Genetic Fallacy
Psalms 78:1–7
“My people, hear my teaching; listen to the words of my mouth. I will open my mouth with a parable; I will utter hidden things, things from of old—things we have heard and known, things our ancestors have told us. We will not hide them from their descendants; we will tell the next generation the praiseworthy deeds of the LORD, His power, and the wonders He has done. He decreed statutes for Jacob and established the law in Israel, which He commanded our ancestors to teach their children, so the next generation would know them, even the children yet to be born, and they in turn would tell their children. Then they would put their trust in God and would not forget His deeds but would keep His commands.”
The key to the next generation is in our hands, we who are consciously aware of our world and our God who works in it and through us. “Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one. Love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your mind and with all your soul and with all your strength. These commandments that I give you today are to be upon your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. Write them on the door-frames of your houses and on your gates (Deut 6:4–9).” 19th Century German author Jean Paul (Johann Paul Richter) wrote: “The words that a father speaks to his children in the privacy of home are not heard by the world, but, as in whispering galleries, they are clearly heard at the end, and by posterity.” Time and again, verse after verse God reminds Israel to keep His commandments and imprint these on the tender hearts of their children, not only the commandments but also His deeds of old, His miracles, His kindness, His love, His faithfulness—stories, mementos, remembrances “to serve as a sign among you. In the future, when your children ask you, 'What do these stones mean?' tell them that the flow of the Jordan was cut off before the ark of the covenant of the LORD. When it crossed the Jordan, the waters of the Jordan were cut off. These stones are to be a memorial to the people of Israel for ever (Jos 4:6–7)." We are at the task of bringing the young to God, that they may remember their Creator in humility and trust when troubled times of adulthood come and bring with them angst and existential crises (Ecc 12:1). Many of our critics say indoctrination is tantamount to child abuse, but by that logic, so is every other influence we have on our children, we just can’t let them do as they please and ruin themselves before they even reach 18. Also critics argue that all religion such as Christianity is necessarily false because it is taught from an early age, by upbringing, but that’s a non sequitur called genetic fallacy, the truth of a claim doesn’t rest on how it came about nor should it be judged by our state of minds/psychology of those who hold such claims as part of their beliefs, in other words, 90s rock band Nirvana captured it succinctly, “just because you’re paranoid, it doesn’t mean they’re not after you.” The LORD said, "Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these (Matt 19:14)." And so, we endeavour to reach the next generation, to influence them by teaching them how to think of (and for) themselves as God’s beloved children, sharing with them a Christian worldview, and modeling the way to live a life well-lived and approved by God. Share the truth of the Gospel, the truth about God and humanity and the world and why we think that way and how we arrive at the truth of those claims and thereby trust in Jesus Christ (I Pet 3:15). Finally, equipping ourselves is the undergirding of this solemn responsibility to God for the future, “do not let kindness and truth leave you; Bind them around your neck, Write them on the tablet of your heart (Prov 3:3).”
“My people, hear my teaching; listen to the words of my mouth. I will open my mouth with a parable; I will utter hidden things, things from of old—things we have heard and known, things our ancestors have told us. We will not hide them from their descendants; we will tell the next generation the praiseworthy deeds of the LORD, His power, and the wonders He has done. He decreed statutes for Jacob and established the law in Israel, which He commanded our ancestors to teach their children, so the next generation would know them, even the children yet to be born, and they in turn would tell their children. Then they would put their trust in God and would not forget His deeds but would keep His commands.”
The key to the next generation is in our hands, we who are consciously aware of our world and our God who works in it and through us. “Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one. Love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your mind and with all your soul and with all your strength. These commandments that I give you today are to be upon your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. Write them on the door-frames of your houses and on your gates (Deut 6:4–9).” 19th Century German author Jean Paul (Johann Paul Richter) wrote: “The words that a father speaks to his children in the privacy of home are not heard by the world, but, as in whispering galleries, they are clearly heard at the end, and by posterity.” Time and again, verse after verse God reminds Israel to keep His commandments and imprint these on the tender hearts of their children, not only the commandments but also His deeds of old, His miracles, His kindness, His love, His faithfulness—stories, mementos, remembrances “to serve as a sign among you. In the future, when your children ask you, 'What do these stones mean?' tell them that the flow of the Jordan was cut off before the ark of the covenant of the LORD. When it crossed the Jordan, the waters of the Jordan were cut off. These stones are to be a memorial to the people of Israel for ever (Jos 4:6–7)." We are at the task of bringing the young to God, that they may remember their Creator in humility and trust when troubled times of adulthood come and bring with them angst and existential crises (Ecc 12:1). Many of our critics say indoctrination is tantamount to child abuse, but by that logic, so is every other influence we have on our children, we just can’t let them do as they please and ruin themselves before they even reach 18. Also critics argue that all religion such as Christianity is necessarily false because it is taught from an early age, by upbringing, but that’s a non sequitur called genetic fallacy, the truth of a claim doesn’t rest on how it came about nor should it be judged by our state of minds/psychology of those who hold such claims as part of their beliefs, in other words, 90s rock band Nirvana captured it succinctly, “just because you’re paranoid, it doesn’t mean they’re not after you.” The LORD said, "Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these (Matt 19:14)." And so, we endeavour to reach the next generation, to influence them by teaching them how to think of (and for) themselves as God’s beloved children, sharing with them a Christian worldview, and modeling the way to live a life well-lived and approved by God. Share the truth of the Gospel, the truth about God and humanity and the world and why we think that way and how we arrive at the truth of those claims and thereby trust in Jesus Christ (I Pet 3:15). Finally, equipping ourselves is the undergirding of this solemn responsibility to God for the future, “do not let kindness and truth leave you; Bind them around your neck, Write them on the tablet of your heart (Prov 3:3).”
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