A Letter From the President of the Parish Council to a Sunday School Teacher
May, 2008
Dear Michael,
On behalf of the rest of the parish council, let me thank you for taking the time out of your busy college schedule to become a Sunday School teacher. We appreciated your work as an altar boy before and we enjoy your energy and the fresh insight which your years as a priest’s son have given you. We hope that you will continue with us next year. There are just a few small things that have been brought to my attention, and which we can work on together in private.
First, I love the way you taught your whole young class the proper way to ask the priest’s blessing. They look sharp, they really do. But a few of the older ladies were taken a bit aback by your prompt. Maybe there is some wording a little more discreet than “On your feet, slap the floor, then put your hands together and give it up for Father Alexis!”
Secondly, your class’s offering for the Nativity Program was certainly unique. Nobody remembers there ever before being a rap offering. And the content was fine. I was impressed when I learned that you wrote the beats yourself. We did, however, have a few complaints from the Sisterhood about coffee spilling on the tables from the boom box’s vibration. Maybe for next year you could adjust the woofers and tweeters a bit?
The third complaint comes from a convert who was sitting in on your class on the Presentation of the Lord in the Temple. He says that there is no Biblical proof of the fact that, as you told the class, “Dudes, you know it was a midweek service, because nobody was there but the old people.” It’s a small point, but we need to be accurate.
Lastly, I’d like to remind you that the parish has an ample supply of puzzles and board games in the cupboard, and I encourage you to use those during free time with the class. That said, I’m afraid I must remind you that the parish hall is no place for poker. The parents whose children did not know the game before this year were especially upset, as was the mother of the child who lost her new gloves in last week’s game. You did explain to me that you forbade them to make wagers, and appreciate that. But children don’t always do as they are instructed, and it would be better if we removed this particular temptation, especially because one of the younger children has had bed wetting incidents stemming from “not being able to come up with the vig.” Your father and I have spoken privately to all the children involved, so you need not say anything to them.
That brings us to the end of the unpleasant part of the letter. I would like to thank you, again, for your contribution, and specify some things that everyone appreciates. The mural of icons of the children’s patron saints next to pictures of the children emulating their saints is inspired, and brightens our hallway. I was moved by the way you gave each girl in your class a candle for the feast of the Entry of the Theotokos in the Temple. “Draw a picture for a widow day” was a big hit. And just by your being here every week, you remind them that their participation in Orthodox parish life does not end when college begins. You are doing a very good thing.
On behalf of your father and the parish council, I thank you, again, for taking on this difficult but salvific task.
With Love in Christ,
Wally Peterson
President of the Parish Council
St. Boris Orthodox Church
This report was filed by a guest writer who has asked to remain anonymous.
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