Religion is a worldwide phenomenon. A multitude of religions have shaped the world we live in. It is therefore important that education should cover the subject because of its impact on history and modern society.
The problem is in finding a teacher and students where none have been exposed to indoctrination by family, society and religious leaders.
Personally I am now an atheist, but I was raised as a devout Catholic, even being educated by Jesuit priests for 7 years. Looking back, I realised that I had not been educated, I’d been indoctrinated. And when I realised that, I was upset that from my earliest years my mind had been bent to a certain way of thinking.
I consider myself very lucky that I was also taught to think, and that over many, many years I thought my way through the subject to where I am now. That process was actually fraught with danger, for even doubting the faith is a serious sin for Catholics.
I am sure that there are many who, like me, grew up and thought everything through and decided that their religion was indeed a useful adjunct to their lives. But it is clear that “indoctrination rules” in most cases.
So can religion be taught objectively? Assuming that a child can be free of outside influences (otherwise the built-in bias will make things very difficult for the child) then classes should begin no earlier than age 11.
I’d ask the class to talk about their parents and grandparents and to think about the generations that came before, and before, and… So – we have a starting point – some sort of creation story. Then ask for suggestions for creation, was it only people? Wouldn’t the same apply to animals? Plants? The universe? Where does it all come from?
And move on to ask about thunder and lightning – is it scary? And broaden out to natural disasters – fires, floods, earthquakes. They destroy and are frightful things. Is there an explanation? Try to lead the class into wondering if there may be something beyond their ken that controls these bad things. And then maybe it is possible to do something to appease them and minimise their impact.
So we now have creation and unexplained bad things. By such means it should be possible to build a strong case for the basis of having a religion.
From there it is a case of describing how various religions tackle creation, appeasement and so on. And for each ask the class whether these are reasonable ideas and why / why not.
I absolutely agree with your answer. I believe that religion, as a fact and historical occurrence, should be taught, because of the various and monumental ways that different religions have shaped history. However, children should never be indoctrinated or forced to accept the tenants of various religions, especially in a public school setting. The separation of church and state was implemented for a reason and should be upheld at all times.
Keith Ougden
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