Growing in Faith
30/12/12 05:32
In the United States, the average 12-year-old boy is about 5 feet tall, weighs in the area of one hundred to one hundred fifteen pounds, and has developed little muscle mass. Most 12-year-olds have significant growth yet to come. We consider them to be children even though they are experiencing a distinct increase in strength and personal power.
For many generations, the tradition of celebrating the coming of age for Jewish boys, or Bar Mitzvah has been celebrated when the boy is 13 years of age. The tradition, firmly rooted in scriptural law, relates to an individual’s accountability under the law. Prior to Bar Mitzvah (or Bat Mitzvah for a girl) a child is the responsibility of the parents. If the child violates the law, the parents are held responsible. After a child comes “under the bar” or “under the law” that child is held personally responsible for adherence to the law.
The choice of the age 13 has to do with an approximate age of the onset of puberty. That was, for many generations, a reasonable age to consider someone an adult. But things are changing. Research indicates that boys and girls are reaching puberty at earlier ages. In the U.S. signs of puberty have been found at an average age of 9 for African American boys, 10 for whites and Hispanics. That is up to two years earlier than previous studies. Last October a study published in Pediatrics to coincide with the American Academy of Pediatrics’ national conference, reported on over 4,000 boys who were followed from age 6 to 16 with regular check-ups. The group was racially mixed. The study found strong evidence that boys are maturing earlier.
Currently doctors generally consider puberty to be early if it begins before age 8 in girls and before age 9 in boys. The age of puberty isn’t really the topic of today’s reflection, but it does affect how we look at the distinction between a child and an adult. At what age does a boy become a man? At what age does a girl become a woman?
Our contemporary society has quite a few different rituals that mark a gradual transition from childhood to adulthood. In South Dakota, the usual age for a driver’s license is 16, but a restricted minor’s permit is available for those who are 14 and meet certain requirements. Obtaining a driver’s license is seen as one transition into the world of adults.
We also name high school graduation as a transition point. In our state a person can purchase lottery tickets and cigarettes when that person turns 18. 21 is the minimum age for the legal purchase of alcohol. We also note college graduation, the obtaining of a first job and even marriage as points of entry into adult life.
It is not uncommon to call the entire period between the onset of puberty and marriage adolescence and see it as a time of transition. With the age of puberty getting younger and the age of first marriage getting older, that period of transition is stretching out in our society. 2010 is the most recent year in which we have accurate statistics. In 2010 the median age for a man’s first marriage was 28.2 years. The median age for women was 26.1. We are approaching two decades of adolescence in our society.
All of this has relevance in this time of the year for Christians, because the Bible is very short of stories about Jesus’ childhood and adolescence. It simply is not the subject of Biblical reporting. There is just one story about Jesus from this part of his life and it appears in only one of the Gospels. Luke 2:41-52 reports that the twelve-year-old Jesus goes with his family to the temple. On their return trip it is discovered that the boy is missing. After some panicked searching he is found in the temple. After a brief conversation, he is obedient to his parents and returns to his home. In the very next verse of the gospel, Jesus is 30 years old. We simply don’t have any reports of his adolescence.
There are some ancient extrabiblical texts that do include stories of Jesus’ childhood. The Gospel of Thomas has several stories, including miracle stories about the infant and child. But for readers of the Bible, stories about Jesus’ childhood are missing and in the one story that we do have Jesus is missing, at least for a little while.
This means that ministries to and with youth and children have to be based on principles extracted from stories about Jesus’ adulthood. We do have stories about Jesus welcoming children. We have a story about a young boy offering his lunch that is blessed and used to feed a multitude. But there is very little direct Biblical teaching about children and youth and their role in the community. These we have drawn from traditions, from educational theory, from developmental psychology and a host of other sources.
Those of us who are actively engaged in ministry, however, know how important children and youth are in the evaluation of a community. We regularly hear that the choice of a particular congregation is based on the programs for children and youth. Increasingly in the last couple of decades we hear reports of families that allow youth and children to lead the decisions about family participation in churches. “Our kids are happier at this or that church,” we hear. Families change churches based on the size of youth groups, the perceived popularity of the church’s programs among youth and the personality of the ministers. The call to ministry is a great leap of faith. Later we find out we are being judged not so much on our faith as on our marketing skills.
As a result, the tendency to over analyze this simple story from Luke is very understandable. But the story is really simple. The boy Jesus, as he made his transition from childhood to adulthood was at home in the temple. He was comfortable with an adult faith and the adults who lived lives of faith from an early age. The stories of his childhood report that his parents had faith.
Perhaps we, too, would do well to concentrate a bit more effort on helping adults to grow into mature faith.
For many generations, the tradition of celebrating the coming of age for Jewish boys, or Bar Mitzvah has been celebrated when the boy is 13 years of age. The tradition, firmly rooted in scriptural law, relates to an individual’s accountability under the law. Prior to Bar Mitzvah (or Bat Mitzvah for a girl) a child is the responsibility of the parents. If the child violates the law, the parents are held responsible. After a child comes “under the bar” or “under the law” that child is held personally responsible for adherence to the law.
The choice of the age 13 has to do with an approximate age of the onset of puberty. That was, for many generations, a reasonable age to consider someone an adult. But things are changing. Research indicates that boys and girls are reaching puberty at earlier ages. In the U.S. signs of puberty have been found at an average age of 9 for African American boys, 10 for whites and Hispanics. That is up to two years earlier than previous studies. Last October a study published in Pediatrics to coincide with the American Academy of Pediatrics’ national conference, reported on over 4,000 boys who were followed from age 6 to 16 with regular check-ups. The group was racially mixed. The study found strong evidence that boys are maturing earlier.
Currently doctors generally consider puberty to be early if it begins before age 8 in girls and before age 9 in boys. The age of puberty isn’t really the topic of today’s reflection, but it does affect how we look at the distinction between a child and an adult. At what age does a boy become a man? At what age does a girl become a woman?
Our contemporary society has quite a few different rituals that mark a gradual transition from childhood to adulthood. In South Dakota, the usual age for a driver’s license is 16, but a restricted minor’s permit is available for those who are 14 and meet certain requirements. Obtaining a driver’s license is seen as one transition into the world of adults.
We also name high school graduation as a transition point. In our state a person can purchase lottery tickets and cigarettes when that person turns 18. 21 is the minimum age for the legal purchase of alcohol. We also note college graduation, the obtaining of a first job and even marriage as points of entry into adult life.
It is not uncommon to call the entire period between the onset of puberty and marriage adolescence and see it as a time of transition. With the age of puberty getting younger and the age of first marriage getting older, that period of transition is stretching out in our society. 2010 is the most recent year in which we have accurate statistics. In 2010 the median age for a man’s first marriage was 28.2 years. The median age for women was 26.1. We are approaching two decades of adolescence in our society.
All of this has relevance in this time of the year for Christians, because the Bible is very short of stories about Jesus’ childhood and adolescence. It simply is not the subject of Biblical reporting. There is just one story about Jesus from this part of his life and it appears in only one of the Gospels. Luke 2:41-52 reports that the twelve-year-old Jesus goes with his family to the temple. On their return trip it is discovered that the boy is missing. After some panicked searching he is found in the temple. After a brief conversation, he is obedient to his parents and returns to his home. In the very next verse of the gospel, Jesus is 30 years old. We simply don’t have any reports of his adolescence.
There are some ancient extrabiblical texts that do include stories of Jesus’ childhood. The Gospel of Thomas has several stories, including miracle stories about the infant and child. But for readers of the Bible, stories about Jesus’ childhood are missing and in the one story that we do have Jesus is missing, at least for a little while.
This means that ministries to and with youth and children have to be based on principles extracted from stories about Jesus’ adulthood. We do have stories about Jesus welcoming children. We have a story about a young boy offering his lunch that is blessed and used to feed a multitude. But there is very little direct Biblical teaching about children and youth and their role in the community. These we have drawn from traditions, from educational theory, from developmental psychology and a host of other sources.
Those of us who are actively engaged in ministry, however, know how important children and youth are in the evaluation of a community. We regularly hear that the choice of a particular congregation is based on the programs for children and youth. Increasingly in the last couple of decades we hear reports of families that allow youth and children to lead the decisions about family participation in churches. “Our kids are happier at this or that church,” we hear. Families change churches based on the size of youth groups, the perceived popularity of the church’s programs among youth and the personality of the ministers. The call to ministry is a great leap of faith. Later we find out we are being judged not so much on our faith as on our marketing skills.
As a result, the tendency to over analyze this simple story from Luke is very understandable. But the story is really simple. The boy Jesus, as he made his transition from childhood to adulthood was at home in the temple. He was comfortable with an adult faith and the adults who lived lives of faith from an early age. The stories of his childhood report that his parents had faith.
Perhaps we, too, would do well to concentrate a bit more effort on helping adults to grow into mature faith.