O vanyté of vanytés, and all is vanité.
Lo, how this werld is turnyd up and downe:
Now wele, now wo, now tranquilyté,
Now werre, now pese and now rebilyon.
If thou wold daly labour for renowne,
For profete, plesur, astate or grete degré,
The best therof schall ende in vanyté.
An anonymous poet wrote this poem in Middle English in the 1400’s. Most of it is clear enough to us, but here it is in modern English:
O vanity of vanities, and all is vanity.
Behold, how this world is turned up and down:
Now well-being, now woe, now tranquility,
Now war, now peace and now rebellion.
If you would daily labor for renown,
For profit, pleasure, estate or great degree,
The best of it shall end in vanity.
Why do we educate children? Is it so that they can become earners of mammon? So that they can heap up money and possessions and lead a prosperous earthly life? So that they can hold positions of prestige in the world? Far be it from us! The best therof schall ende in vanyté!
So why do we educate children? Martin Luther speaks well in his Large Catechism while commenting on the Fourth Commandment:
“For if we wish to have excellent and apt persons both for civil and ecclesiastical government, we must spare no diligence, time, or cost in teaching and educating our children, that they may serve God and the world, and we must not think only how we may amass money and possessions for them. For God can indeed without us support and make them rich, as He daily does. But for this purpose He has given us children, and issued this command that we should train and govern them according to His will, else He would have no need of father and mother. Let every one know, therefore, that it is his duty, on peril of losing the divine favor, to bring up his children above all things in the fear and knowledge of God, and if they are talented, have them learn and study something, that they may be employed for whatever need there is” (Large Catechism, I.172-174).
As Christians, we educate our children so that they will learn to despise the fool’s gold of earth and store up treasures in heaven. The Apostle Paul writes, “If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth. For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God” (Col. 3:1-3).
This year at Mount Hope Lutheran School we undertake a study of the Middle Ages, and we will hear the voices of wise men, such as our 15th century poet. Our children will be prepared well for life in the world. Our children will make excellent candidates for any number of stations and positions in this age. But most importantly—and even if they should one day find themselves with no more than the daily bread on their tables and the shirts on their backs—most importantly, our children will be rich in Christ and heirs of eternal life.
In Christ,
Pastor Richard
