Buddhist Catholic Contemplative Evangelical General Christian Hindu Jewish Latter-day Saint Muslim New Visions Progressive Christian

Beliefs

Topics

Columnists

Resource Library

Research Tools

Video

Podcasts

Thought Readers

Faith In Media Tracker

Newsletters

Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In Subscription Support

Follow Patheos

Rachel Marie Stone

Home
Progressive Christian
Talking with children about death and God and Christmas (and much more)

Talking with children about death and God and Christmas (and much more)

Last updated on: December 11, 2014 at 10:08 am by Rachel Marie Stone

Talking with children about death and God and Christmas (and much more) 2014-12-11T10:08:46-04:00 Rachel Marie Stone

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

One of my sons talks a lot about death, and it comes up in the strangest conversational contexts.

Such as:

“I like to talk baby-talk.”
“Why? Do you want to not grow up and always be my baby?”
“No, I want to not grow up so I don’t have to die.”

Yeah. Heavy thoughts going on inside that mind of his.

He will then sometimes go on to enumerate his fears about people we know who are elderly, or who are ill; people, that is, who seem to be a bit closer to death than we.

This same child is also keenly aware of religion and faith.

For example, he recently offered his own simple argument for an open communion table — if the bread and wine are really God’s, they should be for everyone, because everyone belongs to God.

He can’t see it another way.

For many people, having children is significant to their faith: people who have been away from church for a long time often find themselves drifting back when they become parents.

Perhaps that is because children, in their own ways, make us face the realities of life: death and pain, joy and grace, greed and impatience, love and beauty.

Too often, I think, we tell stories about “the darndest things” that kids say in relation to Big Questions, without noticing the profundity of their deceptively simple insights.

We think it’s just small talk.

Small Talk, a new book from my friend Amy Julia Becker, is the kind of book that takes the things children say seriously. It’s neither a dour theological tome nor a saccharine-sweet book of “cute things kids say.” It is a theologically astute yet consistently accessible account of a parent’s honest wrestling with questions Big, Medium, and (seemingly) Small — birth and death, Christmas and Easter, laughter and rest. Along the way, conversations — and just plain Life — with her children illuminate and enflesh ideas that in other contexts would remain cerebral; conjectural.

It’s a book that will speak to you right in the middle of diapers and mayhem, and will speak to you even if you’re long past the time of raising kids, and even if you’re not a parent at all. For life and faith with kids turns out to look a lot like life and faith, period.

There’s nothing small about baby talk. Or Small Talk.

Previous Post

December 6, 2014

A Very Foodie Giveaway

Next Post

January 14, 2015 On taking communion: why it's okay to make crunching noises

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category "health" activism agriculture animals anorexia Anticipating anxiety art autumn Baking beauty beer Bible Big Food binge eating blogging body image Books Bread of Life breastfeeding brokenness candy cartoons celebrity chefs children chocolate Classical Duckfaces Connecting consumption cooking creation care creativity current events death Dessert diabetes Dieting Eating Together Emotional Eating fair trade Faith Family Fannie Farmer fast food fat talk Films Food Food Policy formula feeding Gardening gluten free Grace gratitude guest posts guilt HIV/AIDS holiday hospitality housekeeping Jesus Joy just for fun Justice kindness Local media moment of joy north fork, long island OI parties personal pharmaceuticals photo photography plumpy'nut popular culture poverty pregnancy Preserving real food recipes rest restaurants School Food Seasons spring starvation summer Table Talk taste television theology travel Tuesdays With Fannie Uncategorized winter

Select a Month April 2015 March 2015 February 2015 January 2015 December 2014 November 2014 October 2014 August 2014 May 2014 March 2014 February 2014 January 2014 December 2013 November 2013 October 2013 September 2013 August 2013 July 2013 June 2013 May 2013 April 2013 March 2013 February 2013 January 2013 December 2012 November 2012 October 2012 September 2012 August 2012 July 2012 June 2012 May 2012 April 2012 March 2012 February 2012 January 2012 December 2011 November 2011 October 2011 September 2011 August 2011 July 2011

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz

According to Colossians, what has been raised with Christ and should we set our hearts on?

Select your answer to see how you score.

Eternal life The gospel message Things above, where Christ is seated The kingdom of God