Jesus was clear that not only are children welcome in his presence, but he wants us to be like children. I sometimes struggle with knowing what that exactly looks like, but recently I’ve tried to think about my own children’s characteristics. The ones that have stood out to me have been their curiosity, honesty and ability to be unapologetically present in the moment. 

All of these have their moments when they aren’t convenient or might even be maddening for a parent. If you’ve ever been on the other side of an endless “But why?”, you know what I’m talking about.  

As a parent in the thick of raising a family, I’ve found the articles in this issue on children’s faith formation particularly helpful and thought-
provoking. My eldest has always had a lot of questions about God and faith. One he brings up a lot is, “Why can’t we see God?” 

One of my favorite moments with him was an Easter a couple of years ago. We were into the pandemic at least a year, and the last time he had been in a Sunday school classroom was before he could talk. 

As a way to go beyond Easter bunnies and egg hunts, I sat down with him and his children’s Bible and read the Easter story. 

When I finished, his eyes were wide. He said, “Jesus was a zombie?” 

I was not prepared for that honest question. 

Somehow in his mind — surely influenced by cartoons — he associated coming back to life with being a zombie. 

It took me a few minutes to gather my thoughts. Once I did, we could process a bit together, and we made our way to the understanding that Jesus was not a zombie but that his return from the dead was a miracle and showed how great God is. 

We talked about it a few more times together. Now, it’s one of my favorite parenting moments and always makes me laugh when I think about it.

I share this story as a way of raising my hand and saying: I need all of you wonderful people to do this awesome children’s faith formation work. I need the help! 

As lovely, funny and precious as kids can be, we need support and tools of guidance as we navigate all their ­special qualities.