Whose Kids Are They Anyways?

Recently, there has been much talk in the media concerning statements that have been made regarding society's vs. parent's responsibility towards their children.

Traditionally, and Biblically, it has always been recognized that parents who bring children into this world are also responsible for their spiritual training and character development. They are responsible for their care and upkeep. And parents are also held responsible and liable if those children commit crimes or create expensive situations before they reach the age of adulthood.

These are God-given responsibilities. As Americans, they have also been guaranteed rights.

Deuteronomy 6:5-7 "And thou shalt love the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might.
And these words, which I command thee this day, shall be in thine heart:
And thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up."

Sadly, we frequently hear and know of parents neglecting this responsibility.  More and more though, we are hearing of this right, privilege, and responsibility being challenged. Society, the media, and the government seems to feel that they "own" the children.

Consider this statement made recently by a major news network reporter:

In the ad, Harris-Perry, looking off camera, says the U.S. never invested properly in public education. “We’ve always had kind of a private notion of children. Your kid is yours, and your responsibility,” she says. “We haven’t had a very collective notion of ‘These are our children.’ So part of it is we have to break through our kind of private idea that ‘kids belong to their parents’ or ‘kids belong to their families,’ and recognize that kids belong to whole communities.”

This notion that kids belong collectively to a community really is absurd.  Biblically, parenting children is a sober and grave charge given to parents, not the community. Parents are to teach their children of God, and how to function in this world. Parents will give an account to God of how thoroughly they upheld that duty. While parents can choose to place that children under the tutelage of another, even that training is something that parents should remain involved in. Parents are commanded by God to hold the heart of their child, and to guide them into all truth.

My family has chosen to fulfill that parenting duty by homeschooling. While we understand that homeschooling is not the best choice for every family, we consider it a privilege and an honor that our family can do so. There are also good Christian schools that are doing a wonderful job training children in partnership with the desire of the parents. A good school will back the authority of the parents, not tear it down.

This all out assault on the family and parental authority has resulted in a very unique case that is being fought right here in America. Please watch the following video about a German family that sought political asylum in America due to persecution in their home country. They are fighting deportation by the Obama Administration at this very moment.

While I could comment that the government has no problem allowing criminals and illegals stay in this country and even obtain asylum, yet will go after a law abiding family trying to do things the right way, that is not the point. Really, the point is that if the government can swing the pendulum in their favor on this one, that it will only reinforce that point of view that parents are not the best ones to make decisions for their family and decide how to raise their children.

Allowing a case like this to go unchallenged will set a precedent, and start us down a very slippery slope. Often court cases are decided by precedent, meaning the judge is not sure what is the best decision so he will look back on similar cases to see how they were decided, and what precedent has been set, then he will lay down his judgment in a similar vein.

I do not know this family personally. I don't know their beliefs. What I do know is that by standing up for their right to choose the education of their children and apply for asylum in America, I feel that I am standing up for my own future, and for the future of my children when they become parents one day. Perhaps if Christians, Americans, and homeschoolers unite and stand for our beliefs, we can prolong the freedoms we hold dear, and slow the crash course to destruction that our society seems to be committed to.

Spread the word. Sign the petition. Pray. And Stand!