Two Trees of Knowledge

Two Trees of Knowledge See to it that no one takes you captive through hollow and deceptive philosophy, which depends on human tradition and the basic principles of this world rather than on Christ. Colossians 2:7-9 I recently attended a Focus on the Family Truth Project ...

Author : Diane Dekker Number of Pages : 324 Publisher : Pleasant Word-A Division of WinePress Publishing List Price: $19.99 Our Price: $10.55 You Save: $9.44 (48%) Used Price : $7.99

Product Description

This is what the Lord says, "Stand at the crossroads and look; ask for the ancient paths, ask where the good way is, and walk in it, and you will find rest for your souls." -Jeremiah 6:16 With this scripture in mind, author Diane Dekker takes a hard look at public education today and offers practical, God-driven alternatives that will guide you to rediscover the ancient paths, and uncover the deep truths of the Bible as they relate to the education of children today. Two Trees of Knowledge is the roadmap you need in order to make the best decisions for your children regarding their education. Christians stand at a crossroads today on the issue of education. Some believe we should support government schools, effecting change from within. Others believe our children need to be removed from the public schools. But we no longer have the luxury of debating at the crossroads, because while we are busy defending our positions, young people are leaving the faith in record numbers. We need direction, and Two Trees of Knowledge will help you discover which way to turn. It is the good way, the way of faith. Walk in it, and you will find rest for your soul. Also included is a 10-week Bible Study

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Customer reviews

Two Trees of Knowledge by .. C. Oberg (Kansas)
See to it that no one takes you captive through hollow and deceptive philosophy, which depends on human tradition and the basic principles of this world rather than on Christ. Colossians 2:7-9 I recently attended a Focus on the Family Truth Project (an adult bible video series) that led me to question if I had been taken captive by the enemy. I wondered if I was of the world instead of just in the world and wondered if I had a biblical worldview. As I questioned these things, it opened a dialogue between me and my oldest son and we took a "mental" journey back through his childhood, especially, his public school days. I realized that he lived out the "brainwashing" that Diane Dekker talks about in her book Two Trees of Knowledge: A Biblical Case for the Separation of School and State. I found that Dekker's compelling argument is not an exaggeration but a reality.
When my oldest son, now 18, was in second grade; his teacher suggested that I put him on Ritalin for his excitability. I quickly shook my head and reasoned that this was not my son's favorite teacher so that is why there is sometimes conflict. I even tried to switch to another second grade teacher but was told by the principal that in real life my son would have to deal with people he didn't like so it was good practice for him to stay with that same teacher. I did not realize that after these conversations, my son was sent to the school counselor on a weekly basis for the rest of the school year. I asked him why he did not tell me then that this was happening and he said that he had learned to be two different people: one way at school and one way at home. He said that it was like a switch inside that he could turn off and on. As Diane Dekker explains in her book, he had two different truths that were battling for dominance. This battle continued for the remainder of his public school days.
During junior high, my son started asking to be home schooled. I thought it was just because many of his church friends were and he wanted to be like them. I found out later that it was because of all the profanity, pornography, and crudeness that he was exposed to. He was growing weary of pushing away the temptation of immersing himself in it. He continues to tell me to this day that I have no idea what boys see and hear in school and he begs me to never allow his younger brothers to go through that.
It was his sophomore year in high school that would be his last of the public school life. His drama teacher was openly gay and supposedly dating another teacher. She was having the students perform skits with homosexual situations and even going as far as having girls kiss girls. When my son asked to do a different skit, he was denied and told that he would fail if he did not perform the skit that was assigned to him. It wasn't until I got involved that he was allowed to change the skit. Even the school plays were rated for their adult theme. One dealt with incest and murder. And, no, we do not live in the middle of some large city; we live in a rural community in the Midwest.
I have four other boys, and the next oldest is the only one that has gone to public school. He only went to kindergarten and first grade, but it made quite an impression on him. Diane Dekker talks about the bonding process still being formed until the child is eight and I was smacked in the face with the realization that he had switched the authority from me to the public school. When we started home schooling at the beginning of his second grade year, I was bombarded with comments like "my school doesn't do that", "my friends would do this", and "my teacher wouldn't say that". At first, I thought it was just a change that he had to get used to; but as it went on, it became apparent that he did not trust me as a teacher. Even as much time had passed, he referred to the public school as his "real" school and his public school teacher as his "real" teacher. He had out bursts when I assigned something that seemed challenging and would say his "real" school would never be as hard. It has taken two years of home schooling for him to soften and gain a trust in my ability to teach him.
In his paradigm shift, he also needed to learn to be recognized by name not a number in a school setting. It was difficult to stop writing the number 15 on all his papers because it was ingrained in him that he was 15 as far as the school was concerned. His public school teacher said that giving the children numbers eased the sorting of papers but having their names on their papers would have been just as easy at keeping things straight. Dekker mentions that these tactics are used as ways to depersonalize the student/ teacher relationship. The student learns that he is a number in a group not a unique individual created by God.
In my own paradigm shift, I have a better understanding, through chronological history lessons, of current events. Public schools tend to hop back and forth in history leaving children and adults confused about why things are the way they are. We tend to listen to the news to find out what we think about world events. Dekker says this is exactly what the state wants us to do. So instead of teaching history and other subjects in an orderly fashion, we get an unsystematic set of lessons that we can't organize in our mind. It leaves us with the inability to think and problem solve and forces us to rely on the state to do those things for us.
In our society, public school life has become a sort of rite of passage that we have come to think all children must go through to become a healthy adult. As parents, we are shown through the media that bullying and peer pressure are "normal" and that it strengthens character. We have been conditioned to think that what the teacher says is absolute. We are to stand back and let the schools do their job: prepare our children for the "real" world. And why would we question any of this when most of us have been educated in the public schools ourselves. In her book, Diane Dekker sheds light on what we have turned a blind eye to. Using biblical insight, she breaks the chains that have bound us for so long and sets us free to grab hold of the truth. I strongly recommend Diane Dekker's book - Two Trees of Knowledge: A Biblical Case for the Separation of School and State.

Two Trees of Knowledge by .. Travis Keller (Lenexa, KS United States)
I thought this was a great book! As someone who was educated in the public and christian school system, and as someone who currently homeschools their children, I think that this book provides a compelling and evenhanded argument for education outside the public sphere--a nice summery of biblical and practical reasons not to let someone with a different world view spend 8 hrs a day teaching your children what you do not believe. I think the bible study is great too. Nothing but scripture and follow up questions.

This is a great resource for someone undecided on how to educate their children, or wanting confirmation/encouragement to continue spending the time/money on school, or someone needing acurate and concise reasons for helping relatives understand the decisions that they are making for their children.

Highly recommended from someone who is busy enough to be picky about the books they read.

Travis Keller MD

A Must-Read For Parents of School-Age Children by .. Alan (Indiana)
While many people openly admit that there are problems with the public schools, most add, "But not my school!" Dekker dispels this myth in Two Trees of Knowledge. In Chapters 3 & 4, she carefully lays out the history of public education, using quotes and publications of the educators to reveal their true agenda: to change the values the children bring from home, and turn out graduates who share a global, socialistic worldview.
Staggering statistics show that seventy-five to ninety per cent of children from Christian homes who go through public schools leave the Christian faith before finishing their first year of college. While those statistics may seem improbable, Dekker outlines the reasons for this overwhelming success on the part of educators. It is not only the content of the curriculum that is problematic, but the teaching methods (outlined in chapter 7) which are even more disturbing. For example, Dekker points out that the same techniques used to brainwash American POWs during the Korean War have been adapted to children by behavioral scientists in the United States and are used in our public schools under names like "Values Clarification" and Outcome-Based Education."
Dekker manages to sound the alarm about the danger to our children without indicting parents or teachers. She shows how both teachers and parents have themselves been misled by their own education and the fact that each teacher plays only a small part in the total scheme for deconstructing a child's values.
Dekker appeals to a Christian audience and incorporates a Bible study, because Scripture shows that the right of parents to instruct their own children is a God-given right that the State cannot take away. Because this is a basic human right given to us by our Creator, Dekker encourages Christians to get the ball rolling in securing these rights for all parents. For Christian parents, the alternatives to State-run education are homeschooling or Christian schools. But all parents, regardless of worldview have the right to hire their own teachers and select the curriculum for their children. For that reason, I would recommend this book to anyone, Christian or not.

A Light on the Path of Choice! by .. Friend (Hamilton, Ontario, Canada)
Diane Dekker has, in her book, stood with us at a crossroads in educational choice. She invites us to stop and look and consider carefully. She prods us, however gently, to ask the good questions and then she stands beack as we discover which path leads to Light and Life.

I appreciate having the Scripture texts in front of me--I don't have to have several books open at one time. Yes, yes, yes--education is the right and responsibility of parents, not the state. I find 'Two Trees of Knowledge' to be an easy read, yet an intelligent and balanced discourse. Ms. Dekker avoids the trap of theorizing the life out of the biblical text and instead invites the wisdom-seeker to pursue and apply sound biblical principles. This book got me interested in reading 'Weapons of Mass Instruction' too. The warning has been sounded to those who buy into state-run schools: Buyer beware!

Educational by .. Bruce ()
For anyone who has ever wondered about the education their child is getting in the state schools, or should have, this book provides an eye-opening view of the philosophy behind what is taught and how. Chapters 3 and 4 will make you sit up and notice and may make you consider again where your child spends seven or more hours of each day - unless you are into secular humanism, socialism and someone else remolding the mind of your child.

As the subtitle to the books says "A Biblical Case for the Separation of School and State", this book is a review of what the Bible has to say about the education of a child. The book is filled with quotations found throughout the Bible on this subject. The author weaves together with great insight and application the stories, instructions and warnings found throughout the Old and New Testament on the most important responsibility of parents.

Included in the book is a ten week Bible study corresponding to the ten chapters of the book. Each days study includes numerous passages found throughout the Bible with basic questions to ensure an understanding of the text and more thought provoking questions to assist in application. The study is a great help in allowing the reader to delve deeper into the Biblical concepts presented in the chapter, helping to reinforce the message.