random ruminations: children's work & play

Poppycock: The radical separation between work and play, which calls work evil and play good. On this view. ‘innocent’ children need to be kept from work for as long as possible. Bollix to that.

And bollix to: The idea that children are just another resource to add to the economic machine and be consumed in production. Such an idea is horrible and de-humanising – equally so when applied to adults.

Amen: Production in & nurture of creation is the great task of all families. Adults are shaped by their childhood. Children are therefore to share in the task of families, and so be shaped by it and grow into it, according to their capacities.

This does not exclude creativity, play, exploration, etc. Part of what it means to mature and grow is to do those things, firstly as a child, and then also as an adult. But such activities are not ‘anti-work’, they are an integrated part of what it means to be human – what it means to image God in combination with others.

So, in short, a child is a future adult, and, taking into account their capacities, should be treated as such.