The month of August sees most children in the United States either returning to or preparing for their return to school. Department stores are stocking extra backpacks and water bottles, and office suppliers are running sales on magic markers and color crayons. Children are variously thrilled to see their school friends again and dreading the return to early morning alarm clocks and nightly homework.
But beneath the hustle and bustle of “Back to School” preparations, many families may feel deeper anxieties as well. The past decade has seen an upward trend in school shootings in the US, the post-COVID era has led to increased consciousness among many about the spread of infectious diseases, and partisan politics has parents on both sides of the political divide worried about what their children will be learning in school.
Safe places may not seem so safe anymore. This summer alone, parents and children alike have been inundated with news coverage of the bombing of hospitals in Palestine, anti-Jewish hate crimes in the US, war and threats of war in Ukraine and Iran, and, most recently, the disproportionate deaths of children away at summer camp due to south Texas flooding.
As a preacher in these tumultuous times, I have frequently been given pause when reading the liturgical reframe “The Gospel of the Lord” each Sunday, as I wrestle with locating the good news for today’s world. But it is in those very gospel readings that I am reminded that I am not alone in my fear and anxiety.
The Greek root related to the word “fear” occurs 146 times in the New Testament. Often, fear is associated with the divine—in positive terms, it is represented as a holy “fear of God” (cf. Luke 7:16; 18:2) or, in negative terms, by an angelic exhortation: “Do not be afraid” (cf. Luke 1:12). Other times, fear shows up as the human quality I’m more familiar with, usually connected to human beings making poor choices. For example, it is when Peter becomes frightened of the wind that he can no longer walk on water like Jesus and begins to sink (Matthew 14:30). Jesus tells a parable about a slave who cannot produce profit because of fear of his master (Matthew 25:25). And the political machinations that lead to both Jesus and John the Baptist’s deaths are, themselves, motivated by human fear (Matthew 14:5; 21:46; Mark 6:20; 11:18; 12:12; Luke 22:2).
But there is a notable exception to this trend of dangerous human fear: in Matthew 2:22, Joseph, returning from Egypt with Mary and a young Jesus, learns that Archelaus is ruling in the place of Herod, and being afraid to go there, continues on to Galilee with his family instead. Here, Joseph’s fear protects his whole family and, especially, the child Jesus himself.
This August, as our children travel to and return from summer camps and mission trips, as they fill their backpacks with necessary supplies and return to school, it is prudent for teachers and caregivers to remember that their packs likely also contain at least some level of fear or anxiety. For some children, this anxiety may feel relatively distant, unaware of how these crises of others, whether across the globe or across the street, impact their own secure development, though they most certainly do. For others, especially LGBTQ and BIPOC children, the fear and anxiety they carry may be a burden they have known their whole lives. For all children, the unsettling truth is that no place is ever or has ever been truly safe.
In my own classroom of adult learners, I acknowledge the complexity and imperfection of safe spaces and try instead to nurture an environment that both my students and I can live into together as a “brave space.” Brave spaces in education are places that center respect for each person’s God-given human dignity, while encouraging the kind of challenging dialogue that is foundational to learning.
Two-thousand years ago, traveling between Egypt, Judea, and Galilee, Joseph was brave. He did not remain in the relative safety of Egypt, trusting God to bring his family, including his young son Jesus, to the place that God had prepared for Jesus to grow and learn. However, Joseph also savvy—he was aware of the dangers still threatening Jesus in the region of Judea and so carried on to the neighboring region of Galilee. Perhaps, if we were to compare Joseph with Peter, walking on the Sea of Galilee, we might note that Joseph was neither treading above water nor sinking to the depths. Joseph chose to swim in the currents.
In today’s world, as our children and we ourselves are inundated with various fears and anxieties of our own, how do we find this balance? Perhaps it is in the peace that Jesus himself later breathes upon his disciples when they are gathered, again out of fear, in a small room in Judea, saying: “Peace be with you” (Luke 24:36). For, while Jesus comforts their fears, he does not leave his disciples to their worries. Instead, he reminds them to eat, reminds them of what he has already taught them, and sends them out into the world to proclaim the good news.
This August, whatever fears or anxieties accompany you, may you too find the courage to swim, to nourish yourselves and the children you guide on this journey, and to proclaim the good news of our God who knows fear, knows suffering, and goes with us out into the world, holding a brave space for each and every one of us.
These books can help!
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