Marcus Borg is often quoted as having said something to the effect that the average adult has but a grade five understanding of Christianity. Which is okay if you are in grade five but it won’t sustain you through a lifetime of questions. While I agree with Borg that a good many people have rejected Christianity on the basis of what they learned as children and we have a great deal of work to do to educate adults about the breadth and depth of the Christian faith, I wonder what it would mean for the church if we stepped up our game when it comes to the education of children.
I can still remember taking my first religious studies class as an adult and being 
blown away by the revelation that so many of the biblical stories that I was struggling with actually had their origins in tales that were told long before a wandering Aramean went down to Egypt. I remember being both fascinated with the story of Gilgamesh and angry at the Church for failing to let me in on the reality that human’s have been myth-making since forever. I’m sure that I would have been far less traumatized by the realization that the biblical writers engaged in the ancient art of myth-making had I been introduced to it in my adolescence. Needless to say, since I have been teaching Confirmation classes (ages 11-15) I have taken the opportunity to introduce the Epic of Gilgamesh as a precursor to discussions on the book of Genesis.
Several years ago, the task of introducing Gilgamesh to young people was illuminated by the discovery of a two of books by Ludmila Zeman designed to bring the tales first carved onto clay tables in Mesopotamia to life. Both Gilgamesh the King and The Last Quest of Gilgamesh are beautiful illustrated and even though they are recommended for children ages 8 and up, provide an engaging experience for adolescents. For those Confirmation students who are particularly keen, I have added Zeman’s The Revenge of Ishtar to the Confirmation class’s collection of resources. I have even been known to use this speeded little tomes in Adult Education Classes. Ludmila Zeman emigrated to Canada from Czechoslovakia and lives, works and creates in Vancouver.
” the average adult has but a grade five understanding of Christianity.” Oh my, he got that right, didn’t he?
well. maybe that is why Christianity is still around. Getting above a grade 5 understanding would certainly elicit educated questions that the churche(s) are not willing to answer .
Better deal with kids than adults.
Bishop Spong said so very clearly and he regrets that fact.
But it will take a very long time before the level of religious education provided by the churche(s) gets above the Sunday School fairy tales level
Christians are not stupid. They walked out of their respective church ” en masse” for a reason.
Pastor Dawn is on the right track but she knows she has to be very careful.
Lots of Christians need their “security blanket ” i.e what they remember from Sunday School and that is the foundation of their beliefs. You can not take that away from them. or they will collapse.
Now How do you start teaching a new generation of Christians ( above grade 5 ) without alienating the previous one ( at or below grade 5 ) ?
I do not have the answer.
As He supposedly said ” You cannot put new wine in old skins “.
Here is our challenge !
Cheers.
Dan
A challenge yes Dan. But also a splendid opportunity. I think the key is community. When people are brave enough to put their own doubts and questions out there so that together the whole community can wrestle with the realities of life amazing things can happen. I believe this is what it means to “live in hope.” Namaste….