That poor family. I can not imagine what they all must be going through. I thank God that we are able to homeschool and pray that it stays that way.
It's so easy to forget that, in a socialist system, children are often viewed as the property of the government and not the parents. In this way of thinking, children are a resource meant for the good of the country. If parents try to break that link, the state can intervene for "its own good". The link between parents and children has weakened considerably across Europe, so it's not at all surprising to read this story. This is why the writings of the atheist Richard Dawkins are so scary. He views 'religion' as a virus passed from parent to child. He proposes that the children of religious parents be taken at birth by the state, educated in a 'religion-free' environment, and introduced to their parents as adults. He views teaching children about Hell as worse than sexually abusing a child. While we might view this as extreme, I can see this happening within a few decades. Nietsche was to Hitler what Dawkins may well be to future governments.
I'm going to have to look into the UN's "Rights of the Child" thing and see what else they can do to us. When it first came about, I saw it as the catalyst for religious persecution, but for some reason never connected it to homeschooling, too. Edited to say: I was posting at the same time Steve was. That sheds a lot of light, Steve. Thanks.
In response to Steve's message weakening the strength of familial ties in Europe may explain the rash of mother's killing their newborns and hiding their wee corpses. Glad to live in a democracy that views kids as our future not a commodity to be exploited. Further to the comment of the author Richard Dawkins, I guess I am not missing much in great literature by not reading him then?
The North won the Civil War in part because they found the South's battle plans. In other words, know your enemy. This is why I read Dawkins' books. He's a very smart man, and he sees through the facades that we build around our faith - and that's good. Sadly, though, he doesn't look for the precious jewels behind those facades and, instead, throws them away. What I'd like to know is what lies behind his own facade: I suspect there's a very sad, lonely, and empty soul.
I cannot believe how backwards this world is. They are taking a child out a good environment and making him a virtual orphan. Children would be better off with less government and more of a home life. I will have to pray for this young man and his family. I hope he knows that his family is fighting for him and that people care all over the world. Who knows what lies they are telling him.
