Being Sunday, it seemed appropriate to talk about something that has been a part of my life since infancy, literally. Central Presbyterian Church didn't have a nursery. By the time I was able to be held in the Primary Teacher Miss Mary Lou Harris' lap, I went to Sunday School. Mom played the organ and Dad was in the choir, and with Miss Mary Lou being a cousin (we all called her "Auntie"), the Sunday School became my home away from home.
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| A young Mary Lou Harris (center) |
Auntie was a wonderful teacher who was self-taught, plus she had the biggest, softest lap of anyone I knew (of course my lap experience was somewhat limited at age six weeks). In big church I was held my Dad's mom who was probably my age...she seemed ancient to me, but she had a big, soft lap as well. I think society has forgotten the key role loving laps play in a child's life. Today we look at the extra girth as something to be gotten rid of by diet and exercise and forget it provides an easy way to build a baby's sense of security. (My mental-health-professional-in-training niece will probably say this is a bunch of hog wash, but that's o.k. it's my blog.)
Back to Sunday School...how many of our parents knotted a nickel in a handkerchief specifically designated for the SS offering which went to missionary work of the Presbyterian Church? At Central we sang a song "Go Little Pennies, go and say, Jesus the Savior strong and true, loves every one of you."
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| Easter @ Central |
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| BMW--the Primary Years |
The primary years made a deep impression on me. We didn't have a felt board, but Auntie made Bible stories come alive with colored cartoon pictures and the way she talked about them. Later I found out when a test was given by the Presbytery for Bible knowledge, Auntie made the highest score. Those stories in all their vivid color and detail came back to me when I taught. I can still see the picture of the Tower of Babel in my mind.
At our house we had a routine on Saturday night; you ate supper, took your bath, studied your Sunday School lesson and watched Lawrence Welk. Then you went to bed because you had to be up and at it for Sunday School the next morning.
I still can't stand to watch Lawrence Welk.
My Dad taught the Men's Bible Class at Central from the time he was 18 (after the former teacher, his grandfather, passed away) until he was 70 or so. He begged others to take his place, but no one would agree. I saw him pray and worry that he wasn't leading them as well as someone else could; nevertheless, he wouldn't just let the class go without a teacher. He never used notes. He would hold the quarterly (that's what they called the SS book) in his hand as a prop, but the information and the commentary was in his head. Through the years our family bought William Barkley commentaries for him as Christmas and birthday gifts because he loved what Barkley had to say about Christianity and how to live it. As an adult teacher I borrowed them from time to time. I reminded my classes I was quoting the Gospel according to William Barkley, not Charles Barkley, who was at that time starting his ESPN career as a sports analyst.
One of my proudest Sunday School moments was when my Dad let me teach for him. He didn't get a break very often; vacations were Monday-Friday and weekend trips always ended Saturday night. It was a daunting task because I knew how well he did it 52 weeks out of the year. I joked and told him my teaching would make the class appreciate him more. My more modern humorous comments fell like a lead balloon. The Bible lesson was about Esau and Jacob meeting each other after years of estrangement. It's the story where Jacob brings all his wives, children, servants, sheep, etc. with him. I thought it would be relevant to compare this to the Bob Newhart show which was popular at the time. And I said Jacob's introduction probably went like this: "Hi, I'm Larry, and this is my brother Daryl and my other brother Daryl." No one got it. Good thing I wasn't making a career out of being a comedian.
Currently, I am taking a break from teaching Adult Sunday School. It was a task I loved, but after 20 year I felt burned out. It's a challenge to be on your game every Sunday ( like my Dad, I didn't miss many). Seeing those wonderful class members gave me the strength and courage to go through my Mom's heart surgery, Dad's dementia and their deaths less than four weeks apart in 2006. The class was my "Balm in Gilead." They taught me so much about love.
I wish everyone could know the kind of spiritual and emotional support Sunday School has to offer. First Presbyterian Franklin has an incredibly strong Christian Education program, and I know that many children and adults have been told God loves them when the world seems like a very scary place
Thanks be to God and all the "Aunties".
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