The Hearth Room: A private Christian Montessori School in Kansas City's Northland


Our Beliefs
This page explains the beliefs adopted by our organization, which all staff have affirmed.
We have also addressed a few common questions below.
Do families have to agree with these beliefs in order to enroll in The Hearth Room?
No statement of faith is required for enrollment. Families of all types are welcome in the school. There is no discrimination in enrollment for any family who commits to honoring our beliefs while on site and at school functions.
How will topics related to sexuality be presented to students in the school?
We believe that conversations related to and demonstrations of sexuality are not appropriate for young children. Students will be encouraged to bring such topics to their parents. In reading the Bible, they may come across verses addressing such topics, and our staff will not try to gloss over what the Bible calls sin, even if it is not a popularly accepted view in today's culture. We aim, though, to consistently present this along with a reminder of the equal sin in every person, and the love and respect we are called to show to all people.
What is the political alignment of The Hearth Room?
The Hearth Room as an organization has no political party alignment. Our commitment is to obeying what God has commanded in the Bible, which may often times appear to be more in alignment with one party than another, but we do not endorse candidates, and we do not authorize campaigning at school functions or using school directories or platforms for such purposes. We do welcome peaceful discussions of and may sometimes share updates on legislative activities, particularly those that pertain to education or religion.
Our Beliefs
The following explains the beliefs adopted by our organization, which all staff have affirmed.
The following aspects of the Christian faith are integral to our mission and purposes, and they will be unapologetically presented in various ways through all grade levels. These will be considered primary doctrine for all activities. Other doctrinal issues determined to be “secondary” or “divisive” by the Board of Directors will not be presented as primary doctrine. If and when such “secondary” or “divisive” doctrinal issues arise, individuals will be referred to family and local churches for final clarification.
One God created everything that is, and He exists in three persons (commonly referred to as the Trinity), the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, working together in complete unity. God made humans perfectly in His own image, but we rebelled against His good authority and chose our own rebellious ways. Now we are guilty, and we suffer under the effects, which have tarnished all aspects of our lives: the spiritual, intellectual, psychological, social, and physical.
The Bible is God's loving letter to us to help us live our lives to the fullest. His commands were given to bless us, not to hinder us. The Bible was inspired by God, and it does not contain any mistakes. It is the authority over every area of our lives, and it is the only accurate standard of ethics. God's wisdom is superior to man's wisdom; even when we do not understand the practical reasons behind His instructions, we trust, because He has demonstrated His goodness over and over again.
Because of our choices to reject God's perfect plan and do our own inferior thing instead ("sin"), there was no hope for us, and we were forever separated from God--the source of all goodness--and we could never do enough good things to fix it. However, God loved us so much that He sent His only Son (who became fully human and lived a sinless life) to die a painful and humiliating death, taking the punishment for sin in our place. He died, and then demonstrated His total victory over sin and death by coming back to life.
Now, anyone who recognizes their need for salvation, puts their trust in Him, and accepts His amazing gift receives the grace we could never earn, and can look forward to an eternity in His presence. We can escape the penalty and power of sin through faith in Christ alone, and not through any goodness or moral effort of our own. There is no other route to redemption. Even our repentance is a result of the work of the Holy Spirit on our hearts. Although the world still suffers from the results of sin, we look forward to the day when Jesus returns to Earth to bring His Kingdom to fullness here.
We believe that God wonderfully and immutably creates each person as male or female. The Bible describes many times the ways these two distinct, complementary genders together reflect the image and nature of God and the relationship of Christ and the church. Therefore, the rejection of one’s biological sex is a rejection of the image of God within that person.
We see in the Bible that God intends sexual intimacy to occur only between a man and a woman who are married to each other. He commands that no intimate sexual activity be engaged in outside of this exclusive union. There are many ways in which humans have for many thousands of years tried to find satisfaction in other sexual practices, including lust, adultery, pornography, premarital sexual activity, homosexual behavior, bisexual conduct, bestiality, rape, and incest. All of these are equally called sin, and they are all a departure from God's perfect plan for us.
No person has lived a flawless life, and it is only through Jesus that any of us receives forgiveness. We firmly believe that every person must be afforded compassion, love, kindness, respect, and dignity. Hateful and harassing behavior or attitudes directed toward any individual are to be repudiated and are not in accord with Scripture.
While the Bible reminds us time and again to focus our energy on our own shortcomings, rather than to be preoccupied with the sins of others, it also includes instructions to resist the harmful practices of the culture around us and examples of instances when God's followers blatantly called out wrongs. Even Jesus, Himself, tore up the vendor stations in the temple when people were trying to make a profit off of those who were seeking to offer sacrifices to God. It is clear that it is unloving to allow someone to walk into disaster without warning them, which is what we are doing if we say that all behaviors are acceptable.
Christian View of Government: There is no authority except from God, and those that exist have been instituted by God. Therefore, whoever resists the authorities resists what God has appointed. (Romans 13:1-2). For God’s sake we are called to be model citizens. We are told to honor authorities, even to our own inconvenience or discomfort. (1 Peter 2:12-22, Titus 3:1). However, anytime a government requires a Christian to do what God forbids or forbids them to do what God commands, then the person must disobey. Furthermore, we are to resist the governmental promotion and legislation of ungodliness. (Acts 5:29, Exodus 1:15-17, Daniel 3:14-28)
Our organization affirms the duty and encourages individuals to pursue political and social change in a respectful manner and recognizes that the United States of America is founded upon its Constitution which includes its Amendments protecting The Hearth Room’s freedom of religion, speech, expression, privacy, assembly and right to due process among other numerous rights.
Educational Philosophy:
The school adheres to the philosophy that whatever might rightly be called a “Christian education” or “Christian curriculum” must teach the Biblical truth of Christ’s salvific lordship in alignment with the Holy Scripture. Any subject treated apart from such truth fails to meet the basic goal of education which is to impart true knowledge. Apart from Christ there is no true education, for --as He is the creator of all things--without Him true knowledge is impossible, therefore:
A Christian curriculum must include the study of Christ’s salvific lordship, which is not isolated to "religion class," but impacts the whole person and all they do.
A Christian curriculum must be taught by individuals who demonstrate its application in their own lives, including being regular attenders in good standing at a local community of faith that is in alignment with The Hearth Room’s Statement of Faith.
A Christian curriculum will result in thorough instruction that is evidenced by competent,
confident, and civil involvement in social, cultural and political matters to move our society towards alignment with Biblical principles towards the achievement of our mission.