Southland Times “Advertorial” for Bible in Schools

February 16, 2017 Dave 1

One of the greatest challenges to raising awareness about religious instruction is the way that the media allow “fluffy” reporting on the topic. In this blog, I review a couple of recent articles that fall far short of professional journalism. One completely misses the issue of religious instruction when talking about the importance of religious education and the other is effectively an advertorial for Bible in Schools written by a report with a personal bias.

Pastor “Infiltrates” School with Religious Instruction

December 20, 2016 Dave 4

Oamaru Pastor, Damien Goodsir is the Chairman of Fenwick School’s Board of Trustees. He’s also the school Chaplain. A recent sermon of his talks about “infiltrating” the school and other local groups. The locals aren’t happy about it and they are doing something about it.

Religious Instruction: You Kids Are Going To Hell!

December 14, 2016 Dave 0

The kind of moral “cherry picking” that religious instruction advocates ignore is exposed most painfully by the subversive introduction of “hell”. Of course, they are not meant to teach it themselves but zealous Christian teachers seem to ignore this sometimes and playground evangelism is also an inevitable issue resulting from the introduction of religion to the school.

remove RI classes from schools

Point View School Removes Religious Instruction Classes

December 3, 2016 Dave 2

When his Daughter came home and told him that her Bible teacher had told her that she was “going to hell” because she didn’t believe in God, Paul Bennett took action. After several years of campaigning, the Point View School Board of Trustees has agreed to remove bible classes from the school. But is the fight really over or do we need changes to legislation that allows boards to bring favoured religious beliefs into our schools?

christian fundraising in state schools

Are your state school kids raising money for Christian causes?

October 28, 2016 Dave 0

NZ school kids always seem to be raising money for some charity or other. They doing some good while learning empathy for others. But what if there’s a hidden religious motivation? Should religious groups be able to spread their faith with financial assistance from kids in state schools? There are other non-religious charities to support!

waking up christian turned atheist

An Interview with Jared Brandon – Once Christian, now turned Atheist

October 2, 2016 Dave 0

This is an interview with Jared Brandon, author of the website Waking Up – Once Christian, now turned Atheist. Jared was raised in a strongly Christian family but through his own research into religion, decided to turn away from religious beliefs and declare himself an Atheist to his family and friends.

No Picture

No Truth Without God?

September 27, 2016 Dave 2

I got a response from my Christian friend who took the time to enter into a discussion with me about my stance on bible classes. […]

christian views on religious instruction

Christian Views on Religious Instruction Classes

September 27, 2016 Dave 0

There’s an assumption that all Christians support Religious Instruction programmes in state schools. But this couldn’t be further from the truth. I’m going to use this page to collect comments from Christians who oppose the classes. Please feel free to send me your own submission!

religious instruction discrimination

Discrimination by Religious Instruction

September 26, 2016 Dave 0

Why do we allow religious instruction classes in our primary schools when they are clearly a form of religious discrimination? Are religious instruction classes even legal? Find out more here!