God Part II
I teach 5th grade Sunday school.
[I'll pause while those that know me, roll on the floor laughing at the thought of me teaching Sunday school.]
But the truth is, I've learned plenty these past few years teaching Sunday school. For example, did you know that 5th graders are called tweens. Seriously. And according to my, Teaching 5th Grade Tweens Sunday School for dummies book, today's 5th graders straddle some nefarious netherworld between being a kid and a teen-ager. This means (according to Teaching 5th Grade Tweens Sunday School for dummies) I must treat them both as kids, and teenagers.
Since it is odd and a bit confusing I've opted to treat them in typical aboynamedstu fashion which amounts to the golden rule. Do onto others. Which funnily enough Teaching 5th Grade Tweens Sunday School for dummies doesn't even suggest.
Early this past fall we were deep into the Old Testament stories when one of these tweens raised their hand and asked, "Stuie (that's what they call me, because let's face it, Mr. Tinsley is my Dad) why is God so mean in these stories."
According to Teaching 5th Grade Tweens Sunday School for dummies I'm supposed to say something that amounts to the fact that in OT times, which were ancient times, really olden, the world was a dangerous and hard place. People were violent. Always at war. Did crazy shit (the book doesn't say shit, I'm paraphrasing.) Which is why God was mean. That was the only way the people would stay in line. Do what they needed to do.
No disrespect to Teaching 5th Grade Tweens Sunday School for dummies but, that's a bullshit answer if I ever heard one. And no one can suss out bullshit faster than a group of tweens which is why one of them raised their hand and said, "But the time of Jesus and the New Testament was a long time ago too. And they were at war. The Romans did bad things. But God was much more loving. Jesus was about love."
Which is true.
Unfortunately Teaching 5th Grade Tweens Sunday School for dummies doesn't offer up any input for these type of questions so I'm left on my own which is why I answered, "It's like this. God in the OT is angry God, with the Kung-Fu grip. And if you cross him (we had a class meeting to discuss if the tweens were cool with God being a he/him, which they were.) He's going to smite you. Now the NT God is what I like to call the hippie God. He's all about love. Peace. And Jesus leads the way. And if you think about it. Jesus kind of looks like a hippie. Sorta."
Now this reply might offend if not horrify some. Certainly the authors of Teaching 5th Grade Tweens Sunday School for dummies. But the thing is, the tweens responded to it. They liked it. And they discussed why OT God with the Kung Fu grip was so mean as they put it. And why NT God was about love.
Here at a aboynamedstu I can pretty much says whatever I want to say, since this BLOG isn't for posterity, or for future versions of Team Tinsley. Over at the TT Blog, I often muted my own beliefs, as the stories weren't about me as much as about what was happening with the Team at the time. Perfect example of that is the Stand Up Comedy post from April 2009. That post was about parenting more than about religion, but religion played a big part in the overall story. At the time I wanted to write more about what I thought about the subject but again, I didn't want to color outside the lines of the Team Tinsley BLOG. Thus I didn't say shit.
Which is my heavy handed way of bringing up what the Rev. Pat Robertson said about the earthquake in Haiti being caused by their pact with the devil. And I mean this in nicest way possible, fuck you Pat Robertson.
I don't subscribe to your Old Testament God, with a Kung-Fu grip, who smites those who don't believe what you believe or in the same way as you believe it. I find it upsetting, disturbing and harmful.
Until I BLOG again...I believe in love.
[I'll pause while those that know me, roll on the floor laughing at the thought of me teaching Sunday school.]
But the truth is, I've learned plenty these past few years teaching Sunday school. For example, did you know that 5th graders are called tweens. Seriously. And according to my, Teaching 5th Grade Tweens Sunday School for dummies book, today's 5th graders straddle some nefarious netherworld between being a kid and a teen-ager. This means (according to Teaching 5th Grade Tweens Sunday School for dummies) I must treat them both as kids, and teenagers.
Since it is odd and a bit confusing I've opted to treat them in typical aboynamedstu fashion which amounts to the golden rule. Do onto others. Which funnily enough Teaching 5th Grade Tweens Sunday School for dummies doesn't even suggest.
Early this past fall we were deep into the Old Testament stories when one of these tweens raised their hand and asked, "Stuie (that's what they call me, because let's face it, Mr. Tinsley is my Dad) why is God so mean in these stories."
According to Teaching 5th Grade Tweens Sunday School for dummies I'm supposed to say something that amounts to the fact that in OT times, which were ancient times, really olden, the world was a dangerous and hard place. People were violent. Always at war. Did crazy shit (the book doesn't say shit, I'm paraphrasing.) Which is why God was mean. That was the only way the people would stay in line. Do what they needed to do.
No disrespect to Teaching 5th Grade Tweens Sunday School for dummies but, that's a bullshit answer if I ever heard one. And no one can suss out bullshit faster than a group of tweens which is why one of them raised their hand and said, "But the time of Jesus and the New Testament was a long time ago too. And they were at war. The Romans did bad things. But God was much more loving. Jesus was about love."
Which is true.
Unfortunately Teaching 5th Grade Tweens Sunday School for dummies doesn't offer up any input for these type of questions so I'm left on my own which is why I answered, "It's like this. God in the OT is angry God, with the Kung-Fu grip. And if you cross him (we had a class meeting to discuss if the tweens were cool with God being a he/him, which they were.) He's going to smite you. Now the NT God is what I like to call the hippie God. He's all about love. Peace. And Jesus leads the way. And if you think about it. Jesus kind of looks like a hippie. Sorta."
Now this reply might offend if not horrify some. Certainly the authors of Teaching 5th Grade Tweens Sunday School for dummies. But the thing is, the tweens responded to it. They liked it. And they discussed why OT God with the Kung Fu grip was so mean as they put it. And why NT God was about love.
Here at a aboynamedstu I can pretty much says whatever I want to say, since this BLOG isn't for posterity, or for future versions of Team Tinsley. Over at the TT Blog, I often muted my own beliefs, as the stories weren't about me as much as about what was happening with the Team at the time. Perfect example of that is the Stand Up Comedy post from April 2009. That post was about parenting more than about religion, but religion played a big part in the overall story. At the time I wanted to write more about what I thought about the subject but again, I didn't want to color outside the lines of the Team Tinsley BLOG. Thus I didn't say shit.
Which is my heavy handed way of bringing up what the Rev. Pat Robertson said about the earthquake in Haiti being caused by their pact with the devil. And I mean this in nicest way possible, fuck you Pat Robertson.
I don't subscribe to your Old Testament God, with a Kung-Fu grip, who smites those who don't believe what you believe or in the same way as you believe it. I find it upsetting, disturbing and harmful.
Until I BLOG again...I believe in love.
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