We are raising our children in the middle of a fundamentalist Bible belt. Everybody in the area goes to private Christian schools and it is a little overwhelming sometimes. We watch the children here being deliberately and completely immersed in the belief system of their parents. It is a pretty hard-core belief system too. If you look at the young people, you will see lots of blank eyes and mindless parroting of doctrine.
The fundy kids are very heavily monitored and supervised (think the level of crazy on that Duggar 19 Kids and Counting show). Of course, this intense attention to religious grooming makes perfect sense. If the early installation of belief is deep and true, then they won’t be as likely to wander outside mother church. In fact, that is what church elders are used for: they intervene when young people want to move away from home on their own. Weddings are mandatory before you get to leave the family home.
Sometimes the locals come to our door to talk to us about Jesus–or they used to. One day, I had enough. I very firmly pointed out that it is the ultimate arrogance and delusion to disturb other people to spread religious preachings. I also may have mentioned that many of us think they are foolish for being so earnest about it all.
Something to that effect anyway. I think our house is now on the “Satan spawn” list, the people they haven’t a hope of saving.
We teach our children that stories are just that. Santa, Bigfoot, and God. Nice fantasies that man has put in place to give comfort or more likely to keep people obedient. We also show our kids that they should be good people for the sake of creating happiness, not because they should fear some retribution or reward from an invisible deity. We don’t want them to fear and obey something they can’t see, or really understand. We also don’t want them to believe the earth is under 10,000 years old, or that it is flat or any of the other indefensible beliefs of the right wingers.
I mean, how do they do it with a straight face?
Our family believes in science, progress, ethics, and the laws of the land. We believe there is no place for religion in those topics, nor in school, nor anywhere else. If people want to be religious, they should go to church, pray and believe–and that’s where it ends. They should have no influence over public policy and human rights. In fact, I find it insulting that the assumption is that you can’t be a whole human, or moral without religion. That is just preposterous.
Sometimes my youngest child asks about why so many friends believe in god. I explain it is because their parents do, and hopefully when they grow up they will make their own choices about religion.
To be fair, I also try to explain that there are many great aspects to organized religion. Way back in the day, it was churches and parishioners who did charitable work in communities. They put their energy into feeding the poor, and taking care of families who fell on hard times. Now, many churches expend their passion to oppress others. Westboro Baptists and the people like them who think a woman shouldn’t have control of her reproductive choices, or even have the right to marry who you want are the issue. What has happened to religion?
Would Jesus have picketed the funerals of Veterans, calling everybody fags?
The great world religions have lost their way entirely. I think by raising the new generation with a blank slate may help the world start anew. Imagine the young people of this generation refusing to be drawn into religious based conflict. What a great revolution that would make.
As for our little corner of the world, I’m not worried whether my children are out there sinning. I am more concerned that they are happy, and productive and not brainwashed. And I’m making damn sure that they are doing their part to make THIS world a better place instead of waiting for the glory of one that may never come.