On Secular Education [Paperback]

R.L. Dabney (Author), Douglas Wilson (Editor)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 1, 1996

R.L. Dabney (1820-1898)—preacher, theologian, soldier, poet, and essayist—strongly condemned the public education of his day. He saw with prophetic insight that State education could not help but be secularized since it was designed to please the people. As a result, he argued, public education would begin to teach its students not truth, but the values and virtues which were palatable to society at large.

Although a century has passed since Dabney first wrote this essay, the questions that parents face haven't changed. Secular education still seeks to indoctrinate our children under the pretence of objectivity, and truth is still sacrificed for the sake of social "unity."

We must acknowledge with Dabney that proper education is about heart and soul, not just propositions and facts. Only then will our children learn truth and be equipped to live out our faith.

Product Details

• Paperback: 33 pages
• Publisher: Canon Press (June 1, 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1885767196
• ISBN-13: 978-1885767196
• Product Dimensions: 8.1 x 5 x 0.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 0.8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,356,485 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Over 100 Years Old and Still True, June 28, 2011

By 

Bradley Bevers "the lucid blog" (Brenham, TX) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: On Secular Education (Paperback)

Over 100 years ago, Dabney wrote a critique of secular education that has proved prophetic. This version, edited by author Douglas Wilson, is aimed towards the modern reader. While some sections remain dense, there are also some real gems in this small booklet. If you can find a copy at a reasonable price, it is definitely worth reading.

Some of my favorite quotes:

"The education of children for God is the most important business done on earth. It is the one business for which earth exists. To it all politics, all war, all literature, all money-making, ought to be subordinated; and every parent especially ought to feel, every hour of the day, that, next to making his own calling and election sure, this is the end for which he is kept alive by God - this is his task on earth."

"So is a really secularized education either possible, or admissible? Before ours, no people of any age, religion, or civilization, has ever thought so. Against the present attempt, right or wrong, stands the whole common sense of mankind. Pagans, Catholics, Moslems, Greeks and Protestants have all rejected any education not grounded in religion as absurd and wicked."

"We have seen that their complete secularization is logically inevitable. Christians must prepare themselves then, for the following results: All prayers, catechisms, and Bibles will ultimately be driven out of the schools."

This provocative essay cuts down many points that almost everyone accepts about secular education. Recommended.