The stars of the super-sweet sitcom Full House have turned out to be more infamous than famous. The Olsen twins have every move covered by the paparazzi, Jodi Sweetin is a recovering meth-addict with a new baby and is reportedly shopping a reality show, Dave Coulier’s last big gig was The Surreal Life, Bob Saget is a crude and slightly creepy comedian, and John Stamos is doing well on ER but had an allegedly jetlag-induced meltdown on Australian TV.
So what ever happened to oldest sis DJ Tanner? Candace Cameron, now known by her married name of Candace Cameron Bure, had made a few Lifetime movies starring as date-rape victims and alien abductees, but has mostly devoted the past ten years to being a mother to kids Natasha, age 10, Lev, age 8, and Max, 6.
“I absolutely love being a mom….I wanted to stay home and be with them. My kids are a hoot and just so much fun to be with.”
[From Us Weekly, print edition, August 4, 2008]
Candace is also an evangelical Christian who home schools her children. She includes several statements on her personal website about her faith and dedication to the Lord.
Her Russian-born husband Valeri Bure played professional hockey for several teams over his 10-year career, but retired in 2005. The family is currently based in LA. For alone time, Candace and Valeri head north to Napa Valley, where Valeri has a wine label. They held a launch in LA for Bure Family Wines on July 28, with Bob Saget and Dave Coulier in attendance.
With her husband retired and her kids school age, maybe Candace is considering a comeback at the ripe old age of 32. Let’s just hope she doesn’t start with Dancing with the Stars, although she certainly has the figure to wear those revealing costumes.
Update: Thanks to commenter Kate for noting that while Candace has endorsed homeschool programs and has homeschooled her children in the past, her three children now go to a private Christian school.
Candace Cameron and her husband are shown on 7/24/08 at the Swing Vote premiere and on 7/17/08. Credit: WENN/Fayes Vision
Funny, I’m Canadian…and I recognized her husband’s name before hers. Looks like one child star the avoided all the cliches. 😆
She’s a little creepy with the religion and I am surprised at the wine thing, but as an investment you can’t beat it. I do applaud her not ending up a cliche, keeping her life together and doing well while being happy.
Wow, she’s beautiful! I bet their kids are really adorable with those genes. I’m not at all for the religion thing, but hey if it works for her and her family, well, good for them. I would actually watch her on DWTS. I wonder how much of the religion thing is from her brother Kirk? I know he’s even more into it, with the Left Behind movies and all.
@jinx: Why would her religion be creepy?
When I lived in Calgary (Canada) her husband was still playing for the Flames. After they had their first baby, they used to come in to the restaurant I worked at and would always ask for my section. I’ve never met a sweeter, nicer female ‘star’.
I also served her husband at night when I was bartending more than a few times. He was one of the few NHL stars that wasn’t looking to hook up. I’m sure only the Canadians would appreciate it, but I’ve got great hockey player stories…
hmm… what’s wrong with being religious? seriously, what keeps you people going?
@lulu: what’s wrong is not being religious. What’s wrong is SHOVING it down your child’s THROAT via homeschooling and never letting them be exposed to other opinions and ideas and people, thereby making them single-minded creepbots.
At least their father’s russian, so they have exposure to something other than blonde american puritanism.
In the lifetime movie that she made, Mark Paul Gosselar (aka Zack Morris from SBTB) was the rapist…I don’t think that I will ever overcome the trauma of seeing Zack rape DJ.
@Ling: Wow! You are so hostile! So you think that YOU should set the standard for how other people raise their children? You don’t think that parents should pass their values, ideals and religion to their children?
Really, who are you to say she is wrong to raise her kids in the way she sees fit? You have absolutely no idea whether or not she has other activities for her kids, whereby they are exposed to other ideas, etc. For all you know, they may be involved in tons of outside activities. You are simply making things up in your own head.
It is a sad day in America when a person is reviled for having any sort of religious faith. I thought one of the principles we were founded upon was freedom of religion. I would expect a Jewish person to raise their kids to be Jewish. I would expect a Muslim person to raise their kids to be Muslim. And I would expect a Christian to raise their children to be Christian. That is the way it should be.
It’s called DIVERSITY and RESPECT for people who have other beliefs.
Wow, I totally want that skirt! its so cute!
I’m pretty sure her brother Kirk is an evangelical TV preacher. Religion aside, I think homeschooling is a REALLY bad idea. 99% of the homeschooled kids I’ve met have had some serious social skill problems.
I’m obviously only speaking from my personal experience so please don’t jump all over me
Roma – great story! I always liked Valeri. I’m glad they’re still together.
Ling – that is one of the most ignorant things I’ve ever heard. I like that Candace is open about her faith and raising her kids the way she thinks is best. Anyways, the kids will be exposed to other “opinions and ideas and people” in their life. What’s it to you if they are sheltered while they’re young?
Roma, I met Valeri’s brother Pavel years ago at a tennis tournament in Miami when he supposedly dating Anna Kournikova. He was only a little taller than I am and seemed a little freaked out to be recognized.
It seems like Pavel and Valeri are a lot different, do you think?
Bodhi, I agree with you about the homeschooling thing.
As far as the whole religious issue…I think that as long as children are brought up in a household that teaches affirmation and love for people of all different walks of life, religion is a non-issue. The problem is when some zealots of the religion spew hate propaganda that gives the rest of the religion a bad name. I think that there are certain stereotypes of people who are overtly religious that other people take issue with. (Pat Robertson and Jerry Falwell might claim to be men of faith, but are, in all actuality, hate mongers) I think that as long as religion is taught in a loving way, and sticking to the principles of the religion, that faith can be a beautiful thing.
I think it’s great that she’s homeschooling. Where I live and the surrounding counties have a statistically large percentage of children being homeschooled. The county rec depts arrange activities for those who are homeschooled to give them a more well-rounded personality. I know people homeschool for other reasons than to shove religion down their children’s throat. Blanket, stereotypical responses reaveal a harbored fear of the exposed prejudice. most of the time, anyway.
I think homeschooling really hinders social development. The extra curricular activites are great & all, but don’t come close to the social interaction kids get in a traditional schooling environment.
Bodhi, I know personally 5 families that home schooled their kids. Every single one of those kids received full scholarships to college. Not only that but they were all (mostly since we are talking about kids here) fun to be around.
Here in Florida it’s not really all that safe to send your kid to public school if you ask me. Seems every day a new story of teachers seducing kids.
My cousins were homeschooled, along with my now-husband’s (wasn’t my hubby at the time:-) ) college roommate. Kevin, I agree all these people excel academically. But, where the issue came into play was how to navigate in a social environment. I think you learn how to relate to all kinds of people, how to deal with conflict, and just the “rites of passage” stuff that comes with going to school with a lot of kids your age. I just hope that when people decide to homeschool their kids that they make a concentrated effort to involve them in as much of these things as possible.
Thanks Curly Fry. You said it better than I could have.
I know several homeschooled kids who’ve gotten into some really bad situations because they had no clue how to handle social situations.
Bodhi, my friend’s homeschooled, and she has bad social skills, so you would be right with that one. But she is also smarter than average in pretty much every subject other than Launguage Arts(and she’s still pretty good at that too), so maybe it’s a good thing she was homeschooled.
“I would expect a Jewish person to raise their kids to be Jewish. I would expect a Muslim person to raise their kids to be Muslim. And I would expect a Christian to raise their children to be Christian. That is the way it should be.”
No, not really. As a former Catholic turned agnostic, I don’t really agree with you on your post. I personally DON’T think that christians should raise their children christian just because they are christian. I think it’s up to the parents to decide whether or not religion be included in a child’s life, and it’s up to the child to decide whether or not he/she wants to believe in said faith.
children shouldn’t be indoctrinated into religion. i understand if you are religious, you think you are raising your kids with the “right values,” but why do those values have to come with “by the way, if you don’t adhere to said values, you are going to hell”? (the hell example is one of the many absurd aspects of religion, along with never questioning, thinking logically, etc.)
why can’t the child wait until they are mature to decide whether they want to be religious or not? why not teach analytical skills to the child first (not just “tommy, don’t do that!” but “tommy, this is WHY you shouldn’t do that.” actual reasoning that doesn’t involve traumatizing them for life with hellfire stories)
i’ll tell you why:
if the child hasn’t been brainwashed his whole life, it’s less likely to choose to be religious later on. sure, it does still happen, but i think it is much better when a person comes to religion later in life out of their own volition.
Wow. I am amazed at the posts here! I can’t believe that some are posting that a parent SHOULDN’T raise their child in their own faith! That is just ridiculous to the point that I have a hard time thinking they are serious.
OF COURSE parents are going to raise their children within their own system of beliefs, or lack thereof. That is logical, reasonable and their absolute right as parents.
It scares me a little to know that there are people out there that actually think that is wrong. Remember, people…Freedom of religion? that little thing? Why do you want to take away one of the foundations of our country?
I guess its a toss up: potentially better education vs. life long social skills.
What if the homeschooling parent is a bad teacher? The kids would be SOL on two fronts.
More power to those who homeschool. I just think its a really really bad idea.
Lauri, my point is that you shouldn’t tell people to raise their children to have faith no matter what, just becuase that’s how you think that should be. It’s up to the parents, not you, whether they want to include their religion in a child’s life. Plus, freedom of religion does not mean freedom to shove your opinions on faith down other people’s throats.
Bodhi, my friend did it through a program online so that it wasn’t her mom or dad teaching her, but an actual certified teacher who taught her through a webcam.
G: I think we may have misunderstood each other a little, then. My point was that parents have the right to raise their children the way they see fit. Reread my post and you’ll see that I think you and I are actually agreeing.
I think Candace has done a wonderful job! I have several friends who are home schooled, and they interacted in other social events and have had no social problems. As for being raised your parents religion, i think that is only right, I was raised Christian, being told that when am i old enough to understand religion, i can choose to do whatever i like, but as i child, i went to church every sunday and i see nothing wrong with that.
Religion was invented as a way for parents to discipline their kids….
And as a parent myself I wont rely on rules and laws made over 2000 years ago by some guy (who if living today would have been admitted in Bellevue if you know what I mean)
Plus I believe in loving and respect every living person and thing living, NOT BECAUSE SOME BOOK PUBLISHED 2000 YEARS AGO TELLS ME
Then duh, I’m sure you’ll raise your kids to be disrespectful to others who disagree with their opinions just as you are.
Just because you disagree with religion doesn’t mean you should sit here and be put down those that don’t agree with you.
You talk about teaching respect…hmm… guess you can use that lesson yourself!
I’m not religious but pray, believe in God, etc. Just not going to church (my choice, my own reasons) That said, I do think a HUE REASON she turned out so solid (as did Kirk) was their RELIGIOUS upbringing. It gave them morals, accountability and a good perspective. That is irrefutable. Looks at the child star stats for fuck ups then their family; Kirk was bigger than Miley Cyrus, his popularity was massive. He could have gone a different route. He is also married to the same woman for a long time (esp in Hollywood) so I think their family is great. Candace lucked out getting a pro athlete who is not a player too.
I cannot comment on homeschooling only as I never met anyone who was. I could not imagine doing it to my child (not in school yet) b/c I seriously would nto know how to teach them. How do parents qualify to teach and know they are not missing anything? Curious how that works.
I like this girl though and she’s refreshingly normal.
Yeah, who would want to rely on rules like “love thy neighbor as thy self” and “do unto others as you would have them do unto” or “love thy enemies…” or heck, why teach to avoid the seven deadly sins, or even more simplistic, the Ten Commandments. (I think “thou shalt not kill” might be a good rule to live by, but hey, that might just be me.)
I guess my point is, even if you don’t subscribe to the whole religion aspect, Jesus as a man is a great example of the type of person I would love for my future kids to emulate. It’s just the stuff that gets carried out in his name that is so horrible. And I think that can be said of most major religions, that the core principles are simple, loving, and good, but how people pervert the message is what causes so much suffering.
And, just to clarify, I wouldn’t consider myself a particularly religious person, I just react strongly to against such sweeping generalizations made by some.
Here in Texas we are surrounded by the homeschooled! I think they can get a fine education if their mom (and it is always a mom) is a good teacher, and they certainly can get reasonable social skills. Hey, sometimes kids learn social “skills” at school that you’d rather they NOT have.
Having said that. . . I have to say that most of the home-schooled kids that I see reflect their families, for good or ill. In my personal experience, a lot of times the reason they are at home is because the mom and/or dad has trouble getting along with society at large. There are pluses and minuses to that, too — I think it is good not to be in lock step with the herd, but the families that I know personally tend to be intolerant of things they perceive as “different” a.k.a. “wrong.” It is a little weird to have a seven-year-old boy lecture you about why to boycott Disney –because “they support the gays”– when I don’t agree at all with that position. (I certainly don’t think it is appropriate for me to engage with a kid that age about that kind of adult topic, and I won’t. His family didn’t agree, apparently!)
“Plus I believe in loving and respect every living person and thing living, NOT BECAUSE SOME BOOK PUBLISHED 2000 YEARS AGO TELLS ME”
Damn well said!
To just add to that, people shouldn’t need to be TOLD to be good and kind.
If it doesn’t come naturally, but only comes out of being threatened with “hell” or a sheep-like adherence to a book, then it’s probably not even a real character trait.
You should want to be good and honourable because it’s RIGHT, not because you’ll get something like heaven as a reward, or get the threat of hell as punishment.
I am thankful everyday that my parents never forced their faith down my throat and let me choose my own way. I went to church almost everyday as a child but as I got older I decided it wasn’t for me and they respected that. That to me is freedom of religion.
I used to work with high school children in a theatre program and they were from various schools. Some of them were homeschooled and they may have been book smart but if it wasn’t on a test they couldn’t do it and the other children made fun of them constantly. I don’t think it’s a good idea unless the parent has a background in education and arranges other activities.
Candace Cameron grew up on a soundstage and I don’t think she went to college. Let’s see how well those kids turn out and then people can start raving about what a great job she has done.
Actually, not all that well said CB Rawks – parts of that book are a bit older than 2000 years old and the second half is about 1700 (what can I say, I’m a pedant 😉 )
Not all religions are the same and have differing views even on things such as hell. For example some modern Catholic thinking doesn’t really go in for the whole purgatory thing and sees hell not as a centre for fire-brimstone-and-baking-your-wotsits-for-eternity, more an eternity spent without God’s love.
As to coming to religion later in life – to be honest I have found that those who convert to a particular belief system tend to be FAR more “enthusiastic” about it than those who’ve had it as a fact of life for years.
And we must not forget that some people find great comfort in religion in times of stress, and if that keeps their sanity and reduces their need for psychiatric drugs then all the better.
Personally, I don’t see what’s wrong with allowing one’s mind to step outside their immediate lives – it can be a very cathartic experience. I’m religous but not particularly devout and have never shoved my opinion down other people’s throats – but I do wish that those athiests I have met in the past would afford those who did not agree with them the same respect.
Anyway – I’ve no idea who this woman is, but I’m glad to see that she’s healthy, happy launching a good business and has learnt that perms are evil 😆
mairead – lol on the perms are evil..
Just to say — its crazy that we can starting arguing on a celebrity gossip board about religion…
She looks amazing thought, which is great considering (as CB points out –) what happened to her costars!
Good for Cameron! She looks so beautiful happy. I’m glad that she proves that being a child star is not a curse and it’s all about what you do with your God-given gift.
wow everyone is pissed that she has a commitment via evangelical christianity to God? I am sorry but what is that to you anyway? She and her brother appear to be well adjusted happy family people who have found a belief that rings true to them and they live by an ethical code that clearly and obviously works for them. She did not seem pushy or self glorifying in any of her statements. OF COURSE she is raising her kids in her belief system. What’s the issue here? How about oh how nice it is to see a former child star that is NOT whining about their life, snorting, shooting up, popping pills, etc.
ROMA… WOULD LOVE to hear the stories.
Glad to hear Candace is a happy, centered, responsible woman!
I think religion is something that groups us as individuals into something else. Why can’t we all just respect each other and care for one another?
Wow, I went to a BBQ and came back to this… looks like it spun a little out of religious/homeschooling control.
@Sammie323: Hockey players always seemed surprised when they get recognized in non-hockey towns! Pavel is a LOT different from his brother. I think it’s because out of the two, Pavel had a much higher profile and start status. I know a girl who hooked up with him, but it’s hard to say for sure if he had a girlfriend or not at the time. But I think he did.
I am thankful everyday that my parents never forced their faith down my throat and let me choose my own way. I went to church almost everyday as a child but as I got older I decided it wasn’t for me and they respected that. That to me is freedom of religion.
I agree 110%. I went to Catholic school from kindergarden to 12th grade, but even with all that, my folks encouraged me to be open minded & to expand my understanding of faith & religion. I went on to get a BA in Religious Studies & my folks supported me & my work. While I’m not a practicing Buddhist, I try to adhere to the teachings. And my momma & daddy still love me & support me in my life choices.
I was homeschooled, and I like to think I’m at least relatively normal….. I can make and keep friends, I’ve always had a good job and I did fine in college and grad school. It’s not for every family, and I think parents who do undertake it should ensure THEY are well versed in the subjects they are going to teach the kids. Teaching isn’t as easy as it looks.
That article actually got it wrong. I’m a Candace fan and read her website and monthly column on http://www.christianwomenonline.net. She “endorsed” a home school site and says she home schooled in the past, but doesn’t any more. Her kids go to a private Christian school.
I think she’s adorable and happy for her. That link in the article doesn’t work to her personal website , but it’s http://www.candacecameronbure.net if you want to see it.
Kate – Thanks for clarifying that. I will correct the story and the link. 😀
Homeschooling is not a light undertaking. It requires a lot of commitment, planning and dedication. People often assume homeschooled children are unsocialized, and it really is not true.
As a homeschooling parent I try not to insult the public school system (I was a product of it myself, and loved it), because I realize it’s beneficial, but it’s not what my husband and I chose for our family.
It’s similar to the old debate whether women should stay home or work. Both have their benefits and what works for one family is clearly not ideal for another.
People often have such strong opinions without having all the facts and it’s unfortunate.
ER & Chamalla~ Thank you so much for your personal insight. I hope I wasn’t horrendously offensive & I truely aplogize if I was. I have a very good friend who attended homeschool who was a perfectly “normal” kid & grew to be a perfectly “normal” adult.
Personally, I would never homeschool. I don’t have the temperment to teach & I sure don’t have firm grasp of algebra & I am a-ok with that!
My folks go to church with a family that homeschools. They are VERY religious & teach their kids accordingly. The oldest daughter (age 16) is a truely sweet girl; she sang in the church choir & worked in the nursery & takes very good care of her younger siblings, etc. My dad noticed that she wasn’t at Mass one Sunday & asked her dad about it & he replied “She lives in NC now.” End of discussion. Well, she was there this past Sunday &, as my dad put it, “she could have been Juno.” Obviously, I know that the same situation happens in public, private, home & boarding schools, (or in HollyWierd, a la Jamie Lynn) but I have to wonder if she could maybe have avoided it all if she were in a traditional school…
Anyway, sorry for the uber-long post. This girl & her family & situation have just been weighing on my mind.
Please understand that I’m not indicting the whole concept of homeschooling & I really am sorry if I offended anyone.
Your cool Bodhi!
Some of these judgemental whackadoodle opinions are so stupid. I’ll tell you what; since you know so damn much about raising kids, why don’t you raise YOURS and let others raise THEIRS how they see fit. Some of you ol’ self righteous people are f*cking crazy. lol
No worries, Bodhi, I’m not offended at all. : ) There are good and bad homeschooling stories, just like there are good and bad public school stories.
The curriculum I used was very religious, but at the time(late 80’s) there weren’t a lot of options for homeschooling families. It had it’s pros and cons. I think I came out ahead of my brick and mortar school peers in critical thinking skills, language arts and reading intensive courses, but I missed out on a lot of higher level math and science that might have done me a lot of good. I’ve always been a geek, so I read as much as I could about stuff that interested me outside of the curriculum, and homeschooling gave me the opportunity to really delve into a subject in a way I wouldn’t have been able to do in a public school. I had plenty of friends, and I participated in all number of geeky kid clubs and activities with other geeky kids. I also know a lot about the Bible and fundamentalist Christianity. I didn’t have a prom or a graduation, but I kicked serious ass on the SAT.
I also rarely talk about it. People tend to look at me funny when I tell them I was homeschooled. Especially because until this past June I was a public school teacher. 8)
Religion is the opium of the masses. You can have the capacity to respect other living things WITHOUT religion. Frankly, the most fine human beings I’ve met in my life have been marginal atheists. When they do something good, the motivation isn’t fore promised payback later – they did it because it came from a genuine space and were sincere. Frankly, some of the most heinous acts in history have been justified in having been done for/in the name of ‘God’ – even as recently as last week with bombings going off all over India –this being the ‘reason’ for such violence: to make the world more like ‘God’ intended it. Several hundred people died – some bombs were even placed inside hospitals! Penance is for those who don’t have the spine tin making their own genuine effort in becoming an exemplary human being – penance is there just to make the ‘sinner’ feel better about themselves after he/she has done something shitty to someone else. And religion is supposed to be a ‘good’ thing?!? What holy wine have you been drinking?
Children should not have this imposed on them, and should come to their own conclusions once they’re grown… And before the jesus nuts let loose, I will precede whatever you say with this: Just because someone doesn’t believe your whole packaged Christianity beliefs- doesn’t mean they’re not spiritual. I am so TIRED of people’s ARROGANCE in trying to impose their spoon fed beliefs on other people, stuffing it down other people’s throats…. what is it to YOU what I believe and want for my kids? It’s so f’ing hypocritical and clearly stems from your own issues — if it didn’t it wouldn’t rumple your undies as these things tend to do with people who fall into this category….
“”children shouldn’t be indoctrinated into religion. i understand if you are religious, you think you are raising your kids with the “right values,” but why do those values have to come with “by the way, if you don’t adhere to said values, you are going to hell”? (the hell example is one of the many absurd aspects of religion, along with never questioning, thinking logically, etc.)””
As if public school doesnt indoctrinate kids to be Athiests ? And society at large including the media doesnt push that line down our throats as well ?
Give me a break. Public school is ok but to think that your kids are not being indoctrinated in some way is ridiculous. those schools preach conformity. ie- no religion is taught period. yet Athiest beliefs are taught. History classes are onesided aswell.
Now if a parent wishes to send them to a private christian school..good for them. not counting the religious aspect..those schools are known to give much better education anyways than a public school can give.
Lots of angry responses here.
Let’s get to mine.
Candace’s brother, Kirk, is a nut job.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Akc5w_ZqByY
She gets a lot of flack because of that, including being confused with him.
Homeschooling can be very beneficial for children when done properly, in the right environment. Often times, children who were not thriving in a public school or private school environment do so in a homeschooled one. The opposite also rings true. It’s a choice for the parent AND child to make. With so many homeschoolers out there today, and so many functions set up for them, social interactions are more common as a result.
As for the indoctrination of children, a child will grow up learning the beliefs of their parents/guardians, regardless of whether or not they are forced to, simply by imitation and emulation. Teaching a child about one’s faith, or lack of, doesn’t guarantee a mirror image of faith in said child. Most people don’t become firm in their faiths, or lack of, until they are adults. Most go through a confusion period, or rejection period during adolescence.
Teaching a child to believe in God is no different than teaching a child that no God exists. What matters is how the child is raised to form their own decisions and treat others. From there, they will make their own decisions as adults as to what kind of life they will lead, whether by following a spiritual path or not. Demonizing parents because they happen to practice their faith WITH their children is no more wrong than denying a child the ability to do so because you DON’T believe in it.
I would not be so quick to assume homeschooling automatically involves heavy-duty religious training. I know a few folk who do it without jamming anything down anybody’s throat.
Mairead made all my other points. And I’d like to add that the Bible was not “published 2000 years ago” as claimed above. It wasn’t published or assembled until much, much later, and the version (King James) considered as “the” interpretation wasn’t first published until 1611. Ergo, the verbage used for the KJV had to be run through all the controlling church factions, hence the exact wording is to be taken with a grain of salt, knowing that, and only used as food for thought.
That is, unless you are a fundamentalist, which is a minority as Christians worldwide go, and a whole other ballgame.
wiki:
The Authorized King James Version is an English translation of the Christian Bible begun in 1604 and first published in 1611 by the Church of England. The Great Bible was the first “authorized version” issued by the Church of England in the reign of King Henry VIII.[2] In January 1604, King James I of England convened the Hampton Court Conference where a new English version was conceived in response to the perceived problems of the earlier translations as detected by the Puritans. So they all had a go with their own interpretations. Educate yourself, it’s your job. 8)
Am I the only one who has noticed that the only judgemental, heavy handed and hateful posting people here are the ones who are against religion? I see all the people who are atheist are the ones throwing insults and being extremely defensive. What’s up with that? Is it so hard for you to accept that some people think and believe differently than you?
Is it so hard to respect others even if they don’t think like you?
I find it amusing that the nonbelievers accuse the religious folks of shoving religion down others’ throats…yet it is the atheists who are getting fired up and shoving their non-belief down everyone elses throats here.
Talk about a lack of respect for diversity of thought, huh?
You’re absolutely bang-on about interpretations. There is something to be said about assuming that there has been no alterations to the text. Proof of this is that medieval carvings of Moses always show him with horns due to a mistranslation from the Greek (?) into Latin changed beams of light into horns.
So gg – proper and true fundamentalist Christians should learn Ancient Greek? 😈
Im Athiest but have nothing against religion or people homeschooling thier kids with religion. Any teaching of morals these days is good imo, specially compared to the dumpster that we call ‘the public school’ these days.
Anyways most of the angry athiests are likely those who have some deep seated issues they never got over from thier childhood…which isnt religion’s fault, but thiers and or thier families fault [seek counseling please!]. That is a common theme among *many* Athiests…Bring up religion, and BOOM its on! They go from speaking how ‘freedom of this/that’ is great and should be respected to barking about how religion is awful and should be sent off to the sun forever…The hypocrisy is always lovely! And its so easy to spot.
As for myself…my family is very fundamentalist christian. they are the ‘EVERY word is true’ type folk. And i respect that…I just dont believe in a god myself, I figure if god were true, he’d be around in some form or another instead of ‘hoping’ he will wake up some day and take over…thats all!
Mairead, im no pro at religion, but Ive always heard that the main reason for the different interpretations being no big deal is due to the meaning being the same when translated. Also, there is the ancient greek/latin sources..which if they were VERY different from modern books like King James, im sure we would have heard by now.
So the differences are minor to non-existant..I could be wrong tho, again im no pro.
“What matters is how the child is raised to form their own decisions and treat others. From there, they will make their own decisions as adults as to what kind of life they will lead, whether by following a spiritual path or not.”
i dig this.
“As if public school doesnt indoctrinate kids to be Athiests ? And society at large including the media doesnt push that line down our throats as well ?”
this is funny. shouldn’t schools teach science, facts, and analytical thinking?
of course no religion is taught! why should it be? should they teach about fairies, unicorns, and leprechauns as well?
that said, if my kid wants to believe in unicorns i won’t stop them. nor will i stop anyone from teaching what they want to their kids.
i just feel bad for the kids is all. the reason why us atheists sound harsh is because to us, religious seems like brainwashing. i think you’ll agree scientologists are brainwashed.
i have no idea if candace “indoctrinates” her children or not, though simply raising your children in the religion you follow is certainly not indoctrination. i am somewhat guilty of the knee-jerk reaction of “christian”= eye-roll, even though i was myself raised christian (as for now, i think i am pretty much without a religion). i think it is because there is this vocal minority of crazy christians in this country who think it is their right to impose their beliefs on the world. it isn’t fair to lump all christians into that category–but it isn’t hard to do since the ones who get the press are the crazy ones. like the evil ones in my town who like to scream at passersby about how gays are going to hell and have their little kids shouting about it and carrying signs as well. now *that’s* indoctrination.
Remember that episode when Kimmy was having a birthday pool party and DJ thought she was fat so she tried to lose weight by eating nothing but ice cube Popsicles and then they all went to the family gym and DJ went running on the treadmill and totally fainted!? It was very dramatic.
I’m all for believing in what you want to believe, but I’m glad they teach no religion in public schools. As someone who is going through the public education system currently, I think it’s only fair to everybody that they teach no religions, seeing as there are so many religions out there and teaching relgion in school could be unfair to some religions.
But hey, that’s just what I think. Some people might disagree.
What is creepy is how narrow minded and bigoted some of you are regarding the beliefs of others regarding religion and homeschooling.
I know an 18- year old that was homeschooled and is one of the most opinionated, knowleadable people out there!
The truth is, you will find great adults who were homeschooled and dysfunctional adults who were homeschooled… just as you would find a variety of people who were schooled in a public system.
What alarms me is how people are judging the practice based on “this kid I know…”
My husband and I are full-time writers who work from home. We are educated and fully capable of instructing our children from home, as our schedules are completely flexible. Personally, this has nothing to do with religious beliefs and everything to do with distrust of a failed system.
As for socialization, you don’t need to be parked behind a desk eight hours a day to become socialized. Last time I checked, that is a stifling position to be in and isn’t social at all! Sports, museums, playgroups, etc. are conducive to socialization and my children experience them without being placed in a state-run facility.
Forget what you *think* you know about homeschooling and look into it a little more before you judge. Honestly, I’m not claiming that all public-schooled children are STD-ridden hooligans, do I? Because it simply isn’t true, no matter what the media tells us.
/soapbox rant
I wasn’t going to say anything until I read the bullshit posts.
My family is Roman Catholic and Greek Orthodox, and the stereotype as Christians being intolerant is in most cases not even true.
I make a lot of mistakes. I’ve told a few white lies. I’ve gotten angry. I’m a jealous woman. I’ve acted upon revenge, I lust upon men, I swear, and yet, my “freaky” family knowing all of this, has forgiven me and still loves me.
Even though mom and dad believe in Heaven and Hell, they don’t think you rot if you don’t look up to a higher power. I have had dozens of Atheist and Agnostic friends as well as Christian and religious friends, and never have they favored the religious ones over the irreligious ones.
What I’m trying to say is that I’ve just about had it with self-righteous, smug pricks stereotyping all Christians as judgmental and sanctimonious when in reality, you’re just as bad for labeling an entire demographic of people to justify your ignorance.
There are bad Christians in the world, and you call them all judgmental because of evangelists.
I guess by that mentality, all Moslems are terrorists.
All black people must be criminals.
All Mexicans must be illegal aliens.
I must be living under a rock because no Christians I know have tried converting anyone to their own religion.
Homeschooling is NOT just done by religious fanatics. Not every Christian is an eye-popping lunatic. In fact…the vast majority of home-schooled children are taught at home because the parents felt that public schools were failing their kids and private schools were not an option. Homeschooled children do better on standardized tests and they have a far-reduced statistical chance of getting knocked up, doing drugs, committing suicide, joining gangs, and a whole host of other frightening stuff that my generation (I’m 33) never dealt with as a whole. So. I am a Christian. I never shoved anything down anyone’s throat. I don’t judge anyone else except in my belief that people who practice no religion at all are missing out on one of the greatest parts of the human experience. I never condemned anyone to Hell, and I’ve never heard my pastor or any of the people I worship with do so, either.
And…I will homeschool my kid the MOMENT I feel her education has become subpar. If she is bullied and the schools don’t deal with it; if she is gifted or needs remedial help (too young at this point for us to really know, yet) and the schools don’t help her in a productive, challenging way; if the politics at her school persecute her for having a religious, military, and patriotic family…whatever. I know that I have the fortitude and the financial planning ready to take her out and see to it that she is educated in a loving, effective, and academically sound way at home. How exactly does that make me a horrible parent?
I think Candace grew up gorgeous. If she’s a “throat-shover” that is unfortunate, but I’ve seen no evidence of that whatsoever. What I see is a happy, well-adjusted, successful and content grown woman. I suppose some people can’t stand seeing that and have to find a way to piss on it.
People judge things based on their experiences, hence my beliefs concerning homeschooling.
I don’t think that homeschooling children is never called for and obviously it a choice that every family must make on thier own.
If you guys don’t belive in the bible or God or religion. . . how can you believe in anything. Don’t you think that maybe you think religion is worthless because you’ve been brainwashed by the immorality of the world and the presence of the devil?
I would recomend reading the Holy Bible from cover to cover and experience the stories and testimonies within it. It will definately touch your life if you allow it to; if your searching for peace or direction or salvation.
I don’t think there is anything wrong with homeschooling as long as the person or parent teaching the children is qualified. Otherwise, that’s what schools are for, teaching and at the same time the children are learning so many other things like social skills as well as their own beliefs and boundaries.
Megs: I have read the Bible cover to cover, and I’m sorry, but I wasn’t touched at all. If you believe in it, fine, but some of us don’t believe and reading a book won’t change a thing.
Pretty marvelous post. I ran into your blog and wanted to say your information seems legit. Will keep informed. Thanks.
I think Candace is beautiful and I’m happy for her in leading a seemingly happy, content life.