BioLogos homeschool forum

Raising and educating children to believe that there is no God, or that, if there is, He isn't very important, is obviously dangerous.

So is raising and educating children to believe that only one particular view of a controversial subject is valid, when there are strong arguments for other views, is also dangerous. Unfortunately, homeschooling in the US is dominated by Young-Earth Creationist views. Perhaps those views are right, but perhaps they aren't. There are other views held by Christians, and there are all too many people who have rejected the Gospel because they have had this internal conversation:

"The Bible says that the earth is only a few thousand years old. [It doesn't, but that's what they have been told.] But the geological and biological evidence indicates strongly that it is much older than that. If the Bible is so wrong about the natural world, why should I trust what it says about sin and salvation?"

The BioLogos Foundation has announced a Home Schooling Forum. BioLogos believes, and teaches, that evolution by natural selection has been one of God's method of bringing the earth's living things to their present condition.

Homeschoolers wanting texts that teach evolution

According to a recent article in The Atlantic, there are homeschooling evangelical Christian parents who are disgusted with some of the science texts written for the homeschool market -- texts that teach that the earth is only a few thousand years old, and also teach that anyone who rejects that idea rejects God.

Interesting, indeed. I suspect that such people are a small minority.

Going into the world with a dogmatic view that the earth is only a few thousand years old has consequences. One consequence is that telling someone who needs Christ that that’s what the Bible says, when they have good reason to believe that it’s false, is likely to make them doubt what the Bible says about the need for salvation from sin, and Christ’s offer of redemption. If the Bible is wrong about geology (it’s not, but it doesn’t really say for sure that the earth is only 10,000 years old!) then how can it be trusted about sin and salvation?

See here for more on Young-Earth Creationism.

Thanks for reading.

Some advice on teaching science in home schools

A post, by a scientist who is also home schools his children, touches on a very important issue, namely teaching science in home schools in Christian homes. As the author points out, all too often, such instruction presents young-earth creationism as if it is the only Christian alternative, and as if it has no serious weaknesses as a view of origins, when neither of these is true. (See here for my chart, indicating that all views of origins have some serious weaknesses.)

If home-schooled Christian children are not given a broader view, and a fairer one, of origins, these kids will probably become the majority of the conservative Christian leaders of the next generation. That will almost guarantee that most of their followers will be unable to present reasonable answers on origins to honest, seeking, unbelievers, and many of these unbelievers will remain in that state, because well-meaning Christians have nothing better to present on origins but gibberish. (See this post for St. Augustine's view of this sort of thing.)

The author, Douglas Hayworth, gives advice on selection of textbooks, and on other practical and important matters.

Thanks for reading.