So I came across this earlier. It's the testimony of a young Christian woman advocating other young women should spend their time doing more traditional Christian things and not getting a higher education. Read this, the people I talk to about this stuff say Christianity is not responsible for the way these people conduct themselves on a daily basis and it can't be held responsible for a few nutty believers, yet she cites Biblical passages justifying each decision she makes.
The teachings and dogma of the religion itself are responsible for the way people like this behave in our society. It's responsible for science and education taking a backseat to spirituality and feelings, indirectly costing the lives of people across the globe. I don't believe that can be denied. It's as clear as day with Islam but you actually have to do a little digging to see the reasons why Christianity is bad for someone - and - not surprisingly, Christians don't see it.
Anyway, here's the article, I'm gonna pop in and post some commentary when I think something should be pointed out.
After I graduated high school in 2007, I was faced countless times with a very common question: Where are you going to school? College is such a cultural coming of age and a rite of passage that few ever considered the possibility that I would not be stepping onto a college campus sometime soon. They did not ask, Are you going to school? or What are your plans now that youve graduated? No, assumptions made, the question was where. It was to the disgust and confounding of many that I answered nowhere.
Why Arent You in School, Young Lady?
Many things came into play with my decision not to take the traditional route to post-secondary education; the question above was one I pondered for quite some time: 1) what did I think about college, and, as a young woman, with my aspirations, 2) would I be attending. It was an ongoing discussion between my parents and I, and I had a massive paradigm shift from, as a little girl, yearning to be an Ivy League graduate, starry-eyed over a certificate I got from Duke University after my standardized test scores, to, as a sophomore in high school, daydreaming about becoming a UCLA or NYU graduate who made Shyamalan-esque films, to, as a junior, researching schools with a much more Christ-exalting curricula, to as a senior, deciding to do away with the typical college experience altogether.
First off, since college is a form of furthering ones education, I had to consider what the purpose of my education was:
as a Christian, I believe that purpose falls in line with my ultimate purpose: to glorify God and enjoy him forever. (OK, right off the bat, everything we know about modern science and medicine contradicts Biblical teachings, so right away education gets a strike) I wanted all levels of my education to be effective in equipping me for that calling. There were several things that made me shy away my my UCLA and NYU ideals; one was
a five point sermon my dads been
preaching to Trey and I since we entered high school:
- Most BA degrees arent worth the paper they are written on. (says pastor Dad, bet all educated people on Earth would disagree with that)
- Four years is too much time to waste. (not on a valid education)
- $80,000 (room&board/state school) to $250,000 (room&board/Ivy League) is too much money to spend. (again, not on a valid education)
- College is not for everyone. (I actually agree with this)
- Most universities are philosophically antagonistic to Christianity. (no, that's bullshit. Most universities are philosophically inclined to teach the truth, facts, not Biblical bullshit. Just because all the facts go completely against Christianity and that's what the universities decide to teach does not make them "philosophically antagonistic to Christianity")
Click here to read that entire article.
American colleges today arent what they once were, and with the amount of time and money poured into young peoples education today, I think the results being offered are, most often, subpar.
(you get out of a college education exactly what you put into it) Young men and young women would benefit from taking a long, hard look at the way post-high-school education is conducted in America, making decisions, not based on the status quo,
but on how to be a good steward with the time and the gifts that the Lord has given them.
But Dont You Need a College Education, Just in Case?
Just in case I dont get married -just in case a parent dies -just in case my husband dies -just in case he becomes disabled -just in case I have to work
Just in case scenarios have their validity -if they did not, I would not be a firm believer in life insurance, car insurance, and home insurance -
however, we must be careful never to base our decisions on fear, but on the precepts of the Word of God, and the leading of our consciences in accordance with His Word. (God will help you through any "just in case" scenarios you might face, if you just believe!!)
If it is your desire to flourish in the home environment, I want to encourage you: it is not impossible to make just in case plans that dont include a college degree
it just takes a little creativity, a lot of foresight,
and much prayer.
So What Would you Do Instead?
The first two years after I graduated were spent under the tutelage of my parents, helping my mother with the household duties while working full-time for my father as his research assistant. If people asked me what I did for a living, Id probably quip that I was the all-purpose household and office assistant/brother-wrangler/sous-chef. I was still learning (at that time, I was researching for my dads latest book, which gave me an opportunity to read a variety of resources from a host of different perspectives regarding biblical manhood and womanhood) from both of my parents, particularly from Mama, because I had ample time to tag along and take notes.
Towards the end of that two-year period, we found an alternative to the traditional college route that allows me to still be just as involved with my family life, and I am now enrolled in an online degree program called
CollegePlus! Im an English major, and am able to pursue my passion for literature and writing at home while shaping and pursuing the other passions in my life. As Daddy pointed out in his article, there is no one-size-fits-all approach to education (which, as homeschoolers, is something that we definitely know).
Doing college this away affords me the opportunity to continue to live at home under the protection and discipleship of both of my parents, as well as to be involved in my family life in a unique way that I believe many college-age gals are missing out on. (protection and discipleship - I don't believe that's what it is at all. This girls parents are scared to death of their daughter going out into the real world and seeing it for herself. They're scared she'll learn how to discern reality from what she's been taught her entire life and she'll separate from God. These people think it's sin that does it, when in reality it's just the truth and honest inquiry. Educated people lose religion all on their own, once you reach a certain point of intellect, you have to either remain religious or become honest with yourself. You cannot be both, and her parents know that and want to keep that from happening)
I think a lot of times, though, women who make decisions like I have get painted into a corner. I know many people have assumed that my daddy wont allow me to go to college,
when the fact of the matter is that my educational path was a decision that my parents and I made together. (I'm certain she honestly believes this, but it isn't the case when they've been indoctrinating her her entire life, she does not have the ability to make an independent decision at this point without asking "well what would God want me to do?" "well what would my parents want me to do?". This decision was made long before she ever reached graduation) Im a sophomore in college now, credits-wise, and my parents and I have talked about the possibility of me getting a nouthetic counseling license once I graduate, or taking advantage of a fully-accredited online doctorate program from a Reformed college. I am working on writing my first book,
based on my blog, and will have to complete the manuscript a bit before the deadline, as Ill be traveling for a month with my family in Africa this August while my dad ministers there.
Not every daughter who chooses to live at home is going to have a life that looks just like mine, but what Im trying to demonstrate is that when I talk about stay-at-home daughterhood, Im not talking about sitting at home and watching the paint dry until Prince Charming comes along. There are limitless opportunities for ministry and productivity at home, if we will only take advantage of them or make them for ourselves.
So Do You Think Young Women Should be Educated?
I must say that I do not equate the question of whether or not a young person decides to go to college with whether or not young people should be educated; when asked the second question, my answer is an emphatic yes; I simply dont believe the only or the best way for a young person to be educated is on a college campus.
Depending on their chosen career paths, young men as well as young women would often do well to cut out the time-consuming, money-guzzling venture that the traditional college education is. (alright, but what is the point in pointing this out if the vast majority would do far better by attending a university and earning an degree?)
As to the specific question of whether or not I believe young women should be educated -and, further to the point, as well-educated as their male counterparts -yes, I do believe they should.
(they just shouldn't go to college to get it...) We are in the midst of a culture war -as Christians, it is our duty to be good stewards of our minds, applying them to learning the truths that can advance the Kingdom of Christ. This can be done in a structured school setting, but it is not at all limited to that sphere -in this day and age, the only limitations to your education are your imagination and your drive to learn.
Do You Think Everyone Should Live at Home Like You?
All I want to do is to encourage young ladies to rethink their presuppositions not only regarding education, but in regards to the aspirations that your education leads you to.
However, I can share with you, as a young woman, some of the reasons I decided against going off to school.
It was more important for me to remain under the protection of my father and the discipleship of my mother than it was for me to travel cross-country to sit under the discipleship of others. I believe my primary calling is towards my home, and there is no other place Id rather be, here in my familys home for now, and, Lord bless, someday running a home of my own and
educating (indoctrinating) my own children. I had no desire for a career that would take me away from that sphere. (gee, wonder why...) I believe that a Christian home is the best training ground that young women can be afforded, and that the safest place a young woman can be is under her parents authority. (straight up delusional, and funny because the entire post before that statement says the opposite..)
For too long in our culture, parents have been training their daughters in the exact same way that they train their sons, launching their female arrows to go through life the same way their male arrows do. Fathers have been abdicating their duty to protect their daughters, mothers their duty towards discipleship and guidance.
Young women have not only lost their femininity, but theyve lost their desire for the biblical role that the Lord has called them to. (pretty sure the Bible is pretty sexist when it comes to equal rights and treatment for women...) We no longer want to be wives and mothers, and we no longer realize the power of that calling. As a result, many of us no longer realize what a unique time in our lives this can be, not only to take advantage of our ministry to our home and families, but the minister to others through that sphere.
There are so many other questions that come up in the college discussion, but, lest I write my book in the course of this post, Ill close with this: theres honestly nothing I can say that Id rather be doing than living the life Im leading; I am always free at any time to discuss alternatives with my parents, because their goal is the same as mine: to be a good steward of the gifts, passions, and callings that the Lord has placed on my life, and to become a true woman of God. My home -my family -was custom-made by the King of Kings for me; Im blessed to have this unique opportunity to learn from them and bless them and to be blessed by them.
Im a stay-at-home daughter because I believe this is the best place for me to be (rofl, you are a stay at home daughter because your parents are Bible pushers bent on indoctrinating their kids into the cult of Christianity, just like you plan to do to your own kids, you know nothing else), and because I enjoy learning and thriving in a
real-world environment (LMFAO!) that affords me opportunities to minister and to be ministered to in ways that I never could be living out on my own. Thats a decision that Ive made with the full blessing of both of my parents, and its a decision that has blessed the rest of us in turn. I do pray that other young women are able to have these fruitful conversations with their parents as well, and to make wise, Christ-exalting plan for their futures!
So safe religion can be..
I guess religion does have more control since they control all the money.
