My ideal is that “education” ends up being based almost entirely around conversation. It used to be something big here but a change of car (no Fran in the front seat anymore) and an extra child has knocked the idle conversation stuff on the head a bit this last year. Plus i think we’ve got much more into hands on “doing” and “making” and “reading”, so perhaps i think less about the conversations we have.
Today has been nice though; lots of conversations about all sorts. We’ve talked about why Muslims don’t do Christmas and i managed (i think) to explain the chain of history/litterature that links Jews, Christians and Muslims. We talked about names of prophets or gods and the reasons why geography changes the nature of a religion.
We talked about Christmas and read the story of King Wenceslas (they wouldn’t sing along with me though, killjoys 😉 ), Fran and Maddy have both read to me and done lots of drawing, illustrating and story making. Both of them are doing lots of mental maths at the moment, Fran is getting very quick all of a sudden.
Js came round and brought Xmas presents – loved Fran being thrilled with books and reading Bella and Gertie several times over. Josie slept in till 11am again (????) and Amelie had her Xmas singalong at nursery, which Maddy joined in with with gusto and drew the smiles of lots of staff who remembered her. She didn’t seem wistful for it though. Amelie was a mince-pie, sat with best mate Maddie and looking slightly perplexed by it all.
I’ve sent another 30 parcels tonight, so by tomorrow i should be up to date. It’s been hard graft this month, i’m looking forward to the break. Nice to be doing well though. Must do tax return….
Right. Christmas shopping…
Must be something in the air. BB woke at around 8 – 8.30 had a feed and went back to sleep. didn’t hear a sound from her until 11.45
Mince pie? seems an odd thing to be 🙂
Most of our learning happens through conversation. Took me a while to realise it though, I kept thinking we were doing nothing!
Why does geography change the nature of a religion?
Well, the main language of Islam probably wouldn’t be Arabic if Allah had spoken to someone in Scotland, would it? The imagery (by which i mean the perceived picture of Islam, not whether it has “images”) of Islam would probably not be Arabic writing. Likewise if Christianity has begun in England, it would probably not have a crucifix as its symbol, or if Hindus mainly came from the Antarctic it would be unlikely to have elephant like symbols of gods.
Regardless of whether you think a prophet came to an area because the people there deserved it, it still seems logical to explain to children who are asking questions that certain geographical influences play a part.
Now there’s a fascinating thread to follow at length.
I think we learn more in the little incidental snatches of chit-chat than we do when we sit down and try to do something formal. Ended up discussing the nature of matter, that things are either gas, solid or liquid, whilst doing our teeth this morning!
Grin, both tricky and messy i would imagine.
Have just astonished myself by knowing the name of the Hindu elephant god and am now, having googled images, going to have to find out if there is a correlation between Hindism rather effusive art of imagery and Islams distinct lack of it.
Isn’t the world interesting….
“True, but the fact that Allah chose to reveal the Last Revelation to an Arab is what *is* significant.”
I know. I do know. I’m not denying that that is central to that belief. But when you child asks why do Muslims speak and write Arabic, its reasonable to say that that is because that is what is spoken in the place where that religion was born. As i said, WHY that was so is a different thing. The fact is, had the worthy and right people, in terms of this argument, been in Scotland, they’d not have been revealed to in Arabic but Celtic.
Anyway, its all just this and that really… simplistic for a childs sake. I’m not arguing with you, you’re way too knowledgeable!
I really must do the OU World Religions course i started… lol…
“Well, the main language of Islam probably wouldn’t be Arabic if Allah had spoken to someone in Scotland, would it?”
True, but the fact that Allah chose to reveal the Last Revelation to an Arab is what *is* significant. We do not hold that that was merely a coincidence and that Allah hadn’t planned it properly. Everything has significance so the question really should be “Why did Allah choose to have the Last Revelation in Arabic and not English”. We would say that Muhammad (Saw) didn’t come for the Arabs but was truly a universal prophet who declared he came for all mankind (whereas no other prophet ever made that claim – even Jesus (as) in the Bible asserted he only came for the Israelites), so why was he chosen to be an Arab and not another national?
The reason is this: the Arabs had no culture, no civilization, no preconceived ideas of what a revelation should be. They lived in a physical and spiritual desert. So when the Message came it came to a people “pure” from any urge to re-shape it into anything that they considered “civilised” or “acceptable” since they were from a ‘civilised’ free from any such notions. The likeness is that Jesus (As) was born from a Virgin who was pure enough to hold the Word of God, and in like manner the Arabs were “pure” too – able to retain the last revelation perfectly.
All the Arabs had was their language which is beautiful and powerful and deep and rich. And they had the habit of retaining vast works to memory – some capacity which every other civilization had lost eons ago. The quality of Arabic cannot be imitated by any other language – the meanings and nuances in its language are astounding. There is also the fact reciting the Qur’an in Arabic has an effect on the mentation, has resonance with ones actual physical body that other languages do not produce.
So whereas it might be fair to say that geography has shaped other religions it cannot be said of Islam. Islam, as we see it, is the Last Revelation and Allah chose it to be revealed where He did for good reasons. If anything Islam actually had an affect on the people of the region rather than vice versa.
But of course you are free to teach your children what you want and I’m babbling on and on.
Re: Hinduism. Islam forbids idols as all prophets have banned them. It is only when religion begins to atrophy and degenerate that idols begin to replace something subtler. To safeguard against that Islam has totally insisted on no images since it is a small step in the minds of some from merely expressing an aspect of the Divine to actually thinking the Divine can be expressed. And then once you think you have a handle on God all sorts of things follow.
The link between Islam, Christianity and iconoclastism would be interesting as it was the coming into contact with Islam which spurred the reformation style churches which lack all images and instead refocuses teh emphasis on the alter.
Yes I do babble on and on when Ive got a chance dont i.
Interesting world indeed
No I’m not – I just had too much time to kill and I’d rather blog than do the laundry….