Indoctrinating Children in Religion

[Thumpalumpacus]

We have big disagreements on raising children. I believe in allowing my children to benefit from what I have discovered throughout my lifetime. I don't just give them general guidelines and let them loose. If I believe something is better for them, then I teach them that way. We should learn from the experience of those who have gone before us. They'll still be able to go out as adults and evaluate things for themselves.

I trusted my son to use his innate intelligence, after I imparted basic principles of thinking and judgement. As he grew older and his cognitive abilities increased, I granted him more freedom.

But I never taught him to be atheist or theist, because that sort of stuff does not affect his safety or well-being. Such teaching would be only programming.

Of course, I wasn't interested in raising a copy of myself. My son's individuality was evident from a very early age, and I taught him to both think solidly, and to trust his judgement. Giving him only rote lessons in "god says this" about whatever issue would have been criminal neglect, in my mind.

He is a goddamned good 17-year-old young man who has a great heart and a great brain.

Here's something on circumcision:

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/articl...clares.htm

Except that the Bible doesn't justify circumcision with clearly questionable health benefits. It justifies maiming the genitalia of infants as part of an agreement with your fictional god.