Indeed, the teacher and the learner interact to construct the strength of such a viewpoint.
The role of society is a difficult issue when considering the Christian worldview, its encouragement and its construction. One cannot for example, especially in today's culture, expect society to subscribe to a single faith paradigm, although in the mind of many this would be the ideal solution. Instead, society's role from the Christian viewpoint can be expected at most to offer tolerance and a platform on the basis of which religion and religious education can thrive. The problem is however that the social influence is so strong that Christians themselves often tend to be led astray by the less desirable activities perpetuated by the secular world.
A study cited by Audrey Barrick (2007) for example demonstrated that both Christian and non-Christian adults display little difference when measured against moral behaviors such as viewing sexually explicit movies, using profanity in public or buying lottery tickets. However, Christians are also more likely to volunteer at their church and engage in other social activities such as helping the homeless.
The lack of commitment by Christians is not so much the fault of society as it is by omission from believers themselves. The only responsibility of society is to provide believers with the freedom to exercise their faith. Believers themselves are responsible for the way in which this faith is manifest both within society and within the community of believers themselves.
The same is true of the government; governmental officials are not responsible for the souls of Christian believers, but only for providing believers with the platform they need to exercise their faith. Believers in turn are responsible for paying their taxes so that the government can continue performing its important work. Indeed, this is required by Christ himself, who encouraged his disciples to give Caesar his due.
The most important elements in stimulating the Christian worldview are the church and the family. The church is a haven where Christians should be allowed to exercise their faith in the most effective way possible. The church is also the establishment that consolidates the specific faith of individuals while enabling them to strengthen their faith by means...
The Christian family is the primary unite that provides religious strength to individuals, especially when they are still children. Childhood education within the family is vitally important in order to enable the strength of the Christian worldview later in life. It is only within the family unit that the Beatitudes can truly become a reality in life, because it is only those who become "like children" that are truly blessed in their faith.
In terms of education, it is important to keep in mind that there are ways to instil good values in young people without necessarily making Christianity part of this. Programs such as Character Counts (Josephson Institute, 2010), are excellent examples of a good, moral education that prepares children for the world while also leaving the choice of specific religion and creed up to them. While the Christian worldview provides me with a better way of living than any other, I do believe that it is a personal choice, and should indeed be so.
References
Barrick, Audrey. (2007, Feb 7.) Study Compares Christian and Non-Christian Lifestyles. Christian Today U.S. Correspondent. Retrieved from http://www.christiantoday.com/article/american.study.reveals.indulgent.lifestyle.christians.no.different/9439.htm
Bennett, Malcolm David. The Origins Left Behind Eschatology. Xulon Press
Craig, W.L. And Moreland, J.P. Philosophical Foundations for a Christian Worldview.
Croucher, Rowland. (2003, Oct 19). Children and New Age (Beware, Says James Dobson). John Mark Ministries Retrieved from http://jmm.aaa.net.au/articles/5476.htm
Got Questions Ministries (2010). What is a Christian Worldview? Retrieved from http://www.gotquestions.org/Christian-worldview.html
Hitchens, C. And Wilson, D. (2007, Aug 5). Is Christianity Good for the World? Christianity Today. Retrieved from http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2007/mayweb-only/119-12.0.html
Josephson Institute. (2010) Character Counts. Retrieved from http://charactercounts.org/
Wayne, Israel. (2010). Biblical Worldview. Retrieved from http://www.christianworldview.net/
Wells, Robert (2010) the Beatitudes. Retrieved from http://robertwells.tripod.com/Beatitudes.html
