Body of Christ // Culturally Relevant Approaches 1 Corinthians 12:12-20 For as the body is one and has many parts, and all the parts of that body, though many, are one body- so also is Christ. For we were all baptized by one Spirit into one body- whether Jews or Greeks, whether slaves or free- and we were all made to drink of one Spirit. So the body is not one part but many. If the foot should say, “Because I’m not a hand, I don’t belong to the body,” in spite of this it still belongs to the body. And if the ear should say, “Because I’m not an eye, I don’t belong to the body,” in spite of this it still belongs to the body. If the whole body were an eye, where would the hearing be? If the whole were an ear, where would be the sense of smell? But now God has placed the parts, …show more content…
This beautiful metaphor for the united church shows that not one part or spiritual gift can work to make the whole body. There needs to be variety to move in all of the different ways the Spirit can move. As educators, we can choose to see our classrooms as small bodies of Christ with each child serving as an organ. Therefore, there will be hearts, ears, eyes, feet, hands, and many other vital parts of the body and in the classroom. Every kind of organ comes from a different part of the body and has contrasting experiences. Each precious organ needs an example to look up to in order to develop into a well functioning part of the body. Students have varying backgrounds and differing circumstances. Students need to see future versions of themselves with similar backgrounds and experiences to look up to in what they are learning about. Too often we fall short as teachers and take short cuts by not taking the steps to include role models that come from contrasting