Neutral territory

Is there such a thing as neutrality? Can a school, a culture, a family as an example, be neutral?


To quote from this wonderful book about homeschooling (homeschoolwwh.com, thebettysbooks. Giggle):



“We also strongly disagree with the philosophies taught in public school today. There is no such thing as teaching without teaching religion and morals. The very act of teaching teaches that ignorance is bad, a moral statement (one most people agree with). Our public schools teach the religion of Secular Humanism (politically correct term for Atheism) and situational ethics. Even if they have a Christian teacher, neither the teacher nor the child is allowed to speak of God or life’s most important questions, (see next page) during class hours. Especially in History and Science, to teach without God is to teach that there is no God. We want our Lambs taught Christianity and absolute, Biblical morals. The best place for them to learn this is in our own home….


…3. What Are Life’s Most Important Questions?

Who am I?
Christian: A child of The King. A peculiar (special) people, a royal priest. (1 Peter 2:9)
Atheist: The result of billions of biological accidents.

Why am I here?
Christian: God knit me together in the secret places of my mother’s womb; I am a gift of God, a master piece of The Master Artist. (Psalm 139:13-16 NIV, Psalms 127:3)
Atheist: I am the result of a biological convergence of reproductive cells.

What is the purpose of life?
Christian: To worship God and love my neighbor. (Mark 12:30-32)
Atheist: To get as much money, as many toys, and have as much fun as I can before it is too late. To make a name for myself, making me as close to immortal as is possible.

What is the purpose of education?
Christian: To know God and His will for my life and this world.
Atheist: To enable me to earn as much money as possible.

What controls History?
Christian: Ultimately, God.
Atheist: Randomness and/or humanity.

What caused this world and all we see?
Christian: God.
Atheist: Randomness. It is all a big accident.

What is the future?
Christian: Heaven for believers, hell for the unsaved.
Atheist: human divinity and eventually total destruction.

Public schools, by law, can not teach children the Christian answers to these questions. By default then, they must teach the Secular Humanist view. Some extraordinary teachers can get around the legal prohibitions, but I am not willing to have my child taught Atheism the years of their education they are not under the extraordinary.

Jesus said, “He who is not with Me, is against Me, and he who does not gather with Me scatters.” Luke 11:23

Thus, because our “neutral” public schools can’t be with Christ, they must be against Him.”



The fact is that we all have a “World View” or an assumption about the nature and founding of the universe. What our assumption is in this area colors every other area of our lives, even when we don’t realize it.


Let’s imagine you are writing a history textbook, for example. If you believe there is a God you would tell the story of George Washington winning the battle of Yorktown something like this:


“Washington knew he needed to conquer Yorktown in order to win the war and he had to do it fast. But the town was in a bowl-like area, surrounded by hills on three sides and the ocean on the fourth. There was no way to get the army and its artillery onto the surrounding hills without being seen from the city. They had many soldiers on the ships in the harbor and cannons in the city itself. There is no doubt the British will attack and win before he could possible be in a position to fight back. He had hired Lafayette (a French Admiral/pirate) to blockade the harbor and keep the soldiers on the ships, but he isn’t there yet.

George Washington was a praying man. His daily prayer life is a matter of record and he attended church whenever the troops were close enough. After much prayer and contemplation, he felt he needed to go ahead and attack the city and trust God for the outcome.

The night the American forces arrived, a pea-soup thick fog rolled into the city. This fog was so thick, no one in the city could see the hills or even hear the sound of fox holes being dug and cannons set up. Soon Washington had his forces in place for the attack. But he now had a new problem. He couldn’t see where to shoot at! The fog was in the way and, of course, he didn’t want to waste ammunition and lives bombing civilians while the British unloaded their ships and came charging up the hill. He wanted to hit the buildings that housed British officers (And Lafayette still hadn’t shown up!) What should he do? As I said, he was a praying man.

A wind came up just then and not only blew the fog away, but blew the British ships out of the harbor before they could unload their troops, and kept them there until Lafayette did show up.

Imagine the surprise on the British faces to look up at the hills that morning and see a whole army had sprung up there over night!

Washington and his troops fought the battle and won, thanks to the One who controls the Weather.”


How would you write this story if you do not believe there is a God or if you are trying to be “neutral?”


“Washington knew he needed to conquer Yorktown in order to win the war and he had to do it fast. But the town was in a bowl-like area, surrounded by hills on three sides and the ocean on the fourth. There was no way to get the army and its artillery onto the surrounding hills without being seen from the city. They had many soldiers on the ships in the harbor and cannons in the city itself. There is no doubt the British will attack and win before he could possible be in a position to fight back. He had hired Lafayette (a French Admiral/pirate) to come blockade the harbor and keep the soldiers on the ships, but he isn’t there yet.


The night the American forces arrived, a pea-soup thick fog rolled into the city. This fog was so thick, no one in the city could see the hills or even hear the sound of fox holes being dug and cannons set up. Soon Washington had his forces in place for the attack. But he now had a new problem. He couldn’t see where to shoot at! The fog was in the way and, of course, he didn’t want to waste ammunition and lives bombing civilians while the British unloaded their ships and came charging up the hill. He wanted to hit the buildings that housed British officers (And Lafayette still hadn’t shown up) What should he do?

Luckily, a wind came up just then and not only blew the fog away, but blew the British ships out of the harbor before they could unload their troops, and kept them there until Lafayette did show up.

Imagine the surprise on the British faces to look at the hills that morning and see a whole army had sprung up there over night!

Washington and his troops fought the battle and won.”


These two stories are almost identical. But the first gives credit to God for Washington’s victory, telling us that God wanted America to win the war and that it pays to be faithful in our prayers. The second credits “luck.” The first teaches a child to be diligent to trust God no matter what the odds are against him. The second teaches a child that Washington was a lucky man. Some people are and some aren’t (like the British commander in the city.)


Can you see how the basic assumption underneath each story affects the child that reads it?


“And, ye fathers, provoke not your children to wrath: but bring them up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord.”

Or to translate it directly from the Greek into 21st century English:

And ye “pater” (Greek word for father, root of our word parents and properly used as such),

parorgizo (to rouse to wrath, to provoke, exasperate, anger)

not your children to “parogizo” (to rouse, to wrath, to provoke, exasperate, anger), [or don’t frustrate your kids]

but “ektrepho” (to nourish up to maturity, to nourish, nurture, bring up)

them “ektrepho” (to nourish up to maturity, to nourish, to nurture, bring up)

in the “paideia” (the whole training and education of children (which relates to the cultivation of mind and morals, and employs for this purpose now commands and admonitions, now reproof and punishment) It also includes the training and care of the body; whatever in adults also cultivates the soul, esp. by correcting mistakes and curbing passions; Instruction which aims at increasing virtue, chastisement, chastening, (of the evils with which God visits men for their amendment) )

and “nouthesia” (admonition, exhortation the mind, from the root nous=comprising alike the faculties of perceiving and understanding and those of feeling, judging, determining the intellectual faculty, the understanding, reason in the narrower sense, as the capacity for spiritual truth, the higher powers of the soul, the faculty of perceiving divine things, of recognizing goodness and of hating evil, the power of considering and judging soberly, calmly and impartially, a particular mode of thinking and judging, i.e. thoughts, feelings, purposes, desires)

of the Lord.

Or

“Parents, don’t frustrate your children, but raise them in the EDUCATION and CULTURE of the Lord.”



Can a school, TV show, movie, culture, family, even church that doesn’t acknowledge Christ, that pretends He doesn’t exist when they make decisions, that cares more about how they look and what toys they have possibly be “the education and the culture of the Lord”?


Can they possibly be FOR Christ?


Does neutrality exist?