Keep on Walking, Keep on Talking, Marching on to Freedom Land: Theology and Three year olds!

The first part of the title of this blog come from a song the kids learned at Vacation Bible School last week. This year I agreed to help with the Vacation Bible School at Mission Hills United Church of Christ. When the Christian Education Director called me to talk about what I would be doing she asked me what ages I wanted to teach, I had just returned from a conference on “Loving Service” and I asked her what she really needed me to do. What she really needed was someone to co-teach the three year olds! Ok, I said after a deep breath. I was a little worried about the energy of three year olds and what might happen to my back if I had to pick them up—but none of this turned out to a problem.

I spent Vacation Bible School playing with the three year olds and having a great time. At first I was slightly frustrated because the lessons of the day were hard to convey to such a young age group. But I soon learned that what these kids needed was time to explore being in a school setting with other kids and building friendships—all of them will be starting preschool in the Fall—so we focused on that. On Monday, our three three-year olds tended to play by themselves checking out the crafts and exploring the playroom. By Friday they were sitting together doing puzzles, wondering what the others were doing, singing songs, enjoying books from the church library together, and not to mention crying when mom came to take them home rather then when she dropped them off. They learned a lot at VBS—they learned friendship, solidarity, and some new independence!

The theme of this year’s VBS was social justice and civil rights leaders. Each day we had a Bible story from Pastor Scott about leaders in the Bible; and each day the lessons, songs, and crafts centered around the work of a particular civil rights/social justice leader. The three year olds did not always sit through the Bible story, it was a bit too long right after music class. Nevertheless, the other teacher and I tried to tell the Bible stories while the kids did their crafts. The day persistent prayer was the theme; we were making prayer boxes with the kids. In explaining prayer and constant prayer as being with God the other teacher and I resorted to asking the three year olds what made them happy in order to show them different ways they could pray while doing everyday things. I learned that for these three year olds: God was the ocean, God was that which made swimming possible, and God was play dough! God as fluid and pliable not too far off from what we learn in seminary. . . And more than fair enough for theology at three!

The theological explorations of Vacation Bible School were fun! So fun in fact that I was really too tired each night to read about the person we were to present the next day, but I found that most of people we were to present to the kids were people I had studied in my “Voices of Non-Violence” course last semester. Brief explanations that three year-olds could take in were not a problem. We read a book about Martin Luther King Jr. We talked a little about Ruby Bridges and Gandhi. On Wednesday, I waited with the CE director and one of the girls from my group until her mom could pick her up a little bit late. I sent her over to the book table to pick out a book to read. She brought me a small paperback about Nelson Mandela, and we read it twice. The next day she brought me the same book to read her, I told her we’d already read it and sent her to get another book, but she brought it back again. On the last day, as the kids painted vegetables on canvas shopping bags, I told them about Caesar Chavez and the farmer workers movement and we sang, “Keep on Walking . . .” and “This land is your land”. I had had a great time with the three year olds but I was not sure how much of the civil rights message they had picked up. That is when this same small girl went for the Nelson Mandela book AGAIN . . . this time I asked her:
“Do know who that is”, pointing to the cover,
“No”,
“That’s Nelson Mandela”,
“They put him in jail?”,
“Yes, do you know why?”,
“Because he’s trouble maker.”

And then I got it! Not only had the three year olds learned theology, they had learned ethics! The significance of this hit me as I drove home from VBS on Friday and heard the celebratory wishes South African kids had recorded for Nelson Mandela’s 90th birthday--yes, this happened on his birthday! Social justice is learned at all ages and taught from old to young and young to old. In response to hearing this tale, my husband asked if this was really a three year old; and then he teased me about “trying to train my replacement”, or turning young ones into myself, something my pastor has also teased me about doing when I teach Sunday school. If you inadvertently teach social justice just by being you when you teach the gospel, well . . . I can’t think of a better gift to give in honor of the gospel or Nelson Mandela’s birthday! Can you?

Send Rove to Jail,

This says it all, and its about time! Don't forget to sign the petition at SendRovetoJail.com !

The American Government Refuses to Support The Rights of People with Disabilities

I bet you have not heard this story on your TV broadcasts or in the local newspaper. The media doesn't often seem to pay attention to people with disability, and since we are the largest minority in the nation, I wonder why that is? But this is serious, really.

In May of this year, the United Nations passed a resolution asking nations to pledge to improve the rights it grantees to its citizens' with disabilities. In the case of nations, like the US, where rights for people with disabilities do exist, the resolution asks that the government pledge not to reverse and seek to protect the rights of its own citizens. THIS IS THE FIRST MAJOR HUMAN RIGHTS RESOLUTION PUT FORWARD BY THE UN IN YEARS!! The American government under the G.W. Bush Administration has refused to sign it. It is true here is a link to a news article: http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2008/04/04/news/UN-GEN-UN-Disabled-Rights.php

When the resolution was first passed in May I read an article in which an administration official, I believe from the State Department, was quoted as saying that Americans with disabilities had enough rights already--I wish I could find that article now but it has come down off the Web it seems. HMPH . . . Americans don't need it? Is that why the US just passed an revision to the ADA? Is that why 42% of all housing discrimination complaints in the US (to HUD) come from people denied housing and civil rights because of disability? (Thank You Cindy for that fact.)

The UN even went through the trouble of explaining this new resolution to the world using the medium of a children's book specially designed for the purpose. You'd think even America's current administration could comprehend a children's book. But oh wait, that's right . . . weren't they the ones reading "My Pet Goat" while holding the book upside down? Oh Well what can we do? How soon is the election? But seriously this is no joke, its not even funny.

In the meantime, here is what UNICEF had to say about the new UN Resolution on the Right of People with Disability. So don't take my word for it, check it out yourself.



Come November, Please go out and vote for those who will support the rights of people with disabilities and those who will uphold the human rights of all people!