Rabbenu
A Discussion of Messianic Judaism, the Emerging Messianic Jewish Paradigm, and Related Leadership Issues from the Preoccupied Mind of Rabbi Stuart Dauermann, PhD.
All Contents ©2004-2007 Stuart Dauermann - ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
Sunday, July 02, 2006
Our Children: A Neglected Priority
I believe that God has given me a kick in the butt, or a nudge in the spirit, if you prefer. He has given me a sense of urgency and a sense of what child education and spiritual formation is meant to be like in my congregation and in the Messianic Jewish movement as a whole. It is not a reassuring vision, but like those of Daniel, a disquieting one—disquieting because it makes me, and our movement, aware of our sins, their depth, and their consequences.
But there is hope here, for in this vision embodied in a text is the pathway of obedience to which God calls us all. And as is true of all mitzvot, it is on such pathways of obedience that we enjoy the manifestation of the Divine Presence. This view is typical of Judaism, and is one with which the Messiah of Israel concurs: “Whoever has my commands and keeps them is the one who loves me, and the one who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I will love him and reveal myself to him” (John 14:21).
The vision of our responsibility is embodied in Psalm 78:1-8, which begins as follows:
1 O my people, hear my teaching;
listen to the words of my mouth.
2 I will open my mouth in parables,
I will utter hidden things, things from of old-
3 what we have heard and known,
what our fathers have told us.
What bears first mention is the exhortation to “hear my teaching; listen to the words of my mouth.” This is “sh'ma language.” The exhortation to hear is a call to listen up to an authoritative admonition requiring our obedience. But what is it that we are called to listen to?
We are called to heed the exhortation to pass on a sacred legacy to the coming generations. What is that legacy?
4 We will not hide them from their children;
we will tell the next generation
the praiseworthy deeds of the LORD ,
his power, and the wonders he has done.
5 He decreed statutes for Jacob
and established the law in Israel,
which he commanded our forefathers
to teach their children,
6 so the next generation would know them,
even the children yet to be born,
and they in turn would tell their children.
That legacy includes the knowledge of the mighty works of God—“the praiseworthy deeds of the LORD> his power, and the wonders he has done.” We are responsible to transmit to our children a body of information—a foundation of learning about the LORD and His mighty works.
But there is more. We are responsible to teach our children the laws, the statues and ordinance of the Lord—His commandments. It is more than Bible stories, more than a sense of Jewish identity grounded in the stories of our ancestors for which we are responsible. We are accountable to teach the younger generation the commandments of God, that they might in turn teach these to future generations—and do them.
But there is more still. Certainly there is more to our responsibility than the standard watered down aspiration that too many settle for: to raise our children as ethical monotheists with a strong Jewish identity. Raising our children as responsible Jewish ethical monotheists can be done almost in spare time, and could perhaps be farmed out to professionals. Many would settle for this, but the Holy One wants more. Certainly His will for us is that it is the role of parents—not hired guns—to raise up the next generation to do His will and to please Him.
There is indeed still more.
7 Then they would put their trust in God
and would not forget his deeds
but would keep his commands.
8 They would not be like their forefathers-
a stubborn and rebellious generation,
whose hearts were not loyal to God,
whose spirits were not faithful to him.
Here we come to challenges facing our congregation and movement beyond the otherwise good and proper goal of raising responsible, monotheistic, moral children with a strong sense of Jewish identity.
In part the two verses just quoted recapitulate what was said before—that our children should not forget the mighty works of God, and should keep His commandments. But beyond this, the Psalmist calls us to raise up children who will put their trust in God, having hearts loyal to God, and spirits faithful to Him.
Beyond this, he also calls us to raise up children better than their forefathers. Many of us would settle if our children were as moral, spiritual, and Jewishly motivated as ourselves, our parents, or some saintly grandparent. But what if we accepted the challenge to raise up children more committed to God’s glory than ourselves, our parents, or our favorite saintly relative? This too is a goal this psalm sets before us.
Can these goals be accomplished in spare time, as a sideline, or farmed out to hired professionals? No, of course they cannot. They can only be accomplished by total dedication, by prayerful intensity, and all-out effort.
I am reminded of a documentary film I saw some years ago, “A Life Apart: Hasidism in America.” This was a very interesting movie in many ways, but what caught my attention was seeing learned adult bearded men dedicating their lives to teaching very young children. What became clear in that movie was that the entire Hasidic community is something of an inverted pyramid dedicated to the nurture of the children—that these children “would put their trust in God, . . . would not forget his deeds but would keep his commands, (and develop) hearts . . . loyal to God . . . spirits . . .faithful to Him.” The Hasidim, and indeed the religious Jewish community in general understand that their faith is only one generation from extinction, and that this requires a priority-one approach to investing our spiritual treasures in the next generation, that they might be better than their ancestors, and that they might not only know their sacred legacy, but also trust God, with devoted hearts and faithful spirits.
On what basis could we possibly justify imagining the Holy One excusing the Messianic Jewish Movement, and each of our congregations, and ourselves, for doing any less?
posted by Stuart Dauermann @ 6:32 PM
4 comments
They can only be accomplished by total dedication, by prayerful intensity, and all-out effort.
:)
We need to work while there is still some light left.
If we stream-line the process by making smooth transitions between lessons, then we will have been faithful to our call. It is up to the next generation to own their beliefs and raise their children....the ones that God gives us at home and the ones God gives us to adopt around the world.
Proud of you.
This was a very interesting movie in many ways, but what caught my attention was seeing learned adult bearded men dedicating their lives to teaching very young children. What became clear in that movie was that the entire Hasidic community is something of an inverted pyramid dedicated to the nurture of the children—that these children “would put their trust in God, . . . would not forget his deeds but would keep his commands, (and develop) hearts . . . loyal to God . . . spirits . . .faithful to Him.”
Well said.
Can you recommend any books on the topic?
That's a very good question.
Since the dimensions of this imperative have only recently really jelled for me, I have not had opportunity to research supportive books, but there is one relevant one I have read. It is by Robert Wuthnow, perhaps America's premier sociologist of religion. Titled "Growing Up Religious : Christians and Jews and Their Journeys of Faith," it explores how religions identity is inculcated in children. All interested in this subject would do well to read the book, published by Beacon Press in 2000. His position is that religious identity is formed most of all through patterns of ingrained behaviors rooted in family routines.
Thanks for your intelligent query.
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