In Search of Heroes

By Dr James Dobson

Children nowadays live in a world without heroes, and that may be because we’ve taught them that genuine heroes don’t really exist. According to Mr Peter H Gobbon, headmaster of the Hackley School in New York, the tradition of teaching exemplary lives — the study of heroes and role models — has ended. My generation studied the courageous individuals who succeeded against all odds. Admittedly, some of these stories became a bit idealised, but they inspired us to reach for the best within us.

Today’s students know all the dirt and the weaknesses of human failure. Yes, Abraham Lincoln was politically calculating and he suffered from depression. But he exhibited astonishing political and moral courage and always appealed to “the better angels of our nature”.

I think parents must stand against this onslaught and help the next generation find worthy heroes again. How else can they tell good from bad? We should be cautious about emphasising human failure at too young an age so as not to shatter the idealism of youth. But most importantly, we need to start the study of exemplary lives at home — modelling the good and heroic for our own children. That’s where they will find lasting heroes.


From TODAY, Voices - Friday, 14-May-2010
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