“The Greek word for an ancient concept, Paideia, has no exact English translation. It is essentially the part of upbringing and education that forms the soul of a human being — and it is key to the formation of a culture. At its core, paideia motivates our decisions and behavior, through our affections. Because it influences each person in a culture, paideia forms a culture. How do we think? How do we vote? Do we marry? Do we have large families? Small families? Do we do productive things? Start a revolution? A million actions lie on the surface. Layers of influence and supposition lie under each decision. Paideia lies at the deepest level. It is the blueprint of thought, affections, and narrative through which every one of us views everything. Because it is the building block of culture, it determines the future of a people.
Paideia is transferred through education, in a broad sense. Formal education plays a part, but so does our family life and the society around us. Paideia is hard to see because it’s so deeply set in us. It’s molded in childhood, and most malleable through college age. Paideia is hard to define because it, in many ways, defines who we are. This ‘bootstrapping’ makes paideia difficult to fully appreciate. We live in a world shaped by paideia, and yet we take it for granted. In fact, most people have never heard the word. And yet this word was foundational to Greek thought, and was more commonly used in America up until the 1900s. The stakes are high. Paideia is the primary ingredient in forming culture and thus civilization. And we’ve recently seen what it looks like when civilization begins to break down.”
― Association of Classical Christian Schools (ACCS)
EPHESIANS 6:4
4 Fathers, do not provoke your children to anger, but bring them up in the discipline [paideia] and instruction of the Lord. [Editor’s emphasis]
PAUL’S PRAYER FOR WISDOM
And so, from the day we heard, we have not ceased to pray for you, asking that you may be filled with the knowledge of his will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, so as to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to him: bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God; being strengthened with all power, according to his glorious might, for all endurance and patience with joy; giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in light.
Providence School of Tifton 