Nov
9
Written by:
Different Voice
11/9/2009 7:00 AM
In the minds of many, Christian Education is synonymous with Sunday School. Certainly Sunday School is one place that Christian Education takes place. But many more opportunities for Christian Education exist! Besides the Sunday School classroom, where else does Christian Education occur?
To consider this question, it may be helpful to begin by defining what Christian Education is and reviewing its purpose. It is likely that every person involved in Christian Education would offer a slightly different definition and purpose. Here are my ideas. (I invite you to offer your own ideas by posting a comment.)
Christian Education is the ministry of providing information and tools to enable persons to grow in their faith. Inherent in this definition is the idea that we meet people wherever they are at on their faith journey and encourage them to take the next step. To expand on this definition, the purpose of Christian Education is to equip persons to:
- know and experience God through Jesus Christ
- claim and live God’s promises and
- grow and serve as Christian disciples.
If we consider the ministries of our church using this definition of Christian Education, we may find ourselves asking whether there is any ministry which does not involve Christian Education. All of our ministries in some way address the purpose Christian Education.
- Ministries where the Christian Education aspect is easy to see include Sunday School, Bible studies, Vacation Bible School and Confirmation.
- When we gather for worship, we join together as a Christian community to praise God. As we do so we learn the prayers, hymns, stories and traditions of our faith community. Sermons educate and often challenge us to grow in our faith.
- When we gather together for group activities such as choirs, meal opportunities, church softball leagues and so forth, we strengthen our connection with one another. These connections enable us to support and encourage one another as we attempt to live as Christian disciples.
- Mission activities, ranging from a couple hours spent serving locally to an extended trip away from our homes to participate in mission together, provide many opportunities for Christian Education. We learn many things as we prepare for, participate in and reflect on these experiences.
- Some church-wide events, such as the annual chicken and noodle supper (or whatever the equivalent event is at your church) may seem at first to have no Christian Education component. As a church prepares to make such an event happen, we learn that we can work together as a Christian community. These events are often intergenerational and provide opportunities to pass along the history and stories of our community.
This list could go on and on. I encourage you to think about your church’s ministries and how each one is an opportunity for Christian education. Are there ways that you can be more intentional about Christian education that happens outside the classroom?
~Sally Hoelscher