Child Theology: Snake
When my eldest daughter was three years old, she posed this question...
"Why do you think Adam and Eve listened to the snake?"
Trying to be an affirming parent, I said, "That's a good question. Why do you think they listened to him?"
"I think it's because he was amazing," she said. "Snakes don't talk, so that probably amazed them... so they listened."
I had never thought about it quite like that. So we went on to have a rousing theological discussion about evil... how it sometimes lures with big displays, circus tricks, if you will, like the kind Satan asked Jesus to perform during the Wilderness Temptation. At times, evil tries to amaze the socks off you, so you'll step into waves that'll carry you away.
And, to think, my three year old opened up this discussion... "Jesus rejoiced...and said, 'I thank you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because you have hidden these things from the wise and the intelligent and have revealed them to infants; yes...'" (Luke 10:21)
"Why do you think Adam and Eve listened to the snake?"
Trying to be an affirming parent, I said, "That's a good question. Why do you think they listened to him?"
"I think it's because he was amazing," she said. "Snakes don't talk, so that probably amazed them... so they listened."
I had never thought about it quite like that. So we went on to have a rousing theological discussion about evil... how it sometimes lures with big displays, circus tricks, if you will, like the kind Satan asked Jesus to perform during the Wilderness Temptation. At times, evil tries to amaze the socks off you, so you'll step into waves that'll carry you away.
And, to think, my three year old opened up this discussion... "Jesus rejoiced...and said, 'I thank you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because you have hidden these things from the wise and the intelligent and have revealed them to infants; yes...'" (Luke 10:21)
posted by L.L. Barkat at 7:27 AM
5 Comments:
Aren't kids amazing? I think sometimes I over-complicate things with all my "analyzing." Then along comes a child (usually my son) who brings everything right back to the basics.
Kids are cool until they grow up to be teenagers.
Here for Click and Comment Monday. Just cruising around visiting bloggers who have been kind enough to visit and comment on my site, Texas RV Travel at
http://usaer.blogspot.com
Gosh, cybercelt, I rather like teenagers myself. They are often brave, passionate, idealistic... all those things that having a mortgage and a lawn to mow seem to strip away from us "grown ups."
Once my son asked, how did God came about in the first place... It's sorta difficult to explain to a young child at times.. they will find it hard to comprehend certain things.
To "the woman"...
yes, it's especially hard to explain all the things I still don't understand myself! (of which there seem to be many... and I discover more every day).
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