Bringing our Children to Church

“Of all holy works, the education of children is most holy.”  St. Theophan the Recluse

 What would cause St. Theophan to say this?  What does he mean by most holy?  Most important?   All problems in our world can be traced back to a family problem.  Not only the original family of Adam and Eve, but it is within a family that dictators who have killed millions, greedy corporate executives who steal from their employees, and apathetic political leaders who break promises get their start.  It is also in a family where Sts. Basil and John Chrysostom got their start.  It is in a family where God’s Son came to us an took flesh from His virgin mother, Mary. 

 We as parents have a great influence on our children for the first years of their life—greater in the beginning and less over time.  How do we teach them?  By our very lives.  What is important to us, more often than not will become important to them.  When we go to church and worship God we are saying that God is important.  The orthodox understanding of worshipping God is never so clear as when taking our young children to church services.  We believe that worshipping God is liturgical, that is a “common work.”  Worship is not about us getting something from God, but about doing something in honor of him.  By bringing our children to church we are educating them in God.    They see the icons of Jesus and the Virgin Mary.  They sing songs of worship that teaches them the faith.  The have a direct experience with Jesus Christ in receiving Holy Communion.  This is no easy task.  We are challenged in thinking that taking 3 year olds or 16 year olds for that matter, to church should be easier than it is.  It is not.  It can test our patience and our love in many ways.  We can become tired and discouraged.  We could even worry about what other people are thinking of us which is a form of vainglory.  Paradoxically, raising a child is both one of the most beautiful things, and at times not a pretty sight.  We might consider that maybe the raising of children is not too different from the messiness that our Heavenly Father sees in us.  Perhaps, we are more skilled at hiding our passions from others.  A distracted 4 year old who wanted the service to be over 30 minutes ago is just more vocal about it than an adult.  Maybe the voices in our heads need just as much quieting as the child who wants to talk in the service.  The transformation will take place.  It doesn’t happen over night.  But when it happens it become clear that we were on the right track.  When we hear a little voice next to us say the Trisagion prayers, the Lord’s Prayer, the prayer before communion or the Nicene Creed, we see the holy work of God touching their heart.  Seeing them greet each other with “Christ is Risen” warms our hearts.  Witnessing a 6 month old approach the Holy Mysteries in the arms of their God-parents and receive Christ, Himself, is beyond understanding.  All of the “work” involved in getting them ready for church, helping them pay attention (or at least stop crying) seems very worth it.   It not only is for their spiritual benefit, but for ours as well.  It builds in us the virtues of patience, kindness, and self control.  We prepare ourselves in many ways to receive Christ.  Maybe standing with our children in church is one of them.  Thanks be to God for the parents who work so diligent to bring their children to God.  We just don’t know whether or not the little person standing next to us will be called upon by the Church to pray and intercede for us.