Faith – together with all its derivatives – is not an easy word. For some people, faith is all about spirituality and religion. For others, it can have a more secular meaning. Whether you lean towards the former or the latter, you might want to dwell on the idea of faithful parenting a bit. I guess I am in a reflective mood at the moment, and I am mulling over whether or not I am being a faithful parent.
So what does being a faithful parent mean exactly? The whole idea came to me when I was reading an article at the Merced Sun Star. Admittedly, the article’s slant is quite spiritual (or religious; call it what you will). It does pose some interesting questions, though. The Rev. Jennifer Goto writes:
All of us are trying to be faithful parents.
We strive to have faith in our own instincts and our abilities to care for the most precious people in our lives.
We hold on to the faith that our children will have their own abilities to overcome the mistakes we make and the obstacles they will face in life.
We attempt to be faithful to what we know is right, to the truths we hold dear and want to pass on to our children.
How true is that? Indeed, being a parent is the best job in the world, yet at the same time, it can be quite scary. For so many years, you are responsible for the life of another person. Not only do you have to provide for them, to meet their physical needs, but you also have to ensure that they grow up to be responsible and independent adults.
I know that you wish only the best for your children – just like any other parent. You want your children to imbibe values that will last them a lifetime. Yet we can only do so much as parents. We can teach our children everything we know – and maybe go even further by learning new things ourselves – and yet at the end of the day, there are certain things out of our control.
Our children will grow up and learn things for themselves, do things on their own. We can only have faith that we do a good job and that our children will remember the lessons that we seek to impart to them. That’s faithful parenting. Trusting that we raise our children right and that they will hold on to what they’ve learned. After that, everything is up in the air.
Are you being a faithful parent? I would like to think that I am.
Originally posted on February 22, 2010 @ 1:35 am