Apologetiese toerusting in ʼn Christelike wêreldbeskouing tydens geloofsopvoeding van voorskoolse kinders

Abstract

All people hold certain presuppositions or hermeneutical principles by means of which they approach the reality of the world. In this process of understanding -- which already takes place from birth -- the human brain functions like a sieve that processes familiar information, while unfamiliar concepts remain within the sieve until the brain is able to categorise them. Such a hermeneutical framework is synonymous with a person's worldview, which continuously informs and shapes the individual's perception of reality. Because a person's worldview also constitutes the point of departure for religious convictions that begin to develop from birth, it is imperative that Christian children be equipped with a biblical-Christian worldview already at the preschool level. This is particularly important in light of the fact that children, from an early age, are influenced by other dominant worldviews that draw them away from a Christian perspective. In order to facilitate meaningful apologetic accountability among preschool children at their own level, a pure biblical-Christian doctrine must be cultivated, while simultaneously focusing on worldview-related questions through which different worldviews can be tested against the truth. From a biblical perspective, the transmission of faith to preschool children is indeed possible, and such instruction takes place in at least three ways, namely through oral transmission, through the modelling of parents or mentors, and through community involvement. Biblical knowledge can furthermore be effectively conveyed by means of curricula and lesson plans that are tailored to children's abilities. Nevertheless, some twentieth- and twenty-first-century researchers (for example Richards, Theunissen, Van der Merwe and others) maintain the view that preschool children do not possess the capacity for abstract thought. As a result, curricula for faith education are not designed to guide preschool children in their growth towards a biblical-Christian worldview or to enable them to give an apologetic account of their faith. Although Christian churches over the centuries have undertaken considerable work in the field of catechesis and curriculum development, preschool children's life questions and spiritual experiences are still ignored in many of these curricula. There is even a growing need for adequate Christian equipment for preschool children. Although a few recent curricula focus on the formation of a Christian worldview in Christian children, there are few, if any, that focus primarily on the preschool level. This research therefore focuses on the manner in which apologetic equipment, in terms of a biblical-Christian worldview, can be integrated into faith education in order to address both the content-related and methodological gaps in preschool children's ability to account for their faith. The central question is what kind of equipment parents and other educators require in order to guide preschool children, according to their abilities, so that they can at their own level give an apologetic account of the Christian faith. In order to answer this question, the research is broadly divided into three parts. Section A (chapters 1-2) describes the need for the acquisition of a worldview among preschool children and investigates the message and influence of other dominant twenty-first-century worldviews on preschool children within Christianity. The dominant worldview that is focused upon is naturalism, and more specifically secular humanism and/or New Atheism.Section B (chapters 3-5) focuses on the views of God, creation and humanity within secular humanism and/or New Atheism as dominant worldviews, in contrast to the biblical-Christian worldview. Each chapter in Section B is divided into three subsections, namely a thesis-based exposition of secular humanism and/or New Atheism, followed by the biblical-Christian worldview as antithesis, and thereafter the apologetic engagement with these matters. In a similar manner, Section C (chapters 6-7) focuses, in its thesis, on the doctrine of salvation in secular humanism and/or New Atheism, as well as in other naturalistic religions, including Hinduism, Buddhism and African Traditional Religion (chapter 6), in contrast to the Christian worldview's doctrine of salvation and glorification, after which apologetic equipment is discussed (chapter 7).