Garden of Liberty

Are you a gardener of liberty?

Category:

Education

Tags:

• freedom
• liberty
• children
• education
• character
• values
• patriot
• gardener of liberty
• garden of liberty
• garden
• virtue
• founding fathers

[brentpet]

I've been studying about the Saracens in Spain and have been fascinated by their amazing golden age of progress. Faith and reason. You're also right about Islam--the heart of their religion is good. But extremist groups have given them a bad name just as extremist Christian groups have turned people away from a tremendous force for good. I appreciate your comments and apology accepted.

[brentpet]

I completely understand where you're coming from. Some of the most heinous acts have been done in the name of religion. Yet,many of the most noble acts of mankind have also found their basis in religion. Andrew Jackson was specifically the President who said "The Bible is the rock upon which our Republic rests." The Bible itself has been a tremendous force for good. You're right-when its read through the prism of sectarianism, we've got problems. Early schools allowed no commentary.

[brentpet]

I'm assuming you've read our books so you know exactly what is in them. I don't need to speak for Washington or any of the others. I allow them to speak for themselves. And I, also, am a student of history. The eras of greatest progress have been when Faith and Reason work in concert. If the balance is thrown off either direction, you've got problems. Thank you for your passion, as well. I assure you there is nothing 'ignorant' in what I am doing. Still learning to be sure.

[greentparty211]

You are a class act. I wish more Christians were like you.

[greentparty211]

I used to believe just like you guys. Then I studied the history of the Bible and other religions. I realized that most of the world's major religions have good ideas, but many religions have also gone horribly wrong. Islam in many parts of the middle east is one example. Some Christians make me fear that our culture will become just as extreme/scary. Saying the "Bible is center of everything" is encouraging those people. I apologize if you are not one of those type Christians and I assumed

[greentparty211]

If Christians would focus on practicing and teaching those principles and less on hating gay people, forcing other religions to pray, and insisting that scientific facts are wrong, then maybe people wouldn't have a problem with the Bible.

[greentparty211]

BUT Benjamin Franklin also said to imitate Socrates (a man who believed in multiple gods, mystical religions, and frequently talked about reincarnation). With Benjamin Franklin's open minded attitude to Socrates, I'm not sure his idea of 'teaching the Bible" in schools aligns with the idea of many Christians have today. They seem to want to teach the Bible in schools so they can prove that global warming doesn't exist and Israel is God's chosen country.

[greentparty211]

I'm happy to see that you value reason and learning. I have not read your books, but I did watch the video.  The part that disturbed me was the part about the "Bible being the center of everything". The principles of the Bible, which you mentioned, are no doubt wonderful principles to teach. I agree with you in that those principles should be taught more often in schools. In his 13 Precepts to Self Improvement, Benjamin Franklin said to imitate Jesus.

[greentparty211]

You are ignorantly destroying the nation, just as you ignorantly destroyed your mother's garden. Please educate yourself on Deism, the real religion of our founding fathers. Another good thing to research would be "The Age of Reason", which was not founded on blindly believing the Bible. Thank you for being so passionate about helping the country, but please educate yourself first.