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Which Story is Shaping Your Home Education

the issue [is] not whether education is rooted in a grand story, but which grand ... If (in modernity) education was guided by the story of progress ...

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Which Story is Shaping Your Home Education

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    Slide 1:Which Story is Shaping Your Home Education?The Western Cultural Story and Education Michael Goheen Burnaby, B.C.

    Slide 2:Romans 12.1-2 Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God--this is your spiritual act of worship. Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is--his good, pleasing, and perfect will.

    Slide 3:Two Points Some story will shape our lives

    Slide 4:Fox and the Crow

    Slide 5:Fox and the Crow

    Slide 6:Story xxxxxxxxxxxxx Beginning Theme End Conflict/Resolution

    Slide 7: “I can only answer the question “What am I to do?” if I can answer the prior question “Of what story do I find myself a part?” -Alasdaire MacIntyre “The way we understand human life depends on what conception we have of the human story. What is the real story of which my life story is a part?” -Lesslie Newbigin

    Slide 8:Grand Story Comprehensive: Account of whole world Normative: Claims to be true for all ‘A story is the best way of talking about the way the world actually is’ (N.T. Wright).

    Slide 9:Two Grand Stories in the West ‘In our contemporary culture . . . two quite different stories are told. One is the story of evolution, of the development of species through the survival of the strong, and the story of the rise of civilization, our type of civilization, and its success in giving humankind mastery of nature. The other story is the one embodied in the Bible, the story of creation and fall, of God’s election of a people to be the bearers of his purpose for humankind, and of the coming of the one in whom that purpose is to be fulfilled. These are two different and incompatible stories’ (Newbigin).

    Slide 10:Living at the Crossroads

    Slide 11:Education shaped by some story “. . . the issue [is] not whether education is rooted in a grand story, but which grand story it shall be rooted in.”

    Slide 12:Two Points Some story will shape our lives Western cultural story and education

    Slide 14:Hidden Credo Humanism: “Must we not become gods?”

    Slide 15:Humanist Credo: “Must we not ourselves become gods?” Friedrich Nietzsche (1844-1900) ‘The Madman’ “We have killed God—you and I! We are all his murderers! . . . How shall we comfort ourselves, the murderer of all murderers? Must we ourselves not become gods simply to appear worthy of it?”

    Slide 16:Nietzsche’s Parable We have killed God in Western culture We must become gods Creator Redeemer: ‘Humanism “assigns to us nothing less than the task of being our own savior and redeemer.” (Corliss Lamont) Ruler of history

    Slide 17:Hidden Credo Humanism: “Must we not become gods?” Rationalistic humanism: “Scientia potestas est” Control of non-human creation by technology Organise society according to reason

    Slide 18:Conversion of West (18th century)

    Slide 19:A New Faith . . . “The West had ‘lost its faith’—and found a new one, in science and in man.” (Richard Tarnas)

    Slide 20:Triumph of Humanism How did this happen? Two powerful stories interacting: humanist and Biblical Enlightenment: Triumph of humanistic story Why? Two mistakes of church Dogmatic opposition to Copernican theory Religious wars

    Slide 21:Opposition to Copernicus: Triumph of Humanism

    Slide 22:Religious Wars: Triumph of humanist vision

    Slide 23:Enlightenment humanist faith Faith in progress to ‘paradise’ Paradise images: Secularized vision of biblical story Progress identified primarily with economic growth and material prosperity “. . . the greatest happiness possible for us consists in the greatest possible abundance of objects suitable for our enjoyment and in the greatest liberty to profit by them” (Mercier de la Riviere, 1767).

    Slide 24:Enlightenment humanist faith Faith in progress Propelled by reason and science

    Slide 26:Enlightenment humanist faith Faith in progress Propelled by reason and science Scientific reason translated into technology Scientific reason translated into societal organisation Progress comes “by the application of reason” to both “technical and social” issues (Plumb).

    Slide 27:Enlightenment humanist faith Faith in progress Propelled by reason and science Scientific reason translated into technology Scientific reason translated into societal organisation Idolatrous importance of economic growth and material prosperity

    Slide 28:Enlightenment Creed “Growth in prosperity and scientifically founded technological progress are the two indispensable allies on the way to a better future. This is part and parcel of the Enlightenment creed.” (Bob Goudzwaard)

    Slide 29:Modern Humanism and Education More educational treatises written in 18th century than all previous centuries combined Education play key role in building new world Public education mandatory Remove children from influence of church and home

    Slide 30:Modern Humanism and Purpose of Education Pass on a unified body of universal scientific knowledge Equip a world of rational citizens Build a more rational world leading to freedom, justice, truth, and material prosperity

    Slide 31:Idolatry and modern education Modernist education shaped by idolatry “Idols will never fail to fail.” (Chris Wright) Home-education: One of responses to failure of modern education

    Slide 32:Current Situation Postmodern challenge ‘Simplifying to the extreme, I define postmodernity as incredulity towards metanarratives.’ (J-F Lyotard)

    Slide 33:Postmodern Challenge to Enlightenment Vision Environmental destruction Growing poverty Nuclear threat Economic problems Psychological, social disorder

    Slide 34:Current Situation Postmodern challenge Global spread of Enlightenment faith (modernity) Consumer culture

    Slide 35:Consumerism as “Our Story” If there is an overarching metanarrative that purports to explain reality in the late 20th century, it is surely the metanarrative of the free-market economy. In the beginning of this metanarrative is the self-made, self-sufficient human being. At the end of this narrative is the big house, the big car, the expensive clothes. In the middle is the struggle for success, the greed, the getting-and-spending in a world in which there is no such thing as a free lunch. Most of us have made this so thoroughly ‘our story’ that we are hardly aware of its influence. (Susan White)

    Slide 36:The Religion of Our Day? Consumerism appears to have become part and parcel of the very fabric of modern life. . . . And the parallel with religion is not an accidental one. Consumerism is . . . arguably the religion of the late twentieth century. (Miles)

    Slide 37:Education Today? If (in modernity) education was guided by the story of progress towards a better society by science and technology but we are increasingly skeptical of that story... Then what is the purpose of education?

    Slide 38:Breakdown of Modern Story: Evangelistic Opportunity? Take away this story of civilisational progress and modern mass education loses a central dimension of its raison d’etre… the issue [is] not whether education is rooted in a grand story, but which grand story it shall be rooted in? If the tale of capitalistic progress is beginning to fray at the edges then perhaps this is an evangelistically opportune time for Christian education to offer another story—one that replaces the self-salvation of economic progress with the tale of a coming Kingdom of redemption (Brian Walsh).

    Slide 39:Postmodernity and Education Postman’s trinity: economic utility, consumerism, technology Vendor of useful information and marketable skills Enables student to compete or survive in the jungle of the market

    Slide 40:B.C. Home School Legal Requirements . . . the parent, in the case of learning activities provided to a child registered under Section 13, is designed to enable learners to develop their individual potential and to acquire the knowledge skills and attitudes needed to contribute to a healthy society and a prosperous and sustainable economy.

    Slide 41: Why are you educating? Home-education will only play a faithful role in God’s story if it refuses to become conformed to the world!

    Slide 42:To avoid be conformed to this world in education we . . . need to know our cultural story, its idolatry and insights, and how it shapes education need to know story of Bible, our place in it, and how it shapes the educational task need discernment to reshape educational forms by the gospel to achieve Christian education

    Slide 43:Further information www.biblicaltheology.ca www.genevasociety.org mike.goheen@twu.ca Books available

    Slide 44:Books available

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