A Muslim prayer leader was brought into a local elementary school in order to teach non-Muslim students about Islam as part of the school’s diversity curriculum. However, some parents were outraged once a video surfaced revealing what the school’s teacher was doing during the religious lesson.
As part of Denmark’s diversity effort, children aged 8 or 9 were instructed by a Muslim boy in what appears to be a classroom at Thyregod school in the Vejle municipality. The third-graders gathered behind the child, who is reportedly from Sudan, and watched as he performed the routine Islamic declaration on a prayer mat.
Because of mass immigration, Europe has adopted diversity and multicultural curricula for the public education system. In an effort to integrate the fast-growing Muslim minority, nations like Denmark are spending millions of dollars on these types of programs. However, some believe that it’s not the Muslim children being taught to integrate but the Danish children being encouraged to adapt to the Islamic way of life.
While the video started off as a cultural tutorial, some viewers were soon disturbed by not only the students’ reaction but also their teacher’s behavior. In the video, the Muslim boy is seen walking students through the daily prayer ritual as their own teacher eagerly encourages them to declare “Allahu akbar” and pray to the Islamic god.
The children, presumably most of whom are Christian, were coerced into repeatedly bowing before Allah and declaring that the Islamic deity is the god above all others, which is the very meaning behind the phrase “Allahu akbar.” Most disturbingly, the students giggle as they worship another god, violating their own religious precepts.
The principal of Thyregod elementary school defended the Islamic lesson, which was part of the district’s “getting to know each other” week, in which students learn about pupils of different cultures, TjekDet reports. Gert Hougaard explained that the lesson aligns with the national curriculum.
“Looking at the legislation, it says that we must spread the knowledge of different religions, including also the practical understanding, so yes, I think it was a good way to teach children about religion,” Hougaard said.
Hougaard attempted to quell the upset by assuring viewers that the children learned about many cultures. He explained that they also shared Polish cuisine because one student has a Polish background. However, he fails to acknowledge that eating foreign foods is vastly different from encouraging students to adopt a religion’s precepts. In fact, the children weren’t asked to pray a Catholic prayer as part of the Polish culture.
“This class had a course of education they called ‘getting to know each other.’ There are children with different backgrounds in the class. One day, for example, they received food from Poland, as a child from the class has Polish ancestors. Another day in the process, this boy on the video presented to his classmates how he was praying,” said Hougaard.
Hougaard seemingly believes that for children to connect with their classmates, they must participate in their religious practices. However, we can guarantee that Muslim children aren’t being coerced into asking Jesus into their hearts, confessing their sins to a Catholic priest, or reciting the Jewish prayer Amidah in a synagogue.
It’s unknown whether parents approved of the lesson beforehand or even if they were aware that the curriculum would include encouraging children to worship the Muslim god. However, the video has since caused an uproar, suggesting that the school was not forthcoming about its lesson plan.
Ironically, the West, which is predominantly Christian, is the only place in the world that embraces other religions and teaches children about diversity in a positive light. In over 50 Muslim-majority countries, this type of teaching is forbidden, as only Islamic teaching is allowed in schools.
The religious indoctrination continues to poison the public education system, but only through one-sided teaching. Sadly, it will only spread as it is emboldened by the inaction of parents and communities.
