Enjoy and Bless

When I first started trying to find other Christians who unschooled, I found several posts and podcasts that asked the question, “Can Christians unschool?” or mentioned that the phrase sounded like an oxymoron. The question didn’t confuse me, but it did trouble me. What part of the gospel says anything about how we educate our children? Are people suggesting that you can’t be a follower of Christ unless you have been educated a certain way and then educate your children that same way? On both a spiritual and intellectual level, that didn’t make sense to me. Modern education is a relatively new concept. Why would the educational philosophies of today have any bearing on a faith that has existed for thousands of years?

I’ve realized that questions like this reflect a broader cultural problem: over time, Christianity has become entangled with many social norms, assumptions, and practices that do not directly flow from the teachings of Jesus. 

I started writing a post discussing in detail why someone would think Christians can’t unschool and unpacking the ways that our Heavenly Father approaches educating us.  There are so many layers to this discussion, and I will continue working on these thoughts but it is going to take time. 

I’m here to share reflections on unschooling as a follower of Jesus to encourage others on this path as well as those considering this path that traditional schooling is not the only option as we seek to faithfully follow our Lord. Perhaps all that is needed here is Acts 4:13:

“When they saw the courage of Peter and John and realized that they were unschooled, ordinary men, they were astonished and they took note that these men had been with Jesus.”

These are the men Jesus entrusted with the work of spreading His kingdom – unschooled, ordinary men. The first Christians came from an incredibly wide range of backgrounds. What united them was that their lives had been changed by an event. They met or heard about a man who walked on earth, claimed to be the one true God’s Anointed One, died and came back to life. And they all decided to accept His invitation – His invitation into His kingdom and to be adopted into the family of God. 

Unschooled or homeschooled, public or private, educated or uneducated, wise or unwise, addicted or healthy, rich or poor, Jew or Gentile, male or female, child or adult – we are all offered the same invitation. You can receive adoption into God’s family and join his upside down kingdom where the last are first, the weak are strong, the King serves the people, and everyone is valued and treasured equally because we are all small reflections of our indescribably great and glorious Creator. 

Yes, Christians can unschool.