Pro-social deification, pro-social child worship: Why children were worshipped in biblical times

Many parents believe that biblical times were harsh on children. A false context has been posited by many in the pro-spanking community, including clergy such as pastors and priests, depicting the Jewish people as making children work hard labor, and then punishing them when they show any empowerment. The fact of the matter is that the true context shows that biblical times were child worshipping times, and Ancient Jewish society - including the Early Church - practiced child worship in a way that venerated children as saintly and godly. 

Jesus Christ said in Matthew 25:45-46 KJV:

Then shall he answer them, saying, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye did it not to one of the least of these, ye did it not to me. And these shall go away into everlasting torment: but the righteous into life eternal.

This passage denotes the concept of pro-social child worship. Children in Ancient Israel and the Early Church were seen as next to God in terms of priorities, meaning parents submitted to children like they would God, and children were venerated in place of God on earth. Children were to be approached with the same respect as one would hold for God.

The centerpiece of any attached Christian parenting relationship is Christian love, which is denoted by the Greek root word αγαπαο (Latin: agapao). This refers to Christian Agape love, or prioritizing children first, and yourself as a parent last, in a convicted way leading to submission to children and their every vulnerable need, with the child being in place of God, expecting absolutely nothing in return from children or others, with children resting safely and securely in parents. See Colossians 3:20-21 KJV:

Children, obey your parents in all things: for this is well pleasing unto the Lord. Fathers, provoke not your children to anger, lest they be discouraged.

The Greek root word translated "obey" is υπακουο (Latin: hupakouo) and refers to secure, vulnerable rest in the love and grace of children. This form of respect for parents does not come from fearful compliance, but instead comes from restful trust in parents, with children telling parents anything and everything that is on their minds, including admissions of wrongdoing or non-conforming traits, expecting absolutely no punishment or reprisal in return. Children, while in their submissive position, were seen as extensions of God in the family home, meaning their expressed needs/wants were seen as signs of what God wanted from parents, meaning needs/wants of both God and children were conflated. 

The Greek root word translated "provoke...to anger" is ερεθιζο (Latin: erethizo) and refers to damages or abuse, namely child abuse in this context. Child abuse, under biblical law, at minimum, is defined as the slightest of personal offense perceived by the child, including the slightest of offensive touch or speech perceived by the child, coming from entitlement. Child abuse, under biblical law, was prosecutable as kidnapping at the very least, but also fornication in the case of child sexual abuse. In this commandment, the Apostle Paul was lifting up the Law against punishment and controlling demeanor towards children, rebuking Greek Christian parents who brought their pagan custom of spanking children into the church. Christian parents of Greek origin were misusing the book of Proverbs even in the 1st Century, when this passage was written. Paul was warning parents that Proverbs is wisdom literature - a list of wise sayings - and not a parenting manual. The rod verses in Proverbs do not have anything to do with raising children, but instead speaks of an archaic legal practice in Judaism. The rod verses - all seven of them - mention instead a form of judicial corporal punishment involving 40 minus 1 lashes as a final warning before putting a lawbreaking ADULT child to death. MINOR children weren't dealt with that harshly, and whippings of adult children were rare in the Old Testament, and non-existent in the Early Christian context.

The way the parent-child relationship was set up in biblical times was that children ordered parents around, and parents gave up and gave in, surrendering to the needs/wants of their child. This was the actual child worship practiced by the Ancient Jews, including the Early Christians. 

Children in Ancient Israel and the Early Church were placed on a pedestal, meaning they were deified in a symbolic way, meaning not a literal way, seen in passing, and in a doting way, as deities of their own, meaning little gods and goddesses, and the ancients referred to their children in that light. The goal of parenting, in all practicality, was a secure parent-child bond. Children never left the side of mothers until age 6, and slept next to mothers up until much later, perhaps into adulthood with some parents. Children were seen as a priority, not a burden, and were referred to as deities as a term of endearment, meaning children were called "my little goddess" (in the case of girls) and "my little god" (in the case of boys). 

Children were seen as deities that issued commands and edicts, and a child could actually be the plaintiff and issue a lawful and binding order on a parent, and parents were not able to do so in return to their children. Parents did not have any parent anger, and were afraid of their child's wrath, so much that they would be compliant with the child's demanded needs/wants, allowing the child to boss them around quite a bit, setting boundaries rarely and only when necessary. Children were seen in an angelic way, and idealized as such, even when they did acts of wrongdoing or mischief.

The depraved and entitled parents who provoke children to anger will not inherit the Kingdom of God! Let them be cast in the lake of fire and burning sulfur, which is the second death prepared for Satan and his accomplices! Let them descend into the abyss which is the ever-burning Hell of fire and torment, suffering God's Wrath forever and ever! Repent, for the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand!