Has Education Become Passé' ?
I’ve decided that we should let our children
decide whether or not they feel like going to school. After all, families
are over booked as it is and most families exhibit good reading, math and
educational qualities that children will pick up along the way. Children are
too tired to get to school so early and with the nice fall days they need to
be outside playing with their friends and enjoying the day.
Most parents will not agree with my theory but plenty of us would be willing
to say the same thing about the religious education of our children. Parents
have told me that the swimming team meets are on Sunday and their children
need to be there if they want to be on the swimming team. Others have told
me that at a certain age they have decided to let their children make their
own decision if they want to go to Sunday School. The reality is that, for
many people, the church is far down the line in important learnings for our
children. Yet, when they grow older and look for a sense of meaning many of
them turn to cultish like organizations for their sense of belonging. Funny,
soccer hasn’t done it for them!
This may sound pretty harsh for parents who are struggling to do the best
they can for their children – and I agree – it is serious. We don’t want to
‘force religion’ on our children but we have no trouble forcing math,
reading or computer science on them. The former we see as optional in their
life and the other as building life skills. What children learn in Sunday
School isn’t so much about Bible stories or the history of liturgics. Sunday
School is about becoming part of the Christian Community and taking our part
in the life and ministry of the church. Perhaps this lack of Sunday school
attendance is a comment on our families who are, also, struggling for
community and belonging. Often the same adults and children who do not come
to Sunday School are the same families that are struggling to find a time to
eat together, have a family day or read a book together. Usually it means
that we are unwilling to give up some part of our schedule to receive
something else.
When my children were young they could be a bit pokey on Sunday mornings and
it always seemed like it was Sunday when the dryer overheated or the toilet
overflowed. Often times I felt like I was muttering under my breath: Get IN
the car NOW! It’s time to go and love Jesus! (said with a very sarcastic
tone!). Another young mother once told me that when she was having
difficulty in getting her children to church she would ask them how much
math they would understand if they only occasionally went to math class?
Somehow that stuck with me and, like math class, Sunday school became
something important and essential in equipping my children for their adult
life. I didn’t feel so bad about my muttering! What my children learned in
church was an important life skill. When times get tough and hard for my
children – and we will all have those times in our life- I want them to
remember what they learned in Sunday school. God loves us – there is
strength in community life and prayer and – we are never alone. Maybe
everything we ever need to know – we learn in Sunday School.
Another thing – Do as I say and not as I do – never worked with my children.
There are two adult offerings for Sunday School as well.
--Mother LaRae+
