Not long ago, I witnessed the trial of a first-time juvenile offender. Furious with his mom for refusing to drive him to his girlfriend’s house, this fifteen year old young man demolished the back window of her truck. His frustrated parents pressed charges, and he soon found himself in front of a judge and a jury on the witness stand. Regrettably, this in itself is not unusual in our culture; however what I found most astonishing and disturbing was the manner in which this young man communicated with his interlocutors: grunts!

Single word grunts issued from his scowling lips. He was extremely disrespectful towards the judge and showed no indication of repentance or remorse. The judge had to ask the young man to respond in complete sentences! But the real shocker came when the jury was dismissed to deliberate: both parents began an eloquent conversation with the court officials. Clearly, his parents were well-educated and effective communicators. How did this young man end up with such a deficiency in communication skills? Do we run the same risk as these parents? Is it possible that our children, when faced with unexpected situations, will find themselves answering in one word replies? Do we take effective communication skills for granted?

Christians are called to more than grunts! We seek to glorify God in every word and deed. Colossians 3:17 succinctly summarizes our responsibility as Christians:

And whatever you do, in word and deed, do everything in the name of Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him.

What does it mean to speak every word in the name of Jesus? Let’s look at the term “word” in Scripture. The Gospel of John refers to Jesus as the Word of the Father, and the Old Testament prophets regularly delivered the “Word” of Yahweh to the King. The Creator reaches out to the creature and communicates, through spoken words like those delivered to the prophets, through invisible encounters as in the apostle Paul’s conversion story, through the written word of the canon of Scripture, and finally through the incarnation of Jesus. The Word of the Lord is of utmost importance because it is through that Word that the Living God reveals who He is for the sake of a full relationship with us. Communication is vital to our relationship with Him and with others, so we, as little “Christ-bearers,” recognize that our words, whether written or spoken, are also meant for relationship with others, and as such, they have the power to change lives. We speak in Jesus’ name as He would speak…in truth, in love, and with a mind toward advancing His Kingdom.

As classical home schooling parents, we have a deed to do: train our children in effective communication skills. They may have a true desire to speak every word in Jesus’ name, but if they don’t have the tools, their efforts may not reach full potential. All that we have done in teaching the classical trivium comes to fruition in step 3, “Communicating Well.” In order to effectively influence others, our children must marshal the language, seek out the best arguments, and organize ideas with compelling style and captivating delivery. Equipped with the necessary skills, our eloquent children will respond to difficult questions with thoughtful, persuasive words that, unlike base grunts, have the power to change the world!

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Next up for step 3 of the classical trivium, “Communicating Well,” is an introduction to classical rhetoric and the three kinds of classical discourse.