Make Disciples of All Nations
This is our Sunday school theme this year. We are not teaching Sunday school, we are making Disciples. There is a difference. Making Disciples isn’t just about communicating information, it is about helping someone become a follower of Christ. We do this by example of living out our lives as followers of Christ. That involves a whole way of being and looking at ourselves and the world. The phrase “Faith is Caught, not Taught’ comes to mind. So in order to make Disciples we must in fact “be” Disciples. That means that we have the mind of Christ when it comes to our purpose for living. To do that we have to know the scriptures, go to church, receive the sacrament; confession, Holy Unction, Holy Communion. We have to be prepared to “Give an answer for the hope that is within us.”
So the commandment of Christ, just before He ascended into heaven, “Make Disciples of all Nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, and low I am with you always, even to the ends of the earth”, contains a lot of assumptions about our everyday existence.
For instance, it assumes that we know what it means to be a follower of Christ, and that we follow that way of living. Let’s make that a little more practical: We are having trouble at work, and the boss is really getting on us. It makes us angry and we want to quit because it is so unfair. But then we remember St. Paul’s advice to the Thessalonians, “Be patient with everyone. See that no one pays back evil for evil, but always try to do good to each other and to all people. Always be joyful. Never stop praying. Be thankful in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you who belong to Christ Jesus.” Sometimes it is hard to figure out how to apply this guidance in everyday life. When we see it modeled in another, then it is easier to learn to be a disciple. So we set about “Working out our salvation in fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you to will and to act in order to fulfill his good purpose.”
So our Sunday school program is not just to teach information about Jesus but to show these little ones how to live by our example. It is not just a matter of reciting old Bible stories and hope they get it, it is helping them acquire the mind of the Church, through applying our faith in everyday, sometimes very challenging situations. That is what all of us are called to do, not just in Sunday school, but in life “make Disciples of all nations.” And that is not just the work of priests or bishops, but of every Orthodox Christian.
Fr. Anthony