What would your advice be for a teenager wanting to attend youth group against a parents wishes?

Heard a interesting debate that pitted the 10 commandments. (honor they mother and father.) against Matthew 10:37 that states that ';anyone that loves their mother and father more then me is not worhty of me.'; (NIV) Schneb are you out there?What would your advice be for a teenager wanting to attend youth group against a parents wishes?
If I were the youth pastor, I would give the following response...





To honor your mother and father is not always to ';obey';. You could say, ';Mother, Dad, I appreciate your input--I honor and respect your advice highly, but in this case, I think it would be in my best interest to...'; What parent, in their right mind, would not feel honored? Parents want their children to make intelligent choices, not be micromanaged on every decision or dilema.





Now, first, if you are under their roof, you are under their authority and care. You must take this in to account. If you live on your own, you are under your own rules for living. If you are under the legal age to live on your own, you are under your parents guidance and care.





OK, let's say you honor your parent's wishes and skip the youth group event. What message have you sent? That you care about your parents will and opinion--even if it is wrong or goes against your faith. You value God's command to honor your parents--even though your faith has brought a division among the family. You have provided a far better witness of your faith by NOT attending, than you would BY attending. Do you see? Whatever you missed at the youth group event, God will restore one-hundredfold later because of your obedience at the present time.





I would advise, don't go. And tell your parents it is because you honor their opinion. If they tell you to drop your faith in Christ, then you can break out the sword and say, ';No.'; and go against their counsel.What would your advice be for a teenager wanting to attend youth group against a parents wishes?
My link is setup to search for ';Schneb';. I got real tired of answering, and even seeing, questions that just have an agenda. So I poke my head in every now and then and answer questions that address me, or that catch my eye.

Report Abuse

Hey Schneb, which one was this. Addressed to you or did it ';Catch'; your eye?

Report Abuse

From Schneb: It was because it was addressed to me.

Report Abuse

Schneb, you've changed. You look different with your hair like that.





Sorry, couldn't help it....

Report Abuse

Can you add more details?





What kind of youth group is it?





Why don't your parents want you to attend?





Added:





Thanks for the update.





Let me begin by saying that I am an atheist who plans on never having children.





In any event, if I did have kids and one of them wanted to go to a Christian youth-group, I would not stop them.





I'd talk to him about how Christian beliefs differ wildly from how I believe the world works and should work, but in the end I'd let him make his own decision.





It would probably bother me greatly that a child of mine was getting involved in what I feel to be a group that is divisive and with whom I greatly disagree.





That said, you can be sure that I'd do a tremendous amount of research on the organization. Unless I found evidence that they were clubbing baby harp seals or protesting gay funerals, I'd have to let the kid go. It's his mind, he should be allowed to decide what he puts into it.
Honor thy father and mother IN THE LORD for this is right.
But isn't ';honor they mother and father'; followed by a passage warning against pushing children into rebellion?
Right on, Schneb!
Honor thy mother and father.