St Emilia’s Young Mums Group – June 2019

Fr. Isaac discusses how to parent towards the Kingdom of God

Our role as parents is not only to feed, clothe, and nurture our children in this world, but even more importantly to raise them with the end in mind. This month we were very fortunate to have Father Isaac Zghaib speak with us about our role as Co-Parents with God. Our duty is to form a micro-church at home, representing Christ in the house and all we do. While our earthly aim is to teach them everything about the world, our Orthodox aim is to teach them what is true and what is real, that is, Christ and God’s Kingdom. Extending on this, we also need to give them the opportunity to encounter it in the church and sacraments.

Our home is much more than a family institution – it is a pathway to Heaven. We need to be equipped to encourage our young ones spiritually and help them along their path with any spiritual struggles that come their way. In our teaching, we have to embody all that we instruct – we need to live righteously, learning self-control, patience, and love of our neighbours and Christ. Remembering always… that children form their habits from us, so be careful about what we foster at home – as they will eventually learn from our ways.

Finally, our goal is not to transmit faith as that is the work of Divine Grace. Rather, we need to create an environment that fosters the Holy Spirit and allows God to work… all in our bid to create ‘Athletes and Citizens of Heaven’.