REFLECTIONS ON DISCIPLINE

Reflections on Discipline.

I was born in the ’80s, a time when disciplinary beatings were considered a norm. My earliest encounter with corporal punishment did not come from my parents but from the Children’s Church at Deeper Life Bible Church. With parental consent, Sunday School teachers were permitted to enforce moral discipline through physical correction. By the age of 10, many children in the congregation could recite over 50 Bible verses effortlessly a testament to the regimented environment.  

My mother rarely resorted to physical discipline, but my father ensured his belt left indelible marks on our skin, which he believed instilled moral integrity. These experiences, though harsh, ingrained values that shaped my adulthood. Even after leaving my parents’ care at 15, the lessons of respect, peacekeeping, and avoiding wrongdoing stayed with me. My primary and secondary schools mirrored this ethos; corporal punishment was routine, and children had no recourse to object unless the discipline was deemed malicious.  

I suspect such practices faded by the late ’90s, as growing awareness of abuse led society to reject physical discipline for Generation Z. Now a parent myself, I empathize with modern sensitivities I would never tolerate a teacher injuring my child. Yet, paradoxically, my daughter’s home tutor still employs the cane. While I refrain from intervening, I’ve made it clear to my daughter that love guides our household, though I reserve the belt for extreme defiance.  

This upbringing, rooted in faith and rigor, shielded me from crime and misconduct. It taught me to choose my associations wisely, respect others, and remain steadfast in my faith. While I acknowledge the risks of past methods, I grapple with balancing old school discipline with today’s emphasis on gentler guidance.

Until the moment when will shall dance in white Greater Grace.

Oyugbo Osagie Jonah