new church life: march/april 2015
minds that can think, hearts that can care, and bodies that can do. It is not
difficult to translate that from child to teacher.
New Church educators are people who consistently feed their minds with
information that helps them to teach effectively, whose hearts are continually
inspired to care for the spiritual education of children, and whose bodies work
in many ways to bring their educational goals to life.
Two conclusions seem evident. One is that the Lord envisioned teachers
in students’ lives who would help them along in their spiritual development.
Another is that there would be places where such teachers would be able to do
this work. It is not difficult to find support for Sunday School classrooms and
even New Church day schools based on these teachings.
Educational methodology. Having considered the use itself, and who is
invited to participate in the use, we turn to guidance from the Word on how to
engage in it. Such an exploration will be cursory at
best, for there are many, many teachings that bear
on the subject. One gathering of such teachings,
however, appears in the chapter of Heaven and
Hell relating to “Children in Heaven.” It deals
with the upbringing of children who have died in
infancy or childhood, and describes in many ways
how angel teachers and parents carry out their
work.
In that chapter we discover many pearls of wisdom. For example, there is
an attitudinal clue in the teaching, “Every child (who dies)…is accepted by the
Lord.” (Heaven and Hell 329) The implication is that New Church parents and
educators can usefully send the message to all children, “You are accepted by
the Lord.” Along the same attitudinal lines, another teaching reminds us that
children are works in progress. They have the “rudiments of becoming angels”
and “have not yet let evil take root.” (Ibid. 330) The implication is that we view
children as potential angels or angels in the making, who have not entirely
figured out life.
Regarding those who teach, it says they are “angels who had loved
children tenderly…, and had loved God as well.” (Ibid. 332) It appears, perhaps
obviously, that the best qualifications for educators are a love for children and
a love for God.
Any experienced educator, and most parents, know the truth of the
next teaching: “Children have different natures…” (Ibid. 333) A subsequent
teaching says some children “think and talk and act more gently,” and others
“are not so gentle.” (Ibid. 339) Again, most of us could smile and nod our
heads, knowing what this is talking about. It does imply that we refrain from a
one-size-fits-all educational model, and it reminds us of the delightful variety
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