Would you/have you started going to church to get child into a good church school?!

[Bomper]

My ds should pass his 11+, but I am not 100% confident he will. The comprehensive schools in my area are pretty awful, except one, which is a C of E school. Lots of parents have now started to go to church in order to be able to apply, and I am being urged to do the same. Most of me thinks - 'this is my childs future, I will do whatever it takes', but a small part feels guilty. WWYD?

I can undertsand having schools for musicl geniuses like say Chesthams where the children will have 3 instruments and grade 8 in them all by the time they're 12 or whatever and that's fine - a rare specialist education but to rename some low grade comp a specialist music college or a language or a sports one - we have all those not that far from us, it just seems silly. I bet the French and German teaching in the language one won't even touch the levels of language teaching in any of the local private schools and it won't be say bilingual total immersion like you might get on Anglesey. It will just be a language lab which is new and impresses the more stupid parents.

Actually, although state the anguage school is one lots of people fight to get into- the locl private schools are well known (Kings, Millfield, taunton) but as far as state goes its good- not everyone can do private after all.

I knoew ther performing arts one has good facilities- not sure about the science one. There's a strong performance traditin where theya re so its a commiunity school at maximum level really.

My cousin went to one of the 'proper' music schools and is about to read music and chem at Cambridge. So I can see the benefit, but not all kids or schools can do this- mind you round here all kids get free music at primary (mine do violin) which is a hugely good thing imo.

There is a bit more to it than that Xenia, or there should be although the giving out of college or specialsism status is about competing for pots of money and is sometimes awarded not entirely on merit.

For example the school I teach at is a business college and we do have superb facilities and oppurtunities for our students which will impress parents but are alos genuine oppurtunties. We run genuine businesses that our students can work in and have assoiations with high street retailers. We employ and utilise people from the business world rather from just teaching to inspire and work with our students. We also attact staff into our school who are interested in business and more vocational qualifications and also educate children from other schools are intersted in business and enterprise. Students who are interested in running their own business or follwoing a vocational path would be better of choosing our school than the others in the town, as is evidenced by the number of students we educate from other schools.

Sadly too many schools go for special status solely for the sign or extra money without actually doing anything to earn that status.

Greensleeves I admit the choice is not total and while dd may not ahve been born a RC (I am not up to a theological debate when I have tv crews arriving in 15 minutes and I have wet hair and an untidy house!) I do think children are born with a natural spirtiuality.

Dd at5 has the choice whether she goes to church or not, she chooses to do so, I am not naive to think this is beacuse of her great spirtual belief but becuase she sees her friends and we also gave her a choice of where she want to school.

Whenever she wants to stop going to church she can do and she will ahve a completlely free choice when it comes to secondary school. She is also raised in a house where people respectfully tell me that faith is nonsense and God does not exist. So I don't think it is indoctrination.

"I have never and would never vote tory, without wanting to offend anyone and I may now send this thread into a new direction of kicking off status I don't understand how you can be a tory, even the new softer brand, and be a Christian"

at Twinset&Pearls level of pure prejudice

That's my father binned then

In the village where I grew up, the same fifty or so people seemed to run everything - the WI, the church, the Conservative Club, the Gardeners' Society... Make of that what you will.

um, people at a certain time of their life with time on their hands

prejudice is about discriminating or judging against people because of something

saying I don't understand how you can be something isn't prejudice, its expressinga personal feeling and inviting alternative viewpoints. Prejudice does not seek information or explanations that might confront itself.

I always find the left think they have some sort of moral high ground and don't seem to have the humility to accept that politicians on both sides want to help the country. I can see Blair wants to do good. He may often get it wrong and we'd be better with Cameron but I can still see the good intentions.

Christian values of love, tolerance, personal responsibility are all these in huge measure on the right along with discipline, self sacrifice and putting yourself above others. There's a lot more Christianity in giving people the dignity of work than a load of state hand outs.

I agree, CAM; I was just pointing out the overlap between Conservatism and the church.

Preconcieved opinion

Form premature judgment

I think that's about right

I was responding to the poster who said it would be difficult to be both a Christian and a Tory. So don't give me that.

And I was responding to PeachyClair not arguing with you UQD

So don't give me that

OK sorry!

This is now officially the Thread From Hell, isn't it??

Only if you believe in hell UQD

It is a prejudice and we all have them although my posting was fuelled by a bottle of red wine! But it is what I think and we are entitled to opinions. That is the point of having a political view you think the other side is wrong. I just don't see how the two can go togther although Christianity is literally a broad church and I can see how I selctthe parts of Christianity that suit my left wing politics and there may be others who select parts of Christianity to suit their more right wing views.

I agree with Xenia that people on the left do think we have the high ground and it is our most annoying trait. If you also take into consideration the fact that I am also a Christian who considers heself to have a vocation helping others I do place myself quite highly on the moral high ground spectrum and therefore must be bloody annoying! Dp says my touchy feel liberal luvvie do gooderness is at once my most appealing and most annoying feature.

I suppose it depends which tory voters you mix with, we are shaped by our environment afterall. In my marriage I was the sole socialist surrounded by tory voters whose sole motivation in life was to get rich and they did this by expoloiting others and judging people who had less than them. Not very Christian IMO. I am more than willing to change my mind if I meet a tory who is different - it is just yet to happen.

right we have fallen out over politics and religion shall we move on to breastfeeding now. How about I don;t understand how Christians can bottle feed?

I am joking by the way I am at my brink of musnetter wrath, am going tot he gym to try and work of my frustrations!

next on here
"Christians would never dare use Fruit Shoots"
"Christians don't let their dogs foul the footpaths"

joking btw!

we only drink the Blood of Christ here anyway.

Does anyone ever worry at Communion that they might forget where they are, think for a moment they are at a wine-tasting and swill it around before spitting it out?

Just a thought.

no although they don't all taste the same, it is more a sherry than a red wine. I am always getting my host stuck in the roof of my mouth. Trying to pray and think serene thoughts isn't always easy when you are scraping the body of Christ from the roof of your mouth with your tongue.

Can remember once sneezing out my host and being seen by the mother superior and feeling certain I was going to hell. Was also sent home from school once for having a water fight with holy water.

I'll have to introduce you to my father then, twinset&pearls, he doesn't "choose which parts of Christianity he'll believe in to fit in with voting Conservative", he's first and foremost a Christian who also has a vocation and calling for helping people.

Speaking of communion, dd age 10 was confirmed last week and had her first taste of wine. Her verdict? "It tastes slightly bitter in the mouth but once its gone down it feels really nice"