How old do you have to be to have religion? [Title edited by GNHQ at OP's request]

Came to UK to escape Apartheid and sort of pretended to be CofE, to fit in and get kids into decent schools.

Most if us are more enlightened now. Children under 7 are guided by their parents, my two children do not share my views and that’s fine, it’s a personal thing and people should make up their own minds without being indoctrinated. I remember being very scared about things my friend told me about her catholic school with the nuns and could not understand her mother sending her, if anyone caned my little child they would have to deal with me.

It was Aristotle who said "give me a boy until he is seven and I will show you the man"

Undoubtedly these early years are very influential.

All the more reason for being concerned about the power of indoctrination of such young children.

Aristotle's saying became a motto of the Jesus's who were very keen on indoctrination.

How do we strike a balance between supporting a young child in understanding the world , knowing right from wrong and developing a strong character, whilst having an open mind, and learning about different people, and families unlike their own with different beliefs which may be equally valid?

Jesuists, not Jesus's

For one set of grandchildren, the nearest school with good results happens to be Catholic. They have to be baptised to attend - but it's just a big joke to all concerned - so ridiculous.

I second every word paddyanne said, except the personal information. I was brought up a catholic. I went to 10 schools, 7 of them catholic, most of them convents. All the convent schools I went to acceped children of all faiths and all nationalities, albeit that, back in te 1950s, most children were likely to be British. At secondary school, girls from the local Jewish community came to the catholic school because the CofE secondary school did not accept non-Christians, There were separate religious education lssons for those not catholics, the Jewish girls fewer in number were not expected to attend religious education classes.

Although I went to catholic schools, outside school I met people of all religions and none. I had aunts and uncles who belonged to other Christian denominations, neighbours, work colleagues of my parents all came from a range of backgrounds.

The only time I have any concerns about religious education in schools, is where the children in the school are living in religiously homogenous or religiously divided communities.

At one point it looked as if DH would be going to work in Northern Ireland and the first thing I said to him was that if that happened we would pay to send the children to religiously mixed schools. We would have had enough problems bein a mixed marriage and we did not want our children educated in segrated schools for a segrated community.

This award winning article on integrated schools in Northern Ireland explains that in 2021 only 7% of pupils attended integrated schools yet the overwhelming majority of parents support integration.

Sectarianism is still rife in Northern Ireland and a danger to peace even now. Integrating the schools would be a positive move.

www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2021/dec/02/integrated-education-northern-ireland-school

Schools should be secular. Religion has no place in an institution of learning, except to understand historic decisions, wars and suppression carried out in the name of one religious deity or other.

Integrated schools in NI

nicie.org/

Whitewavemark2

Schools should be secular. Religion has no place in an institution of learning, except to understand historic decisions, wars and suppression carried out in the name of one religious deity or other.

Exactly what I said too earlier in the thread.

I dont agree, because I think its good to understand different faiths and understand what faith can mean to an individual, without it being "forced" on children in any way.
Most schools now are sensitive about the different celebrations or special days of major religions (like celebrating Diwali as well as Christmas) Because since we live in a multi faith and multi cultural society. Humanism should be included as well of course!

And history needs to be honest about the part organised religion has played in war and oppression. Critically, for some attempts in the past were done under the guise of one god or another, but were really about grabbing land, power and resources, "justified" in the name of a god: others were genuine ideologically religious wars. But if one puts Putin or similar somewhere far in the past one can imagine him claiming its in the name of a religion. The suppression of one group or another or the indoctrination of one group by another is also done in the name of religion but is a ?? mix of power holding and religious or non religious ideologies.

I remember aged about 18 months thinking that I loved God. I always loved Father God and God the Son- Jesus. Never talked about at home. I was born again aged 22. Over the subsequent decades I've got to know God's character really quite well, and understand him a fair bit. I put my faith in Jesus to be saved so on death am not headed to hell as most are (through their own choice). Which is nice.

I am afraid that hell sounds preferable to me so am grateful for my choices

Galaxy

I am afraid that hell sounds preferable to me so am grateful for my choices

Hell sounds preferable?! Are you sure about that? Eternal darkness, eternal suffering, eternal torment and agony and pain and the agony of being outside of God's presence? Shut out from God's love, nothing good or innocent or pure or holy or kind or loving? You want to go to Hell, why? Because you don't want to be with the one who designed and created you and loves you so much he died for you? How can eternal damnation appeal to you over Love? That's bonkers!

Because if heaven involves the things you were saying I felt no love there.

Galaxy

Because if heaven involves the things you were saying I felt no love there.

Goodness
Innocence
Purity
Holiness
Kindness
Love

How is there no love in these things?
You want to punish God for the way he has decided to run things by choosing for yourself to suffer eternal torment?!
I don't even understand your reasoning...
It makes no sense.

Am not headed to hell as most are (through their own choice) feels to be me unkind and judgemental so if thats heaven (I believe in neither) I will pass thanks.

Sorry random be in that post.

Galaxy

Am not headed to hell as most are (through their own choice) feels to be me unkind and judgemental so if thats heaven (I believe in neither) I will pass thanks.

You are judging me for the way I wrote what is what? You want to go to Hell because I wrote it wrong for you? You want to put your eternal damnation upon me? I think you can do better than that. Ridiculous.

Hell and damnation😄😄. We seem to be back in the medieval period.

Blimey, I am so glad I cut free!

Leveticus allows fathers to seel daughters into slavery- that is the going price these days. Amazing how some Christians pick and choose the bits they want from the Old Testament, then totally refute the others!

At 5 I believed in God, the father, Christ the Son & the Holy Ghost. Said my scary prayers kneeling by the bed, and attended Sunday School every week, etc.

BUT - at 5, I also believed in Santa Claus, the Tooth Fairy, and that tatties would grow in my ears if they were not cleaned, etc. (see other thread).

By the time I was a teenager, I realised that all these things were mere traditions - sometimes enjoyable and fun e.g Carol singing, rolling Easter Eggs - BUT that our lives were actually ordered by the Fickle Finger of Fate.

All good things around us are NOT sent from Heaven above. We should thank nature, fellow humans, and pets etc.for the good things in our lives and blame chance for the bad.

Thinking of the thread about 'agressive' interviewing techniques- sometimes, it is the only choice if someone is either refusing to answer the question or talks absolutle nonsense. Like O'Brien or not, but ...

youtu.be/feFKRrV5ixc

I'm not sure how at the age of 18 months one could love God, but I'll take your word for it. Speaking as one who was dragged to church from the earliest of age, I felt no love from what I perceived to be an abstract entity, although I'm sure that is what I was told I should feel. My recollections of feelings would have been a combination of fear and boredom.

Whitewavemark2

Hell and damnation😄😄. We seem to be back in the medieval period.

God didn't get with the programme, nor is he woke, Marxist, politically correct or any other corrupt reflection of the times we are in today. He is the same as he always was. The plan for the history and future of our planet remains the same. The Judgment Day is on its way and there's a choice of two destinations, as there always was- with God for ever or away from god forever (the place you'll go gets decided upon your choice now to reject or accept his Son, Jesus). It is the same as it was in Medieval times- the choice is the same. This stuff is real you know. More real than the spiritual delusions most are living in currently. Your response to the love of God, shown in Jesus dying on the cross for you, is vitally important. More important than anything else you'll ever consider. Choose Life.