The More I Learn. . .

Tuesday, October 07, 2008

the more I realize how little I know! Does anyone else ever feel this way?! As I read and research about the upcoming election, I feel my ignorance more strongly. Articles such as these below examine and critique propaganda with an insight I just don't possess, and use words like Neocons, Socialist (Gramscian) Neo-Marxism, pragmatism, and cultural hegemony. I keep having to pause to look words up and just try to process what I'm reading. http://www.voddiebaucham.org/vbm/Blog/Entries/2008/8/30_Did_McCain_Make_a_Pro-Family_Pick____.html http://www.voddiebaucham.org/vbm/Blog/Entries/2008/9/11_How_Evangelicals_Could_Win_an_Election_and_Lose_the_Culture.html http://visionarydaughters.com/2008/09/the-miraculous-sanctification-of-the-republican-party-by-geoffrey-botkin I love to think and learn, don't get me wrong, but it's rather funny how I'm getting dumber as life goes on instead of smarter. When I graduated from high school, now. . .I was SMART back then! I had my nice little ACT score and headed off to Truman. . .where I promptly realized 'so what, lots of people are smart.' It went downhill from there! Now I'm to the point that I come home from Bible studies with evangelists wondering 'how do they know all that?!' I don't know how to study effectively--I don't know if I'm even able to think as deeply as they do! I'm reading a book called 'Whatever Happened to Penny Candy' by Richard J. Maybury. If you're like me, and aren't even quite sure what 'economics' entails, it's a great book to read. I'm learning about inflation, recession, and federal debt--what they really mean, what causes it, and how it affects me. It's sort of scary to learn. . .I remember when ignorance was bliss! But how did/do I not know this stuff?! This is real stuff--far more important than reciting 26 prepositions, is it not???! I have learned so much in eight years of home educating. The worst of it is, these last eight years have shown me how much I don't know--how much I have to learn. As we studied about ancient Greece, I read: "The state controlled the system of education to ensure uniformity of doctrine and thought. . .The driving religious philosophy behind the Greek system was the worship of man. Their system did produce great knowledge, but it also produced pride, immorality, nakedness, institutionalism, dependence on government, a militaristic philosophy, and a destruction of family cohesiveness and love. . .The role of the family was replaced by the state, and each person lived his life clamoring selfishly for his share of government services and rights." (from 'The Heart of Wisdom' by Robin Sampson, pg 78.) Now, I'm not trying to say that everyone should homeschool, so don't get sidetracked or hung up on that. I do, however, think we have a responsibility to learn all this stuff I don't know (and pass it on to our children). Socialism is here, in our country. Do we even know what it is??? I think most of us don't know it's here because we don't know what it is, and we certainly don't recognize it for what it is. Perhaps it's not something to fear, but rather what we, as Christians, need in order to force us to our knees in service to our Savior rather than getting caught up in materialism, feminism, ecumenicalism. . .all those other isms. I don't know. That's about all I know--that I need to learn. (Next book on my list of books to read: 1984. I've never read it. Has anyone read it?? Thoughts?)