[Audio not available.]

Conversation. Mother in car with Child.
“Mom you are just like an Elephant.”
“Um, okay.”
“Really. You are just like an Elephant."
“Is that a good thing?”
“Uh huh. It’s a good.”
(Mother looks at child through the rear view mirror.)
“Elephants never forget. And you always remember.”
“Oh. Okay. Thanks. That’s not where I thought you were going with that.”
“What do you mean Mommy?”
“Never mind.”

Parenthood comes with many responsibilities. Among those responsibilities are to teach one’s children the things they need to grow up to be mature, healthy adults able to make a meaningful contribution to their community.

This involves many challenges. Among those challenges include the fact that children experience the world in their own way. They have a perspective all their own. What you show your child is not always what they see. What you teach your child, is not always what they learn.

The Book of Deuteronomy includes several exhortations to teach one’s children all that the Lord has commanded. Consider the reading in today’s Old Testament lesson from Deuteronomy 4.

But take care and watch yourselves closely, so as neither to forget the things that your eyes have seen nor to let them slip from your mind all the days of your life; make them known to your children and your children's children.

So important is this exhortation to teach one’s children the way of the Lord that it gets repeated in Deuteronomy 6.

And these words which I command you this day shall be in your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, when you walk by the way, when you lie down, and when you rise up.

This exhortation is not only to parents. It is an exhortation to the whole covenant community. Parents may have the primary responsibility of teaching their children faith, the church also plays a vital part.

How is this parish doing in teaching our children the way of Lord? Are the adults of our parish elephants? Do we remember the Lord to our children? And what of the Lord do we remember? Do we remember the Lord’s way? Or do we teach to our children as the Lord’s way, a human tradition?

In today’s gospel Jesus challenges the Pharisees for abandoning the commandment of God and holding human tradition. We do that today. We often substitute a valued human tradition that makes us feel safe, while neglecting the commandment of God that makes us feel challenged.

When we do this, we trade the power of God, for the poverty of human tradition. Worse, we teach our children human traditions that have no life in them nor power in them to save.

If Jesus has little interest in human traditions it is because he is an elephant. He remembers the commandment of God, and remembering, he lives.