Do you agree that calling children ‘kids’ is disrespectful to them?
This slang expression crept into our vocabulary in the 1950s, and is now regularly used to refer to young people.
The use of this term is a reminder of the disrespect that has been shown to children throughout history.
During Biblical times, children were considered little more than possessions of their fathers by the Romans.
Jesus elevated the status of children by choosing to enter the world as a baby; he choose to experience childhood. When mothers brought their children to see him, he welcomed them, and he explained that one needs to accept God’s Kingdom as a little child, in order to enter it. The message of Christianity is not complicated.
(Mark 10: 13-16)
In the mid 19th Century , western society began to take responsibility to protect children from abuse, and child protection agencies were founded.
Child labour, and child marriage still occur in some parts of the world, and our efforts to protect and cherish children are ongoing.
Children need and deserve our prayers, our help, and our support.
May God grant us the grace to respect all children. We can do this by not referring to them as ‘kids’
Photo courtesy of Pixabay