Why woul atheist parents send their kids to Catholic schools?

[EasterJoy]

Many people send their children to Catholic schools because the education is better, and initially “put them through” the sacraments because they believe it gives them a competitive advantage when it comes to gaining admission.

As for why they make other efforts so the children can practice, maybe they give their children access to the sacraments because their children and other relatives have faith and insist on getting the same advantages that their parents got. It’s hard to argue with, but perhaps the parents resent their children are siding with Grandma and Grandpa. Certainly the rude comments smell of a rebellion that goes beyond mere difference of opinion.

 

[maryjk]

I don’t know if the woman’s Facebook response was typical of her, but people in recent bereavement can say some wacky & hostile things.

Working at our parish and having just lost both parents, I would agree.

But I have never heard anything as hostile as what she posted. Wacky? Sure.

It also sounded like the OP was trying to show us how she is “normally.”

 

[Deana83]

One of the milder things they’ve done is when they had a death in the family and, when someone on Facebook said they’d keep them in their prayers, the wife responded with something like, “And the next time you’re having a hard time I’ll clap my hands and call for some faeries. Why don’t you do something helpful like make a donation to [some charity] or bake us dinner?”

That is really a rude response to someone who is just trying to be helpful. With that said, I’m perplexed as well. My husband is a cradle Catholic and when I agreed to raise our daughter in the church and for her to attend parochial school, I decided to join the RCIA class. I wasn’t sure I would convert but figured if I’m going to raise our daughter in this faith shouldn’t I at least have a clue as to what it’s about? I’ve been married before and have 2 grown sons, we attended a Lutheran church and they went through confirmation. I didn’t feel I needed to study the theology of the Lutheran church because I grew up Protestant, attending a Methodist church. There’s not huge differences in that and I’ve always felt as a Protestant it doesn’t really matter where I go to church, as long as I go and believe in Jesus and try to be a good person. I, like so many others, grew up with a lot of misconceptions about the Catholic church- I had to have some understanding of the theology before I could feel comfortable instilling and reinforcing a religion in my own children. I never really understood these people who just bus their kids off to some church or Bible school and not know what they’re being taught. What if it was some cult or something? Maybe, they’re just looking for a babysitter for a couple hours. Anyway, I think as a parent it’s our responsibility to know what our children are being taught and not just at a rudimentary level. I had no idea when I started RCIA and decided to learn about the faith what an intellectual and philosophical journey I had embarked on. Maybe by the time my little one is 18 and graduating from our Catholic high school I’ll have it done. She’s in Pre-K now so I got some time.

 

[MJJean]

Are they really atheists or are they just haters who like to stir the pot and share their misery? Atheists would be against their kids receiving the Sacraments.

Not necessarily. A lot of Atheists see religious rituals as harmless nothings that have no bearing on anything and are closely related to other childhood phases such as having imaginary friends, believing in Santa, and being worried about monsters under the bed. They figure the kids will grow out of it.

This is what I was thinking too.

Who, would post such a thing in response to someone saying they would pray?

I mean, aren’t friends on facebook actually friends? Who would talk to their friends that way?

I did back when I was Atheist. I certainly didn’t believe in the power of prayer and would much rather have friends actually do something useful in my time of need rather than something useless like pray.

I remember a big brouhaha on FB when someone on my friends list posted a link to a charity for a due to a then recent tragedy. A few people posted they were praying for the victims and an awful lot of people got really ticked off and told the prayer folks to get off their butts and donate money or items to the victims if they cared so much because prayer was useless.

 

[EasterJoy]

That was my first thought as well. We are seeing that more and more where the impetus behind kids being enrolled in CCD and sacramental prep are the grandparents rather than the parents. It tends to complicate catechesis (to put it mildly).

There are many grandparents out there raising children in other ways, too. In both cases, the children are lucky that someone is awake enough to take the wheel. It is far from ideal when that isn’t your parents–yes, I’d agree that “complicated” puts it mildly!–but it is far better to have a grandparent looking out for you than no one at all.

At least the parents are willing to allow someone to do the right thing. That is a big deal. I know many people who are annoyed that their parents, having had the advantages of religious training that are obvious from a simple cultural standpoint, gave them no religious training at all. People do not like to have been raised in an ignorance that their parents weren’t subjected to. This is another reason that atheists might have for having their children in a religious environment–that is, because this is an essentially religious country, and those who are raised ignorant of religion do feel their ignorance later in life.

 

[Joe_5859]

There are many grandparents out there raising children in other ways, too. In both cases, the children are lucky that someone is awake enough to take the wheel. It is far from ideal when that isn’t your parents–yes, I’d agree that “complicated” puts it mildly!–but it is far better to have a grandparent looking out for you than no one at all.

At least the parents are willing to allow someone to do the right thing. That is a big deal. I know many people who are annoyed that their parents, having had the advantages of religious training that are obvious from a simple cultural standpoint, gave them no religious training at all. People do not like to have been raised in an ignorance that their parents weren’t subjected to. This is another reason that atheists might have for having their children in a religious environment–that is, because this is an essentially religious country, and those who are raised ignorant of religion do feel their ignorance later in life.

Good point.

 

[Country_Gal]

Some people just seem to love negativity. It’s like folks who like to people watch, only to make fun of every single person. Or go to parties, then criticize everyone with their spouse the whole way home, and the next day too. Or listen to a talk show host they despise, and call the show over and over to argue. Or, come to this site, just to argue and get aggravated.

People are mighty weird.

 

[EasterJoy]

Some people just seem to love negativity. It’s like folks who like to people watch, only to make fun of every single person. Or go to parties, then criticize everyone with their spouse the whole way home, and the next day too. Or listen to a talk show host they despise, and call the show over and over to argue. Or, come to this site, just to argue and get aggravated.

People are mighty weird.

I think you hit the nail on the head. Some people love negativity and the drama they feel they are generating by using it. The more outrageous things get, the more strife they stir up, the better they seem to like it. You do have to wonder what could cause that. What an awful way to live.

 

[BlueEyedLady]

Maybe the parents are getting pressured and funded by grandparents, with a stipulation of Catholic school and sacraments in the hopes that the kids do not turn out like the parents.

I was guessing that the catholic school offered a tuition discount for kids who are participating members of the parish.

 

[Thankatroop12]

We have these friends who are the sort of people you stay friends with mainly because you’ve been friends with them for so long. They aren’t just atheists; they’re elitist, condescending, Catholic-hating, religion-mocking, throw-it-in-your-face atheists. One of the milder things they’ve done is when they had a death in the family and, when someone on Facebook said they’d keep them in their prayers, the wife responded with something like, “And the next time you’re having a hard time I’ll clap my hands and call for some faeries. Why don’t you do something helpful like make a donation to [some charity] or bake us dinner?”

I should also point out that they’ve never been the most well-off people in the world. Their cars are 15-20+ years old and one is literally held together with duct tape. They went over a year without broadcast TV because they couldn’t afford a converter or new TV. They shop at the Goodwill outlet store (clothes for 69 cents/lb) and have strategically placed no bathing and no electric days to cut down on their utility costs. (Note that I’m not criticizing their lifestyle, but trying to illustrate their financial situation.)

Despite this, all their kids have been baptized, received the rest of the Sacraments through Confirmation and have gone to Catholic schools at least through high school (one just started her freshman year at a very orthodox and expensive Catholic college this past fall). I asked the husband about it in the past but didn’t get an answer. After he made some extremely nasty comments about Pope Francis and the Bl. John Paul II’s upcoming canonization, I got to wondering again just why someone like that would send their kids to Catholic schools. The area where they live has very good public schools, so it’s not the quality of the schools that’s the issue. I’m honestly perplexed.

They sound more like they are angry at God and choose not to believe in him because of their miseries. Also, tuition is several thousand dollars cheaper per year if you are Catholic.

 

[Gordon_Sims]

I know their parents (both sides) are faithful, practicing Catholics and the rest of their families are at least nominally Catholic. I’ve been told that the grandparents don’t assist with the tuition (I’ve heard about all the struggles and sacrifices they’ve made to pay for it), but I think the cultural aspect and the fact that the rest of the family is Catholic probably has something to do with it.

Like I said, I have asked the husband about this a couple times but he won’t give a straight answer. Asking the wife is like playing with fire. I’ve blocked a lot of her content on Facebook because she’s so wacky. While I found her comment about prayer extremely rude, it was pretty standard, even mild for her. I’ve seen others attack people (myself included) over saying they’d pray for someone, but her handling of it was one of the worst I’ve seen. I know a lot of our mutual friends have blocked her while still keeping him as a friend on Facebook. She’s not as abrasive in person, but that could be because we don’t see them that often.

That they have their kids receive the Sacraments is one of the things that confounds me most. He’s posted a couple articles about how raising your kids in any faith is equal to child abuse (he posts lots of Dawkins-related stuff as well). It was after one of these articles that I shot him a private message asking about his kids’ education but he never even responded to that one. The tuition discount could have something to do with it, but I can’t see violating my own principles for a discount but still paying thousands per kid per year when I really can’t afford it overall.

Some of their hatred and disrespect for the Church is so over the top that it makes you wonder what caused it. I try to tell myself that their sending their kids to Catholic schools is more than just a carryover from their upbringing and an attempt to appease grandparents but their whole situation is hard to figure. I try to keep them in my prayers, but some of what they say and do makes it easier to just not think about them.

 

[EasterJoy]

I know their parents (both sides) are faithful, practicing Catholics and the rest of their families are at least nominally Catholic. I’ve been told that the grandparents don’t assist with the tuition (I’ve heard about all the struggles and sacrifices they’ve made to pay for it), but I think the cultural aspect and the fact that the rest of the family is Catholic probably has something to do with it.

Like I said, I have asked the husband about this a couple times but he won’t give a straight answer. Asking the wife is like playing with fire. I’ve blocked a lot of her content on Facebook because she’s so wacky. While I found her comment about prayer extremely rude, it was pretty standard, even mild for her. I’ve seen others attack people (myself included) over saying they’d pray for someone, but her handling of it was one of the worst I’ve seen. I know a lot of our mutual friends have blocked her while still keeping him as a friend on Facebook. She’s not as abrasive in person, but that could be because we don’t see them that often.

That they have their kids receive the Sacraments is one of the things that confounds me most. He’s posted a couple articles about how raising your kids in any faith is equal to child abuse (he posts lots of Dawkins-related stuff as well). It was after one of these articles that I shot him a private message asking about his kids’ education but he never even responded to that one. The tuition discount could have something to do with it, but I can’t see violating my own principles for a discount but still paying thousands per kid per year when I really can’t afford it overall.

Some of their hatred and disrespect for the Church is so over the top that it makes you wonder what caused it. I try to tell myself that their sending their kids to Catholic schools is more than just a carryover from their upbringing and an attempt to appease grandparents but their whole situation is hard to figure. I try to keep them in my prayers, but some of what they say and do makes it easier to just not think about them.

Maybe those kids are still getting the Sacraments because someone is praying for them. Although one knows that God thirsts for their parents’ souls and so hopes that the parents will come back around to the faith, if that doesn’t happen one has to hope that at least the children will keep getting access to the faith and the grace of the sacraments in spite of their parent’s unbelief. Whatever you do, try not to rock that boat.