Feb
13
Written by:
host
2/13/2009 7:00 AM
Before I dive in, let me share a quick story I heard recently that I'll come back to later. Here's the gist of the story: An elderly member of a Native American tribe was talking with a young man. He told the young man there are two wolves of equal power within us. One is good natured, loving and nurturing of others, and compassionate. The other is evil, filled with anger and jealousy and selfishness. The two wolves struggle within us every day.
The young man asked, "If they are of equal power, which one wins?"
"Whichever one you feed."
Like most people, I have a number of interests and hobbies that occasionally get my attention--reading, ancient coins, computers (Macs first, PCs second), cats, vegetarian cooking, and others. I read magazines about them, participate in Yahoo groups with others who have the same interests, surf eBay for stuff related to them, and so on. Given the opportunity, I'd probably spend much more time and money enjoying these interests.
In today's world, it's very easy to enjoy one's own interests and barely ever have to come in contact with the interests or concerns of others. Niche websites, magazines, and other media forms allow the person who is only interested in saving the Flat-spired three-toothed Snail to associate with others who are like-minded, at least on that issue.
Sometimes I wonder about the many individuals in churches who never participate in Sunday school, Bible studies, small groups, or other educational activities of the church. Why is this? "Don't they understand what they can gain?" I think to myself. "They didn't stop seeking education after junior high or high school, so why did they stop seeking Christian education at around that time? Why aren't they interested in what we're offering?"
To answer this, let me speak for a moment from my own perspective. When I engage in my hobbies and interests, it's hard for me to do so outside the perspective of my faith. Books I read--whether or not they are religious in content--inform my faith. My diet is profoundly connected to my spiritual understandings. My interest in ancient coins gives me new insights when interpreting the Bible. In short, my own faith colors the way I see and experience the world. It isn't an interest category.
For Christian education to be seen as something other than an interest to squeeze into a busy week, we as Christian educators need to do a lot better job of communicating this truth. We're all about worldviews, life metaphors, spiritual living, personal and communal growth. We're all about seeing life differently and thinking about our own interests in new ways. We're "big picture" people, helping spiritual seekers make sense of and see meaning in the everyday stuff of life. Yes, we deal in the information business, but we're even more interested in transformation of people and the cosmos.
A Barna Group study found a tremendous growth in the number of churches that offer customizable curriculum and options for people of all ages. I'm definitely in favor of this, because I think churches should be interested in choice. Yet it's not choice that is the ultimate driver of our program, but our desire to help people continually be "in-formed" in ways that are meaningful to them. All the while, there should be a thread--or more of a chain, really--that connects our options together: these classes nurture your faith and prepare you for service in the world.
Christian education, in short, feeds the good wolf so the other wolf goes hungry.
~ Tim Gossett