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On April 27th, President Trump did an astounding thing!  He reversed an 80-year-old policy concerning the relation of the national government to education in this land.  With an Executive Order he set as the official policy of the national government to “protect and preserve State and local control over” the nation’s educational system.  That is unprecedented since the national government began to reach into the area of education.  National control of schools has grown for over 80 years.  Now finally, there is an order from the White House to reverse that destructive trend.

America’s Founders wanted no such control.  James Madison warned us on the floor of the very first Congress (and remember it was Madison who wrote most of the Constitution!) of the destruction that would come if the national government ever got involved in education.  It would mean that a few people in the national government could control the thinking of the rest of the nation by what it allowed, or disallowed, to be taught in the schools.

We’ve watched as the national Court system has said school children couldn’t pray or read the Bible in schools; as the Courts said the Ten Commandments could not be in front of children in the schools.  Almost every criminal statistic has skyrocketed since 1962 when we let the Court steal the power of the Congress with rulings against the Scripture being used in the schools.

Our greatest educators of the past warned us against such policy.  Noah Webster, the man who gave us our original educational method in America stated plainly:

“Education is useless without the Bible.”

(Webster, Noah. “Our Christian Heritage,” Letter from Plymouth Rock (Marlborough, NH: The Plymouth Rock Foundation), p. 5.)

Dr. Benjamin Rush, the surgeon who started our original Public school system in America, stated,

“Let the children…be carefully instructed in the principles and obligations of the Christian religion.  This is the most essential part of education.”

(Rush, Benjamin. 1787, A Plan for Free Schools. David Barton, “America, God Shed His Grace on Thee” (Garland, TX: American Tract Society, Box 462008, Garland, Texas, 75046; 1994), p.4)

Our Founders got this belief from the Bible.  The Bible teaches that it is parents’ responsibility to teach their children, not the State’s:  The Bible says to parents,

“And these words, which I command thee this day, shall be upon thy heart; and thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thy house, and when thou walkest by the way…” (Deuteronomy 6:6-7)

“For he established a testimony in Jacob, and appointed a law in Israel, which he commanded our fathers, that they should make them known to their children; that the generation to come might know them, even the children that should be born; who should arise and tell them to their children…” (Psalms 78:5-6)

“And, ye fathers, provoke not your children to wrath: but bring them up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord.” (Ephesians 6:4)

America’s Founders got their view of education from the Bible!  And it was their education system that made us the greatest nation in world history.

President Trump’s Executive Order also directs Education Secretary Betsy DeVos,

“…to review every single regulation, guidance document, or other publication from the U.S. Department of Education to see whether any of them violate laws limiting the federal role in education. The order specifically directs the secretary of education to ‘rescind or revise’ any such regulations or guidance documents ‘no later than 300 days’ from [April 27th].”

(The Homeschool Legal Defense Association, April 27 News from HSLDA.org)

President Trump’s Executive Order is a giant step back toward a Biblically-based education system, since it moves the control of education back toward parental control of what goes into the child’s mind.  We’ve still a long way to go; but thank God for this step in the right direction.  Do you understand the importance of Biblical education for your child?

Think about it; because if you don’t, someone else will do your thinking for you – and for your children!  And you won’t like what that brings to you.  I’m Don Pinson; this has been Think About It.