This is a subject that I'm quite passionate about. In this post, I'm not really going to take any certain stance regarding eschatology or say what I believe is correct and true. I'm simply going to focus on HOW it is portrayed to our children and the harm that it can and does cause. And you might be thinking, "Why Seth, you're not even a parent yet! How can you know how it is portrayed to our children?" And you've got a point. I haven't been a parent. But I have been a child. So I will speak mostly from the child's viewpoint.
I'll just go ahead and say it plainly and then give my reasons. Teaching, focusing, and fixating on "End Times" teaching can be downright harmful, detrimental, and (I believe) even torture and abuse. Especially when it comes to children's soft, mold-able, sensitive minds. (Although it can affect adults very negatively too.) Here are the reasons to back up my claim. This is how "End Times" teaching effects me, but I know there are people who are actually encouraged by End Times study, so if that's you, ignore this. I'm not slamming your opinion, I'm simply telling you how "End Times" teaching can effect some people.
Reason 1: It causes Disappointment and Hopelessness.
Now, I have a GREAT life. During my childhood and now. So you can imagine what my reaction is going to be when I hear people saying, "Oh yes my boy. The world's getting bad. Any second of any day now, Jesus is going to "split the eastern sky", swoop in, and take us away from this wretched, filthy cesspool of sin and ever growing evil." (This, by the way, is the attitude and mindset adopted by some christians.) Now, when I hear those words as I live in my great life, guess what? I don't understand...It doesn't compute. I start thinking, "My life is great! Why are all these people talking about the world being bad? My life is amazing!" And then my next thought is, "Wait........If I'm going to be zapped off this earth any minute, then I'm going to miss out on almost my whole life!...I just came into the world less than a few decades ago, and already these people are telling me I'm going to be taken to heaven?!......If that's true, then I'll never get to experience the joy of getting married or grow old with my spouse! I'll never be able to have a sexual relationship with my wife! I'll never have children. I'll never dance with my daughter, or fight dragons with my son, or bounce my grandchildren on my knee if the world ends now!" And thus it begins. Despair and disappointment begins to take hold in my head. And all the while, sad, tired, other people sit around and watch negative stuff on the news and cheer about the end of the world, because their hope has run dry for this world. They can't wait to get out of here! They LOVE IT when a pastor stands behind a pulpit and shouts that: "the world is going to the flames, the sun will melt, and the moon will turn to blood!" And then those same people wonder why the younger generation (who haven't lived their lives yet) hates going to church.
Reason 2: It causes Fear.
When we teach our children that everything they know and love is going to perish in flames and they'll be raptured into another dimension called "heaven", it scares them. And you might be thinking, "But Seth, heaven is amazing! Why would they be scared to go there?" Good question. Let me ask you one. What if many children were already experiencing heaven here, on the earth? They would have no desire or need to see "streets of gold and pearly gates." Many of them already have heaven here. Yet we look them in the eye and tell them with enthusiasm that this life they have is all going to burn. And this is where we get into mentally torturing children. We also give them NO guarantee that they'll even go to heaven! We tell them that they could also burn F O R E V E R in hell if they "backslide." We approve of books that are literally called "Left Behind" and allow our soft-hearted, 11-year-old boys and girls to read them. Then we wonder why they struggle with fear and doubt. If I'm being honest, that can be worse than physically abusing them. Because all physical torture eventually ends. But we tell them they could burn "FOREVER" with NO END if they aren't saved. Then of course they're terrified that they're not saved. That is the worst mental torment a child can go through. I'm not saying any of this to cause guilt or regret. (If you dwelled on End Times teaching with your children when they were young, NO CONDEMNATION. We're all in growth, and it might not have even effected your children negatively like it did me. I just believe it can many times be harmful.)
Let me know what you guys think. As always, no pressure to agree.
I'll just go ahead and say it plainly and then give my reasons. Teaching, focusing, and fixating on "End Times" teaching can be downright harmful, detrimental, and (I believe) even torture and abuse. Especially when it comes to children's soft, mold-able, sensitive minds. (Although it can affect adults very negatively too.) Here are the reasons to back up my claim. This is how "End Times" teaching effects me, but I know there are people who are actually encouraged by End Times study, so if that's you, ignore this. I'm not slamming your opinion, I'm simply telling you how "End Times" teaching can effect some people.
Reason 1: It causes Disappointment and Hopelessness.
Now, I have a GREAT life. During my childhood and now. So you can imagine what my reaction is going to be when I hear people saying, "Oh yes my boy. The world's getting bad. Any second of any day now, Jesus is going to "split the eastern sky", swoop in, and take us away from this wretched, filthy cesspool of sin and ever growing evil." (This, by the way, is the attitude and mindset adopted by some christians.) Now, when I hear those words as I live in my great life, guess what? I don't understand...It doesn't compute. I start thinking, "My life is great! Why are all these people talking about the world being bad? My life is amazing!" And then my next thought is, "Wait........If I'm going to be zapped off this earth any minute, then I'm going to miss out on almost my whole life!...I just came into the world less than a few decades ago, and already these people are telling me I'm going to be taken to heaven?!......If that's true, then I'll never get to experience the joy of getting married or grow old with my spouse! I'll never be able to have a sexual relationship with my wife! I'll never have children. I'll never dance with my daughter, or fight dragons with my son, or bounce my grandchildren on my knee if the world ends now!" And thus it begins. Despair and disappointment begins to take hold in my head. And all the while, sad, tired, other people sit around and watch negative stuff on the news and cheer about the end of the world, because their hope has run dry for this world. They can't wait to get out of here! They LOVE IT when a pastor stands behind a pulpit and shouts that: "the world is going to the flames, the sun will melt, and the moon will turn to blood!" And then those same people wonder why the younger generation (who haven't lived their lives yet) hates going to church.
Reason 2: It causes Fear.
When we teach our children that everything they know and love is going to perish in flames and they'll be raptured into another dimension called "heaven", it scares them. And you might be thinking, "But Seth, heaven is amazing! Why would they be scared to go there?" Good question. Let me ask you one. What if many children were already experiencing heaven here, on the earth? They would have no desire or need to see "streets of gold and pearly gates." Many of them already have heaven here. Yet we look them in the eye and tell them with enthusiasm that this life they have is all going to burn. And this is where we get into mentally torturing children. We also give them NO guarantee that they'll even go to heaven! We tell them that they could also burn F O R E V E R in hell if they "backslide." We approve of books that are literally called "Left Behind" and allow our soft-hearted, 11-year-old boys and girls to read them. Then we wonder why they struggle with fear and doubt. If I'm being honest, that can be worse than physically abusing them. Because all physical torture eventually ends. But we tell them they could burn "FOREVER" with NO END if they aren't saved. Then of course they're terrified that they're not saved. That is the worst mental torment a child can go through. I'm not saying any of this to cause guilt or regret. (If you dwelled on End Times teaching with your children when they were young, NO CONDEMNATION. We're all in growth, and it might not have even effected your children negatively like it did me. I just believe it can many times be harmful.)
Let me know what you guys think. As always, no pressure to agree.
Oh, man. You just went there, didn't you?
ReplyDeleteYou said:
"And all the while, sad, tired, other people sit around and watch negative stuff on the news and cheer about the end of the world, because their hope has run dry for this world."
THAT is the problem! I just didn't used to know that to have that view is the OPPOSITE of what God wants for us. We should be advancing and bringing the kingdom here and now - Not just hanging on by the skin of our teeth!
Great post!
I agree. God has SO much more for us than "hanging on by the skin of our teeth." There's that verse that says, "The kingdom of God is righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit." And since the Kingdom of God is here presently, I'd say we should have some righteousness, peace, and joy in our lives.
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