I
haven’t found Bible stories in any book on classical spiritual
disciplines. I have, however, found telling and listening to
old Bible stories to be a spiritual discipline in my life, both
as a child and as an adult. I was raised on Bible stories, in
morning family worship when we read through a Bible storybook,
and at bedtime when my parents told Bible stories from memory,
sometimes with embellishment. I knew that my parents loved the
stories, found meaning in them, and wanted them to become an
important part of my life.
For children and adults, in different ways Bible stories connect
with real life.
Because they are open-ended, stories engage the imagination
and encourage entry into reflections on God and on life in the
real world. Stories don’t provide easy answers or neat
morals. Instead, they establish a dialogue between themselves
and our experience, open up alternative ways of seeing, and
often raise more questions. A story can lead to months of puzzling
over what is really going on, with new insights coming at surprising
times. Bible stories honor mystery and give insights into complex
ideas and relationships.
Adults sometimes avoid Bible stories because they are uncomfortable
with stories they can’t control. This discomfort can be
intensified by children’s way of reflecting on them. Children’s
questions about stories often are not easily answered. Because
we cannot control how the Spirit moves through Bible stories,
listening to and telling them can be uncomfortable and threatening
to an adult’s faith.
Through their power to grab hold of us and not let go, Bible
stories form us in faith. They provide a lens through which
we understand and celebrate the strange and wonderful ways God
works in people’s lives and the world.
- Through the story of Jacob, I understand God as gracious
and forgiving. God came to Jacob, the cheat and conniver,
in a dream when he was running way. I can love a God who stuck
with Jacob even when he wasn’t so good.
- Through the parable of the prodigal son, I wrestle with
the strange ways God relates to humankind. What kind of parent
rewards the bad child and penalizes the good child? God’s
rescue of Joseph from prison and God’s subsequent use
of Joseph to save his people from starvation give me hope
that God is still working through hard things in our world—even
if, as with Joseph, God’s working is too slow for me.
- The Exodus story and Jesus’ emphasis on care for
the “least of these” underlie my understanding
of the mission of the church.
As a pastor I often told the Bible story from the lectionary
during the children’s sermon in worship. To be a good
storyteller, I found I had to let the story of the day encounter
me. To tell the story with richness, I had to be sure I knew
its larger context, that I knew what preceded it in the Bible
and what followed it. The story often got hold of me and changed
the way I saw my life and God’s work in my community
of faith. And the story formed the basis for theological conversations
not only with children but with adults who overheard the conversation
and saw themselves in the story.
Ancient Israelites knew the importance of telling the story
of God’s activity in their lives, retelling it until it
wasn’t just history but rather “my story”
and “our story.” After crossing the Red Sea, Moses
said: “And when your children ask you, ‘What do
you mean by this observance?’” (Exodus 12:26) you
shall tell them: “Once upon a time when we were slaves
in Egypt, God . . . ” Deuteronomy 6:7 instructs parents
and the community: “Recite them to your children and talk
about them when you are at home and when you are away, when
you lie down and when you rise.” When asked a question,
Jesus usually did not give a theological answer. Instead he
said, “Let me tell you a story.” Theological answers
could be dismissed; a story continued to play in the mind of
the hearer.
Telling and listening to Bible stories is a discipline that
forms the teller and the hearer—and gives great delight.
Tell the old stories; let them ruminate in your very being;
open yourself to be transformed in your way of understanding
God and God’s relationship with humankind. The Spirit
has a way of getting hold of both children and adults as they
hear again and again the story of God’s activity with
Israel, in Jesus, and with the early church. Tell the stories
until they become your story and the child’s story. Be
open to the strange and wonderful ways the Spirit moves through
Bible stories. |
