GordonAckerman’s Weblog

But every family is has a culture – they have a community identity, philosphical stance, spiritual position and paradigm. I think to try to bring up a child with no knowledge of that is to rob them of any real upbringing. They don’t get to choose their upbringing, only what they do with it. And as I tried to point out religion is not primarily about intelectual comprehension.

I would say that’s a definitive “in bits”. I don’t think that the children are “labelled” so much as experience elements of the faith. I don’t think any religious person gets a chance to “comprehend in full” the faith they choose, partly it is only something that you can grow into and partly it is not about intelectual comprehension but personal experience. I see nothing “brute” in cultivation. Children also get to choose to what extent that go with that faith as young children, and then to choose what they do with that faith as they grow into independance. But yes I do agree that there is a large element of cultivation as with so many other values and practices that childrens gain in their upbringing.

I am sure that Dawkins own religious upbringing informs much of his current position, though it is radically different from his upbringing.

To put it succinctly, I radically disagee with Dawkins’ statement that there is no such thing as a Christian child, but would agree that much of the faith is one they are given rather than choose initially, the choosing comes later.

Ok, a two year old. Let me just talk about the context of my own Church and experience, to try and make it more general would get rather complex. There are many aspects that may be present in a healthy Church, but different children will respond to different aspects.

At two children will hopefully have developped a series of trusting relationship at Church, and the sense that Church is a place where people have time for them, where they are secure and valued. As people practically belonging to the Church then they are Christians.

The patterns and rituals of Church life will be beginning to form a structure of the expected in life. Such young infants love repetition and these rituals will be forming that sense of security in them. In the sense of loving the rituals of Church they may be Christians.

These relationships and rituals will lead to a sense of belonging. And that Church relationship will have begun to be recognised as to do with God and Jesus. This will be beginning to create a sense of us, or emerging identity. So in the sense that they have a sense of belonging in God’s people they are Christian.

Mum and dad will definitely have been bringing their youngster up in the moral values of Christianity. Many will have really taken on board such things as the need to be kind. Such values may overlap with many other people’s values but will have distinctive elements such as the need to forgive others and ask forgiveness. These values will also be expressed in terms of the scriptural authority behind them. In the sense of accepting Christian moral values and scriptural authority they will be Christians.

Most two year olds will be having stories read to them, and in a Christian family a proportion of these will be bible stories. In the sense of loving scripture these children will be Christian.

Many two year olds will have begun to pray with mum and dad. These prayers are often delightful, though sometimes missing the point, still very immature. But the prayers of infants are powerful and they will often have seen answers to prayer that will impress them. They will also know times when God has helped them deal with difficult feelings and have seen God at work in that way. So in the sense of having and active prayer life and in the sense of having a growing faith they will definitely be Christians.

As these young people speak to God they may well hear Him speak to them in visions or understandings. So in the sense of supernatural experience they will be Christians.

And for a significant few they will also have expressed to God and people a definite sense of choice. A choice to do the same thing as mum and dad and to “invite Jesus into their heart” (not, I think, a very accurate theological expression but convieniently simple). This decision will need to be one that is affirmed as they develop as people and have more areas of their life that they need to line up with God, but it is none the less significant for its provisional nature. In this highest expression they are very definitely emerging Christians.

Now accepted that these two year olds may not have had many of these oppotunities if they were not brought up in a Christian home, but none the less that are real parts of who they are, accepted or rejected in measure by different children. For those really accepting what they are receiving I think you can see that:

relationship, trust of Church, belonging, identity, loving rituals, moral values, accepting and knowing scripture, praying, faith, experience and commitment

are all things that would make such a young child a Christian in reality and not just by label. And there would be only few such children that would not fit in in some of these areas.

Well my children certainly didn’t grow up believing in either. I certainly think need to consider the problems of children growing up with no coherent world view but simply living in today’s hedonism.