by Richard Ellis

Created on: August 28, 2009

The Bible should be considered a valid book for real educational purposes.

There are many reasons why the Bible should be used as a valid part of our educational system. For centuries it was used in schools to teach everything from poetry, literature and writing to history, geography and morals. It could play an excellent supporting role in our schools. Leaving off any theological arguments, we will examine some these reasons.

Morals:
What is sorely needed in our home and school education today is strong moral grounding. Whether Christian or not, today's rationally thinking person must agree that there is no better textbook for reference and instruction in this area than the Bible. For teaching marriage and parenting principles, or how to treat one another, including the unborn; good work habits, self discipline, and other societal issues, the Bible has no peer. The book of Proverbs should be studied by everyone. Some will say this is primarily the role of home and church; possibly, but schools have our children in a non-distracting environment for more hours each day than do parents or Sunday School teachers. Therefore, a school curriculum which included instruction from the Bible in support of home and church teaching would be invaluable.

(Thought: Homework assignments given in school are generally taken more seriously than those given in church or demanded at home, unless, perhaps, in the case of home schooling. This, in part at least, leads to a deeper understanding of any given subject, be it morals or history or poetry.)

History:
Although its history primarily concerns the ancient Hebrews and the nations contemporary with them, and early Christianity, the Bible can help students (and parents) to a better understanding of our own more recent history and present troubled times. It would give far greater insight into the problems in the Middle East, for instance, or historical questions concerning the framing of the United States Constitution and other documents related to the founding of our country. The Bible is rich with historical background information of this kind which we do not get from media clips and sound-bites, no matter how "balanced" they are.

Poetry and Literature:
For a study in poetry, there are five poetical books in the Bible: Job, Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, and Song of Solomon. The poetry of the bible can give deeper understanding and meaning to the poetical works of such authors as Homer, Vergil, Dante, Milton, and Shakespeare.

As a help in the study of literature in general, the entire Bible is worthy of study as a literary masterpiece.

Science, Mathematics and War:
The Bible is not a science or math book. However, from the Creation to the Flood, to the ancient Greek and Roman civilizations, rudimentary and sophisticated applications of science can be found in the Bible. Of course science and mathematics have advanced tremendously since Biblical times, but the science and math found in the Bible is accurate. As for war: the basic science of war has not changed much; it is just as valid today as it was then. It has only changed in weaponry, but not much tactically.

While the Bible is perhaps not suitable for all educational purposes, at all grade levels, it could undeniably be useful in the areas mentioned above. Of course, the ACLU, as always, would fight against any proposal to use the Bible in our public schools.

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