Should Christian parents shelter their children?

Question

Some parents shelter their children from the evils in the world.

e.g. TV, bad-influence friends, neighborhood kids, public schools, even church activities.

Do you think this is right, why or why not?

Answer 1

No. Parents, Christian or otherwise, shouldn't be overly protective. I know parents who freak out if their child comes in contact with dirt while playing, or if they hear somebody say a mild curse word on television. They also shelter them from reality, including blatantly lying to them about the presence of war, violence, and wrongdoing in the world. How is that going to help the child's development? As a child, I was exposed to just about everything under the sun, and because of that, I learned to cope with reality fairly early on. So when the really bad events hit (losing my parents, ending up homeless as a result of being orphaned, and other painful occurrences), I was more capable of dealing with it. Nobody protected me from pain, damage, or unpleasantness, and in some way, it helped me be a tougher and more self-reliant human being.

Answer 2

Well Larry,

Isn't that part of what being a parent is about? I don't think it has anything to do with your religious preference. I think it has more to do with protecting your child from harm, wether it by physical OR emotional. I don't think we should "shelter" them to the point of dishonesty...no lying to them just to paint a pretty picture...but to just let them run amok and watch cinemax and the nightly news and hang out with the neighborhood drug dealer??? Heck no!

Kids are kids, and if you can protect them from the evils of the world for any amount of time...it allows them to hold on to their innocence...and that's what being a kid is all about.

Imagine...an eight year old child crying themselves to sleep because someone let them watch the 11 oclock news and now they're worried to death about nuclear war...That was me.

I don't think children should bear the weight of the world until they are emotionally prepared to handle it and I also believe that it's a parent's job to make sure that the child can have a childhood, and can live blissfully oblivious until they are a little older.

And as the child get's older and reaches adolecence and then young adult hood and so on ...it's a parents job also, to make the child aware of things that will help with self preservation...children eventually need to be made wary of the dangers in the world for their own good...but not until later.

I think our kids grow up fast enough. And I think that that is half the reason that the world is such a mess. We could all use a little more joy...why take that away from a kid just so people on Yahoo Answers don't call you a "brainwasher"

We should definately shelter our kids.

Answer 3

I will answer you with questions and answers. Why do Christian families shelter their children? We hoped for them a better and more prosperous life. Why does anyone tell their children not to touch a stove? So they will not get hurt. Why do parents make their children go to school? So they will be educated and have an opportunity to have a good lively-hood. Why do parents make their children take medicine when they don't want it? So they will get well. I could go on and on. Their are enough pitfalls and hard lesson we all had to learn, but thank God for the care and guidance our parents gave us. Mine taught me not to steal, lie, cuss, smoke, drink, and do drugs. When I got grown I did all those things, but knew I was wrong to do them. Later with the help of God I straighten up. My Parents took me to church, prayed, read the bible to me, and tired to be an example to me before I was thrust out into what at times is a hard, cruel, and uncaring world. Thank God they sheltered me and cared for me because they loved me enough to do so. Why aren't Children allowed to make their own choices? Because they do not have the knowledge, experience, and maturity to do so. Why do they have to live how you want them to live? In some things they didn't have to. Neither was it expected. I did leave much up to them such as what they choose to major in college, what they choose to do for a living, and how they handle their money. After mine were grown they made their own choices and their own mistakes. They also made their own success with the help of God in many areas earning more than I ever did.

Answer 4

Parents must teach and prepare their children to face the world where they live. How to do this varies from parent to parent. Many many parents simplly does not know how to do this.

Isolation from the world is not the answer because parents ussually die before their children and even before that event the kids will grow and will have their own homes / family.

Parents must teach values and the Word of God to their children and how to defend themselves from the evils of the world. Lets take TV for example:

Parents shall monitor and control what their kids watch in TV, sit with them and discuss what is presented in the programs and how that relates with God, the Bible and the values they are learning.
* Is this a movie about a good guy vs a bad guy?
* Who is the bad guy? Why?
* Who is the good guy? Why? Is taking revenge for the death of his father good? Is thare a difference between revenge and justice?

Answer 5

I think it depends...I wouldn't have my kids hang around an active heroin user just because it's part of the "real world".

Shelter VS Exposure should be age appropriate. If a parent is over protective, the child will become like a spring that has been pressed down and let go suddenly, bouncing all over the place.

However, if a child is over-exposed to the "evils of this world" s/he will be inclined to mimic them or be accepting of them. Like an unprotected home against the elements, permanent damage can occur.

Answer 6

No. Kids who are super sheltered wind up running wild later.

I think parents should just keep an eye on their children. Keep the lines of communication open.

I've watched my sister make that mistake with her kids. She's tried to keep them under her thumb, without giving them room to grow. My eldest niece has run wild...and I'm so afraid of my other nieces and nephews doing the same thing.

I've decided when I go back to the States for a visit (two weeks, YAY! and I get to see my family for the first time in three years!), I'm going to give my thirteen year old nephew and my eleven year old niece the dreaded sex talk. I know my sister hasn't done it, and I loathe to think of what they're being told at school.

What can I say, I'm the cool aunt.

I got a little off-topic there. Sorry. But it just goes with my belief that parents should be the first to talk to their kids about sex, drugs, drinking, et cetera. If they don't, other kids will. And that's NOT a happy thought.

Answer 7

I think its right. For example, if I had children, and tonight was movie theater night, I'd definitely NOT bring them to a movie with explicit sex, violence, profanity, and anti-Christian messages. Kids are young and not ready for adult-based things. That why they're called KIDS.

Is it possible to avoid the filth and disgust we constantly see in movies and still enjoy ourselves?

Yes! Take the movie Spider-man. I love it that film, seen all three, and notice there isn't a lick of profanity, sex, or blatant violence, yet it was a #1 hit in theaters. The producers knew children would be watching, kept it clean, and everyone still loved it, even the adults.

Naturally, children will be exposed to the nastiness of life. Can't be helped. My job would then be to make sure they have a strong moral backbone and a good education so that they can handle whatever comes their way.

God bless.

Answer 8

I think very young children should be introduced to the world gradually, and in terms they can understand. So shielding preschoolers from stuff that is frightening or confusing is just good parenting, and shielding older children, to the extent possible, from the worst the world has to offer is a kindness.

However, if it gets to the point that they are "protecting" their children from the things that their peers are learning, they are doing them a disservice. Eventually they will realize they have been kept in the dark about what's going on in the world they have to live in, and they'll hold their parents accountable.

Answer 9

ok, my dad is a precher.
my parents tried sheltering me for a while, im 14 now,
like i only heard christian music, didnt go anywhere unless i was with certain people, that sort of thing, but you should just raise your child and trust that they will follow the right path. when i go to school, oin the bus i hear music about sex and stuff, so to shelter a kid really does no good in the end. you should warn them of the dangers but trust them to make the right choices..oh and about the friends part, i was thinking about his earlier, im scared some of my "friends" are going to pull me back into sin, but i pray that Go wont let that happen and i jsut stay strong, if all christians stayed away from sinful people, then who would witness to them? when i kid sees something in another kids life that sets them different such as joy and understanding and forgiveness, it makes them realize that their friend has soemthing they dont, jesus, and the friend can then be there to help out the other.

Answer 10

Its up to the parents. I think it is inherently wrong to "shelter" children or else they will never mature. The best way for them to learn is to let them learn it on their own. I learned more out of school than I ever did in school. I learned more moral lessons by messing up rather than by simply being disallowed to do it. You can only say "no" so many times, eventually the person will begin to rebel and will not care about your warnings, in fact they may even eagerly cross the line.