Posted on 08/17/2007 12:15:16 PM PDT by ZGuy
A community of a dozen Mennonite families in Quebec is ready to leave the province rather than succumb to provincial government demands that would require their children to be taught evolution and homosexuality. While the government sees its actions as nothing more than enforcing technical regulations, many view the case as intolerance of Christian faith.
The community runs a small Mennonite school out of a church in Roxton Falls where eleven children in elementary grades were expected to commence studies this Fall. Subjects include reading, writing, math, science, geography, social sciences, music and French. However, they are not schooled in evolution and homosexuality (sex education) as demanded by the official provincial curriculum.
Quebec Education Ministry Spokesman Francois Lefebvre told LifeSiteNews.com that the province has two requirements for approval of private schools. "That the teachers are certified and that the provincial curriculum which is mandatory in all Quebec schools is followed," he said.
Ronald Goossen, a spokesman for the families, told LifeSiteNews.com the community rejects both demands. With regard to certified teachers, he said, "we have pulled our students out of public schools and by asking us to have certified teachers they are asking us to send our teachers to public school. So basically they're asking something of us that we don't feel we can do."
Regarding the curriculum, Goosen said, "Some of the things - the theory of evolution would be a problem, the attitudes portrayed, the lifestyles we don't ascribe to, making it look that single motherhood is fine, that alternate lifestyles are fine - gay 'marriage', we'd be very much against that."
After visiting the Mennonites in November, the Ministry of Education told the school that their teaching was not up to standard and threatened them with legal action. Parents were informed that their children must be enrolled in government-approved schools by the fall.
Given other incidents in the province, Goossen was concerned that if they don't comply, children might be taken from their families by social workers. In 2002, social workers in Aylmer removed seven children from a Mennonite family because the family used spanking as a form of discipline.
This move is an enactment of the Ministry of Education's decision last year to shut down schools that don't teach the full government-approved curriculum. The Ministry threatened to shut down private Evangelical schools that didn't want to teach evolution and sex-education (See http://www.lifesite.net/ldn/2006/oct/06102404.html ).
The Mayor of Roxton Falls, Jean-Marie Laplante, said that the majority of non-Mennonites in his town support the school. Laplante has complained to the education department and Education Minister Michelle Courchesne to save the school from being shut down.
"We want to keep these people here - they're part of our community," the Mayor told the National Post. "They're good neighbours. They integrated into the community, they work hard, they have farms, they work in businesses in the region."
The prospect of losing the families, said the Mayor, "hurts economically, but it also hurts because everybody loves these people and we're saying, 'Why? Why is this happening?' "
Goosen told LifeSiteNews.com that the families are serious about moving and will be gone in a couple of weeks when school commences. He noted that most have already rented housing in Ontario. Should the government reconsider and allow them the freedom to educate their children within the boundaries of their faith, the community would gladly stay he said.
Lefebvre told LifeSiteNews.com that the school had not yet applied for permission to run privately. However, Goosen responded that the ministry of education had all the required information and his application was not 'officially' submitted only due to a technicality related to the online submission process.
Moreover, said Goosen, "we have been informed that our application would be rejected since they require certified teachers and adherence to the curriculum."
Lefebvre at first seemed conciliatory. He claimed that the regulations "do not exclude giving other courses or teachings related to their religious convictions, but at this moment it is outside of the official program of education."
LifeSiteNews.com asked whether a compromise could be reached, whether it would be possible to eliminate from the school's curriculum the offensive parts which deal with evolution and homosexuality. Lefebvre replied, "It's difficult to say because the educational program insists that students acquire competence in the whole program therefore how could you eliminate one part of the program and still have a general competence?" He referred to religious schools in Quebec, emphasizing that they also have to "respect the program of education (curriculum) of Quebec."
Goosen told LifeSiteNews.com that the Mennonite community has its own curriculum which is accepted in seven other Canadian provinces. "Our own curriculum system has served us well and produced good results," he said.
The option of home schooling is permitted, Lefebvre stated in answer to another question, as long as the progress of the children is reported as satisfactory to the local education ministry. He told LifeSiteNews.com that homeschoolers in the province must be receiving an equivalent education as those in public schools, which means the provincial curriculum must be followed. That curriculum, with its pro-gay sex education and its teaching of evolution, remains unacceptable to many.
To politely express concerns to the Ministry of Education in Quebec:
Ministère de l'Éducation, du Loisir et du Sport Édifice Marie-Guyart 1035, rue De La Chevrotière 16e étage Québec (Québec) G1R5A5 Phone : 418 644-0664 Fax : 418 646-7551 ministre@mels.gouv.qc.ca
Yes. I was taught about homosexuality in health class, but I lived in a communist school district.
No problem. Just teach about the problems with the alternatives of evolution theory. These things work both ways you know.
My own personal opinion - and since it's my own, it doesn't belong in the school at all (lol) - is that I believe in evolution, but that there was a little help along the line. For instance, some of the things that made man so successful and evolved were opposable thumbs, color vison, etc. Sure, they helped us evolve, but how did we get them to start with? And how have we gotten to where we are after only 10's of thousands of generation, when other species are more-or-less the same after 10's of millions of generations?
These are the things that I ponder when I can't sleep at night.
You don't understand Leftists very well, then -
In their mindset, they HAVE to force it on people, because they, the leftists, KNOW BETTER, and others won't choose their better way voluntarily.
A lot more of this is coming. I will not let the government schools teach my children immorality. Period.
My uncle grew up in the backwoods of Maine. During WWII, he joined the navy and was based at Mare Island (in San Francisco). He said that the more "streetwise" guys in the barracks had to explain to him what a homosexual was.
My point is, that homosexuality wasn't "taught" in schools for generations, and largely, people back then turned out OK, I think. Like I said before, there are plenty of libs that would disagree with me.
A very frightening line in the article:
“In 2002, social workers in Aylmer removed seven children from a Mennonite family because the family used spanking as a form of discipline.”
Coming soon -
Children removed from homeschooling families because they refuse to teach homosexuality and “modern morals” of tolerance, ie, “they’re teaching HATE”.
There is also no basis for evolution to be taught either - in fact origins are outside of the classical scientific method. Only operational science (i.e. observable - repeatable - verifiable) is truly science most everything else that calls itself science is secular religion looking for legitimacy and legal protection - not to mention government grants.
Funny even the governments now associate the two subjects...
Unless it's to educate the young 'uns about the various health problems - physical, mental, and moral - associated with it.
I like to think of it as creation through evolution. What - is God (Most Holy Sun Absolute Uni-Being Common Father) not intelligent enough to conceive the processes and functions whereby that can take place? Everything that lives grows - people don't spring out fully formed - why should we believe the world sprang out fully formed?
I'm sure I'm not the only one thinking this. At least, I hope not...
So, are transexuals used as an example of both subjects?
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If you think of science as the study of particles and creationism as the study of waveforms, and the study of the two together (science and creationism) as the study of the two together (particles and waveforms), it may be possible.
The one can be thought of as working from the individual (or the particulate) up to the whole whereas the other works (influences) from the whole down to the individual (or the particulate) - both occurring simultaneously while mutually supporting one another, the one necessary for the other.
It can be thought of as the study of the world and reality from both directions - the small to the large and the large to the small, if you will.
Also, the one can be thought of as the study of fact while the other as the study of value.
See, that is the problem. Current politically correct thought on evolution does not allow for the presentation of any other theories.
Well evolution itself is pretty much at the level of gravity-it’s scientific understanding of its existance is universally accepted (Michael Behe is one of the only scientists who disagreed, but in his new book, he pretty much gave up.) The fact that we still have new parts of evolutionary process being discovered (just a couple days ago there was something new) does not discredit the basic ideas of evolution taught to children in science that have yet to be disproven for almost 100 years.
The origin of WHY evolution occurs and HOW WE came into existance can be debated in phylosophy class or religion class.
There is basis for teaching the process of evolution, there is no basis for teaching why evolution occurs in a science class. We still don’t know why gravity occurs (or have yet to find the “graviton”-the gravity particle). Gravity is taught in science class because we accept that it exists.
The communist liberals have tried to use evolution among other things as a way to take away religion out of public life, and that is certainly unacceptable.
“What - is God (Most Holy Sun Absolute Uni-Being Common Father) not intelligent enough to conceive the processes and functions whereby that can take place? Everything that lives grows - people don’t spring out fully formed - why should we believe the world sprang out fully formed?”
Because the Bible says He created it in six days. Read Genesis 1. Not compatible with evolutionary theory.
Oh Canada, a kinder, gentler, Communist Country...
BTW, I’m from Canada... but the Maple flavor Kool-Aid give me heart burn and flatulence...
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