Christian Worship in Schools is boring and turns young people away from the Christian Faith.Partly true perhaps, but does that mean we should abolish it?There have been calls, even from Christian leaders, for
Christian Worship in School Assemblies to be abolished. Why? Because, we
are told, children find them boring and so are put off Christianity. They
tell us that Christian Assemblies do more harm than good.
When I was a teenager I also took this view. Indeed our school Assemblies were uninspiring and dull. I assumed they would put children off the Christian Faith. Although I haven't changed my mind that they may be boring, I do now believe it is a mistake to suggest that they be removed from the school day. Suppose anything worth learning was to be judged by whether learning it was inspiring or dull. Would we have been taught history, mathematics, or science? For most pupils many important subjects at school are hard work and often dull. Does this mean that they should not learn them or be taught them? If, say, History, were to be abolished from the school curriculum, we would not be surprised if no-one in later life decided to be a historian. You can't choose for or against a subject if you have never been taught. Why should we be surprised that many young people do not choose to be Christians if no-one has ever taught then what Christianity is? Only if they know what it is can they make a decision whether or not to accept Christ. Now I am sure some will want to reply that we shouldn't be comparing Christian Worship - in Church or School Assembly - with learning a subject like History or Mathematics. Their point would be that true Christian Worship should be interesting and joyful. It belongs to the very nature of praise and worship that it involves our emotions as well as our mind. Indeed that is right. However we cannot be on a permanent emotional high. There are times in all our Christian lives when we worship God because we know it is right to do so, not just because we feel like it. Of course if we do feel like worship it is all to the good, but that does not mean we should give it up when we are going through a dry patch in our spiritual lives. The very wonder of the gospel should, of course, always inspire our emotions but most of us will admit that there are times when other pressures in our lives have clouded our appreciation of the glory of God. Although I am sure that many children find most Assemblies dull and gain little in the short term, it is also true that in the long term they will be grateful to be able to draw on the knowledge of the Bible, prayer, and the gospel about which they gained a faint understanding in their school years. Without any understanding of the purposes of God, no sense of purpose for human life can survive. If we don't know the purpose of human life then no morality can survive long either. Society will just break up in selfishness, greed, and fear. The sad fact is that meaningful Christian worship already has little place in British Schools. We are depriving our children of what in the long term is their greatest need. A few years ago the BBC2 news program, Newsnight, began
with the very sad story of a young boy who had lost his parents in a road
accident. It was reported that he told the police that he wanted to pray
but
no-one had ever taught him any prayer to pray. He didn't even know
the Lord's Prayer: Our Father ....
Howard Taylor welcomes questions and comments
(critical or not).
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