Education & Formation Reflective Essay

Reflective Essay[ Five (5) page reflective essay about key elements, components, people, events that have contributed most to your education and formation as a Christian.

There was never any question if, whether, or which of the evening leftovers would go into the stew pot. In my eight-person family of origin, everything that wasn't eaten for dinner got absorbed into the big stewpot in the freezer, waiting to be thawed, reheated, and reclaimed at the end of the week. The only real question was how this particular addition would affect the taste and character of the stew when the pot was full. Thinking of this dubious family tradition provides an apt enough metaphor for my education as a Christian through the years -- mixed up and messy, formed in community, experimental, more concerned with input than outcome, while still intensely practical and sustainable at the end of the day (or week, rather).

Let me say at the outset that I have a hard time differentiating my "Christian education" from my "non-Christian education." Each has influenced and informed the other, and often my pedagogical context has influenced both. My Christian identity is wrapped up in my baptism as an infant, and the commitment of my parents and the church to raise me as such. Therefore, starting with my baptism, I consider all educational experiences to have been part of my education as a Christian. Taking this a step further, just as all food went into my family's stewpot regardless of it's type or perceived usefulness, I also consider all experiences to be educational opportunities, whether intentional or otherwise.