Churches proclaim child theology imperative to Christian ministries
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Kamis, 22 September 2011
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By acknowledging this need, the World Council of Churches (WCC) Ecumenical Theological Education programme is stressing the need for child theology by joining a recent conference followed by a book, as an integral component in children’s education and spiritual growth.
The programme engages with churches, renewal movements and theological institutions to recognize children’s great potential in Christian mission. This naturally connects to Christ’s compelling action of bringing children to the centre of attention, “and he took the child, and put him in the midst of them and said, whoever receives such a child in my name, receives me, and whoever receives me, receives not me but him who sent me,” (Mark 9:36.)
The WCC, along with other Christian ministries around the world reflected upon developments in child theology in a recent “Theological Conference on Children”, titled “Now and Next” hosted by Daystar University and Compassion International in Nairobi in March this year.
The consultation brought together key leaders from international organizations, including the World Evangelical Alliance, the Lausanne Movement, 4/14 Window Global Movement, Child Theology Movement, the Holistic Child Development Global Alliance and Overseas Council International (OCI).
The conference participants discussed the implications of child theology in the mission of the church, as well as ways of expanding theological curriculum from a holistic child development point of view. These reflections have been featured in a resource book Now & Next published by Compassion International, which will be available online later this year.
Remembering the Sunday school movement as one of the earliest ecumenical endeavours, Rev. Dr Dietrich Werner, programme executive for the Ecumenical Theological Education underlines child theology as an important field of collaboration between the evangelical and ecumenical circles.
“It is therefore timely to nurture churches’ commitment to children’s ministries and the Sunday school movement, which cannot be disassociated from the very essence of the church being sign of the Kingdom of God,” Werner says.
Werner hopes for the concerns of the child theology movement to be incorporated in the preparatory process of the upcoming WCC 10th Assembly in Busan, Korea in 2013.
He stresses the significance of child theology saying, “Children have the right to learn about God. They have a right to get to know Christ. Children need spiritual resources, symbols and narratives, which provide inner space for fundamental expressions of hope, love and trust, something crucial for the child development.” (WCC)
