life at the bottom of the litter

The younger mammals of my family often hear bits of conversations and debates regarding issues of many kinds.  I find how they piece together the information their brains gather interesting sometimes.  Horrifying sometimes.  A conversation ensued the other day on our way to catechism classes.  Two boys 8 and 11, discussing the outcome of the world if Jesus had not come yet.

One of them thought that if Jesus had not yet come as Messiah, we would all be Lutheran right now.

I told him that, in fact, Lutherans are Christians, and there would actually be no Christians at all.  Zero. None.  You see, son, Christians means that we are followers of Christ, so if Christ hadn't come yet, He couldn't have had any followers.

So he inquired as to what we would be doing right now if Christ hadn't come.  He suggested that maybe we would be driving to catechism classes to study how to pray to stone idols.  Instead of going down the road with him that, had Christ changed the entire course of history and that we probably wouldn't be at all, never mind not be driving to catechism, I thought we should just stick to some serious generalizing.

When I entertained with them the idea that the entire world would be some other religion, Jewish or Muslim or pagan religions or cults, their small world was shaken to the core and a tangent ensued.  If thinking about being Something Else was too startling, we thought for a while about the proofs that exist for Christ.  Picking up on the bits of some previously heard conversations, they pursued this tangent.

"We know for sure that Jesus existed, right mom, because Napoleon existed.  Professor Calculus ( not his real name) said so.  He said that Napolean existed so Jesus existed." 

Wow.  Where do I go with this one.  I explained that Calculus (not his real name) was saying that there is as much historical evidence for the existence of Jesus as there was for Napoleon.  I don't actually know if that is correct information, but I do understand what he was getting at.

Simultaneous issues are going through my mind.  Firstly, they adore their older brother, Calculus (not his real name) and I dislike saying something contrary to what he said, or in this case, what they  believed he said.

Nextly, a parent wants to catechize their child gently and effectively, and I am experiencing as serious comic relief situation here and can barely keep a straight face.

And nextliest of all, I don't want to drop the ball, here.  I love these conversations that come up spontaneously and go until we get to catechism or where ever else we are going and continue when we get back in the car.  While I am juggling these thoughts, the tangent swerves in new directions and different heights.

By the way mom, Huckleberry asks me...I was wondering if, when two actors in a movie kiss each other but they are each married to other people in real life, is that a form of adultery?

Oh, yeah, mom, pipes up Silas, Chicken Whisperer...I keep meaning to ask you, why is it that most of the impurity in movies is about the women?

"Well, boys, those are excellent and relevant questions...."

I know that I have 3-5 minutes to impart the importance of their questions, how our natural tendencies which were intended for good are frequently disordered, when is adultery adultery and when is it not....3-5 minutes because we are almost there, 3-5 minutes before we plunge headlong in a new and interesting direction.

I'll wade into my answers next post.