Nurturing Theological Curiosity in Children: A Conversation with Quinn Swoboda

Today we are introducing a new subseries, Ask a Theologian Junior Edition, and talk with Quinn Swoboda, a children’s pastor and theology student, about why parents feel afraid to discuss theology with kids—often from fear of being wrong and from church cultures where questions aren’t welcomed. We explore how kids read our body language and may stop asking if we react with anxiety, so I should affirm their curiosity, admit when I don’t know, and say we’ll figure it out together. We discuss why kids need theology because they’ll seek answers somewhere, and we talk about suffering, church hurt, and big questions like why good things happen to bad people. Quinn shares “Godly Play,” a narrative, wonder-question approach that helps kids engage Scripture without needing perfect propositional answers, and we end by encouraging parents to treat kids as fellow disciples who can even teach us.