John R. Houk
© December 1, 2016
Just the other day I had a conversation with my 3rd
grade grandson about his reading regimen. He was trying to squirm out of his
daily reading by telling me he forgot to bring his book from school.
I told him to get a book from home. He tried to tell me we
didn’t have any. I knew better. So I told him we many versions of the Bible to
read.
He told me his teacher said he couldn’t read religious
books.
I said, “Tough! Get a Bible. I’m going to have to talk to
your Public School teacher about Religious Freedom in the First Amendment.”
My wife saved our grandson’s bacon by assigning something I
can’t recall right now. BUT it really chapped my hide that a Public School
teacher said reading the Bible was unacceptable.
It’s a good thing I didn’t fly-off the handle. I checked my
email later in the day and had received an email from the 3rd grade
teacher. Lo and behold – she was asking why I hadn’t been turning in my
grandson’s reading record.
Oops, my bad I had not kept up with that. Reading the email
further reading suggestions were included. Guess what. Religious literature was
a part of the approved reading. Now the word “Bible” was not used specifically,
but as far as I am concerned “religious” included the Bible.
I wish my grandson was as bright in doing homework as he is
in slipping out of homework.
I was thinking about all this Religious Freedom vs. the mythical Separation of Church and State
(See Also HERE and HERE)and I ran into the article
I am cross posting below from United Families International
about preserving Religious Freedom for our children or in our case
grandchildren that we are raising.
JRH 12/1/16
*****************
PRESERVING RELIGIOUS FREEDOM FOR OUR CHILDREN
By Diane Robertson
November 30, 2016
This week I received an email from Alliance Defending
Freedom, a group of lawyers who defend religious freedom, that began thus:
“Dear Diane,
Do you ever wonder what the future
will look like for your children and grandchildren?
We live in a world where religious freedom
for future generations cannot be assumed. It must be fought for—every day.”
As I have studied the issues,
written for UFI, discussed the issues with friends, family, and strangers, and
written and spoken with lawmakers, I have often thought, “Have we so little
compassion for the destinies of our own children that we can feel just about
ignoring the destruction of the freedoms we have enjoyed?”
There are so many reasons people give to ignore the current
erosion of religious freedom– we are too busy; losing our freedom is
inevitable; religious freedom marginalizes people with other beliefs; religion
itself is bigoted and old fashioned, and so on. The fight for religious freedom
is not a friendly fight.
It’s true that those on the side of religious freedom are
continually disparaged. They are told that their views are based on bigotry and
hate for certain groups of people. It’s hard to stand up against such demeaning
accusations. And it is certainly not true for most. Most people fighting for
religious freedom do so because they believe that everyone should be allowed to
live and work according to the dictates of their conscience. They believe in
property rights, freedom of belief, and freedom of conscience. They oppose laws
that limit the ability of people to live, work, and worship as they believe.
In the same email mentioned above, ADF reported that their:
“Clients are regular people who
were going about their daily business—work, school, church—until they were
confronted by a culture intolerant of their faith. A Christian printer faced a
boycott and lawsuit because he politely declined to print t-shirts promoting
the local ‘pride’ festival. A decorated firefighter was suspended because of a
Christian book he wrote in his spare time. A college student was threatened
with expulsion because of her Christian beliefs. A church was told that their
house of worship is no longer sacred, but just another public accommodation.”
These are a few of the ways religious freedom is eroding in
North America. It has hit some individuals hard. There are forces working to
establish laws that would limit what churches can do in their buildings and
even what religious leaders are allowed to preach. There are forces working to
regulate private property as if it were public or government property.
To help our children and grandchildren enjoy the same
freedoms we have enjoyed, we must study the issues, understand current events,
and speak up. Losing our religious freedom is only as inevitable as we allow it
to be. If enough people act, freedom can still be preserved for the generations
to come.
______________
Religious Freedom in Elementary School
John R. Houk
© December 1, 2016
____________________
PRESERVING RELIGIOUS FREEDOM FOR OUR CHILDREN
Strengthening and defending:
Family
Family is the foundational unit of society
Marriage
Marriage between a man and woman, is founded on chastity
before marriage and fidelity in marriage
Life
Life is sacred and should be protected including the life
of unborn children.
Parents
Parents have the right and obligation to love, protect, provide
for and teach their children.
Religious Liberty
Religious Liberty emphasizes the right to live our lives
according to our religious convictions, and the importance of religion to
individuals and society.
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