If we know one thing about children, it is that they have questions! How does the sun shine? Where did I come from? Why can’t I have two donuts? Children are innately and wonderfully curious!
Christian author and counselor, Dan Allender, once wrote that questions in Scripture are “…not merely questions, they are portals to know the heart of God, and consequently the heartbeat of His creation.” Our questions about who God is, what his plans are, why he made us, etc… are tools for knowing and experiencing Him more deeply.
How do we answer those questions for our children? Our denomination uses something called the Westminster Confession of Faith Catechism (WCF). It is a set of questions and answers that seek to systematize what we believe as reformed Christians about questions like, Who is God? or Why did He make us?
We don’t view the WCF as our bible or as an equal to Scripture. Knowing the catechism does not make someone a Christian. It is simply a way we create categories for understanding and ways to state what we believe as Christians. Here is how another author puts it:
Catechisms are summarizing God’s truths into digestible question and answers so that as our children experience life and the world around them they are able to understand how God has worked through time and history, how he will work in their lives and in the future of this world and mankind. As we walk through the difficult questions in life, the catechism is often the guide to which we are able to direct our children to the truths in Scripture… [with it] you are laying the kindling and the logs in the fireplace, so that when the spark of the Holy Spirit ignites your child’s heart, there will be a steady, mature blaze.
Over the summer, we take a break from Godly Play and use the Kids’ Quest curriculum. Our elders and deacons work together, using it to teach the WCF Catechism to children ages 5-10.