Late in the 12th Century, a phenomenon unique to Europe appeared, the university. University is actually a combination of two words, unity and diversity. Originally, universities were schools that owned no real estate, but were instead an association of teachers or students. Although not always theologically or scholarly accurate, what under girded the university was the unification of all subjects by an all-encompassing worldview. Christianity provided the unity that connected the diversity of courses offered.*
In other words, Jesus Christ was at the core of the worldview of original universities! Unfortunately, in the 21st Century, Christianity is no longer at the core of most educational systems. In the United States, the government’s new Common Core program has a godless, purposeless, evolutionary worldview at its core.
Who Interprets the Facts Matters
Cornelius Van Til (1895-1987), author of Essays on Christian Education, made the wise statement that, in this world, there exists a whole collection of facts. Would you rather have those facts interpreted to your child through a Christian or a non-Christian worldview?
For Christians, the answer should be simple. Jesus Christ is, or should be, the common core of all the subjects we teach our children. To the extent that we are able to, we should try to use curriculum taught from a Christian worldview. But that also doesn’t mean we need to fear books and courses that are taught from a non-Christian, or even anti-Christian worldview. We just need to train our children how to think critically about these things. If we teach them the Truth, they will be more capable of detecting false “philosophy and empty deceit.” (Colossians 2:8)
Pray that more Christian families will realize the problems of sending their children day after day to be taught in schools where Jesus Christ is not the common core. Pray that we can find new and creative ways to help those who, for various reasons, it would be extremely difficult or impossible to home school or attend a private Christian school. Pray for Christian families in countries where homeschooling and Christian schooling is illegal, that they will be able to help their children test everything they are learning, holding onto the good (I Thessalonians 5:21).
If you are interested in learning more about DIVE Math and Science courses, where Jesus Christ is the common core, click here.
Robert Fiske Griggs (1881-1962) is best known for discovering The Valley of Ten Thousand Smokes, site of the biggest volcanic eruption in over 100 years. He is also known for the 1922 book he authored of the same name (click here for a free pdf version). What he is less well-known for is being a godly husband and father to four children. His oldest son, David Tressel Griggs, became a fairly well-known scientist himself. In a biography about him, published by the National Academy of Sciences (surprised?), it says that David’s “parental home was a citadel of Christian values, based on love, fidelity, and truth.”
Wow! Biographies like that should remind us of a few things, one of those being that there is no battle between science and religion. That is make-believe nonsense propagated by anti-Christian bigots. Christians are commanded to “do science” from the get-go in Genesis 1:26-28.
More importantly though, this should remind us all to hope and pray that we will leave a legacy like the Griggs family has. We should ask ourselves “What will people write about my family when I am gone? Will they say it was a citadel of Christian values, too?”
Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.
Here’s a video I made about a typical day at my homeschool co-op science classes. I hope this video will encourage others to start a homeschool co-op in their town. I hope too that it will help skeptics see that Christians are not “anti-science”. And we aren’t against having fun while we do science either!
One of America's finest, Ben "Frodo" Broussard, next to a Navy T-45 Trainer.
Since I was a child I have dreamed about flying. And not daydreams about flying airplanes (although I’ve had plenty of those), but deep dreams where I was actually flying! Just me zipping through the air, or running along the ground and “gliding” down a flight of stairs instead of walking. Fortunately, because of the major safety hazards involved, I have never attempted to turn my flying dreams into reality. However, a former student of mine and U.S. Naval Academy Graduate, Ben “Frodo” Broussard, recently had his dreams of flying (airplanes) come true, along with his dream of landing on an aircraft carrier.
Now, not to make light of the multitude of accomplishments that so many of my former students have had and continue to achieve, but as a former aerospace engineer and lover of all winged things, I hope you can understand my particular excitement about Ben’s recent achievements. And as you will see, it is not just Ben’s flying achievements that I am excited about.
Jump back in time with me to the late 1990’s when Ben was just 10 years old and totally absorbed with a book on airplanes. As his mother, Lisa, told me recently, Ben read the book with a “gleam in his eye,” and it was then that he realized he wanted to land a plane on an aircraft carrier someday. But then, at 13, Ben received the hard news that he needed glasses, which at the time meant you were not eligible to fly Navy planes. Devastated by the news, it did not deter Ben from pursuing the dream.
And this is where it is important to realize that the Broussards are no ordinary family, not because they have roots in Louisiana, but because of their unwavering faith in God’s plan. It is unfortunate that I have to call them “unordinary,” but it’s true. There are a lot of families that simply do not know, or do not care about, trusting God with their lives. But the Broussards are a great example of what it means to walk with Christ, rejoicing in the good times, accepting the trials, working hard and having fun along the way. As the answer to Question 1 of the Westminster Catechism says, the chief end of man is to glorify God and enjoy Him forever, and I would say the Broussard family knows how to do that!
Fast-forward now to 2003, when Ben was a student in my homeschool coop AP physics class. In these classes, students do their homework and video lectures at home, at their own pace. We meet once a week for discussion, but mainly to do a hands-on lab activity. One of our lab activities is to build and launch a model rocket. It is actually a competition, where all students get the same Estes Alpha rocket kit, but are allowed to make modifications in an attempt to maximize its speed and minimize its weight. Ben took the modification a little too far though, and forgot to add the onboard computer guidance system that his rocket obviously needed. Upon launch, this future aeronautical engineer’s rocket cartwheeled out of control, and sent more than a few students ducking for cover! Now, there are some students who would have cowered and been extremely embarrassed by such a massive failure, but Ben had the right attitude and took it in stride. And that is part of what Scripture teaches when we read in Hebrews 12:1 about running with perseverance the race marked out for us. And if you are a student, remember this the next time you start whining about having too much schoolwork, or you get mad at God and your parents because you think things are too hard. Instead, honor your parents by doing the things they have asked you to do with a smile on your face and a 100% effort. And don’t beat yourself up when the inevitable failures come, but instead pick yourself up, humble yourself before the Lord, let Him lead you, and try again.
Ben graduated in 2004 in his homeschool class of 1, where he received top honors. A man of many talents, Ben the actor made quite a production out of his graduation, which included, of all things, a rap song he made about my DIVE math and science lessons and my use of the phrase “think about it.” Of course, I had to ruin the fun of the evening with my overly serious graduation charge to Ben, which you can read here: Ben Broussard Graduation Charge, 2004
After high school graduation, the improbability of Ben reaching his dreams seemed more real than ever. You see, Ben did not get into the Naval Academy on his first try. Miraculously though, in the Summer of 2004, he was accepted after Induction Day, which is something that hadn’t happened in 30 years, and hasn’t happened since. Some might say Ben was “lucky”. His mother believes it was Providence, that the “Lord moved a very established institution to accomplish His plans.” I agree with Ben’s mother!
So Ben goes to the Naval Academy, where he is asked by officers how many were in his graduating class, and shocks them when he responds with “ONE, Sir!” Fortunately, U.S. military academies are not so surprised by homeschoolers anymore, and in fact they seem to like them quite a bit.
Ben still had the vision issues though, and was content to settle for a position as a navigator if necessary. But thanks to God allowing the achievements of modern medicine, Ben had PRK (photorefractive keratectomy) surgery his junior year, and now has 20-20 vision. The successful PRK surgery would allow Ben to pass his flight medical his senior year.
Of course, Ben still needed to graduate, which he did, and he still needed to be accepted to flight school, which he was. Somewhere along the way during The Basic School for Marine Officers (TBS), he aquired the nickname of the “Warrior Hobbit.” And then, in July 2011, Ben “Frodo” Broussard’s 15-year dream of landing on an aircraft carrier came true. The video below was produced by Ben, and the footage from the cockpit is what he saw. The other footage was shot by Ben as well. Watch as Ben and other USMC pilots make one of the world’s most awesome, and most difficult jobs look easy:
In Ephesians 2 we are reminded that we are saved by the gift of faith God gives us, not by works. But if you keep reading, you see that as Christians we are also called in Christ Jesus to do the works He has prepared beforehand for us to do. Ben did not achieve his personal dream because he focused only on it at the expense of everything else. Quite the contrary, Ben was blessed with this incredible accomplishment while walking humbly with his God, enjoying life, loving others and making them laugh along the way. It is good and important for us to dream and plan and let our children do the same, but it is more important to commit to His plan and seek His will every second of the day. Thank you Broussards for setting a great example of what a Christian homeschooling family should look like!
UPDATE!!! March 28, 2012: “Frodo” received his “wings”, and is now flying Harriers for the United States Marines! Harriers are amazing aircraft that can take off and land vertically! Watch this video by Frodo, he’s flying Harrier #27:
Unlike our lineup of High School Science products, DIVE Earth Science is a standalone curriculum. No extra book(s) are required, although a list of optional materials is provided for those who want to go above and beyond the basic curriculum.
DIVE Earth Science will change the way you think about the Earth! God gave us the Earth to use and manage wisely (Genesis 1:26-28). DIVE Earth Science teaches students how to use Earth’s abundant resources, while avoiding the “ditches” of overuse and overprotection.
DIVE Earth Science consists of four sections: Earth Science Basics, Flood Geology, Limnology and Oceanography, and Meteorology and Astronomy. In Earth Science Basics, students are presented with foundational ideas that are developed further in the other three sections. This method is similar to John Saxon’s successful mathematics teaching format of introducing a foundational topic early on, and reviewing and building on it later.
In many Earth Science courses, students are taught misleading arguments that withhold many facts, such as “the Big Bang is the only explanation for how the Universe was created”, “fossil fuel burning is the only cause of global warming”, “fertilizer runoff from farms is causing the dead zone in the Gulf of Mexico”, “all oil is formed from dead dinosaurs”, and many others. Possibly more than any other curriculum before it, DIVE Earth Science brings clarity to these arguments, and strives to tell “the rest of the story”.
In any Earth Science course, the subject of Earth history will inevitably arise. The subject has become highly politicized, mainly by the liberal left, who falsely equate the study of history with testable, repeatable science. Today, only one creation story is dogmatically taught in most government schools and universities, and it is not the story found in Scripture. DIVE Earth Science treats the study of history honestly, which means we treat it like history, not science. And that means historical documents like Scripture are helpful and necessary.
With DIVE Earth Science, students will learn to discern between unverifiable natural history research and verifiable scientific investigation. Also, students are presented with a variety of ideas about how the Earth and Universe formed, not just one “consensus” view! The goal of DIVE Earth Science is not to support a consensus view, but to teach students how to search for truth. Christian or non-Christian, “old” earth or “young” earth, I would hope that is something we would all want to help our children do!
We have a CD-ROM version for $80, and an online subscription for $50, plus $10 for each additional family member. The online version has many advantages including access anywhere you have a computer and Internet, no CD to damage and/or lose, and maybe most importantly, automated scoring and grade tracking. Click here to learn how the online version can make grading a breeze for busy homeschool parents! DIVE Online works on Windows and Mac computers, and even though it is Flash-based, it will also work on an iPad if you use the Photon browser.
Here is a sample pdf file of the laboratory manual, which includes the yearly schedule:
Here’s a pdf file containing a list of all laboratory supplies. Many items can be purchased locally, and Internet links are provided for other supplies. There is also a list of optional reading materials, both Internet links/videos, and books/DVDs to purchase:
DIVE Earth Science will change the way science is taught. It will give your child a 21st Century Earth Science education, while strengthening their faith in the absolute truth of Scripture as a God-inspired work that is a true account of the history of Earth and the Universe.
Here is a link to our Facebook page, where I have a description of DIVE Earth Science topics covered each week. Just click on the photos, and the descriptions are attached to them.
To purchase, click here for the CD or here for the online version. Here’s a short commercial about DIVE Earth Science:
Do you have a question or comment about the new DIVE Earth Science? Post it below:
Francis Bacon (1561-1626) is considered by many as the founder of the scientific method, which is basically an organized way for us humans to attempt to answer questions about the Created order. A lawyer and a statesman, his greatest passion was in finding ways to improve and extend human knowledge, and this is seen in his written works like The Advancement of Learning.
Francis Bacon wrote many things. He was also accused of many things, and a brief read of Wikipedia’s Francis Bacon Page will leave any reader confused about who Bacon really was, or wasn’t.
Something that naturalists commonly credit Bacon with and creationists accuse Bacon of is encouraging the rejection of the Bible as a tool for informing scientific pursuits. This idea stems mainly from one paragraph he wrote in Novum Organum (1620), which is Latin for “New Instrument”. When describing “idols” that cause problems for proper study of natural philosophy, Bacon lists “superstition and religion” together as two culprits. Bacon claims that, during his time:
“some moderns….have endeavored to build a system of natural Philosophy on the first chapter of Genesis, the book of Job, and other parts of Scripture; seeking thus the dead amongst the living. And this folly is the more to be prevented and restrained, because not only fantastical Philosophy but heretical Religion spring from the absurd mixing of matters-Divine and Human. It is therefore most wise soberly to render unto faith the things that are faith’s.”
Even though Bacon’s works are in English, I must admit that I feel extremely inadequate when attempting to interpret them. And if you are anything like me, you may need to read the above passage over several times, and even then, it may still not make any sense. What I think is pretty obvious though is that Bacon is concerned with letting science (philosophy of men) interpret Scripture. Bacon says it is wise to “render unto faith the things that are faith’s”, and warns against the “absurd mixing of matters Divine and Human.” Notice, he doesn’t say we should never mix Divine (God’s Word) and Human (scientific observations), but rather we should avoid absurd mixtures. This is basically the same thing he said 15 years earlier in Advancement of Learning, Book I:
“A man cannot be too well studied in the book of God’s word or in the book of God’s works, divinity or philosophy…..and again, that they do not unwisely mingle or confound these learnings together.” [emphasis mine]
Again, Bacon did not say never mix things divine and human, just don’t unwisely mix them. That is a BIG difference, one statement leading down a shifty, sandy, secular fundamentalist road and the other leading down a solid, Biblically grounded path for interpreting past, present and future events.
So what was Bacon talking about when he mentioned “fantastical philosophy” and “heretic religion” (in Bacon’s day, “religion” meant Christianity) resulting from “absurd mixtures” of God’s word versus man’s word? It is difficult to say, but possibly one event he was referring to was Galileo’s recent problems with Catholic church leaders. In the early 1600’s, Galileo had reported, based on observations, that the Sun was at the center of our solar system. Church leaders said the Earth was at the center. Now, Joshua 10:12-13, Ecclesiastes 1:5, and Isaiah 38:8, all say the Sun “moves”, but make no mention of whether the Earth does or doesn’t. So why did Church leaders support a “geocentric” idea? Interestingly, geocentrism was proposed by Aristotle, and, even though he never made any actual observations of planetary motion like Galileo had, Church leaders accepted his unscientific claims over Galileo’s real observations.
Christian leaders made a big mistake in trying to apply Aristotle’s deductive conclusions to interpret Scriptures. The Scriptures do mention relative motion between Sun and Earth, and Church leaders should have encouraged the study of this relative motion. This would have avoided false conclusions, as well as providing an excuse for us sinful humans to reject God’s word. Church leaders could have simply said “we don’t know, we haven’t measured it, nor have we been to Space to verify either Galileo’s or Aristotle’s claims.”
In my book, The Exchange of Truth, I talk about Francis Bacon and his impact on science. Before I wrote the book, I did quite a bit of research on him. Here is a .pdf file of a 2005 presentation I gave on Bacon:
From what I have learned, it is obvious Bacon had some flaws, just like any of us, but I came away with a different conclusion than some as to what Bacon’s agenda was. What I saw was a man who thought it was perfectly reasonable to mix science and religion. One of his foundational verses was Matthew 22:29, where Jesus informed the Sadducees “You are in error because you do not know the Scriptures or the power of God.” Bacon thought men should know Scripture (God’s Word) and His power (God’s Works). This idea permeates all of Bacon’s works.
Because I have written favorably of Bacon in Exchange of Truth, while other creationists have not, I thought I should conduct some more study into the man. To do this, I used a creation research search engine developed at Bryan College called CELD. I typed in “Francis Bacon” and was greeted by several results. I was pleased to find some recent research published by Dr. Stephen A. McKnight from the University of Florida. In the abstract to a 2007 paper, he drew a similar conclusion to mine:
“Bacon’s program for rehabilitating humanity and its relation to nature is not a secular scientific advance through which humanity gains dominion over nature and mastery of its own destiny but rather one guided by divine Providence and achieved through pious human effort.”
So what do you think? Should Francis Bacon be labeled the hero of secular fundamentalists and villain of Christian creationists? I say no, but you should read Bacon and decide for yourself. My suggestion is to read Francis Bacon: The Major Works. Unless you are VERY fluent in 1600’s era English, Latin and Greek, you will find yourself flipping to the notes in the back about every other sentence. I think you may conclude, as myself and others have, that Francis Bacon saw the important connection between science and Christianity, a connection that is badly severed in the 21st century, but not impossible to repair. The Bible can inform science, and thinking of it any other way results in an “absurd mixing”.
Last week, a student who uses our DIVE CDs emailed me to verify an error in problem number 24 of Saxon Calculus, 2nd edition, Problem Set 63. Although this error did not actually affect the final answer, it was an error nonetheless, and was missed by the editors of the Saxon Solutions Manual. EVERY curriculum has a few errors, including the products my company, DIVE LLC, produces, so the point of this article is not to ridicule Saxon Publishers for their errors. The point is to talk about educating children. If you visit the DIVE website or read a DIVE catalog, you will quickly understand that I think it is time to “raise the standard” in K-12 education, and this includes completing calculus in high school. I realize not every student can accomplish this goal, but there is nothing wrong with at least making that the goal with the possibility of falling short.
So what is the big deal about this student who found an error? Well, he’s 12 years old. And he is home educated. By his parents. Obviously, this boy has an aptitude for math that exceeds that of most 12-year olds and even many adults, but the fact remains that he is almost halfway-through a course that is the equivalent of college Calculus I. And if there are 12-year olds out there who can do calculus, there are even more 13, 14, 15+ year olds who can do calculus.
Error in Saxon Calculus 2nd edition solutions manual. Okay, so the handwriting is not super-neat, but give the kid a break, he's 12!
Most people today realize the potentials of homeschooling, but strangely enough, there are still those who want to eliminate it. According to an article in the November/December 2010 issue of The Home School Court Report, American homeschooling is entering a “Third Wave” of persecution. The first wave had to do with education. Could parents really educate children at home? While there are some parents who do a really bad job at educating, the same can be said of many government and private schools. And in today’s world, 12-year olds doing calculus would be a real surprise in a government school and most private schools, but not in a home school.
The second wave of persecution was about the issue of socialization, but the evidence now weighs heavily against that idea, too. While the first two waves of persecution were based on false premises, the third wave of persecution is, according to HSLDA Chairman Mike Farris, essentially correct. According to Farris “Christian homeschooling parents are effectively transmitting values to their children that the elitists believe are dangerous to the well-being of both these very children and society as a whole.”
I believe God gave us the ability to do mathematics so that we could better understand His creation. I believe we should study math and science so we can know Him better and as Christians, act on the faith He gave us and get out there and be excellent at doing the work He has already prepared for us (Ephesians 2:8-10). I also believe we can study math and science without acknowledging its Author, but to do so, we miss half the story. There are those in society who actually think it would be better for us all if Christian 12-year old boys with above-average math aptitude were taken from their loving parents, placed in a large group, and taught a below-aptitude, godless curriculum. The boys would not learn that they were created in the image of the greatest Creator, and are therefore creative, too. Instead, their creativity will be stifled, supposedly so they fit in better with the group, and they will instead learn they were not created by a loving Father, but rather evolved from a meaningless pile of goo in a mysterious land that existed before history. And the people who promote such ideas are referred to as the “elites”? Really?
The third wave of homeschool persecution is nothing more than misguided “elitists” wanting to replace Christian religion, where we are taught to love the sinner but hate the sin, with a secular fundamentalist religion that teaches to hate some sinners and love many sins. The first two waves taught us home schoolers to surf. Skills learned in the past will help us surf this bigger, badder, third wave, too, and ensure the current freedoms American parents have to teach calculus to their math-gifted 12-year olds. But we won’t keep these freedoms if we sit around and do nothing, so get out there and surf!
Studying His Word and His Works 