Education as Ministry in a Time of Pandemic

There is a remarkable opportunity right in front of the religious organizations of America.  It is there for mosques, for synagogues, for Sikh gudwaras, Buddhist and Hindu temples and all the rest.  But as I am a Christian, I can speak only from personal knowledge of churches.  The fundamental idea is the same.

That is, to assist in the education of children who are struggling with school in an age of pandemic, quarantine and surprise homeschooling.

It’s really perfect timing.  Many churches have home-school families who are experienced, equipped, passionate and who know the state laws regarding education from home.  No small number of those families now have children in college or beyond, and yet love educating young people. They want to pour love into the lives of children and adolescents.

Churches often have large buildings with classrooms that lie dormant all week.

Children across the country will likely be kept home from school, either because of state rulings or because their parents are not comfortable sending them to school during pandemic.

However, so very many of these kids, from kindergarten to senior year, will struggle at home.  Their parents will have to work, or their parents lack many skills and much of the knowledge necessary to help their kids learn. Even when that simply involves keeping the kids in front of the screen for the state-directed number of hours each week. Or navigating Zoom or any other online modality for classes.

This is the time that churches and church members should step up and create learning centers.  They can do it in a socially distanced manner. They can do it with masks. They can use young people, who are low risk, to help teach other young people.

It can be done in the morning and afternoon. Or, as we should be doing for second shift parents anyway, it can be done in afternoon and evening.

The kids can not only be taught, but comforted, reassured, fed and entertained.  Mentorships will grow.  Friendships will blossom.  Children in danger can be kept safe and identified.

And in all of it, the one who said ‘suffer the little children to come unto me’ can be glorified and exemplified.

This is the time.

And the pandemic, for all its misery, is an unbelievable opportunity to shine love on neighborhoods, children and families across the land.