The Spirituality Of Children
Sermon
Despite the concern for children in the Church, children don't feature very highly in the Bible. In the New Testament, against the disciples' wishes, Jesus makes a point of welcoming children during his ministry (Matthew 19:13--14) and it's clear that children were present within the crowds gathered around Jesus (Matthew 14:21). And Jesus commends the faith and trust and innocence of children (Matthew 18:2--5), as necessary for those who wish to be part of God's kingdom. But children are not otherwise very prominent in many Bible stories.
One child who is prominent in the Old Testament was the child Samuel. His story is told in some detail, from the time his mother Hannah prayed for conception until the time when Samuel was called by God to deliver a message to the old priest Eli, his master. And Samuel grew up to become the first of a long line of distinguished and revered prophets in Israel's history.
Perhaps because Samuel's childhood and life were venerated by the Jews, the only stories we have of the childhood of Jesus resemble the story of Samuel quite closely. In today's Old Testament reading and in today's Gospel reading, the same phrase is used of both Samuel and Jesus as children: "(they) continued to grow both in stature and in favor with the Lord and with the people."
Both their mothers, Hannah and Mary, greet their first pregnancies with songs of praise and thanksgiving, and both babies were very special babies. Both babies were dedicated to the Lord and both grew up having a very close relationship with God. Both are also connected to the temple in some way, especially in today's readings.
Samuel was an altar boy living in the temple with Eli and today's reading adds that wonderfully human touch to the story, "His mother used to make for him a little robe and take it to him each year, when she went up with her husband to offer the yearly sacrifice."
We can only guess at Hannah's heartbreak as she left her dearly loved son at the temple for God to use as God wished. Perhaps her heartbreak prefigures Mary's heartbreak when Mary stood at the foot of the cross and watched her son slowly dying there. But despite the pain, both women were content to give their sons over into God's presence and both mothers were content to follow the path God required of them, no matter how hard they found that path.
And both boys were remarkable children. Eli doesn't sound like a very convincing priest, for his own sons were a disgrace and were the subject of God's warning and God's wrath, a warning which was delivered via Samuel. But the decadent ways practised in the temple at the time don't seem to have rubbed off on Samuel, who was a model of childhood innocence.
God spoke to the child Samuel when he was asleep in bed, and God's voice was so clear in Samuel's mind that he thought Eli had called him.
When Jesus was discovered in the temple discussing theology with the priests, they were amazed at his wisdom, wisdom that came directly from God. In both cases, the boys were listened to and treated with respect by their teachers, who recognised God working within the lives of the two boys.
Children today still have an innate spirituality which we ignore at our peril. Whilst it may be important for children to learn Bible stories, it may be even more important for them to learn how to develop and express their spirituality. Many adults today have turned away from God and Christianity because their spiritual development has been arrested at Sunday School stage. Many adults today have little idea of how to pray, other than by reciting set prayers or telling God all their requirements -- so--called "cupboard" prayers. Many people have difficulty listening to God, communing with God at any depth or interpreting God's voice. The inner spirituality of meditation, so well developed within some Eastern religions such as Buddhism, has been almost entirely neglected within Western spirituality, leaving our children and our adults bereft.
No wonder our churches fail to appeal to the majority of the population. We tend to be very good at religion, but not so good at spirituality. Those who yearn for authentic spirituality turn to Eastern mysticism or New Age philosophies or foreign religions to satisfy their needs, but seldom turn immediately to the Church of England. Perhaps, if we want to produce spiritually aware adults we should encourage and develop our children's natural spirituality and teach our children how to listen to God as Samuel listened, and how to discuss theology as Jesus discussed theology.
It's somewhat ironic that today, as well as being the first Sunday after Christmas is also Holy Innocents' Day, the day when Herod is said to have sent his soldiers to massacre all the small boys in Bethlehem. Herod was afraid of those children in case one of them was the promised Messiah.
We don't need to fear our children's hidden depths, their spirituality. Let's make sure we aren't continuing to massacre our children, by failing to enable them to blossom into spiritual beings.
One child who is prominent in the Old Testament was the child Samuel. His story is told in some detail, from the time his mother Hannah prayed for conception until the time when Samuel was called by God to deliver a message to the old priest Eli, his master. And Samuel grew up to become the first of a long line of distinguished and revered prophets in Israel's history.
Perhaps because Samuel's childhood and life were venerated by the Jews, the only stories we have of the childhood of Jesus resemble the story of Samuel quite closely. In today's Old Testament reading and in today's Gospel reading, the same phrase is used of both Samuel and Jesus as children: "(they) continued to grow both in stature and in favor with the Lord and with the people."
Both their mothers, Hannah and Mary, greet their first pregnancies with songs of praise and thanksgiving, and both babies were very special babies. Both babies were dedicated to the Lord and both grew up having a very close relationship with God. Both are also connected to the temple in some way, especially in today's readings.
Samuel was an altar boy living in the temple with Eli and today's reading adds that wonderfully human touch to the story, "His mother used to make for him a little robe and take it to him each year, when she went up with her husband to offer the yearly sacrifice."
We can only guess at Hannah's heartbreak as she left her dearly loved son at the temple for God to use as God wished. Perhaps her heartbreak prefigures Mary's heartbreak when Mary stood at the foot of the cross and watched her son slowly dying there. But despite the pain, both women were content to give their sons over into God's presence and both mothers were content to follow the path God required of them, no matter how hard they found that path.
And both boys were remarkable children. Eli doesn't sound like a very convincing priest, for his own sons were a disgrace and were the subject of God's warning and God's wrath, a warning which was delivered via Samuel. But the decadent ways practised in the temple at the time don't seem to have rubbed off on Samuel, who was a model of childhood innocence.
God spoke to the child Samuel when he was asleep in bed, and God's voice was so clear in Samuel's mind that he thought Eli had called him.
When Jesus was discovered in the temple discussing theology with the priests, they were amazed at his wisdom, wisdom that came directly from God. In both cases, the boys were listened to and treated with respect by their teachers, who recognised God working within the lives of the two boys.
Children today still have an innate spirituality which we ignore at our peril. Whilst it may be important for children to learn Bible stories, it may be even more important for them to learn how to develop and express their spirituality. Many adults today have turned away from God and Christianity because their spiritual development has been arrested at Sunday School stage. Many adults today have little idea of how to pray, other than by reciting set prayers or telling God all their requirements -- so--called "cupboard" prayers. Many people have difficulty listening to God, communing with God at any depth or interpreting God's voice. The inner spirituality of meditation, so well developed within some Eastern religions such as Buddhism, has been almost entirely neglected within Western spirituality, leaving our children and our adults bereft.
No wonder our churches fail to appeal to the majority of the population. We tend to be very good at religion, but not so good at spirituality. Those who yearn for authentic spirituality turn to Eastern mysticism or New Age philosophies or foreign religions to satisfy their needs, but seldom turn immediately to the Church of England. Perhaps, if we want to produce spiritually aware adults we should encourage and develop our children's natural spirituality and teach our children how to listen to God as Samuel listened, and how to discuss theology as Jesus discussed theology.
It's somewhat ironic that today, as well as being the first Sunday after Christmas is also Holy Innocents' Day, the day when Herod is said to have sent his soldiers to massacre all the small boys in Bethlehem. Herod was afraid of those children in case one of them was the promised Messiah.
We don't need to fear our children's hidden depths, their spirituality. Let's make sure we aren't continuing to massacre our children, by failing to enable them to blossom into spiritual beings.
