My son in trouble at school for atheism

My 13 year old son has another issue at school related to religion. Previously he has had minor trouble when he has pointed out the flaws in his teachers thinking and the nonsense she tries to teach to the rest of the class. One of the classics was when his teacher tried to teach the class that the more people that think something is right then the more likely it is that it is true. He pointed out that most people thought the world was flat and that they were all wrong. He pointed out that most people thought the earth was the centre of the solar system and that they were all wrong. He also pointed out, to further challenge his Christian teacher's illogic that most people on the planet are not Christians and so by her own reasoning she was wrong. I am proud of him for this. His teacher was less impressed.

He's also had small issues for refusing to pray, refusing to write prayers, refusing to read prayers, refusing to take part in religious services and (and this is my favourite, not only because it is so absurd but because the same thing happened to me) asking questions!

Today, in his religious studies class he was given the task of inventing a religion. He was told to design the symbols, the clothes, the rituals, the prayers and all the other trappings of a religion.

He refused.

He told his teacher that he doesn't agree with religion and will not spend his time inventing something to which he is opposed. I absolutely support him in his decision.

Making children design a religion is obscenely stupid whichever way you look at it. It's just another angle at trying to get kids interested in the ridiculous and by encouraging their involvement make them more accepting of the subject. It's another theist trick for young minds and I'm personally appalled at the way they will try to weasel their nonsense into the minds of children whilst society at large sits back and applauds this wicked form of child abuse. What would the reaction of parents be if their children were asked to invent a form of discrimination? How would parents react if their children were commanded to invent their own form of dictatorship? How about their own form of slavery?

My son refused to take part. His teacher, since my son still remains her best pupil for purely academic reasons, let it go only saying that he should think about his decision and they will pick up the subject tomorrow. In other words, go and think about what an awful thing you've done. She should be careful what she wishes for.

He asked me what I thought about it all so I told him that he had my full support. He asked me what he could do if this resulted in some disciplinary action against him, which it probably will. So I told him "Ask her if she would discipline a Muslim child who considered her request blasphemy and also refused to take part". There are Muslim children in his class and I can imagine this striking a nerve – not least because I suspect she will immediately be nervous of offending the parents of these children. She will especially feel those nerves start to tingle if he asks her this in front of the rest of the class. She does not even need to give her answer because her answer is obvious. She would excuse them from the task.

So why is it ok to excuse someone from an idiot activity at school based solely on the idiot beliefs of their parents whilst it is not immediately obvious to her that it is unacceptable to victimise a child for having the character to stand by his own convictions arrived at through reason?

My son is no idiot and he is very well educated. He and I talk a great deal about science, mathematics, critical thinking, and yes, religion. He does share my opinions on religion just as a Christian child likely shares their Christian parent's beliefs. The difference here is that he knows why he thinks as he thinks. He has not learned dogma. He has learned to question. He has learned enough of the holes in what he is being nudged to accept that it is fair to say that he is more an atheist than any child is a Christian because he actually understands why – as I think is apparent by the challenges he thought of and presented himself when his teacher tried to teach him the nonsense that what most people believe is probably right.

My son reminds me of myself when I was younger. My mother was a Christian and encouraged me to be the same. My father was and remains an atheist, but he never even spoke to me on the subject until I was in my late teens and even then it was only to tell me that I was too hard on religion and that whilst it is obviously dribble it is nice dribble that does more good than harm and that I should leave it alone. In further discussions we have had he has since changed his mind. He now considers religion to be an unpleasant infection of the human race for which we should urgently find a cure.

But, I was brought up by a Christian mother in a school where we were made to pray (I refused). I was even sent to Sunday school for a short period before I was expelled (for asking questions). I had my own thoughts and there was no room in them for a god or a saviour or ritual or prayer. My son really is just the same – except for the fact that he has a father who will back him up 100% in his refusal to be forced into fairy tale idiocy that he finds insultingly stupid and absurd. He objects without my interference, just as I did when the only interference I received was in favour of believing the obviously false.

Good for him.

At the end of our conversation he asked if I would write him something about the likely non-existence of an historical Jesus Christ that he could use to open a discussion with his teacher. I agreed so long as he would learn from it, do his own further research and then write his own paper to take to his teacher. He agreed to this. So I will now get to work and write a case against Christ. I will post what I end up writing here.

If it's worth writing at all it is worth writing thoroughly – so within a week or two please expect a vicious and factual attack against the big man himself.

Jesus, you're going down bitch! It must be so. My son is going to school to tell his teacher "My dad will kick the shit out of your god" and I'm going to make sure he's right :)

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