Religion and Children

[Mooshi]

As adults, we're able to form our own opinion on life. Even if those views don't fit our parents. Kids don't have that same privlage. Whatever the parent believes, the child is taught. Somethings should be taught such as "treat others how you want to be treated" and to try to be a good person. Other things could be argued as being brainwashing or even child abuse. A child's psyche is sensative to suggestion from adults. Both good or bad, we know this. I'm not against teaching core beliefs on being a good person or arguing against tradition, but... I think something such as religion shouldn't be forced on a kid and that they are talked to when they reach a certain age to form their own opinions. Forcing extreme views on a child should be classified as child abuse!

[Spirit]

That picture scares me. Thank god for September 11th? God hates you if HE MADE you gay? But picture aside, I feel my parents are loose on that kind of thing. Besides, their views aren't "god hates you if you ___" or "you're going to hell if you don't ___" or that kind of thing.

[Mooshi]

Had a feeling you'd be posting in here, Spirit. Though you're still young, you do impress me with how mature you can be. :p It's awesome your parents aren't the type to shove things in your face. I could count myself lucky I wasn't forced to believe in things as a child either.

[Allie_Kat]

I was forced to go to church/sunday school/youth group my entire childhood. I am not religous at all as an adult, and Narei and I are not raising our kids to be religous. We have discussed that if they choose to go to a church/temple/other place of worship as they get older and can make their own choices we will be supportive of them in it. But we are not going to try and push them into any certain religion or ideology.

[killrhawk]

My parents are trying to subtly push religion on me, but I'm sticking with what I choose. For some reason, they see Atheism as a gateway to anarchy. But it's quite two sided, if you grow up doing something that you hate either you'll accept it eventually, or your resent it more when you grow older. As for non-religious things, I always feel bad when I see the flaws of my friends parents show up in my friends.

[Avan]

I never had to deal with being told by my parents what to believe. I was simply allowed to explore on my own.

It is so much better this way.

My father was raised in the other way, and he hated it. My mother was raised the same way I was, from what I can tell. Clearly they both supported raising both myself & my sister in this manner.

[Shim]

I was raised to believe a certain thing, but I'm not sure if that's what I want to believe anymore. This owuldn't be a problem if my family weren't as religious as we were. (To be fair, we're not as religious as we were, partially due to this new business my parents have running.)

It probably would be better, if I were given the choice to believe what I wanted to, but I was raised to believe a specific thing, and its ingrained in my head, that I should be going with whatever the religious states, even if its something I don't believe in. I often have this conversation with myself: "But I shouldn't!" "Why not?" "..I don't know."

I don't know what will happen later in life.  What I fear, is that my family will reject me if I decide not to believe in what they all do. I'm not saying complete atheism, but..not very religious.

[Drake Blackpaw]

Parents can force a lot of views on their kids that many would see as detrimental to the them, with extreme religion just being one.  I wouldn't say exposure to religion is bad for kids, but exposure to religion with no tolerance is.

My parents raised me in a mainstream church and while I left the church, I wouldn't being raised with it hurt me as an adult.  Indeed, I decided that the Church wasn't for me in my late teen years.  So going to a church as a child didn't stop me from forming my own beliefs later on. 

I've seen kids hurt by religion, since i grew up in an area that was predominately fundamentalist.   But, where do you draw the line.  It is a parent's right to raise their children as they see fit, even if others think it will mess them up in the long run.

[Avan]

Or is it their right?

Something to think about.

[Kobuk]

I wouldn't say exposure to religion is bad for kids, but exposure to religion with no tolerance is.

^ This. But I would probably word it differently and say: Exposure to religion isn't bad. It's just how the parents are teaching kids about religion.

[Mooshi]

"It is a parent's right to raise
their children as they see
fit, even if others think it
will mess them up in the
long run." Not if the views they are trying to embed into their childs mind is harmful. Take a look at the WBC, for example.  Parental rights should end the moment something harmful to the child is introduced. If there are laws against parents naming their child derogitory names upon birth (and rightfully so) then the same should be applied to extreme beliefs that are proven to be harmful.

[Foxpup]

"It is a parent's right to raise
their children as they see
fit, even if others think it
will mess them up in the
long run." Not if the views they are trying to embed into their childs mind is harmful. Take a look at the WBC, for example.  Parental rights should end the moment something harmful to the child is introduced. If there are laws against parents naming their child derogitory names upon birth (and rightfully so) then the same should be applied to extreme beliefs that are proven to be harmful.

I was just about to say the exact same thing. Get out of my brain!

[Avan]

 Indeed

[Mooshi]

I was just about to say the
exact same thing. Get out of
my brain!

No! >:C It's cozy in there. :3

[Yip]

Not if the views they are trying to embed into their childs mind is harmful. Take a look at the WBC, for example.  Parental rights should end the moment something harmful to the child is introduced. If there are laws against parents naming their child derogitory names upon birth (and rightfully so) then the same should be applied to extreme beliefs that are proven to be harmful.

There is definitely a line that is crossed at some point. For example, kids that die of easily treatable ailments because their parents refuse to get them proper medical attention and instead insist on relying solely on prayer. I know it's their belief and all, but it ends up being the same as negligence.

[Mooshi]

Like that one story in the news awhile back where the parents refused to take their sickly child for proper medical treatment and prayed till she died? :/

[Spirit]

"It is a parent's right to raise
their children as they see
fit, even if others think it
will mess them up in the
long run." Not if the views they are trying to embed into their childs mind is harmful. Take a look at the WBC, for example.  Parental rights should end the moment something harmful to the child is introduced. If there are laws against parents naming their child derogitory names upon birth (and rightfully so) then the same should be applied to extreme beliefs that are proven to be harmful.

But when should the line be drawn? I think forcing your beliefs on a child until it becomes in some way harmful should be illegal, but who decides when the child is being harmed?

[Mooshi]

but who decides when the
child is being harmed?

Hopefully someone who is trained to reconize the warning signs before the child is either brainwashed into believing blind hatred towards others is right and justified or worse, as Var brought up, a child ends up losing their life.

[Avan]

Aren't social workers supposed to do that? (in theory anyways)

[Mooshi]

You would think so. But not every case goes reported and sometimes reports turn out to be false. There are many little things here and there that could put a halt between a child and safety. Ultimately, a social worker shouldn't have to step in as that child's legal guardian is the one who is responsable.  - There is a massive difference between teaching a child something like "Jesus loves me" and shouting at them to the point of tears just because they like Harry Potter. That kinda trauma could scar a kid and lead to mental problems as an adult if they're sensative enough.

[Shim]

You would think so. But not every case goes reported and sometimes reports turn out to be false. There are many little things here and there that could put a halt between a child and safety. Ultimately, a social worker shouldn't have to step in as that child's legal guardian is the one who is responsable.  - There is a massive difference between teaching a child something like "Jesus loves me" and shouting at them to the point of tears just because they like Harry Potter. That kinda trauma could scar a kid and lead to mental problems as an adult if they're sensative enough.

I think I get what you're saying. "Don't let the parent's fears affect the children."

Story-time: My parents used to know a woman, who was deathly afraid of dogs. She would always cower in fear of my tiny terrier-shitzu. She would occasionally bring her daughter over, when she had nowhere else to go. We just WATCHED this lady make her daughter afraid of dogs too, over time.

[Mooshi]

Something kinda like that, yes.

[Avan]

You would think so.

Reason why I said "in theory" 

[Kr2i]

it can be a very dangerous combination when religion or anything else is enforced on children and when it comes to religion I believe that their parents should no control over what their children believe   

[Avan]

Yet you risk leaving said children in an information void. And potentially overkilling the matter. Blanket bans usually end up covering way more than they were meant to.

More likely it would be best to have TOK type classes very early on in childhood, to raise them to be logical, critical thinkers from the start.