Does Prince George Going to Boarding School Have Biblical Precedent?

Boarding school 

Recently the UK’s Prince George, age 13, started boarding school at Eton College, like his father, Prince William, and uncle, Prince Harry, before him.

Many people of an ordinary American cultural background may look with amazement, even bewilderment, at the British boarding school tradition.

Many Americans, remembering J.D. Salinger’s 1951 novel, The Catcher in the Rye, the 1989 Robin Williams movie, Dead Poets Society, or other works, may be accustomed to the idea of boarding school as the place where frigid, elitist parents chillingly send their teens. Or the place where evil stepmothers discard unwanted stepchildren. Or the place where rebellious kids are punitively sent (e.g. military schools).

Many people of an ordinary American cultural background—if they can see beyond the cinematic legacy of boarding school as the refrigerator where rich kids are sent—may still struggle to understand what might look like the outsourcing of parenting.

Hannah

The phenomenon of residential education reminds me of Hannah, mother of the Old Testament prophet Samuel. She vowed to God that if given a son, “I will give him to the Lord all the days of his life.” (1 Samuel 1:11 NABRE)

After Samuel was weaned, Hannah and Elkanah, Samuel’s father, “brought the child to Eli” (1 Samuel 1:25 NABRE). Samuel’s exact age at this date is unknown; he may have been a toddler or preschool-age. Samuel would be raised at the tabernacle by Eli, the high priest. We best know Samuel for anointing King David (1 Samuel 16).

Hannah was most grateful for the gift of her son, Samuel, “‘I prayed for this child, and the Lord granted my request. Now I, in turn, give him to the Lord; as long as he lives, he shall be dedicated to the Lord.’” (1 Samuel 1:27-28 NABRE)

Saints Anne and Joachim 

Samuel was not the only person in biblical times to be presented by their parents to another party for their upbringing.

“It is held by tradition in the Catholic Church that the Virgin Mary was presented by her parents, St. Joachim and St. Anne, to the Temple in Jerusalem at a very early age. This entrance into the Temple, as well as any information we have concerning Mary’s parents, is mentioned in most Greek menologies (Church calendars) and in apocryphal (non-canonical) literature, including the Protoevangelium of James…Upon becoming pregnant as a much older woman, St. Anne consecrated her child to God in service to the Temple as a way of thanking Him. Though this may sound unusual to us, this was not an uncommon practice in their day…” (Marians of the Immaculate Conception)

Blessed Catherine Anne Emmerich wrote that Our Lady was age three when brought to the Temple by her parents. (MIC)

No good Catholic would ever accuse Saints Anne and Joachim of being anything less than stellar parents!

Perceptions and purposes

Maybe Prince William and Princess Catherine will miss their oldest son tremendously. 

Or maybe not so much, if in light of their culture’s traditions and customs (i.e. British high society), they see their parental roles as mostly concluding upon their children becoming teenagers and commencing full-time boarding. Just as many Americans see their parental roles as mostly concluding upon their children turning 18 or graduating from high school.

Perhaps the parents of boarding students, such as Prince George’s parents or other dedicated parents throughout the world, see boarding school as the best opportunity for their child to grow (thanks to rigorous education, enrichment opportunities, social connections, etc).

And perhaps they choose boarding school in the hopes that their child may someday serve (their world or society or community or corner of a kingdom or whatever) with the utmost excellence. Whether that be as royals or businesspersons or artists or educators or religious leaders or athletes or…

In other words, perhaps boarding school is a choice made for a perceived higher purpose.

Kind of like Hannah and kind of like Saints Anne and Joachim; their eyes were on the Lord.

May we recognize that the gifts God gives us, whether they be children or gifts of another kind, like talents or resources, must somehow (uniquely to our individual lives) be offered or “given away” for higher purposes, that is to say, God’s purposes.

Originally published on Seeking the Mercy in the Mundane on Substack. Subscribe for free on Substack to receive new reflections directly in your inbox.