Weekly Reflection, Sunday, September 16, 2018
By: Amelia McDaniel
I grew up in a small parish. My Sunday School classes were usually three to four kids in a basement room. Sometimes we had curriculum to use. Sometimes our teachers were winging it. In middle school, my teacher was a local radio host. He would come and teach class as “Father Guido Sarducci” from Saturday Night Live. That was definitely memorable!
I sadly cannot tell you much of the specifics I learned in those classes. I know I did learn Bible stories and the stories of the saints somehow because my art history professors were impressed by my ability to correctly identify Biblical characters and symbols. But what I carry with me each day from showing up in Sunday School is how those experiences made me feel. My Sunday School teachers and the adults in the parishes I grew up in made sure I knew that I belonged right there with them. That gift will follow me forever.
Today we are commissioning our Sunday School Teachers and Youth Leaders. These kind souls have stepped forward to remind our children and youth how beloved they are in this community. They tell the Biblical stories of our faith. But more importantly, through their example they show them what lives lived in that faith look like. Hopefully, our kids will go on to impress their art history professors one day but honestly that’s just a bonus. I know each Sunday they are greeted, loved on, and made to feel like they belong in our classrooms – in our community of faith. It is a gift of sacred time.
If you get a chance, thank these wonderful people today or in the coming weeks. Please say ‘thank you’ to these teachers who will greet your kids (who in the 30 minutes prior to arrival at church put your faith to the test). They’ve got a fresh bit of patience and love for your people and some finger cookies or donuts, too.