Breaking bread, opening minds...

The first few blogs have been written by Ashley Haggard, with the insights from a few parishioners.  This week, Becky Moseman, Director of Youth and Young Adults, writes about the transforming experience Church Down Under has been for her children.

As a parent I often wonder, “Is my son or daughter really getting anything out of church?” when they surprise me.  When my son was two he made it known that he wanted to take communion.  Not so much in his words; he walked up to the priest like everyone else and wondered why he didn’t get the host, the bread of heaven, that Mommy did.  He’d look at the plate and look at me and I saw the question in his eyes- “why don’t I get any?”  I knew then that my son got what communion was about.  Even adults can get lost in or argue over the theological mystery of the Eucharistic feast, but the main idea that we come together as a community to worship and break bread together, my son understood.  Who am I to intervene in God’s work in my child?  If exclusion is my big beef with other denominations can I really exclude my son from taking communion?  In reflection on this and other children-in-church anecdotes, several thoughts became clear.  Children, much like adults, gravitate to certain parts of worship they find meaningful and going to church means participating in those things.  For some it is music, while others it is the lighting of prayer candles.  For my son, at age two, it was receiving communion.  It was an active part of the service he could physically engage in- we walked up to the front of the church, crossed ourselves, held out our hands, and something special was given to us. 

Our children are spiritual beings.  There is no switch we turn on to activate their curiosity about the world and its creator.  They don’t separate their openness to the Holy Spirit so why should I think they do, or maybe I should ask, why do I?  These little ones want to serve as Christ told us we are supposed to.  Our baptismal covenant asks us to guide our children in their spiritual journeys until they feel they are ready to take over their own spiritual nourishment.  Watching my son, I saw he was already taking responsibility, one step at a time. 

Last year, we started a family oriented service.  Church Down Under as it is called came out of watching children like my son and thinking up ways children could connect to other parts of our liturgy in a tangible way.  From conversations with other parents, I’ve heard repeatedly that these children look forward to and are eager to participate in the service through these hands-on experiences.  Writing a prayer on a card we read aloud for our Prayers of the People and hanging it on our prayer wall or washing away our sins on our confession stones we put in a glass bowl, physically engage all who participate.  The shocking part is that the adults feel they have really been to worship during the service too.  Instead of herding children from under the pew the families are acting out the gospel or figuring out a way to rewrite the story so that the rich man could have been a good neighbor to Lazarus.  I watch my daughter who just turned three to see what is important to her.  She must put her rock in the bowl, and while she was into “The Little Mermaid,” we prayed a lot for “The Sea Witch” who made a lot of bad choices.  Communion is important to my daughter too.  This time I’m not wrestling her in the pew to sit or entertain her with toys brought from home.  Instead I watch her to see the ways in which she is open to Holy Spirit, and that is truly a spiritual experience.

I say a little prayer for you

Think about the things people pray for.  As grown-ups, it's usually big, important things.  Often when we pray, we're asking for something-- for guidance, for help, for change.  We pray when we're upset or hurt or afraid.  We pray when we're lost or alone.  But that probably wasn't always the case.  There was a time in our lives when all our prayers were much simpler, but no less important.
Every Sunday, at the beginning of the 9 and 11 am services, children follow the crucifer down the aisle to Children's Chapel, their own special time with God.  During Children's Chapel, children receive their very own version of what's going on downstairs in the narthex.  But upstairs, the stories come from a children's bible, the sermon consists of a craft and the prayers are adapted to teach them the concepts that our faith is founded on, while putting it in terms that children are familiar with.
If you ask any Children's Chapel leader they will tell you the same thing.  The way that children pray is very different than adults.  Ask a group of children what they would like to pray for and you will get responses like "my dog" or "my grandma because she makes the best cookies" or "sunshine".  They want to talk to God about the simple pleasures in life, the things that make them smile or laugh.  Very rarely do they express stress or sadness in their petitions.  When they talk to God, it's a conversation of thanks for the little things in life.
Next time you feel overwhelmed or stressed, try taking a lesson from a child.  Talk to God.  Tell God what you need.  But end by giving thanks for the cool breeze while you mow the lawn, or that moment when you get home and your dog can hardly contain herself she's so excited to see you.
 Let me leave you with a little prayer from the Children's Chapel curriculum.  This is the Children's Creed (a children's version of the Nicene Creed.)

I believe in God above.
I believe in  Jesus love.
I believe his Spirit, too,
Comes to tell us what to do.
I believe that I can be,
Kind and gentle, Lord like thee.
Amen.

In the beginning...

Sacraments.  You may or may not know what those are.  For those who don't, the "Outline of the Faith" in the BCP defines it as "outward and visible signs of inward and spiritual grace"(BCP, pg. 857).  There are seven big ones recognized by the church (Baptism, Eucharist, confirmation, ordination, marriage, reconciliation and unction).
So why, if those are sacraments, am I giving you a Catechism lesson?  And why name a blog focused on children and youth "Living Sacraments"?  Because to me, and I hope that many of you would agree, sacraments are much more than the big events that mark one's life.  They are the ordinary, day-to-day activities which shape us and help us discern the "big ones".  Without the basic building blocks of faith can we ever reach the Sacraments that the church lays out for us in the back of the BCP?
The goal of this blog is to let those who don't have children, whose children are grown, or for those who are just curious, know just what is going on in those classrooms on the third floor, or on pilgrimages, or downstairs at the church down under.  This is meant to be from the perspective of the ones who live it- the parents, the teachers and most important from the kids.
If you've ever spent time wandering around Trinity, as I have for the last 24 years of my life, you might have noticed the scripture carved in to the stone above the doors of the church.  "Mine house shall be called an house of prayer for all people."  This scripture from Isaiah calls us to embrace even the most meek to come and pray among us.  Godly Play is the Sunday school program we use for children at Trinity.  Through this program, children learn to be a part of the church through lessons and stories.  Greg and Susie Cross put their daughter in Godly Play to help her learn about the church service so she could participate.  Greg told us about his daughter's experience with Godly Play:

"I asked my daughter what it was that she liked about Godly Play at Trinity.  Megan, who is six, had a very interesting answer.  'They have good stories about Jesus and God, then we have playtime and then we get to go with Mom and Dad.'  So I asked her what she liked about the stories, and her answer was 'I like having two stories in one day about Jesus and God – one in Sunday school and one in Church!'  I sure am glad that she is enjoying learning about God and that Godly Play is a two-for-one deal!"


It just goes to show that even though it may sometimes seem that we've heard a scripture a thousand times, there's someone listening, maybe with tiny ears, who finds it new and exciting.  If we all take the enthusiasm that Megan has fostered through Godly Play toward the scripture, we might learn something new and exciting ourselves.