Logic, shmogic. I prayed : )
This article is not about witnessing to non-Christians, it's about Christian parents and clergy instilling their values in their kids. That's why I asked about your parents.
By "values" do you mean morals or ethics? Parents can, indeed, teach their kids how to play nice with others (ethics). But how does one "teach" faith (morals)? I thought Christianity stresses a *personal* relationship with God. How can parents get their kids to believe the message 100% the way Colson intends, i.e., how can one "instill" a leap of faith? That's why I asked you what methods Colson (or others like him) propose?
As for my own parents, let's just say that I'm happier than they are with how I turned out, and "lawyer" has very little to do with that. You can "instill" away 'til you're blue in the face, but don't underestimate the ability of kids of any age to see through what they perceive to be BS.
To who?
Didn't you say you came out of a Jewish background? How do you not know that in the Law the Jews are commanded to teach God's laws to their children, to discuss them as they sit in their home and as they travel?
One does not instill a leap of faith, but one does teach ethics and morals. If you have a son, will you teach him that there is no God? If so, how could you possibly get that across to him without using methods similar to Colson's? If not, aren't you just letting him wander around until someone like me puts (from your point of view) pathetic gobbledygook into his skull full-o-mush?
don't underestimate the ability of kids of any age to see through what they perceive to be BS.
Consider this: This Joanne woman in the article believes that Jesus wasn't kidding when He said he is the Way, Truth and Life, and presumably she does her best to live as if that is true. The kids she teaches are surrounded by people who believe there's really no such thing as truth, yet still claim to follow Jesus. Therefore, I submit that these seven kids have been completely co-opted by the BS "Christian" values of their parents and clergy. You've got 8 kids. One set of parents modeled a Christianity that claims to be The Truth, the other seven modeled a Christianity that is playing dressup on Sunday morning. Or, perhaps they are serious, but they aren't quite serious enough about their faith to make sure that their kids aren't multi-culted out of it by the public schools and/or pastors who belong on a hippie commune. When a leader stood up and said, "Here's what we do if this stuff is real," only the kid who saw the real deal at home accepted that concept. The others tried to remake Christianity in their parents' (or their school's) image.
That's how you instill values, by discussing them, holding to them and living them. It worked like a charm for all eight kids. Another thing to consider is that you and I have more in common than I have with the Sunday dressup Christians. You and I both deal in a world where certain truths exist. I believe it's true there's a God, you don't. One of us is wrong, but neither of us would dream of saying we're both right. But they would tell us we're both right, or maybe tell you you're wrong, but only say it because they're "supposed to." I believe they're the ones Christ was talking about when He said people should either be hot or cold, because He'd spit the lukewarm out of His mouth.