HOW THIS HAPPENED
To get the full context, we must go back to the beginning – literally. Back to the garden of Eden. You may be aware of this story from the book of Genesis. God created men and women and placed them in the garden. He gave them the task of overseers, commissioned not only to take care of the garden, but to also extend it to the rest of the earth. He also established limits. They were not to eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, or they would die. In Genesis 3:4-5, The serpent questions the consequences, “You will not surely die. For God knows that in the day you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” Often this story is told emphasizing man’s desire to be like God, but part of that desire is manifested in his attempt to throw off the limits that God established, and avoid the consequences. Let’s trace this root desire through our modern philosophy as related to our educational system.
Paideia
The battle to throw off God’s limits through our educational system is not a new phenomenon. What we are witnessing today is the fruit of seeds sown over 100 years ago. In his book, Battle for the American Mind, Pete Hegseth traces the history of our educational system from the early Marxists through the Progressive movement of today. He introduces a Latin word, Paideia, which means to educate with the purpose of forming a culture. In his words, “It reflects the passions, reasoning, perspectives, and virtues that children absorb. It drives a person’s “vision of the good life.” The Western concept of “the good life” remained constant for millennia…The Western Christian paideia (WPA) was highly prized in American families, schools, and churches a few generations ago. Then, about 100 years ago, Progressives destroyed it. They had a new vision of humanity that proclaimed humans as the peak of naturalistic evolution. This concept wasn’t immediately popular, but its followers aspired to build a community around it.
Until 1820, family and church governed American schools, and the WCP was popular in schools up to 1910… In the late 1800s, pre-Progressives saw school as a method to change culture. Paideia was a good way of accomplishing this. Progressives had a powerful idea that, with time and institutional power, has pushed them into a position to plot against our country, and their first step was to neutralize WCP in the classroom.”
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Pete Hegseth, “The Forgotten force of Western Christian Education,” in Battle for the American Mind: Uprooting a Century of Miseducation. Broadside Books 2022
Compulsory Education
School became compulsory through the efforts of Horace Mann. This movement meant state and local governments replaced the church, parents, and community. As culture became centralized, a new paideia infiltrated our country. Today, even many private and Christian schools unknowingly use progressive methods and ideologies.
In his book, Hegseth states, “In 1957, in response to Sputnik, US schools began to emphasize math, science, and engineering. Five years later, God was officially excluded from classrooms, with devotional Bible reading becoming banned in public schools the next year. Without the WCP, the APP (American Progressive Paideia) could establish practically any culture. Post-1965, Progressives developed a “critical theory” paideia that villainized Christianity and the West—also known as the Cultural Marxist Paideia (CMP), which matured after 2000.”
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Pete Hegseth, “The Straight Line from Critical Theory to Antifa,” in Battle for the American Mind: Uprooting a Century of Miseducation. Broadside Books 2022
In their quest to reshape the world into their image, an image without God and consequences, this new paideia is bearing fruit. This new paideia sets man up as his own god, determining his own truth. Hegseth writes, “It includes the freedom of personal choice, control of identity, and acceptance for who we are. Our survival demands a better approach; as our culture falls into an identity crisis, suicide rates rise and families and churches decline. Our culture’s selfishness and hypersexuality are the result of turning away from God.”
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Pete Hegseth, “The Forgotten force of Western Christian Education,” in Battle for the American Mind: Uprooting a Century of Miseducation. Broadside Books 2022
Hegseth gives us this warning. “Classical Christian education, the foundation of early American schools, was what shaped our world. If we ignore paideia, the Progressives will win.”
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Pete Hegseth, “Finding the Founding Classrooms,” in Battle for the American Mind: Uprooting a Century of Miseducation. Broadside Books 2022
The Heart
1 Chronicles 12:32 mentions the sons of Issachar who understood the times and knew what Israel should do. This is the heart of our streaming service, providing materials designed to train such men and women.
Western Civilization was built on the pillars of reason, virtue, wonder, and beauty. To rebuild the crumbling structure will take a major restructuring of family, church, and education. It’s a big challenge and may take generations, but it’s worth the fight. The future of our children and grandchildren depends on it.
For a more in-depth look at the history of education in America, we highly encourage you to read Battle for the American Mind by Pete Hegseth. It is well worth your time.
