I’ve been asked by several people, “Why have you started a private school?”
I think a lot of people who ask that question sincerely wonder why, given the fact that we have a public school system anyone should bother with an alternative.
In fact, that’s the way most people view private schools; they exist as an alternative to the public school system.
Let me say at the outset that Veritas Christian School doesn’t exist to compete with the public school. Veritas isn’t attempting to improve upon what the public schools offer or to “do it better.” We’re doing something different. Our goal is to teach every subject from a Christ-centered perspective. We believe that we should tell children that two plus two always equals four, never five or seven or twelve, because God, who created the universe, is a God of order. Math works because God upholds the universe by the word of his power.
We want children to know that history is God’s story. God is sovereign and world events (and local events) happen because he is directing all things to their consummation in Christ. We want children to know that the world around them should be studied and analyzed because it tells of the glory of God. Science is not the study of nature apart from God; it is the study of God’s creation for the glory of God.
We want children to value reading well because God has revealed himself to us in his written Word. We want children to think well so that they will think high thoughts about their Creator. In short, we want the children who attend Veritas to learn a biblical worldview, rather than to view the world and the Bible as having two separate domains in life.
Veritas doesn’t exist as an alternative or as competition for public schools. Veritas offers something different – something the public schools cannot offer. And that is not a knock on the public school system. There are things that it offers that Veritas simply cannot. Veritas is not a school for the mentally disabled or for those who have serious learning disabilities. We cannot meet their needs. So the public school offers some things that we cannot, and we offer some things that the public schools cannot. I simply urge parents to decide what is of most value to them in their children’s education and to choose wisely. After all, one of our core beliefs about education is that it is ultimately the parents’ duty to oversee their child’s education. It is not the government’s nor the church’s. We simply want to be another tool that parents may use in raising their children – one which can be used to inculcate a biblical, Christ-centered worldview in students.
