Non-religious family here. How to address my 4-year-old being taught about Jesus as-a-fact?
I need your help navigating a seriously weird situation. My 4-year-old son came home from daycare today with some... interesting questions.
Someone at the daycare told the kids about Jesus, describing his death on the cross at the hands of 'bad guys' as a true story, not a fairy tale. My son is now curious about death and the idea that someone 'beat' it. While we are culturally Jewish, our family is non-religious, and I'm not comfortable with Christianity being pushed onto my child as fact.
I tried to explain to him that some people strongly believe in their stories and treat them as real, but it's a tricky concept for a 4-year-old to grasp.
Should i address this with the daycare? On one hand, I want to understand how this even came up and make sure it doesn't happen again. On the other hand, I don't want to overreact or come across as disrespectful of anyone's beliefs.
Has anyone else dealt with something similar? How did you handle it?
Update: Thanks everyone for your advice and support!
I've had a great conversation with my son over breakfast about other religions and mythologies. We started with Norse mythology: Odin and Yggdrasil, for the obvious similarities with the christian crucifixion. He loved it! He's now fascinated by the magic of the runes and kept asking more about them.
I also had a chance to speak with another teacher that was in the daycare today, and she was completely on the same page as us. She agreed that what her colleague did was not okay and promised to have a friendly conversation with her to make sure it doesn't happen again. For now, I'm going to hold off on talking to the principal.