...3 Johns, Jude, and Revela-ation..

I taught confirmation today, the first time I've done so on my own. I was a little nervous. Maybe a little less nervous than I would have been six months ago, since these days my livelihood pretty much depends on showing up places, having no idea what's going on, and teaching. (Or maybe, "teaching," depending on the day. But still. I don't have much experience with Christian ed, especially with youth. It seemed like a good idea to correct that now.

Looking over the book and planning yesterday, I actually got kind of into it. I decided, in the interest of Bible-familiarity promotion, they needed to learn a books of the Bible song. Maybe this was partially for me, because I never learned such a song, and I tend to fumble around a lot in the minor prophets :) So I found one on YouTube and listened to it on repeat a bunch of times. Today it played in my head during my run, except only the last part, "First Peter, Second Peter, 3 Johns, Jude, and Revela-ation." So maybe I will regret that, along with promising them a prize if they could show me they had it memorized, prompting one girl to ask if a dog was too big a prize.

Anyway, I really enjoyed the class today. They asked good questions: "Can God do anything? And if so, why doesn't he make everyone believe in him?" And, "Would God be angry if we called him Mother?" And it sort of made me think about how teaching makes you reformulate things, get down to the core of them. Because I could have totally been like, "Well, let me tell you about process theology, or the classic free will response" and they probably would have gone back to eating their donut holes. I mean, I don't want to talk down to them. I want to convey that there is a variety of answers to their questions, all faithful; I want them to think; I want my answers to have integrity, and not just be the ones that are easy to spoon-feed when we're already pressed for time; and I want to give them something, so that I've taken their question seriously. I want to express those answers in ways that are relevant without making them easy.

I'm sure I know many, many people who have struggled with these questions and are able to find good balances in their contexts. I have a ways to go. But that's one reason I'm glad I'm there. And hopefully, answering questions and putting what I (and others) think into new terms will help me clarify my beliefs as well.