TEACHING IS A GOD-CALLING:
Inspiring a Revival in Teachers

By David Boddy, Trustee, Education Renaissance Trust

We can be certain of this, because it was the same last Monday, and it will be the same the following Monday too. Perhaps it might even be worse, because between now and then, countless numbers of teachers will take the decision that they have had enough; that they want to quit. Most will wait until the end of the academic year, but too many will just throw the chalk down and walk out.

Government initiatives to fill the gaps are commendable. But serious-minded academics, policy makers, educationalists and others concerned with the welfare of our future generations need to address the real causes, if they can find them. Theologians and philosophers need to be at the forefront of this debate.

For the past four years, the Education Renaissance Trust has been running short seminars and in-school conferences that reconnect teachers with that initial spark which took them into the profession in the first place. It may have kept them there for many years, but now it has seemingly gone out. We have discovered that despite frequent ‘outer’ reasons for their disillusionment, the candle is best re-lit from within teachers themselves. That which lights them up, above all things, is their coming to a fresh view of the spiritual meaning of their vocation - even if they didn’t call it that when they first entered the classroom.

‘Spiritual’ in this context does not necessarily mean religious. Often these teachers, even some in Church schools, don’t have any set religious beliefs themselves, are not regular church goers, nor are they particularly keen on formalities or ritual. Yet with help they come to appreciate that the human being in front of them is a conscious person, with bright intelligence and a powerful creative force coursing through them. With more help they come to connect in practice with that inner power of vitality. Having connected with it, they start to introduce it into the heart of every lesson. Teachers who reconnect in this way not only don’t want to give up; they want to discover more. When a teacher is prepared to carry on working, studying, searching for greater truth and better meanings, the children in his or her care are plugged into an energy source which is un-diminishing. Such a source can only be Divine.

Teaching is a God-calling: education really happens when God is the inspiration of every lesson, and not just in the classes on religious studies. This core proposition guides the development of the work of the Education Renaissance Trust, and in particular a number of ‘philosophy schools for children’ in England, Ireland, the United States, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa and the West Indies.

These are not Church or religious schools in the normal sense. They are philosophic. They believe that the same Truth or God is at the heart of all faiths and all religions even if different cultures pursue different paths to realise that Truth. This leads to harmony and brotherhood between people. As all of the schools are based in the ‘West’ they are also rooted in the Christian tradition which has formed the civilisation in which we all live. So all pupils are introduced to the Bible, which is used in collective worship, and gain insight into Christian morality and values. ‘Love thy neighbour as thyself’ really lives in these schools.

Most of the teachers have undergone a period - in some cases quite extensive - of personal study in philosophy, as well as their academic specialism. Nearly all pursue regular daily practices of meditation or prayer or both. They are encouraged to understand other cultures, and the religious and philosophical systems supporting them. This is essential in helping to understand what shapes the lives of very many of their pupils. In St James Independent Schools, with over 700 pupils in London, there are Christians, Hindus, Jews and Muslims.

Every lesson begins with a dedication, and the teachers naturally and happily illuminate the brilliance in every subject, and how God is behind it all. The Christian children are encouraged to become better Christians; the Hindu children better Hindus, the Moslems, better Moslems; and for those with no religion, they are encouraged to discover the glory, intelligence and lawfulness of the Absolute’s creation. All are encouraged to discover and obey the finer laws, and also to take steps in fulfilling their human responsibility by finding out who they truly are. It works, because the teachers believe in what they are saying, and try to live in harmony with all the children, no matter what their background, or race or religion.

Finding and forming a group of teachers like this takes real effort. It doesn’t work if teachers just think that what they are doing is ‘a job’. The spirit of teaching as a vocation must be rekindled, otherwise why would anyone accept the emotional stresses and mental strains of the daily classroom. Our experience is that when any teacher recognises that the work is a true and spiritual work, pleasing to God (howsoever they believe in Him), then the spark of brilliance that every child is looking for from the teacher is naturally shared, remembered, and ultimately, lived by.

The Borderlands Project, which the Education Renaissance Trust is delighted to support, is about different groups learning to talk to each other and learning to understand each other. We believe that post-September 11 2001, the responsibility of all God-fearing peoples is to enter into serious dialogue, learning more about each other, thereby allowing our societies to grow in tolerance and understanding through an appreciation of what unifies all of us. We are very grateful to the vision of St John’s College.

The aim of the Education Renaissance Trust’s association with Borderlands is to share our experiences with teachers working in this multi-faith, multi-cultural environment, especially those who are working in Church schools. We want to give strength and encouragement to Christian teachers to proclaim the message of Jesus fully. We want them to see how Philosophy can illuminate the words of the Christian teaching while at the same time generating an understanding and vision of the spiritual truths in all other faiths and denominations.

Our hope is that by co-operating we can open the role of philosophy in education, especially education in Church schools, and how it can build justice and equity in our society. In Faith and Reason Pope John Paul II wrote about the role of philosophers in developing the spiritual life: ‘Philosophy emerges, then, as one of the noblest of human tasks. According to its Greek etymology, the term philosophy means “love of wisdom.” Born and nurtured when the human being first asked questions about the reason for things and their purpose, philosophy shows in different modes and forms that the desire for truth is part of human nature itself.’