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3.0 out of 5 stars
Blueprint with Possibilities, February 25, 2012
This review is from: Children Trap (Paperback)
Thomas Nelson and Dominion Press have been cooperating to produce what they call the "Biblical Blueprint Series." The editors believe that the Scriptures give biblical blueprints to most of the questions and issues of our culture, whether they be about the family, education, politics, foreign policy, government, philosophy, liturgy, or psychology. This task seems very worthy, though some might disagree on what the Bible says about these issues. The two volumes are some of the first published in the series. If these volumes are any indication of what is to come, I am gravely disappointed. They are loosely argued and sometimes too broad to be of much use. The authors many times ramble from one topic to another, even within the same section, repeating themselves over and over throughout the books. They are very simplistic on almost every issue, having very little in-depth analysis. There are some redeeming qualities, however. Sutton compares God's covenant with the marriage covenant to say that God owns the family. He examines God's ownership in the context of childrens' rights, state rights, and parental rights. He examines the issues of parental discipline, inheritance, abortion, sexual privacy, and state intervention into the family. Each of these is a very worthy topic, though again he surveys them so quickly that he rarely adds anything new to their discussion. Thoburn joins the same theme of "the state against the children," saying that God owns the children rather than the state. He wants parents to take their God-mandated responsibility to give their children a God-centered education. He points out that there is no such thing as a free education, and wants a free market education where parents have more control over their children and what is taught. He raises some excellent questions about the coerciveness of our present government controlled educational system that equalizes mediocrity. Government education contains many hidden costs, including the loss of liberty, control of children, the financial coercion of neighbors, and increased financial costs, that we many times forget. Thoburn then writes an excellent section on what the family, church and civil government can do to reform the present system. For those with children and who want the best education for them, you won't want to miss this last section.
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4.0 out of 5 stars
Thoburn calls parents back to the God-mandated responsibility to raise their children in the nurture and admonition of the Lord, July 16, 2010
This review is from: Children Trap (Paperback)
_The Children Trap_ was written by Robert Thoburn as a contribution to the Biblical Blueprint Series, a collection of Christian Reconstruction books attempting to teach the biblical principles Christians are to live by as they bring all areas of life in subjection to Jesus Christ. Very briefly, the basic idea behind the Biblical Blueprint Series is that man, under God's sovereignty, is a contractor, not an architect. His responsibility is not to reconstruct the culture according to his own master plan, but in keeping with God's blueprints as revealed in Scripture. Thoburn's book is occupied with God's blueprint for the area of life that falls under education. The author believes that education belongs not to the jurisdiction of the state, or even to that of the church, but to the jurisdiction of the family. Education is the responsibility of the parents. He, thus, advocates against public education. Thoburn deals with different options available to Christian parents including home-schooling, church-run Christian schools, and privatized Christian schools (not church-run). At the time of writing (1986), Thoburn had run a privatized Christian school for 25 years and so tends to focus on this particular option. Although a bit dated, _The Children Trap_ provides a good introduction to education from a Christian Reconstruction perspective. Be warned, however, that some of the content will come across as extreme (e.g., hard-hitting statements against public schools as humanistic, anti-Christian, and religious) to Christians who have not been exposed to this teaching before. Nevertheless, the message is important and prophetic, calling parents back to their God-mandated responsibility to raise their children in the nurture and admonition of the Lord.
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5.0 out of 5 stars
Altering the course of history., January 24, 2001
This review is from: Children Trap (Paperback)
This book changed my life and altered the course of history for my children and my children's children and maybe our world! Robert Thoburn has the courage to tell it as it is. This book is sure to be unpopular with secular humanists and even many Christians because it says what we don't want to hear: the truth, as God sets forth in His Word. Secular humanists won't want Christians to read this book, because they might pull their children out of the humanist churches (the public schools) and rescue a generation from their lies. If you desire God's blessings "unto a thousand generations" read and apply this book to one area where you still have freedom to choose, your family.
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