Should comparative religions be a required course at every public high school?

Question

I can't think of a quicker way to cultivate peace in the world.

Answer 1

I think it's a good idea if it's elective and the teacher isn't biased. I remember my biology teacher mention "creativism" and said she was not allowed to speak about it. And having not been taught anything about the Bible, I was curious about Christianity. There were Philosophy classes offered in my HS but not religion.

Answer 2

Well, I went to Catholic school, and in both High School, and college, I took comparative religion courses. I'm a
Buddhist now ;-)

I think this is an excellent idea. But of course, in public schools, this is illegal, by reason of the 1st Amendment, which, as dumb luck (and another question) I happen to have on my clipboard.


Amendment I
Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances.

Now, even if this were possible, I can see the Evangelicals raising hell about teaching Catholicism (they were the first Christians, ya know), the Muslims howling about teaching the Torah (Even though Muslims by and large revere this, as well as the New Testament as a holy book, and Moses and Jesus as prophets) and the Scientologists running in their with Tom Cruise signature series e-meters.

And of course, there is the issue of many of the Christian churches requiring that you "Accept Jesus Christ as your savior" which kind of rules out those of the Jewish, Muslim, Buddhist, Shinto, Hindu, and many other religions. According to my wife's Primitive Methodist minister (do they wear loin cloths and carry spears, since they are primitive?) all i have to do is accept Jesus, forget the good works, a decidedly unChristian attitude.

So I don't think, at least in a public school setting, it's very practical.

Answer 3

We had it at our high school which was listed as one of the top rated public schools in the country. It was an elective course and you could really tell the difference in the students taking the course from the others. (World Religion I & II) These type classes really do breed respect for the cultures of other human beings.

The class dialogs were fascinating and intense and informative. We had guest speakers and took field trips which pulled sudents from all persuasions (everybody loves a free pass from school). These course had nothing to do with trying to convert -- we looked at the history, traditions and doctrines of the religions.

And as an alternative for the Christian crowd that considered it a sin to look at other religions, the elective was "The Bible as Literature" (I & II, of course) which oddly gave the Christians a better perspective too.

The students petitioned to get both classes as electives and the teachers & principals had to go before the school board county and then to the state level to get these classes added to the ciriculum. I took both World Religion and The Bible as Lit courses as well as the One Philosophy class! They were great college prep classes. Plus, Does it hurt to know more about the world in which you live?

Every public high school should offer a comparative religion course or two, at least as an elective!

Answer 4

I think it would be an excellent idea. We attempt to understand a world outside our culture but we have no information to base an opinion on. I think that if we are part of an international community, we should know more about our neighbors. I think it should be a must for all politicians. **For those who think it cannot be done objectively, I am currently completing a course that included comparative religions. My professor did an outstanding job of being objective. We had three people from other religions come in and speak to us in order to get a valid impression of what their beliefs really are. It can be done, and currently it is being done; just not at a comprehensive high school level.

Answer 5

I took a wonderful World Relegion class when I was in college with a wonderful teacher. Rule one first day was there was going to be no bantering or discussions of relegions that were common here. No "should you dunk or sprinkle" or anything about typical "Christian" relegions. It wasn't a who's right or wrong or anything of the sort.....we covered ancient relegions, eastern relegions, voo-doo, witchcraft, on down the line. It was really an eye-opening class. Even though there are differences....we are far more the same than people would like to admit. It sure made me more tolerant and it also challenged my own beliefs as to whether they were mine...or what I was told it was. We did have a hearty laugh because our last assignment was "gimmicks" and the billions of dollars sent for JUNK from people so desperate to beleive in something. A cheap paper placemat with 2 circles printed on it that said "My Prayer Mat". You were supposed to kneel in the 2 circles to pray....that came with a cheap shower cap that had a hand print on it that said "You're now blessed". I guess it was really relevant then because we were having a time with so many cults. It was a few years after the Jamestown massacre..... and when so many elderly were being scammed out of their savings by relentless groups just after their money. He just hoped that after learning about all these things that people would THINK and really KNOW what their beliefs are so they wouldn't be swayed so easily to a cult or other relegion....but to have an understanding and tolerance of others as well as a firmer understanding of their own beliefs.

But I don't know if high-school kids are mature enough to deal with the class I took....yet I'm sure if we are a land of "relegious" freedom...it would make it easier to understand and accept if they could find a neutral means to present it.

Answer 6

What good would that do? Taking a class does not automatically equate to learning anything from it, and even if one manages to squeeze some amount of knowledge out of a public school class (won't go into my problem with them right now, it's really rather personal), who says you'll know what to do with it? It's like trying to build a fence with a bunch of screws and some wood, but no screwdriver. Assuming there is no possible way to get your hands on a drill, what are you going to use to drive the screws in, a rock? Probably, since it's the most effective tool available. Will it work the way it's supposed to? No, because it's the wrong way to do it, and all the good intent in the world won't solve that. In order for any amount of knowledge to be of use to anyone, one must understand why he has it and how to use it; otherwise, your brain is a computer and the information is a bunch of numbers. You can use them and do funky things with them, but you don't know their value.

Answer 7

Should they be required? No, definitely not. 1st Amendment makes it pretty clear that schools cannot force religion on their students.

Should they be offered? Absolutely. Any improvement in our education system should be welcomed. And I wholeheartedly agree that it would facilitate peace.

If people understood one another's religion, there would be much less conflict. Just look at YQ&A...people here are constantly jumping on Muslims even tho they have very little grasp about the religion in its pure form (as opposed to fanatics). A better understanding of Islam would quell a lot of those hateful feelings.

Answer 8

Absulutely! I also beleive alternative idealisms as to the reason why and we came to exist should be tought and explored.

I beleive it is time for humanity to begin looking at our existance with a far greater open mind. We can hold to religious beliefs for guidence but It would be foolish to not explore other possibilities.

There are many religions throughout the world, and humanity in general should learn them and respect them, but also relaized out of all religion, and all sciencetific discoveries there can only be one true explination for our existance.


And the abslute truth is
at this point in our existance we truly do not know for sure!

Answer 9

I don't see a problem with teaching about the religions of the world and what their basic principles are and the history of them. I went to a Catholic school where we learned about many religions. I was never preached to and I never felt like I was out of place although I wasn't Catholic and disagree with many aspects of their religions. People get scared that it might be preaching but there is a huge difference between preaching and teaching.

Answer 10

It was required in the college I graduated from...I don't personally trust public education to discuss/compare religions with my boy...too subtle a subject for a cookie cutter class.