Faith Resources and More

My first commitment to answer my lay ministry call years ago was, not surprisingly, as a Sunday school teacher and later Christian education director. During that time, a family with three autistic children began coming to our church. In theory, we were welcoming of all but in actual fact, we were ill-prepared to deal with these school-aged charges. I had taught special needs kids but, having not been trained, my attitude wasn’t good. Other teachers were even more caught off guard than I was. Little wonder we have not seen that family in years.

Authors Audrey Scanlan and Linda Snyder have addressed that issue with a special needs program in Connecticut called Rhythms of Grace and a curriculum and worship book by the same name. They describe their approach as ‘full-bodied’ because it engages the whole child in developmentally-appropriate activities and because it includes the whole body of  Christ. Worship is integral to their concept of curriculum. Parents and adult caregivers are included in the program which provides much needed support for this easily isolated population. With complete plans for monthly gatherings and special feast days, this curriculum resource provides everything you need to get started including suggestions on how to nurture your fledgling group. I predict the experience will be rewarding.

August 1… we are closing in on the end of the 2010 Vacation Bible School season. For the first time in over a decade, I was tapped to actually participate in a VBS adventure at my home church. This is also the first time that I have ever worked directly with the current grade of ‘commercially produced kit’ and for me, it was an eye-opening experience. My first career was as a public school art teacher. After leaving the public school setting, I have taught privately, at the Y, in Sunday school classes, and inner city after school settings. So I’m no stranger to teaching arts and crafts. I was tapped to help lead the crafts room for the Baobab Blast program from Augsburg Fortress. I had previewed the program in January as part of the Interfaith Resource Center’s annual VBS workshops, but previewing a curriculum is a far cry from actually working with it. The craft leader’s guide that came with the kit offered at least 35 projects for 5 age groups set up to be used in 5 days. Our team quickly got to work, eliminating some projects, assessing some as not age-appropriate, and drastically redesigning several others. Ultimately, we had a core list of projects that we knew would work. Our careful planning and collaborative effort yielded good results for the kids, with projects that they were proud to share. And the overall event was a great success, highlighted by a final presentation with good music for an audience of pleased parents. Bottom line for me though is that no matter what program you choose, it is the gifts of your team that makes any VBS event come alive. What a great group of people! And across the region and the country, perhaps thousands of VBS events have flourished with comparable teams of dedicated leaders. Awesome!

What a treat! The National Organization of Episcopal Resource Center (NOERC) met at the St Raphaela Retreat Center in Haverford, PA this week. It was a meeting that I couldn’t pass up and I was very richly rewarded for partaking of the event. The theme of the devotions was Sabbath Keeping and I must confess that is an area of spirituality that I aspire to but rarely give it the attention it deserves. One writer who offers some respectful in spirations on that spiritual discipline is Lauren Winner, whose best-selling book Mudhouse Sabbath is now available as a DVD-study.

Among the resource news to anticipate is a wealth of new curricula and adult formation resources from Church Publishing Incorporated (www.churchpublishing.org). Some are in book form, others are downloadable. One new program that I will mention here is Rhythms of Grace, a book-based curriculum intended for church programs and worship for the special needs communities. Rather than being intended as a mainstreaming vehicle, this resource targets churches that offer separate regularly scheduled programs for special needs children and their families. Such programs provide an ability-appropriate opportunity for special needs families to fellowship and worship together. Having worked many years ago in a special education resource center in which mainstreaming was the rage, I welcome hearing your comments on this interesting new program.

“What do you think about Godly Play?,” someone asked at the Episcopal Diocese of Delaware Convention on Saturday. I was quick to respond positively, with a qualifier. “Although some have challenged this opinion, I believe Godly Play is strongest as a beginning curriculum for kids 3 to about age 8, like the Montessori educational philosophy from which it springs.” Montessori teachers will disagree with me, pointing out the successes of using the teaching method with significantly older children.

With it’s stunning array of hand-crafted manipulatives including an exquisite hardwood ark, Godly Play can be quite expensive to launch. However many churches choose to contain their cost by enlisting the help of talented members to stock their shelves with fine alternatives. That has the added benefit of involving and investing people in the program who might not otherwise take an interest in children’s Sunday School.

Probably one of the most valuable and central tools of the program is the church year calendar… a circular wooden ‘puzzle’ with 52 pieces for each Sunday in the year. It is a powerful visual aid to help children understand the liturgical year, a fairly abstract concept for youngsters to grasp. The color of the pieces corresponds to the colors of the liturgical year, so that kids can delight in picking out those same colors hung on the church altar. Lessons include the biblical stories as well as later modules in early church history and recently published components for highlighting the lives of the saints.  “So what do you think about Godly Play?” I welcome your comments on how Godly Play is working for you.

I was recently given a copy of For Heaven’s Sake! Parenting Preschoolers Faithfully, by Marilyn Sharpe. I have found it a delightful read. It captures what is for me the essence of the parenting experience… that is, that no other experience in life quite surpasses the spiritual journey of sharing your life with children. The author helps us feel the inspiration that makes raising children very much a two-way street… you point out God-moments to them while they share God-moments with you. Ms. Sharpe’s suggestions for parenting are gentle, full of the serendipity of life, while offering practical applications for life’s common challenges  to living with young souls who need encouragement and correction. This would be a great gift for a new mother or grandparent.

As I look into the delighted eyes of my two-year-old grandson, I understand that knowing God is one of the unique treasures that I can share with him. I am again enjoying the spiritual journey as I once did with my own daughter and son. I’ll keep you posted.