Comment from: Raymond Gombach (01/11/08)
I'm completely in sync with Tim Coombs, when he comments on telling to children, saying: "... when I focused on telling the story primarily and didn't worry about some pithy conclusion ...the experience has been much better."

Tim's closing is also well worth repeating: "Often the simplest, rudimentary means get their attention best ..."

Both Lynn and Tim and I are in full agreement on this issue, that is: Rule #1 ... just tell the story.

Here's how I tell Moses and the burning bush to children ...

Paying Close Attention -- Exodus 3:1-6

Before Moses was a leader of the Jewish people, he was a shepherd. One day, while tending his flock, he came upon a bush that was burning ...it was on fire, but the bush didn't burn up! As Moses continued to stare at this awesome sight, God spoke to Moses for the first time. Let's hear the story from the book of Exodus ...

Moses was watching over the flock of his father-in-law Jethro, the priest of Midian; he led his flock beyond the wilderness, and came to Horeb, the mountain of God. There the angel of the Lord appeared to Moses ... in a flame of fire out of a bush! Moses looked, and saw that the bush was blazing, yet it was not burned up! Then Moses said, 'I must turn aside and look at this great sight, and see why the bush is not burned up.' When the Lord saw that Moses had turned aside to see, God called to him out of the bush, 'Moses, Moses!' And Moses said, 'Here I am.' Then God said, 'Come no closer! Remove the sandals from your feet, for the place on which you are standing is holy ground.' He said further, 'I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.' And Moses hid his face, for he was afraid to look at God. Moses at the Burning BushAmen! - Exodus 3:1-6

Rabbi Lawrence Kushner once said, "Sometimes people say that God used the burning bush to attract Moses' attention. But suppose you were God and could do anything you wanted; you know, split an ocean or make the sun stand still ... stuff like that. Compared to such spectacular displays, a burning bush is not very impressive. So why did God choose such a modest miracle?"

Well, maybe the burning bush wasn't a miracle, but a test. God wanted to find out if Moses could see mystery in something as ordinary as a little bush on fire. You see, Moses had to watch the flames long enough to realize that the branches were not being consumed ... and that something awesome was happening, or about to happen.

Once God saw that Moses could pay attention, God spoke to him. So the story is not so much about a miracle of a bush that doesn't burn, or even about the miracle of God talking; the real miracle is that when Moses paid attention, he heard God!

And that's pretty much what we're trying to do today; pay real close attention, so that we'll hear God when he talks to us.

So here's the thing; paying attention to what's going on is a really good way to feel the presence of God. And that doesn't mean just praying when you're in church. It's things like ... well, listening when someone else is talking, or keeping a extra sharp eye on your little brother or sister when your mom leaves the room, or making sure your ice cream wrapper makes it into the garbage can ... you know what I mean. Oh, and it's also really enjoying an ice cream treat, or a delicious meal, or new clothes ...and remembering to thank your mom and dad for all they do for you.

Do those kinds of things, and I promise you ... you'll feel the Presence of God more and more each day.

Let's pray: Dear God, we thank you for the magical miracles of your creation ... the sun that warms us, the rain that makes us wet, the French fry's that always taste so good, and the love we feel when we get tucked in at night ... Thank you, God, for everything, everyone, and us! Amen!
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Comment from: Tim Coombs (12/28/07)
In my experience the children's sermon or "Word to the Children" as it has been called in my church, can be life-giving or life-draining to the worship experience. When it has been good, I believe it has not only touched the lives of the little ones before me, but also the young at heart behind me. When I have connected like that I feel I have preached to the 5 year old and the 85 year old and wonder why I'm bothering with the "headier" sermon to come. Unfortunately, such moments are rare. Often the Word to the Children doesn't get much attention until the real sermon is finished, which is always a work in progress.

When I reflect on what has worked and what hasn't I have to say that when I focused on telling the story primarily and didn't worry about some pithy conclusion, which often becomes something as deep as "Jesus wants us to love each other," the experience has been much better. This past FG I attended Jim Sterner's workshop on Telling to Children. He demonstrated both his both manic style, which for those of us who know Jim - he does manic well, but also his tender, quiet way of talking with children. The example that caught my attention was how when the story was over Jim began to ask a series of rhetorical "I wonder" questions such as "I wonder how Mary and Joseph felt about having to travel to Bethlehem? I wonder how the shepherds felt after the angels spoke to them? I wonder how Mary and Joseph felt when all those shepherds showed up wanting to see their new baby?..." I highly recommend ending your children's moment this way as both children and adults are left pondering all the "what if's."

I guess one caution is that anything done in excess can lose its value. If every children's time ended this way then folks might begin to tune out. But as high tech as I have become, I have tended to go very low tech with the kids. They are over-saturated with media as we all know. Often the simplest, rudimentary means get their attention best, so don't throw out those flannel boards. Believe it or not, they still have a purpose. (Just renew the old images so all the Biblical characters don't look so darn middle-class white in Biblical clothing). :-)
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Comment from: Raymond Gombach (11/26/07)
I can relate to the challenge of communicating the biblical text to children, as Lynn White notes in his latest post when he says "how can we tell the stories of Jesus' birth in fresh ways, that emphasize the tensions and trials that were the realities of first century Palestine?"

That being said, however, I don't think we have to begin with the focus on the "tensions and trials" and let me tell you why I made that statement, even though I know we must eventually come to the emphasis noted by Lynn.

When I began telling the biblical text in Sunday Service church venue about 20 years ago, I "cut my teeth" on telling to children, because in those early days of my telling career, if I did get a "gig" it was the children's message. I suppose the attitude was that if things didn't work out with this "storytelling thing," well, it's ONLY the children's message!

I quickly learned, however, that the most positive response came when I stopped analyzing or talking about the story, and simply told the story.

Today, there are a number of scholars "wrestling" with, both, how to tell to youth, and, the concerns over communicating complex realities to young minds, as Lynn says. Check out these scholars:

Brad Christerson, Associate Professor of Sociology at Biola University in La Mirada, Calif.

Christian Smith, Professor of Sociology and Director of the Center for the Study of Religion at the University of Notre Dame in Indiana.

Rev. Carol Lytch, Assistant Exec. Director of the Association of Theological Schools, Pittsburgh

Nancy Ammerman, Professor of Sociology of Religion at Boston Univ.

Here's Nancy Ammerman, from her essay in "Wrestling with The Text" (Cascadia/2007)

"...trying to teach children to read the bible as if they were skeptical young adults is just plain fruitless. I often wish that overanxious liberal parents could just relax and tell their children the stories. Never mind that you know all the sinister complications or that you aren't entirely sure it's true. Your six year old doesn't care, and when she does, you should be ready to talk about it.

"As the wrestling of youth finds its way into adult commitments, childhood notions of scriptural truth give way to more contingent but no less profound notions of faith. This is a postmodern generation that is aware of the power to choose...even to choose the degree to which they will make the bible sacred or give it authority over life. As youth begin to separate out fact from truth, they can continue to listen for revelation as it comes through their own experiences.

"No matter how individual and subjective the sorting out may seem, it happens best in community. Children need communities to tell them the stories AND to provide a place to ask the questions when the time comes..." (Ammerman)

It's not enough just to tell the stories, because, when the time comes, we adults have to be ready to talk ABOUT the stories and answer youth's questions.

And the stories we tell ABOUT the stories, when the questions come, must be what we believe the stories mean to us as individuals.

And I don't mean repeating commentary you've read that seems to make sense to you...but I do mean that you should answer from your conviction of the wisdom that came to you, out of your internalization of the story: that is to say, from the conviction of what the story means to YOU ... and how that wisdom supports and informs you in your life. First century Palestine can come later!

That's the perspective from which you answer the questions from the youth, when they come. That means there is homework to be done by you, so that you can to be ready to talk when the questions come.

But if you have not done YOUR homework, don't tell the story until you have.

Time to close; but next time, I'll outline how I tell the biblical text to children and then relate it to the children's message within the context of a typical Sunday Service.

Love and Light!
Raymond
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Comment from: Lynn White (11/24/07)
RE: Children's Sermon for the First Sunday of Advent - December 2, 2007

One of the problems I've had with children's messages over the thirty-some years I've been a local pastor is the challenge we face in communicating complex realities to young minds. So much of the church's language is archaic and incomprehensible for post - modern adults, not to mention children.

We face a similar challenge in finding language and making choices that help us tell the stories of Jesus' birth to people who assume that they already know the story we are telling them.

How can we tell the stories of Jesus' birth in fresh ways, that emphasize the tensions and trials that were the realities of first century Palestine?

What other stories can we tell that "shed light" on the Christmas story?
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PRINTER-FRIENDLY VERSION

Children's Sermon for the First Sunday of Advent - December 2, 2007

(Props required: A lit Advent candle, and a laser level, borrowed from someone's workshop)

Candle Light, Laser Light

Good morning! Today is a special day in the life of the Church.

This is the first Sunday in Advent. One of the things that many churches do at this time is to light Advent candles as a way to help us prepare for the birth of Jesus, and to remind us that Jesus is the Light of the World. What do we call the day that Jesus was born? [Christmas ... less than 4 weeks away!]

At the time Jesus was born the only light people only had, other than sunlight and moonlight, of course, was candlelight, firelight, and light from oil lamps. But today, things are different. Can you tell me some of the kinds of light we have today that people in the time of Jesus did not have? [light bulbs, car headlights, movies, television, flashlights, cameras, computers, gameboys]

One of the newest and most useful forms of light is called a laser. Laser light is used to cut diamonds, the hardest substance we have. Laser light is used to cut out tiny pieces in model making, to create fancy die-cut greeting cards, and lasers are being used more and more in surgery to help people get well. Another way laser light is used is in measuring tools, similar to this laser level I've brought to show you. Maybe you've seen one in your dad's workshop. Let me show you how it works ... [demonstrate]

So, when we say Jesus is the Light of the World, it can mean many things. Like the Advent candle, His light can cast a warm, comforting glow in our heart. And like the laser, His light can cut through our most difficult problems, heal our deepest pain, and keep our path straight in times when we are confused and lost.

So join me now in a closing prayer of thanks:

Dear Jesus, we thank you that you came as a light to the world. You light our way through the dark places of life. You put a glow within each of us. And the never failing light of your unconditional love makes our journey straight and true in times of trial and trouble. Thank you for your Light!

Amen!