Peace Lutheran Academy Sussex, Wisconsin

Commitment 1

A worldview which is God-centered

A Difference

What is the difference between Peace Lutheran Academy andotherschools,especiallypublicschools? Weare God-centered, and that means parents who send their children to Peace Lutheran Academy know that they are sending their children to a Lutheran school in which the teachers are in a partnership with them in the Christian faith for the benefit of their children. We believe that Peace Lutheran Academy is a gift from God and that children are a gift from God. Our goal is “to assist and support Christian parents in their God-given vocation of raising their children.”

Parents have many options in deciding upon how to educate their children, but to remove “God” from public or private discourse results in a distorted view of the world in which we live. The public school system is an example of what happens in education when God is removed from discourse. Public education operates under the idea of “separation of Church and State,” but rather than upholding the intent of the Constitution to avoid the establishment of a state religion, children are taught the absence of God. The mere acknowledgement of God and issues of faith is said to have no place in the public schools or public discourse. It means that our children grow up in an educational environment in which all matters religious are either non-existent, or so peripheral so as not to make any difference in daily life. This does not lead to liberty of conscience in thinking about faith issues; it leads to “humanistic religion” which puts man, without God, as the center of life. Man determines what is good or bad, right or wrong. Morality and ethics are no longer absolute, objective truth, but they are determined on the basis of either personal or popular opinion.

God-Centered

In contrast to an amoral, materialistic, or subjective man -centered worldview and ethic, we are committed to a worldview which is God-centered. We believe in the centrality of the gospel of the forgiveness of sins for Christ’s sake, and we desire to live in accord with that confession. Faith is integral in all that we say and do; Christ is the center of thought, word, and deed.

Our faith is the foundation for our relationship to God and the source of our relationship to others. Because of our faith, we can give guidance to our children, beginning at the earliest levels of a child’s education and development, on the basis of God’s Word. We can talk about the Ten Commandments, learn them by heart, and apply them to our daily lives. We can talk about human sexuality, the sanctity of marriage, abstinence, and living chaste lives. We can uphold the value of human life as created by God in His image. We can evaluate current trends in society and culture on the basis of God’s truth. We can act courageously and compassionately toward others as a result of a vibrant, living faith.

Children grow in the Christian faith and life through the integration of that faith into all the academic subjects of our Academy. Simply to remove the child from public school to a private school or home school, as a shelter against the world, is not adequate, if the same man-centered educational system and values are followed in the home or private education. Children need to be exposed to the most wholesome and beneficial teachings of God’s Word. These truths are centered in the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ and His sacrifice of love for our salvation.

An Important Ally

We maintain that our academic program is second to none as children are exposed to the rich content of a classical liberal arts education. The difference lies in the fact that our children learn to evaluate the things they learn about the world, our society, and culture on the basis of the Word of God and the Christian confession of faith. They also learn the faith by doing those things that will be part of their lives as Christians for as long as they live. This is “the difference” the Academy offers and why we believe that Peace Lutheran Academy is a gift of God.