A nine year old boy told me earlier this month that the head teacher of his school, a Church of England school in Devon, England, paid a visit to the class.
The head teacher spoke to the children in the class. There were about 25 children in the class, aged nine to 10 years.
At one point, the head teacher asked the children: “How many children in the class believe in God? Please put your hand up if you believe in God.”
Do you know how many children put their hand up? One girl.
All the remaining girls and boys in the class kept their hand down. They did not believe in God.
I was delighted. I was in heaven.
But what’s the alternative for children?
Belief in consumerism and competition?
Are the children stuck between a rock and hard place?
It’s not surprising since most adults seem stuck as well, Many adults are chained to belief in God and chained to belief in consumerism.
What is the discourse for our children that speaks to them of deeper matters? What is a teaching connected with their inner lives as much as the outer.
Some teachers are moving education in the right direction but change takes place at a snail’s pace due to pressures from politicians and corporations to make our children confirm to the demands of consumerism and competition.
If we do not have the experiences, language and skills for a meaningful way of life, how can we possibly expect our children and our grandchildren to develop an enlightened way of life free from the dark shadows of contemporary religion and scientific materialism?
Let us hope the day comes quickly when the head teacher comes into the class and asks the children: “Do you believe in consumerism?”
And not a single hand goes up.