Religious teachers answer important questions from our youth
Most houses of worship have religious schools where the youth learn about their religions, including the rituals, theology and history.
Religious school teachers play an unsung role in the classrooms. Many are not necessarily trained professional teachers, but they are committed to the students and give their best towards educating them regarding the faith’s core values.
Others are professional teachers, but not necessarily steeped in knowledge about the faith. So what questions should teachers be prepared to answer when their students ask them about what their faith means?
Teachers generally receive a curriculum, but that does not always apply when a student suddenly asks them about their own belief. How shall teachers respond?
Here are some of my top questions that students up until their teen years ask teachers and clergy in a classroom setting.
“Do you believe in God?”
It is one thing to tell what the official theology says and it is quite another to answer as an adult what you mean by saying; ‘I believe God.’
Another question is; “Is the Bible true?”
Does truth mean that all the teachings are true in a metaphorical sense or does the question mean everything happened just as the stories are written in the text itself?
Other questions are; “Does God care if I am good or bad?” “Can I pray that I can get good grades?” “I asked God to make my grandma better but she died.” “Does that mean that God can’t heal the sick?” “Does God choose who God will save and who God will not save?” “What exactly happens to us after we die?”
These are not easy questions to answer. Parents should also be prepared to respond these kinds of questions. There are nuanced differences between what a religion teaches and what we as individuals believe about the tenants of the faith.
So, what should a teacher or a parent do when a child asks a tough question that we are not sure how to answer, either because we do not subscribe to the exact theology or we simply do not know the answer?
The first principle for teachers and parents is to show our young that we welcome questions and that asking questions is good. Next, we should not be afraid to say, “I do not know the answer.”
Honesty is best, but the teacher can assure the student that he or she will find out the answer. That is one of many reasons why we have clergy to answer our questions about the meaning and teachings of our faith tradition.
It is important to give students an answer to their questions. Yet, encouraging questions in the classroom helps the teacher to better understand where the student is coming from when they ask tough questions.
For example, when a student (depending on age) asks me, “Why do bad people do well and good people suffer?” I might reply; “Do you have an example of this kind of situation?” Usually the student has something in mind which has propelled them to ask this kind of question.
That begins the real discussion to help the teacher better understand the student before responding.
Young people want to learn. They want to know what their religion teaches them about God and how to be a good person. They have the same curiosity as adults about their place in the world and what is the purpose of their existence.
Aren’t these some of the fundamental questions that all religions teach their adherents?
Older students in their teen years need religious educations to address contemporary problems from ethics and social justice to spirituality. Yes, there are answers to these kinds of questions, but the students get so much out of an honest and non-judgmental discussion. Teachers who can stimulate these kinds conversations usually are able to elicit the most honest and sincere dialogue between the generations.
The teachers who instruct our youth in the religious schools of the nation’s religious institutions deserve our thanks and respect. Their ability to provide a welcoming tone for their student’s questions about the faith is critical.
Let’s not forget that teens today have the internet, which gives them an enormous amount of choice to find the answers to their questions. The upshot is that when our young people are in front of us in a church or mosque or synagogue asking questions, we should not take it for granted.
School teachers across the religious spectrum make a difference and should never underestimate or play down their role in the lives of the young people they teach.
It is written in the Book of Proverbs, “Start children off on the way they should go, and even when they are old they will not turn from it” (22: 6).
Religious School teachers serving in America’s houses of worship are the front line toward achieving this goal. Welcoming dialogue and asking questions in their classrooms may be the most important learning experience for a child’s ethical and spiritual life.