Posted by Walker on June 02, 1998 at 01:44:02:
Yesterday I taught lesson 19 from the Old Testament Gospel Doctorine Teacher's manual. (book of Judges)
This is really a lot to cover. As it turns out, my kids didn't even know who Samson and Delilah were so I spent the class time telling that story.
As I gave them the details of the 300 foxes and firebrands, 1000 soldiers killed by the jawbone of an [ahem] donkey, 30 men killed for their silks, gates ripped off, pillers broken and cities toppled, it became apparent that the kids have picked up on my cynical attitude toward this book.
I heard comments like, "This is ridiculous", "This sounds like the adventurs of Hercules", "You're teaching us tall tales".
Personally, I liked the part about Samson making dumb mistakes because the beautiful girl messed up his head. So I talked about that some.
Somehow, I think the parent's of these kids would like me to teach something more spiritual uplifting but that's not my strength. Sometimes I feel like telling the bishop that I just can't teach with the spirit anymore. On the other hand I have had several parents tell me how much their children enjoyed my class.
The lesson manual somehow pulls meaning out of all these crazy stories. For example there is a picture of a wayward tree bound with ropes and stakes. The stakes are labeled "Righteous Parents", "Righteous friends", "Faith in God", "Covenants". Somehow I don't think this idea of being forced to grow straight is going to go over well with my teenagers.
So I tell the tall tales from the Old testament. They really are a lot of fun and my kids haven't heard some of them before. Sometimes I talk about Greek myths to compare and contrast. Sometimes I talk about Buddhism.
What would you do?
--Walker
[ Follow Ups ] [ Exmormon.org- Honest Inquiry Message Board ] [ FAQ ]