AN EDUCATION WITH A GODLY FOUNDATION

In his interesting series of articles entitled "Restoring America's Christian Education" (In: America At Its Best, from the Magazine Enjoying Everyday Life, Jun-Sept, 2004) Stephen McDowell, president of the Providence Foundation, whose purpose is to bring godly reform, on emphasizing why a godly education is so important, quotes Abraham Lincoln:

"The philosophy in the school room in one generation will be the philosophy of the government in the next."

And also in his study Noah Webster, the Father of Education (Jul. 2004), McDowell declares, in the subsection Christianity and Excellent Education - Inseparable, Noah Webster's firm stand in that:

"…The central goal of education [is]… to train youth in the precepts of Christianity… Only people of good character and ideals can preserve religious and civil liberty. It was this very kind of people that gave birth to freedom throughout the world."

Then McDowell quotes Noah Webster's U.S. history book, and regarding the origin of civil liberty, from the chapter where Webster writes about the U.S. Constitution:

"Almost all the civil liberty now enjoyed in the world owes its origin to the principles of the Christian religion… The religion which has introduced civil liberty, is the religion of Christ and his apostles, which enjoins humility, piety, and benevolence… This is genuine Christianity, and to this we owe our free constitutions of government."

And in a letter that Noah Webster wrote in 1836 to a man named David McClure we read:

"…The Christian religion is the most important and one of the first things in which all children, under a free government, ought to be instructed… No truth is more evident to my mind than that the Christian religion must be the basis of any government intended to secure the rights and privileges of a free people."

On the opening of his article, Stephen McDowell declares:

"Noah Webster knew the importance of giving our children and youth a good, solid education. Actually, he has been called the Father of American Scholarship and Education. He affected the pattern of education in early America like no other person… In addition to his [blue-backed] speller, Webster wrote… textbook(s) for grammar, reading, U.S. history... He translated his own version of the Bible, helped to start a college, began the first magazine in America… started a newspaper, […served in numerous government positions, raised seven children, secured copyright legislation on both the state and the nation, etc… However, Webster is] probably most known for… his dictionary [!] - the first of its kind to be complied and published in the U.S. He spent well over twenty-six years working on this exhaustive collection of words and definitions [mastering 28 languages to do, for the first time, extensive etymological research - tracing the origin of words…]"

In Part 4 McDowell declares:

"The model of education in early America was actually very similar to the one used by ancient Israel. For nearly 200 years, children in America were primarily taught in the home until age eight or nine. After that, a few children attended school while others were instructed by tutors. With the Israelites, the Levites and the priests were the tutors."

Then, in the subsection Education Defined - Then and Now, McDowell alerts us:

"In his original [Webster's] Dictionary, published in 1828, he often defined words biblically and with the use of many scripture references. (He probably wouldn’t recognize the dictionary that bears his name today [!].) Webster's [original] definition of education, is quite different than the one offered now [in the watered-down new version called Webster's New World Dictionary of the American Language]"

In his original version [of the Webster's Dictionary,] Noah Webster described education as:

"The bringing up, as a child; instruction; formation of manners. Education comprehends all that series of instruction and discipline which is intended to enlighten the understanding, correct the temper, and form the manners and habits of youth, and fit them for usefulness in their future stations. To give children a good education in manners, arts, and science, is important; to give them a religious education is indispensable; and an immense responsibility rests on parents and guardians who neglect these duties."

We have already seen which was the foundation for Noah Webster: Christ and the Bible. The opening quote of Noah Webster that McDowell presented in his article was:

"The education of youth [is] an employment of more consequence than making laws and preaching the gospel, because it lays the foundation on which both law and gospel rest for success." -

Noah Webster. American Magazine, March 1788.

Contrasted to that original view of Noah Webster, in Part 1: A Nation at Risk (June 2004), McDowell contrasted the contemporaneous godless schools and the degeneracy in the education of the United States of America, when he declared:

"There are two basic ways of thinking in life - one that is according to the world and one that is according to Christ. The worldly, or humanistic, way of thinking is "man-centered," and it always brings captivity or bondage. On the other hand, the Christian way of thinking always brings liberty."

"For the past several decades, a worldly philosophy has dominated our education system. God has been expelled from public school. Prayer was removed in 1962, Bible reading was removed in 1963, and the Ten Commandments were removed in 1980. Bondage has been the result. Today, there are at least 40 million American adults who are functionally illiterate… a most recent study shows that 90 million American adults are unable to function in society because they lack basic education skills."

Before of that, McDowell had just declared:

"Leaders in the field of education admit that there are problems with the existing [educational] system. Ironically, most of them suggest increased funding of education or more centralizing of education… [However,] Washington, D.C. schools pay out almost $10,000 per child, per year, and yet, they are near the bottom academically of all cities nationwide (on average, well over $5,000 per student, per year on secondary U. S. public education). If money were really the issue, you would think that the learning level of American students would be at an all-time high as a result of all that spending. However, just the opposite is true - educational skills of our students have decreased."

In Part 3 (August, 2004) in the subsection The First Public Schools Were thoroughly Christian McDowell says:

"In 1647, the "Old Deluder Satan" Act was passed. In essence, it stated, "It being one chief project of that old deluder, Satan, to keep men from the knowledge of the Scriptures," the General Court ordered any town with fifty families to hire a teacher so that children might be taught to read and write. And any town with 100 families or households was to set up a school in which to prepare youth to enter the university."

And before:

"In 1642 the General Court passed legislation requiring each town to make sure their children were taught, especially "…to read and understand the principles of religion and the capital laws of this country."

In Part 3 also, in the subsection on Apprenticeships, Colleges, and Universities he says:

"Of the first 108 colleges, 106 were started on the Christian faith… virtually every other one was founded by Christian denominations or by individuals who declared a religious purpose."

Then he presents some outstanding examples:

HARVARD COLLEGE, founded in 1636, was started by the Reverend John Harvard. He gave half of his property and his entire library to start this Congregational institution. Its official motto was "For Christ and the Church." The governing rules required both the college's president and professors to "Open and explain the Scriptures to his pupils with integrity and faithfulness, according to the best light God shall give him…" Here is an original rule of Harvard College that affirms its Christian foundation: "Let every student be plainly instructed, and earnestly pressed to consider well, the main end of his life and studies is, to know God and Jesus Christ which is eternal life, (John 17:3), and therefore to lay Christ in the bottom, as the only foundation of all sound knowledge and learning."

PRINCETON, a college closely associated with the first Great Awakening, was founded by the Presbyterians in 1746. Reverend Jonathan Dickson became its first president. He declared, "Cursed be all that learning that is contrary to the cross of Christ." Princeton's official motto is: "Under God's Power She Flourishes."

YALE UNIVERSITY was started also by Congregational ministers in 1701, "For the liberal and religious education of suitable youth… to propagate in this wilderness, the blessed reformed Protestant religion."

THE COLLEGE OF WILLIAM AND MARY was started primarily as a result of the efforts of Reverend James Blair in order "That the Church of Virginia may be furnished with a seminary of ministers of the Gospel, and that the youth may be piously educated in good letters and manners, and that the Christian religion may be propagated among the Western Indians to the glory of Almighty God."

Other Colleges started before America's Independence include BROWN, begun by Baptists in 1764; RUTGERS, started by the Dutch Reformed Church in 1766; HAMPDEN-SIDNEY, which was started by the Presbyterians in 1776, etc…

And before, in subsection The First Schools Were Started by the Church:

"The BOSTON LATIN SCHOOL in New England was the first school established outside the home, and Reverend John Cotton started it. He willed half of his property to provide education for children who were disadvantaged or had no parents. For hundreds of years, most schools were church schools started by the major Christian denominations. Some charged moderate fees, but usually taught the children of the poor for free."

In his subsection The American Student is in Trouble (Jun.), McDowell reveals:

"Some of the most destructive influences that young Americans can face today are found in public schools, and the situation has only gotten worse in the last 40-50 years. In 1940, the top offences by students included chewing gum, talking in class, unfinished homework, and running in the halls. In 1980, the top offenses were drugs, drunkenness, assault, rape, and murder."

"In addition to being confronted with drugs, immorality, and violence, many students in public schools are also receiving a second-rate education… The Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) scores dropped consistently each year from 1963 to 1980… Then they began dropping again. (The average verbal scores dropped over 50 points, and the average math scores dropped over 35 points.) As a result of the declining reading skills, college textbooks are being rewritten at a lower grade level so that students can understand them… Unfortunately, even though your son or daughter is getting the best grades of their fields, it is not necessarily an accurate measure of what they are learning…"

In the words of the dean of admission at George Washington University, on referring to that watering-down that the American Student is facing:

"He's been deluded into thinking he's gotten an education."

McDowell opened his article with one of the most moving statements from The National Commission on Excellence in Education's report "A Nation at Risk," conducted during the 1980s:

"If an unfriendly foreign power had attempted to impose on America the mediocre educational performance that exists today, we might well have viewed it as an act of war."

Then McDowell declared:

"Why is America a Nation at Risk? One of the biggest reasons is the second-rate educational performance that exists today. This performance is the result of the anti-Christian, man centered religion of secular humanism, which is "preached" five days a week, to nearly fifty million of our youth. This godless philosophy, which is often very subtle, proclaims that man is the source of right and wrong and [that] there are no absolutes. [Godless humanism assures that] Truth is relative to each person and the situation they face. To a great degree, this wrong way of thinking permeates the media, movies, television, and arts."

In Part 4 he asks: What type of men were produced by the biblical education of colonial America? And he answers with an example:

"…George Washington was the American Revolution, as a result of his overwhelming influence in winning the war. He also played a critical role in forming the Constitution and in setting an excellent example as the first president of the United States. Without a doubt, he was a man of great Christian character. How was Washington trained and educated? Primarily by his father, his mother, and his brother. He only briefly attended a nearby school, and he never went to college. He wasn't very loud or talkative. However, he was very commanding in his words and presence. His words certainly carried great force. It has been said that the value and force of words depends upon who stands behind them. The value and force of someone's words depends on the character of him who utters them. Washington's character, instilled in him through a godly education, was the source of his strength and greatness."

George Washington endeavored:

"To impress upon the soldiers under his command a profound reverence for the name and the majesty of God, and repeatedly, in his public orders during the Revolution, the inexcusable offense of profaness was rebuked. On a certain occasion, he had invited a number of officers to dine with him. While at table, one of them uttered an oath [took God's name in vain]. General Washington dropped his knife and fork in a moment, and in his deep undertone, and characteristic dignity and deliberation, said, "I THOUGHT THAT WE ALL SUPPOSED OURSELVES GENTLEMEN." He then resumed his knife and fork and went on as before. The remark struck like an electric shock, and, as was intended, did execution, as his observations in such cases were apt to do. No person swore at the table after that. When dinner was over, the officer referred to said to a companion that if the General had given him a blow over the head with his sword, he could have borne it, but that the home thrust which he received was too much - it was too much for a gentleman!"

Before, starting Part 3 we read that Samuel Blumenfield said:

"Of the 117 men who signed the Declaration of Independence, the Articles of Confederation, and the Constitution, one out of three had had only a few months of formal schooling, and only one in four had gone to college. They were educated by parents, church schools, tutors, academies, apprenticeships, and by themselves."

Then, in the subsection Education Was Centered in the Home, we read:

"Virtually every child in America was educated. By the time of the American Revolution, the literacy level was virtually 100 percent, and even on the frontier it was greater than 70 percent. The colonists had a Christian philosophy of education - they felt everyone should be educated because they each needed to know the truth for themselves. Tutors were often employed to supplement teaching, and these tutors were very often ministers. Thomas Jefferson, Noah Webster, and James Madison all had ministers as tutors. Likewise, those who attended college were taught by ministers."

"In the earliest days of the Pilgrims and the Puritans, education laws were developed and passed in Massachusetts to ensure that children could read and understand the Bible." "In early America, ministers were the teachers."

"Common, or "public" schools were not under the control of a state government board until the mid 1800s. They were only called "public" because they were required by law. As time passed, private schools flourished more than public schools - especially as the Puritan influence in public schools decreased. Then, the Christian community saw that private schools were more reliable"

In Part 3 he ends:

"Every civil government is founded upon some religion or philosophy of life. The education system in a nation will spread and breed the religion of the nation. In America, our foundational religion is Christianity, and it was planted in the hearts of Americans through the home, private, and public schools for centuries. Our freedom, growth, and success were the result of a Biblical philosophy of life, and our continued freedom and prosperity depends upon our educating the youth of America in the principles of the Christian religion."

In Part Four he declares in What is America in desperate need of?

"America today is desperately looking for leaders - men and women of character and full of truth. By now, it's evident that we need to move from being a nation at risk to being a nation on the rise. We need godly reform, and to accomplish this, we must have a revolution - a revolution not of guns but of ideas. Thankfully, a revolution is occurring. Millions of parents around the country are assuming their responsibility to oversee the education of their children through church schools, private schools, and at home. This offers hope for our future."

How can we truly help our children?

"It is not enough to just restore prayer to public schools. This alone will not lead them or our nation of the bondage we're in. I believe the present public education system is actually the reason for the majority of our problems - it is not God's method of training future generations but it is the world's (or man's) method. It needs to be dismantled, and here are things we can do to dismantle it: 1-) Parents must assume the role of overseeing the education of their children. They must be involved, even if they send them to school. 2-) Churches and private schools can provide support for parents and education for those who are not receiving it at home. 3-) Business can participate through apprenticeship programs. 4-) Each of us can work to bring back a Christian philosophy and methodology to education in America. 5-) New Christian colleges can be started. 6-) We should work toward privatizing public education. These are just a few steps we can take to lead America out of bondage and into freedom in the area of education. Whoever controls the education of our children controls the future of our nation. Thus, the way that parents fulfill their duty to properly develop an accurate and healthy "picture" on the canvas of their child's heart and mind, and how teachers execute their responsibility of training those that have been entrusted to their care will determine the future course of America. The greatest care must be taken."

Finally, in his subsection: What is the Solution? (Part 1), McDowell concludes:

"To turn America from being a nation at risk to being a nation on the rise, we need a new generation of well-trained and educated youth-those who are knowledgeable of the truth and know how to think biblically. While ignorance produces bondage, knowledge of the truth brings true freedom."

"To have knowledgeable, well-trained and educated youth requires parents and teachers who understand the importance of educating youth and who are willing to assume the responsibility and pay the price necessary to produce a new generation of Americans. The cost will involve time, effort, and money - although it doesn't necessarily require a lot of money."

I want to close with McDowell's quotation of a Biblical scripture from the New Testament (NT):

"Lack of financial resources is not the problem in our public schools. The problem is a lack of spiritual resources. The philosophy that currently forms the foundation of education in our nation is defective".

"Colossians 2:8 says,

See to it that no one takes you captive through philosophy and empty deception, according to the tradition of men, according to the elementary principles of the world, rather than according to Christ "

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