Education's Historic Shift (Part I)

  

Almost all early American education was private. That which was paid for by taxes, particularly in New England, was still local and controlled by a committee that reflected the beliefs of the towns. Early Americans weren’t attracted to the idea of government-sponsored and/or -controlled education. Why were they resistant to this idea? Three reasons come to the forefront: They feared that a government-controlled education system would impose a uniformity of thoughts that would endanger liberty; They believed that education was… Read more »

A Nation's Grieved Soul

  

I’ve been reading through the Old Testament book of Judges lately. I’ve always been fascinated—perhaps astounded is the better word—by ancient Israel’s capacity to forget God, no matter how miraculously He worked to deliver them from all manner of evil [mostly of their own making]. One particular passage stood out to me in my reading yesterday in Judges 10:13-16. It begins this way: But you have forsaken Me and served other gods, so I will no longer save you. Go… Read more »

A Post-Columbus Day Post

  

Monday was Columbus Day. Did you notice? It seems to be another one of those traditional holidays that has sunk into oblivion. Now, let me be clear on one point: I don’t view Columbus as a role model. Yes, he did believe God was leading him to sail west. And, in some fashion, he believed the Christian faith was to be spread through him. That’s balanced out, however, by his ego—desiring and winning the title Admiral of the Ocean Seas—and… Read more »

Cheap & Cheaper

  

It’s now official. The Nobel Peace Prize has lost all remnants of credibility. Not that it had much to begin with, but the bestowal of this award on Barack Obama has made it clear that a person doesn’t have to do anything to win it. Well, talking a lot and apologizing for one’s country might help, but it isn’t mandatory. This is even worse than Al Gore’s Nobel Peace Prize in 2007. It’s now obvious that celebrity is the benchmark… Read more »

Education & Biblical Roots

  

The United States Constitution doesn’t say one word about education. That may surprise some people. The Founders didn’t consider government—at least at the federal level—to be the source of education. The 10th Amendment made it crystal clear [if only we would see the obvious intent of that amendment so clearly today] that whatever authority was not found in the Constitution was left to the states and to the people, respectively. Educational authority is not found there. Yet even if we… Read more »

Religion, Morality, and Knowledge

  

As Americans began to move into new territories after the Revolution, the Congress set up rules for how those territories were to be governed and how they could become states. The Northwest Territory—which consisted of the current states of Ohio, Indiana, Michigan, Illinois, and part of Wisconsin—was the first region to be settled. Even before the Constitution was written, the fledgling American Congress under the Articles of Confederation passed what was called the Northwest Ordinance. It was a very significant… Read more »

Empty Words . . . Dire Consequences

  

We’re now going to engage Iran in “talks.” The president seems to believe that talking will solve all problems. This is based, I believe, on his worldview, which doesn’t truly recognize the Biblical doctrine of evil. Instead, he feels that whatever problems the world faces are the result of misunderstandings. Well, I do think he misunderstands some things. There are evil people in the world who cannot be talked out of their evil designs. One of them is Mahmoud Ahmadinejad,… Read more »