Food for Thought

Little Philip, born with Down's syndrome, attended a third-

grade Sunday School class with several eight-year-old boys

and girls. Typical of that age, the children did not readily

accept Philip with his differences, according to an article in

leadership magazine. But because of a creative teacher,

they began to care about Philip and accept him as part of

the group, though not fully. 

The Sunday after Easter the teacher brought large egg

pantyhose containers, the kind that look like large eggs.

Each receiving one, the children were told to go outside on

that lovely spring day, find some symbol for new life, and

put it in the egg-like container. Back in the classroom, they

would share their new-life symbols, opening the containers

one by one in surprise fashion. After running about the

church property in wild confusion, the students returned to

the classroom and placed the containers on the table.

Surrounded by the children, the teacher began to open them

one by one. After each one, whether a flower, butterfly, or

leaf, the class would ooh and ahh. 

Then one was opened, revealing nothing inside. The

children exclaimed, "That's stupid. That's not fair.

Somebody didn't do their assignment."

Philip spoke up, That's mine. 

"Philip, you don't ever do things right! the student

retorted.  "There's nothing there!" 

"I did so do it", Philip insisted.  "I did do it. It's empty. the

tomb was empty!"

Silence followed. From then on Philip became a full

member of the class. He died not long afterward from an

infection most normal children would have shrugged off.

At the funeral this class of eight-year-olds marched up to

the altar not with flowers, but with their Sunday school

teacher, each to lay on it an empty pantyhose egg.

Source Unknown.