My son's public elementary school is having a book fair all this week. I found a book there called Who is Jesus? When you open it up it tells all about who jesus is from a chrisitians perspective. There were no other books on other religions or religious holidays just the jesus book.
2007-12-14 05:04:22 · 22 answers · asked by Anonymous in Society & Culture ➔ Religion & Spirituality
Biased? Yes.
Am I suprised? No.
What is a religious book doing in a public school?
2007-12-14 05:07:56 · answer #1 · answered by wiccanhpp 5 · 6⤊ 2⤋
What does it matter? Let it go...this is Jesustown...and if you complain about the presence of a book with a religious nature, cries of persecution will flow like water from the mountain sides. Besides, I don't see why one would have to be so knit-picky about the books not being equally representative of all religious faiths at an elementary school book fair...
If the teacher actively teaches about religion in the classroom in the manner that the book suggests, that is a source of complaint. Merely having the book...well...that is less significant, and complaining about it will only further put people off about secularism.
Besides, censorship and book burning....kind of been copyrighted by the religious anyway (see: Golden Compass...)
2007-12-14 05:09:36 · answer #2 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 1⤋
Generally speaking, when those book fairs are held, they're held by representatives of a particular publishing company. The school gets some free books in exchange for shilling for the publishers. Most teachers feel it's a good deal - the school gets books, and they get to promote reading. Which books are displayed is up to the publisher's representatives. They show up, lay out the books, and the teachers find out what's there when they see the display.
I'm tolerably sure that the school wouldn't have put that book out if they'd known it was there. There's too much fear of litigation. I also suspect that, if you'd pointed the book out to a teacher or administrator, it would've been removed.
2007-12-14 05:16:36 · answer #3 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 2⤋
My kids, all of them atheist, stood each morning as their third grade teacher led the class in a brief prayer. No other religions were represented. Biased? Maybe a little, but as the US is primarily Christian, it's to be expected that other religions will take a backseat.
I didn't make a fuss about the prayer, btw. There was really no reason to, as it helped my kids learn to be respectful of people and their beliefs.
2007-12-14 05:09:17 · answer #4 · answered by iamnoone 7 · 6⤊ 1⤋
it may be a little biased, but it really isn't a big deal, is it? i mean, you didn't buy the book - maybe another family did - but it wasn't like you or your child were forced to read it.
i know it's aggravating - i agree that it is not fair, but life isn't fair. better that you teach that lesson to your child now and maybe this is a good opportunity to set an example of how to deal with these situations. being angry and talking about someone being biased doesn't send the right message, imo.
2007-12-14 05:14:50 · answer #5 · answered by knit gangsta 6 · 1⤊ 2⤋
That was not a book on religion. That was a book on history.
2007-12-14 05:11:54 · answer #6 · answered by Caveman 5 · 3⤊ 0⤋
Jesus is the ONLY one who died for the sins of the world. He is the ONLY one who rose from the dead. He is the ONLY one who claimed to be, and proved He WAS who He said He was: God in the flesh. He didn't come to start a "religion" but to accomplish a specific TASK that He CAME to do.
Why shouldn't children know about a REAL historical person, both man and God , who died for their sins?
The ONLY way to tell about Jesus is to tell that He paid a debt He did not owe, for we who have a debt we could not pay.
'
Obviously, you want to your son to see Christ from an athiests perspective. Be honest with your son. Christ never claimed to be a mere man, but to be God Himself, in the flesh. Either He WAS who He said He was, or He was mentally imbalanced, or He was a LIAR! Which is it?
If you don't spread your UNBELIEF to your child, you will be doing him a great favor. Letting him determine for himself, instead of being affected by whatever has turned YOU from God.
You ARE loved so very much by a God you choose to disbelieve. "I beg you, in His stead, be ye reconciled to God." He has done everything to secure your forgiveness and even offers to put Christs test score on YOUR paper...this is called "imputed righteousness"...without which, NO man will see heaven. He offers it as a GIFT...something you cannot earn and that cost Him the life of His only Son.
Will you believe?
2007-12-14 05:17:39 · answer #7 · answered by goinupru 6 · 2⤊ 2⤋
This is very biased. If your son goes to a public school, I'd say the book has no place there.
2007-12-14 05:11:17 · answer #8 · answered by la buena bruja 7 · 1⤊ 3⤋
If you thought there should have been more books about other religions you should have donated some.
2007-12-14 05:34:15 · answer #9 · answered by John 3:16 3 · 1⤊ 0⤋
I don't see a problem with that. If another kid brought a book "Who is Mohommed", or "Who is George Bush", wouldn't they be allowed? Jesus Christ was a real person and why shouldn't anyone who wants to know about Him be able to?
2007-12-14 05:10:27 · answer #10 · answered by oldguy63 7 · 2⤊ 2⤋