is there a case for Bible study in secular education?
In the late '70s, [students] knew nothing about religion, and it didn't matter. But then religion rushed into the public square. What purpose could it possibly serve for citizens to be ignorant of all that?The ignorance - ignorance that Van Biema notes is as problematic with self-described evangelicals as it is with anyone else - leads us to a place where people are unable to critically examine public policy platforms for their hidden religious agenda. This has been on my mind lately, given that a lobbyist for a large and influential religious group freely admitted to me and the students we were talking to that part of her job is to remove the religion from the policy she lobbies for - that is, she (and many people with the same job across this country) is specifically trying to advance her religious group's beliefs via secular language. It's a hidden agenda, one that favours secrecy to get what one wants, couched in language that tries to mask religious belief for social concern and looking out for the best interest in society. And we need to give people the critical skills to examine platforms for these hidden agendas - and without a familiarity in the religious texts that are driving the agenda, the goal seems lost.
-Kelly Hills
Labels: evangelism, religious texts