[May 2004 journal entry]
A congregation that takes seriously the rich variety of ways to use language for reflecting on human experience and the limits of language when ‘God’ language is attempted will intentionally guide children across the threshold from a simplistic/literal use of language to an appreciation for ‘story’ and for the morphic nature of ‘God’ language. Congregations toward the evangelical/fundamentalist end of the spectrum intentionally stand against this approach. I do not yet know of a congregation within the ‘religious’ sphere that incorporates this language growth/task in confirmation discussions (an ideal and symbolic time to do so). As children cross from elementary school to middle school, they are being introduced directly (as in literature studies) and indirectly (as in science, history, math studies) to the potential and the limitations of human language. Public schools and private schools not religiously affiliated/restricted do so more uniformly and consistently; religiously affiliated private schools do so less uniformly and consistently, depending on their position on the theological spectrum. A few home school curricula – e.g., the Calvert curriculum – do so in an exemplary manner, in sharp contrast to most home school curricula that are designed to protect a fundamentalist/pre-modern use of language.
