Weekend Edition~Mothers Influence on children

You Have Been Sanctified The Watchtower August 15, 2013. Is not really about homeschooling. It is about preserving our Christian Identity. And how in Nehemiah's day many of the Israelite (Jewish) men were marrying foreign (pagan) women.  Paragraph 16, makes it clear how strongly affected children were by the mothers who were teaching them.

"The children of these foreign women could not read or speak Hebrew. When they [the children] got older, would they identify themselves as Israelites? Or would they rather think of themselves as Ashdodites, Ammonites, or Moabites? Without knowing the Hebrew language, was it likely that they would be able to understand God’s Law? How could they get to know Jehovah and choose to serve him instead of the false gods their mothers worshipped?"

While in no way is the Faithful and Discreet Slave saying we must homeschool our children, or they would become pagan. So please do not think I am projecting something more then what the brothers stated clearly in this article. I am however, saying when I read this. It was a aha moment in my mind. See the Mosaic Law was in Biblical times and is still currently in our time, if the mother was a biological Israelite (Jew) then the child was born a Israelite (Jew), but if the Father was a Israelite (Jew), and the mother was not, then the child was not legally a Israelite (Jew) by birth.

This explanation of how much influence the foreign mothers had on their children, and their huge role in educating their children, makes it so clear in my mind, how important it is, that a parent is teaching children our "christian" language (theocratic), so that our children can understand Jehovah's "law" (principles)! And make a educated choice to serve Jehovah or not.

And just like in Nehemiah's day, if the children didn't learn the Hebrew language, not only could they not understand the law, but they would not even identify with the other Israelites (Hebrews) since they wouldn't even be speaking the same language. They would have very very little in common with each other. The same for today, if we are not making sure our children are being taught the "Pure Language" of Bible truth, they will not be able to identify with and have commonalities with others in the Christian congregation.

Now I am not saying if some one goes to public school institutions that they can not learn about Jehovah and to serve him. I went to public school, and still learned about Jehovah and chose to serve him! But, what I am saying is, thinking about who is spending the majority of the time teaching the child, and no doubt teaching them their values, and "language" if you will... will have a huge influence on any child. So it's just one more big thing to think about, when choosing if you would want a "christian" parent being the main teacher of your child, or a worldly person who will no doubt have worldly values and influence.