes a certain sense of yourself to tell a person “No!” – whether it be to drugs, alcohol, cigarettes, or sex. All that is associated with the homeschooling time allowed me to find out what I believed in and why. This then enabled me to hold fast to my beliefs when it came my time to be tempted.

During my high-school years, I “found my calling.” I was to be in theatre, theatre that glorified my Lord. He had some convincing to do of my parents, but because of the bond we had and the fruits they could see in my life, He won them over. At this time, I also met David Burke, who was to become an influential person in my life. I had not planned on applying to Union University until he encouraged me. Through him I was introduced to the A.D. Players, a professional Christian theatre company, the company for whom I now work.

Two of my friends and I applied to Union in the spring of 1988. We had, respectively, made a 31,30, and 26 on our ACT scores. Because of our “lack of accreditation” and somewhat odd training, none of us received a full-tuition scholarship. We knew we were being observed during our stay there, primarily to see how we adjusted, both socially and scholastically. Needless to say, by the time another homeschooler came in two years later with a score in the 20’s, she received the full-tuition scholarship. We had passed! Our study skills, self-motivation, and leadership qualities impressed the school so much that now they actively recruit homeschoolers.

All three of us won scholastic medals in our respective majors. One graduated with a double major in three years, another with almost two majors in three and a half years, and I with a major and two minors in four years (I didn’t want to rush myself). I was also honored to be in the top three chosen throughout the whole graduating class for the Outstanding Senior Award. We were very active in social activities and professional fraternities, holding of- fices in various ones. This is indicative that neither our social nor our scholastic abilities were hampered during our time of homeschooling.

At Union, I received further training in my chosen field. David Burke, the theatre director, encouraged me in all of my endeavors. He told me more about the A.D. Players, for he and his wife had worked with them for nine years. A conviction that this is where I was called to serve my Lord grew. I graduated, taught theatre and music .in a private school for a year, and learned that this area was definitely not where I was supposed to be. Therefore, I gathered up my courage, auditioned for and was accepted by the A.D. Players.

Moving to Houston was a major upheaval in my life. Still, the abilities that homeschooling began and college honed served me well. As an Intern, I was immediately introduced to production work. During my first year, I learned to make flats, run the light and sound boards, be extremely creative on a very limited budget, and devote my life to serving my Lord, who is the Father of all Creativity, in the arts.

I stayed with the Players and moved into Special Events Coordinator and Prayer Chairman in my second year. The only job I kept from the previous was Assistant Costumer. I definitely had to continue to schedule my time in order to complete the tasks assigned. The impressive thing about this company is that you learn how to do it all, to be both cast and crew. It deepens your appreciation for the amount of time and energy others devote to their chosen craft as well.

Now I am in my third year with the Players. Will I stay here forever? I do not know. I know that I will be here until He calls me elsewhere. I take solace knowing that theatre will always be a part of my life, whether full-time as now or part-time later on. I want to continue my education and receive my Master of Fine Arts, but that is not what He has for me at this season in my life.

In conclusion, there were many aspects of my life that made me who I am today. However, I would have to say that the abilities I learned in the homeschool environment played a major role. These lessons stood me well in the school of life. I am definitely a stronger person for being able to discover myself, to learn to enjoy being alone, to become self-motivated and to deepen my walk with my Lord.