Children Matter: Context

The authors of Children Matter have an interesting chapter on context - interesting for families and children's ministers. I'm still impressed by their insights and sensitivities.

"Our task is to translate and demonstrate messages of faith to children for their particular time and place. The tension is to respect the truth and timelessness of the scriptural message while at the same time being sensitive to the diversity of children's circumstances." (CHMT p. 116)

I'm understanding context as the relevance of a child's surroundings to the child and his/her faith. The emphasis here being relevance to the child.

Sometimes context is obvious. Sometimes recognizing context takes highly tuned observational skills and sensitivity. Respectful dialogue and open conversation between adults and children can help us understand ways that the context in which a child lives might affect him or her. Sometimes the things that affect adults also affect children - sometimes in the same way, sometimes in different ways. Sometimes children are more sensitive. Sometimes children are sensitive to different things in different ways than we are.

Here are some of the things they mentioned that can affect a child's growing faith:
-the family environment shaping the child
-ways that this particular child shapes his/her family and their environment

Sometimes the affect is positive, sometimes negative.

Context can be all or any combination of the following:
cultural heritage
school
day care
church
a parent's work world

Add
interconnected relationships between all these different spheres

Don't forget the affects of

the media
books, computers, radio, TV, videos, movies, advertising

the country they live in or the country of origin
world, national, and community events

Family customs, values, traditions

I don't remember if they mentioned this but I imagine leadership styles at home and
in all the other spheres in a child's life will affect him or her, especially if they're in conflict with one another. They touched that a little - the conflicts that can occur between the different influences in a child's life.

I was especially impressed by the authors' sensitivity to the historic context of the faith community to which a child belongs. They encourage not only the exchange of personal stories, community stories, stories about the role of this particular faith community in the larger community, but hunting for stories about the children's ministry there. Whether you love history or hate it, those who come before us affect our lives and our work today. It's worth taking the time to understand the "how."

They noticed that Moses couldn't help but be affected by bi-cultural influences. I'm guessing there are probably examples in scripture of most any situation we can think of if we're willing to take the time to go looking.

I liked their attention and sensitivity to the visual images and symbols that we use to communicate faith to children.

It's an interesting chapter. Context is always part of our lives but not necessarily something we think about.

How 'bout you? How did context affect your faith, as a child? How does it affect the children around you, now?