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THE HOPE CHEST HOME SCHOOL NEWS
with Virginia Knowles
Vol 7 #1 on March 2, 2004
Happy 6th Anniversary to the Hope Chest, Plus More
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Dear Hope Chest readers,
As of last week, the Hope Chest Home School News is 6 years old! I can't believe how the time has flown! The first issue was initially sent to just a few dozen subscribers whose addresses were in my own little Juno address book, while this little message will reach over 1400 familes around the world, on all the continents except for Antarctica. Thank God that Glen Stewart of Associate.com runs a free list server for Christian ministries! The format and frequency have changed several times, but the message has remained the same: The home education lifestyle is both a blessing and a challenge for which we need God's help and each other's support.
I mentioned this morning to my daughter Mary that I wanted to stop calling each issue a "tidbit". Somehow, that conjures up images of semi-crushed pineapple, so I told her it sounded a little dorky. She facetiously suggested that I call it a morsel or a smackerel instead. Nah. Besides, sometimes they aren't tidbits -- more like novels. So, rather than call it anything, I'm going to just start a new numbering system. The original Hope Chest numbering system, back when I was doing much larger issues, went up to 59. The Tidbits got up to 28. The new numbering system, in honor of the start of the seventh year, is simply going to be a volume and issue number. Thus, this message is Vol 7 #1. I've also decided that everything I send, whether it is a regular "issue" or not, is going to be numbered this way.
A now, a few brief notes about The Passion of Christ book by John Piper, my thyroid surgery, and Mary's letter to the editor of the Orlando Sentinel.
The Passion of Christ by John Piper: Thad brought this book home from church on Sunday. (I was home wtih sick kids.) It has 50 reasons why Jesus was crucified. Each reason is covered in a two page spread, ideal for short reading sessions. I guarantee that you will have a solid theological understanding (and the corresponding vocabulary) of the message of redemption. You can order a bulk case of 108 books for $130 if you are giving them away free of charge. Here's the web site: http://www.passion-book.com/passion/
I've gotten back several responses from my review of The Passion movie. I know many of you have forwarded it far and wide. Thanks!
Thyroid Surgery: After much thought and prayer, I decided to have the left half of my thyroid removed on Friday, March 19. Though the biopsy came back benign, I face the fact that I have a large and growing "cold" complex cyst which could easily obstruct my airway soon and still carries the risk of cancer. Due to the fact that we are losing our COBRA-extended health insurance at the end of April, I would rather pay a small deductible now than a huge surgery bill later. If I don't have it removed, it will require extensive and expensive monitoring (which may include uptakes, scans, ultrasounds, biopsies) every year. If I do have it removed as planned, I will only need periodic blood tests, and possibly thyroid hormone supplementation. So, please pray for me as we make the preparations. Thad and Mary need to go out of town two days later for an overnight campus visit at Southeastern College in Lakeland, so I'm hoping there are no complications.
Mary's Letter to the Editor: Speaking of Mary and college, she read in the news last week that the Supreme Court has affirmed the state's "right" to deny scholarship funding to theology students. She promptly wrote an opinion piece to submit to the youth views column, and then shortened it to send another version to the general letters to the editor. This morning, the short version appeared, and I have a web link for it!
Here is a longer version.
Essay on
The Supreme Court Ruling to Deny Scholarships to Theology Students
by Mary Knowles
The Supreme Courts recent ruling to deny scholarships to theology students may appear to check unhealthy ties between government and religion, but the ruling leaves several important considerations out in the cold. Wednesdays ruling reversed the decision of a Washington appeals court that it was unconstitutional to deny a state-funded scholarship to former student Joshua Davey. The Supreme Courts opinion stated that because Majoring in devotional theology is akin to a religious calling, Washington state could keep the restrictions on academic majors as part of its Promise Scholarship terms.
The Supreme Courts ruling and the Promise Scholarship essentially tell religious workers and future religious workers that they dont have equal footing as citizens with the rest of the populace. Apparently your excellent grades, high test scores, and middle class income are worth nothing if you want to learn about God. The Promise Scholarship might as well advertise, If youre interested in economics, psychology, drama or a million other majors, the Promise Scholarship has a check with your name on it, and then add in fine print, Students wanting to ponder the mysteries of God need not apply. Everybody cheers when low-income students get scholarships to study law, but the low-income student with a lifelong call to ministry gets an apologetic tough luck. Whatever happened to equal opportunity?
Citing the establishment clause of the first amendment to support this discrimination is interpreting the clause incorrectly. Applied here, the establishment clause guards against subsidizing only religious education, not against singling out this educational choice for discrimination. As Justice Scalia argued in his dissent, Davey is not asking for a special benefit to which others are not entitled.
In Locke v. Davey, the long and intense deliberations the Supreme Court devotes to its cases have sparked the many different viewpoints Americans devote to such controversial issues. The proper use of government funds and the relationship between government and religion raise many hackles. But its nonsense to equate scholarships for theology students with locking America in the shackles of a theocracy. Maybe the best question to ask is this: If the state of Washington revised the terms of its Promise Scholarships to include scholarships for theology students, would theology students be getting special favors or equal status?
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That's enough for now, and this wasn't even a regular issue!
Blessings,
Virginia Knowles
http://www.thehopechest.net
The Hope Chest is a free email newsletter with encouragement and practical teaching tips. The writer is Virginia Knowles, wife of Thad, mother of nine children, and author of Common Sense Excellence: Faith-Filled Home Education for Preschool to 5th Grade, and The Real Life Home School Mom.
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