![]() Mercer notes that the Gospel of Mark is rich in counter-cultural claims for children and all who are oppressed or neglected. ![]() The subversive work of children is not limited to the first gospel. Of course, the larger story is that this pathetic pseudo-king dies and the Baby King still reigns. Meanwhile, the Christ Child (the real king) is a homeless, undocumented immigrant on the run, with an assassin’s target on his tiny back. A paranoid, power-crazed King Herod slaughters innocent, defenseless babies for no other reasons than to secure his hold on power and terrorize anyone who gets in his way. Matthew 2:13-23 is often overlooked in our traditional Advent and Christmas readings and sermons, mostly because this story is so unspeakably violent and sickening. “Our approach to these little ones shows us how we really feel about other excluded and weak persons.” Can our culture hear this message in a fresh way? In what ways are we sacrificing our children on the altar of success, marketing and greed? He warns Israel not to offer up her daughters and sons to the local god, Molech. In Jeremiah 32:35, the prophet addresses the horrendous practice of child sacrifice. Quite to the contrary, scripture’s accounts of children provide subversive stories which expose pride, hatred and entrenched, institutionalized evil. Bible stories which reference children are not intended as saccharine to sweeten otherwise dull Sunday school lessons. Through their innocence, curiosity and lack of pretension, we experience the Kingdom of God more authentically.ģ. Furthermore, these boys and girls become a portal for us. Our approach to these little ones shows us how we really feel about other excluded and weak persons. Since children are without social agency, they become a mirror for us. Our attitudes toward children reveal much about what is in our own hearts regarding all marginalized and devalued people. In Welcoming Children: A Practical Theology of Childhood (2005), author Joyce Ann Mercer emphasizes that children are not window dressing nor is the Sunday children’s sermon just a clever way to say something memorable to adults.Ģ. Getting past sentimental and dismissive attitudes toward little ones requires hitting a reset button. ![]() Regrettably, too many churches focus on children’s ministry as a means to an end (“Let’s go after the kids and then we’ll get their parents”) instead of seeing them as an end in themselves – human beings in the image xof God, with much to teach us. We are called to minister with children, not merely to them. My study and preparation took me on an amazing journey that produced some important lessons and reminders about the subversive gift of children.ġ. The topic was children and justice: how biblical perspectives on children can inform our larger work of justice for all humans. Earlier this summer I presented a paper for a workshop at the Baptist World Alliance in Zurich, Switzerland.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |