Pride in Education

(This is not an article about LGBTQI+ issues in schools. Please move along nicely!)

I have been gnawing on my tongue over the years before saying this...

There is so much talk about pride in education. "We take pride in our appearance / work / achievements / the quality of our community and relationships" and pretty much any area of school life. Notice boards ask children: "What are you proud of today?".

I can kind of see positive versions of what such language might be trying to say - and of course I affirm that good intention.

If it means, other things being equal, we want to consistently try to do and be the best we can be then several cheers.

But, friends, remember this, the Christian faith and the Western Tradition which it has shaped has declared pride to be a deadly sin - perhaps the chief, primordial sin. Virtually any vaguely educated English speaker once knew that it goes before a fall (The Book of Proverbs 16:18. In the King James Version of the Bible).

The Romans did indeed celebrate pride and in the end it did not go well for them. See Fall of Rome (Google). Maybe we should save Western Civilisation by rewording our straplines and redesigning our school displays.

Christianity in fact introduced to the world an almost unheard of virtue: humility. That is, we should not think of ourselves more highly than we ought. Or maybe better, we should think not so much less of ourselves but of ourselves less. You are wonderful, but enough of that, what about others?

But the Christian still knows how to celebrate and even to boast. You see, our achievements are real and good. But they are all a result of grace, of gift. What do we have that we did not receive? There are no self made people. Yes, you did your bit, maybe, but Christians say God made you! Whether or not you buy that, what of your parents, friends, teachers, circumstances? If you think it is mostly down to your DNA well, why be proud of the accidents of genetics? In fact, if the universe is just chance, pride makes little sense - but that's getting a bit deep and off the point.

 So humility. But also gratitude and praise.

For the believer, let him who boasts boast in the Lord. And indeed, in the cross of Christ: the humility of God!