HR6: If We Had Lost...

BY DAVID CRANDALL

 

F

ebruary 24 brought an astounding victory for home schoolers. Almost unanimous­ly (424 to 1), Congress voted to exclude home schoolers from a congressional education bill (HR 6) that would require all teachers to obtain certification. A collective sigh of relief was heard from home schoolers across the country. Our calls worked. We were safe now. We’d won.

But what if we hadn’t...

It’s easy to take the freedom to home school for granted. But in the aftermath of HR-6, it’s important to stop and think about what you would do if HR-6 had passed unopposed, and consequently, the right to home school was restricted or taken away. If home schooling were ille­gal, what course of action would you take? Would you comply, fly or defy?

 

COMPLY

This first obvious choice, assuming that all venues of appeal have been exhaust­ed, is to completely conform to the law. This would require you to discontinue home schooling, since it would probably be difficult for most parents to achieve certification.

What would be your reasoning for this decision? First of all, the Apostle Paul, in Romans 13:1, writes, “Everyone must submit himself to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God has established. The authorities that exist have been established by God.” Peter agrees by writing, “Submit yourselves for the Lord’s sake to every authority [italics mine] instituted among men: whether to the king, as the supreme authority, or to governors, who are sent by him. . .“(I Peter 2:13). Since God has established all authority, and all in authority are His servants (Romans 13:4), then wouldn’t it be reasonable to assume that God has a special purpose for this crisis, and that He will produce good out of it? Besides, this nation was founded on Biblical principles by Christians; so if a law is constitutional, then wouldn’t it be a good and just law?

 

FLY

A second possible option for this crisis would be to fly, or to continue to home school while avoiding detection. Two possible ways of doing this would be to conceal your family somewhere or to flee to another country such as Canada.

What would be your basis for mak­ing this choice instead of the previous one? The book of Romans clearly does state that we should submit to the gov­erning authorities. However, it also says that the government is God’s servant (“For he [the authority] is God’s servant to do you good.” Romans 13:4). Francis Schaeffer, a renowned Christian thinker, writes, “ . . . when any office [italics his] commands that which is contrary to the Word of God, those who hold that office abrogate [nullify] their authority and are not to be obeyed. And that includes the State.” What are some other Biblical examples of this? The God-fearing mother of Moses hid her son in the bulrushes of the Nile. This woman knew that she had been com­manded by the Pharaoh to do something that God detested: kill her son. So she, in secrecy, hid her baby and evaded the edict of the governing authority (Exodus 1:22-2:3). Another example is the early Christians’ response to unjust laws. Under Nero and other Roman emperors, being a Christian was a crime punish­able by death. So, the faithful Christians hid themselves in the catacombs.

Another question emanates regard­ing, “Is this type of crisis substantial enough to require nonsubmission to and flight from the governing authorities?” Is the government doing something, or commanding you to do something that breaches God’s law? One example is from Jesus himself. The parents of Jesus fled into Egypt because of Herod’s decree to kill all male babies, which they knew was not God’s will (Matthew 2:13-18). Michael Farris, in his book, Where Do I Draw the Line?, cites Deuteronomy 4:9-10 and 11:18-21 as Scripture that “makes it clear that it is the responsibili­ty of parents to direct the education of their children.”

 

DEFY

Defiance is the third option. Peter and the other apostles set an example for us in the book of Acts by saying, “We must obey God rather than men.” Peter later adds in I Peter 2:20, “. . .if you suffer for doing good and endure it, this is com­mendable by God.” Francis Schaeffer writes that we need to acknowledge the bottom line. “The bottom line [italics his] is that at a certain point there is not only the right but the duty to disobey the state.” If the government is ordering us to do something that violates God’s will, Schaeffer says that we must resist. Schaeffer also observes that “In almost every place that the Reformation had success there was some form of civil dis­obedience.”

America’s founding fathers believed that the citizens of this nation should have the right to rebel against an ungodly, tyrannical government. For that was, in fact, what they did when England imposed excessive taxes upon the peo­ple. In the Declaration of Independence Thomas Jefferson writes, “. . . whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive to these ends it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, lay­ing its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect Safety and Happiness [capitalization his].” Jefferson also adds a warning:

“Prudence, indeed, will dictate that Governments [capitalization his] long established should not be changed for light and transient reasons.” The ninth amendment to the Constitution of the United States says that “The enumera­tion in the Constitution of certain rights shall not be construed to deny or dispar­age others retained by the people.” Isn’t that exactly what the government would have done in order for your right to home school to be denied?

The power of the people’s voice may prevent this type of dilemma for many years. If this ever occurs, however, you will need to make a decision as to what you and your family will do. Whether it is to comply, fly, defy or a combination of the three, always use God’s Word as a basis for your decision.

 

DAVID CRANDALL is a 15-year-old home-schooler from Lafayette, CO. His dad is a pastor; he has two younger brothers. He enjoys sports, playing the piano, desktop publishing and is very involved with Boy Scouting.