Kids and taunts about God

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chansen said:
Kids just have a hard time processing what is acceptable behaviour with respect to their beliefs or the beliefs of their parents, and what isn't.
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No they don't. What they have a hard time with is understanding the difference between private and public discourse. I expect that the behaviour they are exhibiting is the behaviour they have seen modelled.

And then it is no longer about Christianity so much as it is one family's take on Christianity. Unless I've been sheltered way too much I can think of no scripture which encourages the faithful to taunt non-believers. I can readily think of several which encourage respect and gentleness.

That said my kids have had friends over to dinner and conversation around our table is typically animated. Before long one of these little friends will say "Oh my God!" and then there will be a sudden lull. Then I get sheepish looks and mumbled apologies about language. I understand what is going on in their minds. They think I'm about to flip.

There are several ways I could take that moment and the fear and prey on it.

There are also several ways I could turn it into an interesting conversation if the kids were in the right space for it (terror is not a good starting place).

Most often I accept the apology with thanks and we quickly move out of that terror spot.

My kids have a bit more problem with it than I do for a couple of reasons. One was they understood a particular commandment in a particular way. For them taking the name of the Lord in vain is a commandment, they got that from me. "God" however is not the name we are to give special respect to. They are so confident in the connection they fail to recognize that God is not a name but a title.

My kids are not going to tell any of their friends that God is going to punish them for breaking that particular commandment. They have been too well schooled in the scandal of grace to make that mistake. They will tease each other about going to hell for some offence. It never happens when there is real contrition being shown.

The girls have brought over boyfriends, I wonder if meeting the dad for the first time is more terrifying if the dad is clergy. Of course I play the dadness up more than the clergy element. I have no problem making a boyfriend sweat a bullet or two.

Apples do not fall far from trees and sometimes even the most Christian families fail to make love their benchmark and so you see tribalism of one kind or another come to the fore.

I do not know who the kids are or how their parents believe. The fact that they taunt Claire about her lack of belief in God throws the door wide open on how that family treats one another I'm afraid.
 
Fair enough.

I assume that they are Christian because Chansen is asking for help exploring the Bible not the Quran or the Bhagavad Gita.

I also don't operate under the no true Scotsman fallacy and taking into account that all have sinned and all have fallen short I don't presume that we are dealing with non-christian kids.
 
revjohn said:
Fair enough.

I assume that they are Christian because Chansen is asking for help exploring the Bible not the Quran or the Bhagavad Gita.
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Okay, I can understand your reasoning there. Nevertheless, the parents may not be Christians. What @chansen wants to explore tells us more about chansen then it does the parents.
 
I had a bunch of great books, Chansen at all ages, but, dang , I am not at the church anymore. The one that Carolla recommended sounds great. One of our women took the grade 5 calss through a world religions book, i am guessing you could go through clair e with it. They ate it up.

Now, re the kids.
I wonder if they have gone home saying , at some point a girl in my classes baby brother died. The childr's parent,s being people of faith expressed their opinion, and being ignorant or maybe just busy, neglected to think how it may be perceived.
For me, it is an opportunity to find a way to be gracious (unless it is true bullying).
Grade 3, your daughter is ready to start having that kind of response to lots of things: offered a smoke -- offered some drugs, offered to play hookey or bully another child.
 
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chansen said:
This is starting to weigh on my daughter. According to her, she is getting taunted at school for not believing in God. "How can you not believe in God? Of course there's a God!" is something she commonly hears. Kids talking about God with her seemed to start when her brother died.

I recognize she is patterning her belief, or non-belief, from me. I've told her many times that she can believe what she wants. She is very scientifically-minded, and loves facts, especially about animals, but lots of things interest her. What I've suggested she do, is the next time another kid tells her God exists, is just ask them to demonstrate that to her. Show her why they think God exists.

She continued in the car this morning, that she doesn't want to believe in God. I pointed out how that's a terrible way to approach anything. We shouldn't believe or disbelieve because we want to, but because we have no choice but to choose. I couldn't believe if I wanted to, because I don't see the reasons given for the existence of God as sufficient evidence. She seemed to understand my position.

But mostly, I was surprised this still happens, that kids of religious parents are still little shits about God. I did explain that many Christians believe many different things about God and Jesus, that some take the stories very literally, and some approach Jesus' words more like life lessons, and lots of people fall in-between.

We plan to explore parts of the bible soon. She wants to understand more about this Christianity thing. She's going at it from her typical scientific approach, lol.

Any passages to recommend? Sites? And not just the whitewashing ones, please. I'm looking to provide a decent overview of the good and the bad.
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Just to be sure, is this more about the kids teasing her about God or is it more about seeking your approval to believe? I know I came to know God through a traumatic experience in my life. He became the one that gave me the strength to get through it. I started with prayer. Prayer used to intimidate me, but then I heard that you can talk to God just the same as if I were talking to a friend.

If she needs strength, comfort and a friend, teach her to pray. IMHO. Pray with her or just listen.....or not, but maybe the first time to help her?

Close your eyes, bow your head (we are humbled by His greatness) and talk.

I'm really not trying to convert anyone....just sensing (or maybe it's guessing) there's possibly a deeper need your daughter is trying to explain. There will be plenty of time to read "about" God, but feeling/experiencing God, is the real key. For some reason, children are more open to it.

If I'm wrong sorry.
 
Waterfall said:
Just to be sure, is this more about the kids teasing her about God or is it more about seeking your approval to believe? I know I came to know God through a traumatic experience in my life. He became the one that gave me the strength to get through it. I started with prayer. Prayer used to intimidate me, but then I heard that you can talk to God just the same as if I were talking to a friend.

If she needs strength, comfort and a friend, teach her to pray. IMHO. Pray with her or just listen.....or not, but maybe the first time to help her?

Close your eyes, bow your head (we are humbled by His greatness) and talk.

I'm really not trying to convert anyone....just sensing (or maybe it's guessing) there's possibly a deeper need your daughter is trying to explain. There will be plenty of time to read "about" God, but feeling/experiencing God, is the real key. For some reason, children are more open to it.

If I'm wrong sorry.
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Waterfall, in all honesty I can't see chansen praying with his daughter - it's a bit of an unrealistic suggestion even though you meant well.
 
Inannawhimsey said:
you're a sweetie, @Waterfall :) i wish i could give more likes
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I have a grandson who is scared of the dark.....often he feels better when I pray with him. Kids are not as cynical as adults and tend to embrace the spiritual when it's presented to them. If it makes them feel better, it's real.

I heard a radio sermon today about the apostle Paul, and how to feel content in any situation. He even felt contentedness and found strength while in prison.

https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Philippians+4:4-13&version=NIV
 
Waterfall said:
I have a grandson who is scared of the dark.....often he feels better when I pray with him. Kids are not as cynical as adults and tend to embrace the spiritual when it's presented to them. If it makes them feel better, it's real.

I heard a radio sermon today about the apostle Paul, and how to feel content in any situation. He even felt contentedness and found strength while in prison.

https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Philippians 4:4-13&version=NIV
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i grok -- children are wonderful -- apolitical, open, curious, amazing...
adults can be so cynical (and mistake it for 'rational thought')
its an ossification of the imagination and they definitely won't be gettin into heaven -- heaven's for kids :3
 
First, I'm sorry that Claire is being taunted. That shouldn't happen. Unfortunately, it does.

Others have listed very helpful Scripture references. As revjohn noted above, I've met Claire - I think we got along well although it was only a brief meeting in difficult circumstances - and if it would be helpful I'd be happy to talk to her sometime after my upcoming move.

As chansen notes, though, one believes or disbelieves because one has no choice. Either what we perceive as the lack of objective evidence of God is so overwhelming that we can't believe even if we wanted to, or the subjective "experience" of God (in whatever form it takes) is so powerful that we must believe, sometimes in spite of ourselves. And, for some (possibly many or most) belief or disbelief is inherited; a consequence of our family of origin. Yes, I have experience with all three!

I do applaud chansen for telling Claire that you can't approach the question from the perspective that "I don't want to believe." Having an open mind is the best way to begin any exploration.
 
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Ossification; is that a hardening up of what was at first a soft conjuring? Is this close to assi-9?

Such things can turn the most indefinite idea into a stub born-ie fiction ... and thus as obtuse as a subliminal soul of god! This could explain the Judean sacrament of the desert ass as bier of light in the dark story .. of the death of po' thoughts in a determinate domain. Let it be cursive ... or thus scripted as a second look! A'thaught to peer into? Down the rabid 'ole thing-heh ...

Alas this allows for opposing views by us that are rite out of ID in full flustered drift (fugacity)! A fu blown collective as the Hebrew refers to citii (much chaos there for any searching out piece, or peace?

From there the soul gets imaginary ... and as Freud feared ... it dreams on ... or as IW states; so it goes ... like that fellow over the rainbow ... and moor (40 hues of vert-egos, a definite flutter of butterflies and smears the clues of those bit by passion as an icon of something in pair's an indefinite parse as duality in linguistic, or just sub verse Ness in the moral and people don't like to understand Samson's standard ... enigmas)!

If God is an old expression for everything and more ... is that infinite portion beyond comprehension of those with determinate thoughts ... absolutely sure all others are smarter than them and thus going to 'elle with the conjecture that not knowing anything is best? Leads to conflict definitely by those challenged by indeterminate ... like the conjecture that there is something that obstinate authorities' believe they know when they can't go there as mortal critters.

As Chansen stated, this brings me to my knees in phitz, or the fall has already occurred and my conjectures cool in the face of the heated by the spectacle of "elle and what you could observe in a bare flame without any ironic cover, a potential pot bellied passion in a hateful atmosphere? now that's a definite tauting of a man that doesn't believe in the context of love in anything ... and as opposing ... thoughts are out 've ID!

Isn't that enough to hammer out a stone to make sole ... perhaps that's a mire or dirty soil ... stuff that contaminates space ... as a vacuous domain ... sucks out lighter thoughts! An iron for the Black Hole or something that isn't yet manifest?

As I get older I become more aware of what I don't know in all of what's out there ... even metaphysical anonymous things ... para normal frothy deterrents to thoughts about passions so you couldn't know the gravity of such things ... and thus satisfy the church fathers into allowing common folks to be naïve ... and pile into the corners of the church know as the nave that varies off the main route of pathe to where brains are offered up ... and shelved ...

These then may be used by some thinking devil that's out of 'Eire like me ... with a powerful giggle that'll just take your breath away in a riot of laughter ... something to get over in that distant Aries as a bust down here ... leading to songs like Give Me Red Roses and Yellow Balloons ... love and meme brae Nous barriers? Jacques can have his KID ... and so she did as she collected outside intelligence as DNA in an explicit exchange! Such are wandering jinn etix ...
Dey flows like phlogiston in de opposing of dais at night in the darkest hour ... 2 belles or those tauting demons at 4 o'clock ... before the Don in of robes ... fabrication of spirited beans?
 
Before I called the kids 'little shits' I would consider why they are quesstioning Claire. Maybe they are just curious. Maybe they too are struggling to undderstand death, and how a child can die.
When my son was about Claire's age (and a very intelligent boy) he became aware that some people didn't believe in God. This puzzled him, so he would ask me 'how can somebody not believe in God?' Puzzled? Curious? Starting to realize that there are different kinds of people, people who think and act and believe differently than he and his immediate family.
Perhaps you could speak to Claire's teacher or principal about the fact that there aare many different kinds of people, different cultures, different religions (and no religion) and that people should be respected.

As for a book to explore the Bible with children, my fall-bback is "The Family Story Bible" by Ralph Milton. It is meant to be shared - parents and children - and has some short introductions or explanations for the adults. It gives almost equal space to both the Hebrew Scriptures (Old Testament) and the New Testament. While it concentrates generally on the positive stories it also contains some difficult ones. It is meant for Christian families and starts with the premise that there is a God - but it tells the stories as stories. (ie the introductory sentence to the very first chapter is "This is a story people told many, many years ago. They told this story because they were trying to understand why God made the world." The story of Noah is presented as a story told to help people understand the covenant.
 
Seeler the word is "chits" not shits ... they are small bits of ourselves ... sort of po' doubt of the mothering half according to Far Ques One (Charlie) on Cursory humis ... NOSH ite? The fractional word "-ite" is an alloying factor or conjugative!

Alien spells give absolute souls phitz ... and something to chew over or gnash upon ...

Fresh new bits ... have a better perspective on all that's out there and generally have a strong sense of fear, respect and reverence for it as explicit in the Hebrew word "allal" that has parallals and when conjoined with "heh" the Hebrew holy letter we get glory in the come around ... a turn of the imagination ... or spin of the abstract to promote Joe BLTZFX ... allowing an image of an abstract storm ... a rabid ole thingy? This is sometimes tossed out as an explicit ... Halle Lo Jah ... or that lower tube, or tunnel with light in the end ... "lo" often being taken as a subversive continuum ... and thus sects and pseudonyms go on and on ... a general or corporeal schroo down here as mole 'd about ... thus forming in definite thingy's ... yah just don't know till they pop into existence!
 
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Pr. Jae said:
Nevertheless, the parents may not be Christians.
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I responded to your question regarding my assumptions. Why don't you defend yours?

Why could these children and their parents not be Christians? Aren't you over on another thread defending Christians who resort to lying about the new sex-ed curriculum? Aren't you a self-professed Christian relying on innuendo and manipulation in opposing the same curriculum?

You feel free to tell others that their voices are irrelevant by virtue of living in another province. That is your Christian witness at play isn't it?

Pr. Jae said:
What @chansen wants to explore tells us more about chansen then it does the parents.
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Who is making the assumption now?
 
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