Proper 28B, 25 Pentecost
14 Nov 2021
When I think about the moments in my life that were over the moon wonderful, nothing could top the day I first laid eyes on my daughter. She was dressed in a cute little pink dress with two little pink bows in her hair. It was love at first sight.
It is safe to say that most parents love their children, protect them, and feel both the joy and the pain their children feel. I wish there were no exceptions.
Yet we have a great deal of ambivalence about children and the Bible does not feature many stories with children at the center.
The words child and children appear many times in both Hebrew scripture and Christian scripture; many times the word is used to describe anyone who is immature. Yet it is also used to describe anyone who is a member of the family of God or of the family of Israel. Heirs or people of a tribe would be the best sense of the word.
The very long narrative of Hannah and her words to God speak to the depth of the desire for a child, especially a male child. While it is clear her husband loves her and she is more than a dutiful wife, she is in a vulnerable position. Women had few rights; should Elkanah die she may be left penniless and vulnerable. Yet she promised God that the child was be given in service. Hannah trusts God; she is not afraid to speak to God. And, as the name of Samuel itself means, God has heard.
I have always wondered what Hannah pondered as she raised the boy Samuel; she knew that she would not have him in her household for long and not see him grow into manhood, save for the yearly visit to Shiloh. Did she dread the day he would leave her forever? Would he take her in if something happened to Elkanah or if she had nor more children?
All of this made me consider how I feel about children and what I think Jesus had to say to us about our own children.
I never had a real desire to have a child who shared my DNA. Let’s just say I was ambivalent and was thankful that I had a choice in the matter; most women throughout history have had little say.
That does not mean I don’t like children; some of the greatest joys of my life have come from having a daughter. And for me, some of the best memories of my life come from my own childhood.
But where do children and being Christian come together? I think that Jesus took the view that children were full members of God’s great coming reign.
13 People were bringing children to Jesus so that he would bless them. But the disciples scolded them. 14 When Jesus saw this, he grew angry and said to them, “Allow the children to come to me. Don’t forbid them, because God’s kingdom belongs to people like these children. 15 I assure you that whoever doesn’t welcome God’s kingdom like a child will never enter it.” 16 Then he hugged the children and blessed them. Mark, chapter 10.
“Safety and security don't just happen, they are the result of collective consensus and public investment. We owe our children, the most vulnerable citizens in our society, a life free of violence and fear.” Nelson Mandela
“We worry about what a child will become tomorrow, yet we forget that he is someone today.” — Stacia Tauscher, dancer and artist
I believe Jesus would agree with those statements. Right now many children are struggling in school more than ever. Teachers are at the breaking point. I will not be so ignorant as to try to reduce the reasons for this to Covid or politics; it is far more complicated, but it is clear many children are suffering from a variety of traumas. Staying at home may have been well beyond boring; it may have been a dangerous place for many children. They have seen family members sick and dying; they have been unable to be with friends. The needs and anxieties of their parents and caregivers did not go unnoticed. Many are more food insecure than ever. The foster care systems are so often not the places of safety and security vulnerable children need. Schools hold active shooter drills.
Can we expect children raised where they may not experience love to love in return? We cannot protect our children from tornadoes and floods and blizzards, not really. But we can make them feel safe in the way that Fred Rogers did; knowing that the world around them valued them and did what it could to protect them. What if the President held a press conference where the members of the press were children? I would love to see such an event!!
Hannah thought that a child was a true gift from God. She also saw that God was just and that those who were the most needy and the most vulnerable would not be forgotten or forsaken by God. Those who denied justice would find themselves brought low and those who were denied justice would be exalted.
Jesus makes an end time prediction today. The Gospel of Mark leaves just about everything hanging; perhaps the key words are to keep watch and keep awake. Forget calculating the last day of the late, great planet earth. Jesus says no one knows when “the end” will be; only that times will get really hard. The rest of the Gospel tells us Mark’s vision of the world that God intends and tells us how to live in it. One of those admonitions is to treat children as full members of the kingdom. We cannot say we are Christians unless we come to God calling ourselves children of God and unless we are willing to care for the most vulnerable members of our society, or for that matter then entire world.
Hannah asked for the most precious thing she knew: a child. When we consider children the most precious things we know, at any place and at any time; whether they are our own immediate family or one who lives across the globe, then we will be entering into the kingdom of God.
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