Kids can say the darndest things, and sometimes their questions about God and the Church can leave us scratching our heads! We asked you for the craziest catechetical questions you’ve heard from your youngsters – and you did not disappoint!
But before we get into our budding theologians’ deepest thoughts… CatholicVote interviewed Father Kyle Ingels of the Diocese of Colorado Springs about how best to answer tough questions.
What do I say?
Fr. Ingels has spent much of his priesthood surrounded by children both in a school setting and in youth ministry. The majority of the children he has ministered to have been in the K-8th grade range.
More recently, Fr. Ingels has spent his time in college ministry. Despite the age difference between the children he served in the past and the young adults he serves now, Fr. Ingels noted that he often faces the same difficulty in answering questions about the faith.
Many children – from grade school to grad school – asking questions don’t have a solid understanding of the foundations of the faith. Because of this, Fr. Ingles recommends focusing on reviewing the basics with children before diving into their questions about deeper topics:
Sometimes in the Church, we presume that people know the basics of the faith but the reality is, often times they don’t.
Adults, he says, must intentionally continue learning about the faith so that we can in turn help the kids in our lives learn. And of course the most effective thing we can do for young people is to live it well ourselves
So the next time you get asked a big question by a kid in your life, remember that it is best to start with the basics and build from there. If you don’t know the answer, find someone who does and learn together.
And now… here are some of the questions your fellow LOOPers have faced recently!
“I got a tough one from my 12-year-old son. He noted one Sunday that one parishioner, with celiac disease, received a small chalice with the Precious Blood instead of a host like everyone else. He asked, “Since a person with celiac cannot eat a host, doesn’t that mean that only consubstantiation has occurred and not transubstantiation?” – Joe S.
“My granddaughter asked a question that so far we can’t get an answer to. The Bible states we are to pray for our enemies. Does that mean we have to pray for satan? Answers have varied.” – Patti P.
“How do we have free will if God knows what we will choose?” – Tara B.
“We were talking about favorite Saints and my child asked, “Does Jesus count since He’s God, but also human? If so, He’s my favorite.” – Angel M.
“My son asked me out of the blue from the backseat of my minivan if Jesus loved the devil because Jesus loves everyone” – Michelle H.
“Why did Jesus just let Joseph die?” – Chris C.
“The hardest question I have been asked is by one of my younger cousins. She, at the time, was 5 years old attending Good Friday Stations of the Cross and mass with me. She asked me why the people were so mean to Jesus. This may seem like a simple question to us, but for her, she couldn’t fathom why anyone could be so mean to Jesus like that.” –Maycee WB.
“If God is a humble servant and wants us to be humble servants then why are we created to serve Him and why does He want us to praise and worship Him?” and “Why did God kill people in the Old Testament but also write the commandment Thou shall not kill? When we say God called a person home who died does that mean God killed them?” – Angela E.
Do you have a favorite kid moment to share? Email us at: info@catholicvote.org
