Raising Moral Children

Children must be raised by their parents to be moral, good humans. I don't think it requires a background in church teachings to do so, nor does it require the word of God to be a good person. I am sure that many would agree with me that there are plenty of self-titled "Christians" out there who are really not terribly good humans. I can think of plenty of times where people were not kind, considerate or honest, and in the very next breath would title themselves "good Christians." In fact, just the other day I was driving and reached a merge point where it was my turn to merge. The school bus to my left had just let in a car, then I was planning on merging after the bus. But, the driver in the car next to me ensured that he was literally inches off the bus bumper, to make sure I couldn't get in. I rolled down my window and waived, but in turn received a good old fashioned flip of the middle finger. Umm, yeah, thanks. So, after I merged in after him, I noticed that nice little fishy sticker on the back of his car proclaiming his faithfulness to our dear lord and savior. Dude, where's the love? Anyway, I digress.

In order to raise moral children, it is important to emphasize that family matters. My children know that we go for a walk after dinner every night, pretty much rain or shine. We examine plants, discuss what went on at school, stop and talk to the neighbors, pat the doggies. Basically all the stuff that lets the children know we need to stop and pay attention to others, not be self absorbed all the time. The other night it was getting a little late and I was about to take the kids upstairs for a bath. Logan stopped me and said "Mommy! We haven't gone for our walk yet, Alex and I need to get our entergy out!" He is starting to realize the value of getting out together and being a family.

Children also must be taught to give of themselves for the greater good. They don't need to give up everything for others, but they should know that there are people less fortunate than they are and be taught a willingness to give away what is theirs. We frequently donate clothing to Goodwill, and when we do, we also pick out a couple toys that are not played with often that someone else might enjoy using. We discuss the hurricanes and how kids who have lost all their toys might appreciate having some new toys to play with. At Christmas time each child picks out a toy at the toystore that they would love to play with themselves, then give it away to organizations such as "Toys for Tots". When we do this, we discuss that there are some children who would otherwise get nothing under their Christmas tree. They get a sense of giving and selflessness by doing this.

The spiritual needs of kids can be met by ensuring they are connected to nature, family, society and living creatures. They must be provided a sense of right and wrong using critical thinking skills. Children must learn to give of themselves in order to reap a sense of belonging and utility toward society. Some suggestions for involving kids in connecting to the greater good are bringing food to new parents, visiting the elderly in nursing homes, serving food to the needy on holidays, participating in park cleanups, or holding lemonade stand sales for a favorite charity (such as Alex's Lemonade Stand.)

None of my suggestions requires a belief in a higher power to control your behavior or require you to be a good person. I do not think that God is necessarily integral in someones life. Having a belief in God does not make you moral, and a lack of belief does not make you amoral. You must teach your children to be moral, thinking, feeling humans. Don't wait for someone else to teach them this!

What can you think of to encourage your children to learn to be moral, involved humans?