Refusing to Strip the Vines

If you grew up in Sunday School, you might picture Jesus blessing the children as a sweet, sentimental moment. But in the first-century world, children occupied one of the absolute lowest rungs of social status. In this week's episode, Rev. Dr. Charissa Clark Howe explores how Jesus’ command to “let the children come” wasn't just about childhood innocence—it was a radical, political demand to center the powerless.The children in this Gospel story serve as a metaphor for the migrant worker, the immigrant, the unhoused, the undocumented, and anyone whom the empire finds undesirable. Drawing on God's laws for the harvest in Deuteronomy 24, we are reminded of the command to leave the gleanings of our fields for the vulnerable. God demands this justice not out of pity, but out of a shared vulnerability, constantly repeating the refrain: "Remember that you were a slave in Egypt".In a modern society obsessed with extracting every ounce of profit and "stripping the vines bare," how can the church stop acting as gatekeepers? Tune in to hear how we are called to be a disruptive, "scrappy" sanctuary and a refuge of radical welcome for all people. Scriptures: Matthew 19:13-15 & Deuteronomy 24:17-22