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TABLE GRACE FOR THE SEASON OF PENTECOST:

Dear Lord,

You have blessed us with many amazing gifts.

We have the shining sun, clear air, cool waters, and plentiful food from the earth.

Thank you for these gifts.

Teach us to use them wisely;

In Jesus’ name we pray.

Amen

 

The following is the August, 2008 article for the Family Faith Formation Series which appears in the monthly newsletter. We hope you take the time to reflect on the Biblical passages and the ideas, to get grounded on this journey with your family and with God.

    Now that I am back from Chicago, let’s continue in our study of the ELCA’s new social statement, Our Calling in Education.  This month, we will look at the section on children.

 “Let the little children come to me”

     While adults are responsible for their own life learning, they also bear a particular responsibility to nurture the faith of the next generation.  The Bible as well as church history testifies to the significance of educating children in the faith.  Passing on the faith to a new generation begins in infancy and continues through adulthood.

     Jesus invited the children and so we are to welcome children, teaching and learning from them in ways that recognize their dignity and complexity.

For example, children are both:

gifts of God, and sinful creatures and moral agents.

 fully human and made in the image of God, and developing beings who need instruction.

models and teachers of faith, and orphans, neighbors, and strangers in need of justice and compassion.

      Christians enrich our welcoming of children to a life of faith by holding together these diverse perspectives on whom they are.  Because they are gifts of God, for example, we will respect their dignity and bring joy, laughter, and a sense of obligation into teaching and forming them in home and congregation.  Because they – like all the baptized – are sinners as well as saints and in need of instruction, we will emphasize the vital role of families in instilling the habits and practices of faithful living, and we will develop substantial congregational programs of faith formation.  We will introduce them to good examples, mentors, and stories of faith and service and help them discern their callings.  Remembering that Jesus saw children as teachers of the faith, we will listen attentively to them, honor their insights and questions, and learn from them.  We will give special attention to children who are most vulnerable and those who have been wounded, and we will become stronger advocates for them.

Something to think about from Sandra:

How do you guide the faith formation of children in your care?  How can you help with the faith formation of the young people of our church family?

 Next time:  A Mutual Environment of Living Faith

 + peace and joy,

Sandra Barnes, AiM

 

 

 

 

           


 

 
 

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