Tuesday, October 23, 2007

Preaching

So what is preaching? The word has always had a slightly negative connotation to me. Yet I find myself in the situation where I am going to do some - as early as this Sunday. You might guess that I want to make this a positive experience - for those who listen, hear, or are present as well as for myself.

The topic for my foray into preaching will be "children in a faith community." The selections I chose for this week to support what I hope to say come from various sources. The first is from the Gospel of Mark. The second comes from The Prophet by Kahlil Gibran. The final, and very short one, is from Teilhard de Chardin. So I guess I go from traditional, to new age, to a former Catholic priest and philosopher. Who knew?

My point in what I want to say regards the importance children play in the community of a church or faith group. They are not simply there because their parents want to be part of the church. They are there to teach us, to model for us, to help us clarify who we are, and to integrate with us. They certainly are here to learn as well, but they give much more than they take.

I think that's what has been missing from our work in the past. We have seemed to tolerate kids, but they really haven't had much of an opportunity to share with us.

I need to contemplate this some more. Later....
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1 comment:

Yes, I'm Catholic said...

You're right. In society in general we seem to just "tolerate" kids.

Now that my daughter is a teen, I've noticed especially how some teens are barely tolerated, even by their parents. Now that they've grown enough to express themselves and sometimes (gasp!) disagree with us, it seems instead of being proud, some parents start counting the days until their child can leave home.

I should add, though, that even young kids are more often seen a burden than an asset, even from people who wanted to raise children.

Let me state for the record, I don't know what I'd do without my daughter. Her friends are good people, too. It's a fun age (but they all are) where they're grappling with issues.

Some are thoughtful, others think they have all the answers already, but at least they're thinking. I hate to admit it, but I was one of those who had all the answers.

Some adults are that way, too.

As for your title...to me, it's "preaching" when you're just saying a bunch of words to try to teach a lesson. When you speak from the heart, it's sharing.

I go to a church with a priest who glows with his love of God when he speaks. He never fails to leave us with something to think about.

That's not preaching. That's sharing his passion, not unlike great bands do with their music.

That's what you do.

I'm glad you commented on my blog. That's how I found yours.

(Sigh) I gotta stop reading, though, and get back to work.

November 7, 2007 at 7:35 AM

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