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A FIRM foundation based on faith teachings is the backbone to raising children, various religious groups have said.
Though different religions like the Jews, Muslims, Christian denominations like the Jehovah’s Witness abide to their ways of raising children the common denominator is the fundamental principle of catching them young.
And this role has to be assumed primarly by the parents.
Muslims believe that the best gift that parents can provide to their children is training that can help them live as responsible Muslims, fulfilling the rights of Allah.
For the Jews, parents play a critical role in molding their children into defenders of their faith. Christians from the Jehova’s Witness church, draw the inspiration to train their children from the book Deuteronomy 6 v 6-9 which compels parents to practically teach their children to be go.
A Jehovah’s Witness member, Mr Admire Udinge, said it is an open secret that their church has the most bold, confident and courageous children within the Christian faith. “We teach our children to be witnesses of God at a very tender age and we do not separate them during church services we both have a combined service. This has helped our kids to be bold in the faith.
“A seven-year-old child can stand alone in the street distributing church literature, this is because they have courage to stand for their faith despite the fact that they are young witnesses of God.”
Reciting the Qur’aan at a very tender age is one critical factor in raising children, Supreme Council of the Islamic Affairs in Zimbabwe chairman, Sheikh Ishmail Duwa said. Sheikh Duwa said children are taught to recite the Quran at a very tender age.
“From an Islamic perspective, there is no fixed age before or after which the parents may or may not teach children the Quran or any other aspect of Islamic knowledge.
“As such, a child may differ from another in his mental ability and intellectual capacity. Some children are seen to mature before others and at times, it is observed that a child is similar to another in age, but the difference in their understanding is huge.
“The decision is made by the respective parent of the child. If a child displays signs of excellence and has a great memory it would be wise to begin teaching him or her to memorise the Quran at a tender age.”
In addition Sheikh Duwa said there have been incidents in Islamic history, where a child is born having memorised many parts of the Quran due to the fact that the mother had been regularly reciting the Quran during her pregnancy.
Under Islam, he said, children are taught the basics of Islamic doctrine that includes, oneness of Allah and His attributes, the blessed Messenger of Allah, basics of what is lawful and what is unlawful, prayer, fasting among other duties.
“For them, it would be wise to learn the social conducts and behaviours of life, rather than the more nitty-gritty aspects of knowledge.” “This is done to fulfil the rights and obligations of all around them (including the parents themselves), leading the children to grow up as better citizens in their communities and making them an integral part of the overall Muslim,” explained the sheikh.
From a Jewish perspective, parents play a critical role in molding responsible children in accordance with the holy child training book, the Parshas Kedoshim. “Children observe the manner in which a parent observes Shabbos, a sacred event for the Jews.
If the parent acts very religious to those within the Jewish community but lives differently in the privacy of their family home, the children learn deception instead of honor.
From this type of example their children learn how to deceive… how to mislead… how to lie… This is very dangerous,” the Parshas Kedoshim reads.
“A Jewish parent has a responsibility to teach their children to be an independent thinker, to be an individual, to stand alone… to stand against odds… to endure pain… to ignore isolation… and to be free thinkers.
“So when Jewish children grow up, they eventually imitate their parents, which is why pure Jewish religion will never die, since Jews respect their sacred days.”
In the same vein, Hindu children are taught to be independent – an approach that instils pride and progressive values in their traditional manners.
A Hindu adherent in Harare, Dr Auhna, said children, in India for example, are raised within a hierarchical kinship structure and Hindu religious beliefs.
“Obedience to authority, passivity, and interdependence are highly valued,” he explained. “Childhood is viewed as a sensitive time period where children are moldable, thus, the environments, especially the parents, are believed to play an important role in child development.
“And while infants and young children are indulged, Dr. Auhna pointed out that the need for guidance is recognised, as is the belief that children are capable of learning at a young age. He said discipline is often strict and children are taught to obey their parents even in their independent capacities.
Physical punishment is sometimes used to discipline, control, and teach the child appropriate behaviours,” said Dr Auhna.
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