THE FOUNDERS' WORLDVIEW
AUTHORITY AND EDUCATION
THE LAW OF THE WISE
Truth understood as a man-centered reality is a relative term. God-centered truth, by comparison, produces the rule of law, while man-centered truth yields the rule of circumstances. Truth, under authority, defines an absolute standard of right and wrong. Public education teaches our children that truth exists but there are no absolutes. Thus, public education is teaching a brand of relative truth that is without authority.
"The fear of the Lord" is the beginning of knowledge and wisdom. Why? Because God, as Sovereign is omniscient (all knowing); and He thereby requires our awe, reverence and respect as Supreme Authority over all knowledge. Education involves increasing our knowledge, wisdom and understanding. True education must be God-centered to unfold the mysteries of the created order set by the Sovereign.
Next question. Why is God "Sovereign?" Because, as Creator, He has authority over all His created works. Understanding of His eternal power and divine nature are gleaned from knowledge of the created order (Rom 12:2) which provides knowledge of the Holy One (Prov 9:10).
The essence of all of these facts is that EDUCATION begins with GOD (Gen 1:1), and will end with GOD (I Cor 13:8), the CREATOR and SOVEREIGN LORD OF ALL (including the nations)...whether they believe it or they don't. However, in between the events of the beginning and the end, we Christians are commanded to "educate all nations" (Matt 28:19).
The Bible defines a nation as an entity having a physical boundary and as having an appointed time period for its existence (Acts 17:26). Unless we are explicitly called to another nation, the United States of America is our responsibility. Our nation is unique in that its founding documents are God-centered.
Our responsibility as doers of the Word is to insist that all educational institutions teach and thoroughly explain the principles of our founding documents. That happens to be a mandate of the statutory law in Virginia (Virginia Code 22.1-201). The same may be true in other states of this great nation. Our insistence that education be God-centered rather than man-centered is in accord with existing man-made law.
More importantly, regarding our founding documents, the Founders understood the difference between power and authority. The laws of nature and nature's God were recognized as our nation's supreme authority. Any act of power must comply with these laws which are above the man-made laws of our nation. Otherwise, such an act is an exercise of power without authority. The laws of nature and nature's God are, by definition, God-centered.
To educate someone is an act of power. A God-centered education involves an exercise of power with authority and therefore must begin with the truth of God. When the Founding Fathers set the laws of nature and nature's God as the nation's supreme legal authority, our legal system became God-centered. Thus life in our society is to be measured against a God-centered standard. Since becoming fully man-centered, public education has cast down the laws of nature and nature's God from their supreme throne of authority.
Our children are no longer taught that these laws are supreme law of our land. Such man-centered education is an act of power exercised without authority. Our Christian children are indoctrinated along with the rest. Certainly this partially explains why, even though more Christians live in our nation than ever before, the United States of America continues its slide in the "muck" toward oblivion.
Education speaks to Man's mind which is either conformed to the world or renewed according to the knowledge of God (Rom 12.1). When an individual's mind is conformed to the surrounding world, his mind depends only on what he sees, tastes, touches, hears and smells...his five physical senses as his powers of observation. He believes only those things which work or are successful. That is, if it works or is successful, it must be good or right. (A fancy name for this is pragmatism.)
Such a man-centered philosophy of life and education goes by several other different names including materialism, empiricism, the tradition of man (traditional values), Humanism, Atheism, and paganism. Here, Man's laws and actions depend upon his feelings, experiences, environment and circumstances. The man-centered education obviously produces a man-centered mind. Thus, the present plight of our land.
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Neil F. Markva 18