| Teachings of wisdom… |
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| Written by Ndigo Naka | |
| Thursday, 17 July 2008 | |
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The Book of Proverbs is said to have been written by King Soloman, known for his great wisdom. The King James Version of the Bible, which is the most commonly known version, contains about nine hundred ‘wise sayings’ or lessons, out of the supposedly three thousand that he wrote. When I decided as a young teenager, that I was going to read the Bible from cover to cover, I got turned off before I finished Genesis. There were so many so and so begat so and so, that I got tired with all the begatments, which didn’t make sense to me since I wasn’t doing it as a genealogy study. Later on in life, as I explored other scriptures of relevance to what information I was seeking, I began to appreciate how the section written by King Solomon, and the Pslams written by King David (who was a shepherd in his youth) and other authors, could serve as a solid policy on personal living. Putting aside the matter of being saved or born again, (which is a personal turning-point in a person’s life, and people go through that experience several times a year), using the teachings of wisdom is something I find beneficial to mental, spiritual and physical wellbeing. I therefore fully endorse the idea that spiritual or moral teachings should be included in the proposal for a mandate on Early Childhood Education being discussed in the Territory at this time. I listened to the committee members on radio recently talking about the importance of instilling moral values in young children between ages from birth to seven years old. It suggests that the Early Childhood Education curriculum must contain provision for moral instruction. The concern here now lies in how this instruction should be delivered. Should it be delivered from a Christian perspective, or a secular perspective which would have universal appeal to all peoples of all faiths? Although we may be a plural society with peoples of all faiths, we often hear that this is a Christian society. Moslems, Rastafarians, Buddhists and others may not subscribe to some Christian views and precepts. That’s why I find the Book of Proverbs useful for its universal appeal. It does not speak to Christians alone, but to all humankind. Similarly, teachings found in the Koran, Rastafari literature, the Bhawavad-Gita, I-Ching and other sources on religious and spiritual tradition, could find common ground with persons who are born-again Christians. In the final analysis, moral teachings should be provided in the schools, at all levels. While in today’s world policy-makers are conscious of the need not to infringe on anyone’s rights, it is universally acceptable to provide moral guidance to the young. It should not only be acceptable but required. The moral staples that generations have been raised on in Caribbean Christian societies includes knowledge of the Lord’s Prayer, the Shepard’s Psalm, the Ten Commandments and scriptures from the Book of Proverbs. One of the challenges any teacher of religious matter is bound to face is the need to appreciate respect for others with different beliefs. Tolerance is the key. If people are able to acknowledge that there’s more than one truth when it comes to matters of faith, or at least more than one path to the same truth, it would be useful in their approach to moral instructions. We must have at least a basic understanding of other religions before we condemn others to hellfire because they do not share specifics in the Christian concept. Everybody wants the same things in life, basically. We all want good health, a decent-paying job, family, friends and community relationships including a place to congregate and share fellowship, sound education and training for our children, something to fall back on in our old age. We want peace, we want prosperity, and for that we should realize we have to practice a little unity, a.k.a. SOLIDARITY. It’s not too much to ask. Contact email: This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it CMS Literary Services © 2008 All Rights reserved Comments (0)
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If you take away all the other parts of the Bible and just leave me Proverbs, I’ll be fine. 
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