Biblical Reasons to Homeschool

 



In a world of Post-COVID 19, many parents have started to ask themselves about whether or not they should homeschool. Indeed, many fathers and mothers have grown weary of their children learning about critical race theory and queer theory from public schools and universities. 

Homeschooling or home education was the common form of education in many countries throughout the world until recently. In the Middle Ages, for example, many noble children were privately tutored. Even in the nineteenth century, whether it was by a parent or a private tutor, many young people received home education. 

By now, some of you have probably guessed based on my previous posts on courtship and Family-Integration, that I support Christian families homeschooling their children. Now, I want to discuss why I believe homeschooling is Biblical. For those that cannot engage in home education, sending one's child to a conservative classical Christian school is another good option. 

Proverbs 22: 6 tells us that parents should instruct their children according to the ways of the Lord. According to Jewish writings, Moses was nursed by his mother for twenty-four months*1. This was the pattern of the Hebrews and Jews in both the Old and New Testaments. Indeed, even during a desperate time when the Egyptians were out to kill the firstborn males, Moses's Levite mother raised him as long as she could by the touch of her mother's breasts. 

Sadly, it is not widely known today that Jesus was homeschooled*2. Indeed, even at the time of the New Testament, this was the common practice of the Hebrews which also shows that it was not rescinded by the new covenant. This was how many Hebrew children were raised*3. Considering that the New Testament says nothing to the contrary, Christians are obligated to follow the same examples as their Hebrew forbearers. 

On another note, to say that homeschooling was common for the Hebrews but is unreasonable in today's society is to claim that the pattern of how believers lived in scripture is irrelevant to people today. To be consistent, if one is to make such a claim, then we should not take any practice from scripture including marriage or church attendance. Of course, if we are so foolish as to rid ourselves of the holy institutions that he has set in place for us to partake in, then we are guilty of both sin and heresy. 

1 Corinthians 15: 33 reminds us that bad company corrupts good morals. While anyone can be corrupted (even by fellow homeschoolers), the more children are guarded against sin by their parents, usually, the less sin will become common to them. 

Although it can be hard to generalize everyone, I think that the Biblical view of education demands that Christians do not send their children to secular public institutions but that they also recognize those who do so are guilty of sin by conforming with the ways of the world. This is not about legalism as the call to homeschooling is not about making others do what scripture does not command. Rather, since scripture is our final source of authority and direction to as how we should live, we should also know that it implicitly commands Christian parents to educate their children in the Word of God by providing its own examples of children that were educated in the same manner. While some parents may read their Bibles to their children even as their descendants attend the public school system, those who do so, are guilty again of mixing the ways of God with those of the infidels and other heathens. 

Finally, we Christians should do everything that we can to avoid ungodliness. Those who say that they cannot financially manage to homeschool but spend money on the beach, buy boats, and live in a nice house show where their priorities lie. Indeed, the world is more important to them than God.  

Notes: 

*1-https://jwa.org/encyclopedia/article/jochebed-midrash-and-aggadah#:~:text=Jochebed%20nursed%20Moses%20for%20twenty,alive%20the%20Hebrew%20boys%20(Ex.

*2-https://www.catholic.org/news/hf/family/story.php?id=85423

*3-https://waynegersen.com/2017/04/05/jesus-was-homeschooled-beginning-at-age-12/

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