The Kitchen Sink
An occasional piece of paper
December 12, 2010
Vol. 13 no. 49
“And a little child shall lead them” was Isaiah’s subtle last word last week. He meant by this child the coming into being of a new world in which the simplicity of a child would direct its agenda. The specific identity of the child was never suggested, but Christians knew that the new world was being renewed right from the beginning, a new born infant. The Christ child would lead us into a new world, a new way of life, and while Jesus naturally grew up into adulthood, he was still a child in spirit.
Children are never out of place in the church, though we tend to forget occasionally. It’s not that we find them too noisy, but that they are not yet adult in their thinking and perspectives. The old institution of “junior church” expresses that idea that what children do at best is an elementary imitation of the real thing. Too bad, many of you say that you get more out of the Children’s Time than you do out of the sermon, and often that is the case. Children see the world differently than we do and go about matters with more energy than we can muster. Sure, there are times when children are selfish, unruly and unkind to one another – is that any different from us adults? Jesus called us not to be child-ish, but to be child-like. We find it easier to be childish even when we are old.
So Christmas pageants and stories are the perfect time for children to experience the Old Story the way they like best. Children usually prefer to imagine themselves living out the stories of the characters. That imagination should never end, but it is telling which characters we line ourselves with! We know that the Bible does not always tell a kind and nice story; let’s listen carefully to how our children play it out.
Knox-Metropolitan United Church
Regina, Saskatchewan