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J.K. Granberg-Michaelson A few weeks ago, I got a text from my wife, Lauren. Her text was a picture of an incident report from my son’s preschool, alerting us that he had “stuck up his middle finger at one of his classmates.” My wife explained that our son, who starts kindergarten in the fall, had learned the gesture from a classmate earlier that day. His older sister, when asked, said she knew the gesture too, having learned it from a classmate on the bus. “It means the F-word,” my daughter proudly explained to us. I was mildly dismayed but couldn’t help but chuckle at the mental image of my five-year-old son, with extended middle finger. That night at dinner, we talked about it: We explained that it’s both extremely rude and highly inappropriate to give someone the finger. They nodded their understanding. Then we moved on with the evening; no one got punished and no voices were raised. This story went through my mind after I watched Shiny Happy People: Duggar Family Secrets. The Amazon Prime docuseries examines the family whose popular reality television show, 19 Kids and Counting, propelled them to national fame before they experienced a dramatic fall from public grace following revelations that their eldest son had molested four of his sisters in the 2000s; he was later convicted of possessing child pornography on his personal computer and sentenced to more than 12 years in federal prison. Families like the Duggars go to great lengths to ensure their kids never learn to give anyone the middle finger — and I can only imagine the Duggar children would have been strictly punished if they had. But as a Christian and a father, I believe it’s neither possible nor desirable to exert total control over my children’s education and experience of the world around them.
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La Verne Church of the Brethren seeks Copastor The La Verne Church of the Brethren, a progressive, Anabaptist, historic peace church in Southern California seeks a copastor. Candidates must be comfortable in a collaborative team ministry, skilled in worship, and embrace an inclusive theology that champions social justice. Contact Kara Evans kevans234@gmail.com and Jack Meek jwmeek@me.com for information. Sojourners community subscriptions now available! Explore current issues of faith, social justice, politics, and culture with your community. Sojourners offers commentary and feature articles that are sure to spark great conversation. Sojourners magazine is great for Bible studies or small groups and is the perfect way to introduce your congregation to social justice issues. |
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