Discrimination – the capacity to recognise a distinction or to differentiate – is a remarkable innate trait without which we could not survive. Babies are hard-wired to discriminate – to identify their mothers’ features among those of other women. We discriminate between edible plants and toxic species to avoid poisoning. We discriminate between the features, traits and behaviours of prospective partners, so as to find love.
Despite its value, discrimination has come to be considered as the modern taboo. In what amounts to a contempt for our personal beliefs and qualities – and those we share – the ‘anti-discrimination’ movement has successfully created war among us. It demands everything be inclusive and the same. No-one is safe from its attacks, and its ultimate targets are history and religion. Christianity and Islam are both monotheistic religions, for example, but they are not the same.
Consider the following statements. Can you discriminate between those that are factual, those that are false (incorrect), and those that represent belief or opinion?
1. There is only one god.
2. All Christians believe the Eucharist contains the body, blood, soul and divinity of Christ.
3. The Hadith is a source of moral guidance and religious law that mirrors Christianity.
4. All women are pure.
5. The Sunnah and the Quran are teachings of Islam.
6. Queen Elizabeth I established the Church of England.
7. Marriage can include more than one wife.
8. The purpose of Islam is to reign supreme across the globe.
9. The Feudal Society was replaced by a money based market economy.
10. The Sunnah is the primary source of Islamic Law (Sharia).
11. All men of the cloth are paedophiles.
12. There are many gods.
Schools actively teach discrimination using a strategy known as ‘comparing and contrasting’ – for instance, comparing and contrasting two, to and too, or comparing and contrasting a character’s traits at the beginning of a novel with those at the end.
But do schools themselves discriminate between materials in recommended texts or print media to enable the accurate teaching of religious and historical content? Can they effectively distinguish between truth and fabrication?
We must never forget this fundamental principle: our nation was founded on Judeo-Christian values. Students must be taught how to discriminate, with absolute accuracy, between these values and those of any other religion.
Christianity and Islam are both religions, yet they are certainly not the same. God forbid our children would walk through any school gate into a world that cannot discriminate between the two.
Copyright © 2018 Cheryl Lacey All rights reserved.
Parent, educationist and advocate of agitating change in Australian education. By raising the bar we can face any global challenges facing Australia and Australians.
Contact me at cheryl@cheryllacey.com to learn how we can work together.
