This is Why You Shouldn’t Drag Your Kids to Church Against Their Will

July 29, 2009 By 19 Comments

They’ll just steal your car and drive away.

Which could be a problem if the child is only 7-years-old.

A 7-year-old boy in Utah was so desperate to avoid church that he ended up leading police officers on a car chase after driving off in his father’s car.

…

The car reached speeds of 40 mph before the boy stopped in a driveway and ran inside a home.

A police spokesman said that when the boy’s father later confronted him, the kid’s explanation said he didn’t want to go to church.

I would love to know why this kid didn’t want to go to church, but they didn’t mention that in the article.

So we’ll just have to speculate here… :)

(Thanks to Eric for the link!)

Filed Under: Churches, General 19 Comments
  • SarahH

    Well, if the choice is between driving a car and sitting in a pew, and I’m seven years old… I’m driving the car.

    I could see a kid doing the same thing to get away from school, a doctor’s visit, a babysitter, etc. Anything potentially boring compared to driving a frakking car when you’re seven!

    I hope that the only reason is because the kid hates church and thinks it’s boring. It would turn a kind of funny story into a tragic one if he was desperate to escape something truly bad happening to him. And, of course, it’s good that he wasn’t hurt and that he didn’t hit anybody. Hopefully his parents let him start skipping Sunday school and get him a racing video game or something.

  • Tyler in SoCal

    Church was the worst. It smelled like old people and the taste in your mouth after the host…so disgusting.

  • Duncan MacCleod

    I hope they have a riding mower for next Sunday. Wait until he hits puberty then church doesn’t look nor smell so bad. Lots of hormonal teens who do not want to be there either.

  • beckster

    Why did I never think of this?!

  • Old Beezle

    When I was 7, I used to only leave the minivan unlocked when we got to church (Mormons) and then sneak out during Sunday School and hide in the car. This kid has me beat. But I totally understand why he was fleeing mormon church.

  • Jasen777

    I think it needs to be looked into, it’s not normal for a kid to be that opposed, something could be going on.

  • zoo

    I think it needs to be looked into, it’s not normal for a kid to be that opposed, something could be going on.

    I agree. It might be nothing as far as the church is concerned, but this might be an early clue the kid needs psychiatric help. I hope if it is his parents weren’t as clueless/oblivious as mine.

    Or maybe there was just something going on that particular day he wanted to avoid. Or there’s a bully that’s decided to pick on him.

  • Thilina

    two deputies caught up with the boy and tried unsuccessfully to stop the vehicle

    Must suck to be the cops who got beat by a 7 y.o :)

    I gotta wonder how the kid managed to get the keys, get in the car, start it and start driving before his parents noticed.

  • medussa

    That kid is my hero.
    And, of course, I’m very relieved no one got hurt by that stupid (cool!) stunt.

  • Dan W

    Wow, I’m amazed the kid didn’t crash the car. He’s got to be pretty smart and observant to have figured out how to drive a car at that age. Hopefully the only reason he did that is because he thinks church is boring, not something actually bad.

  • http://selfra.blogspot.com dantresomi

    man, i dreamed about this while sitting in church!

    but honestly, something isn’t right.

  • http://liberalfaith.blogspot.com/ Steve Caldwell

    Given that many churches discourage open communication about sexuality, sexual abuse by an adult or older minor is a possibility here.

    So many children and adults assume that this is a “stranger danger” and they overlook family, church, and community settings where trusted adults have access to children. And many churches do little to no background check screening of volunteers and staff.

    It’s pretty rare for a church to talk with children in age-appropriate language about sexual abuse and other forms of child abuse, what a child can do to get help, and who are the trusted adults in congregation that can provide help for them. Here’s one recommendation from the Unitarian Universalists on age-appropriate prevention education:

    “Educating Children for Prevention”
    http://www.uua.org/leaders/leaderslibrary/balancingacts/23445.shtml

  • jemand

    yeah, this story is funny at first read but I REALLY hope he isn’t running from sexual abuse…

  • http://www.banalleakage.com martymankins

    This story didn’t make the SL Trib, which is why I didn’t see it.

    I didn’t start wanting to avoid church until I was 11. Kids these days are starting early with their resistance to attending church.

  • http://cycleninja.blogspot.com Paul Lundgren

    For the love of dog, was he securely fastened in his car seat?!

  • K

    Cor, why didn’t I think to do that?

    My greatest act of defiance was, one Sunday, I fell back asleep after my Dad came in to wake me for church. He got mad. Next thing I knew he was standing over me about to throw an entire bucket of water over me, yelling that “HOW DARE YOU GO BACK TO SLEEP!!!”

    So much for “getting into the spirit” right before church.

  • sean

    I grew up mormon in California (oh the stories I could tell) and remember hiding out on Wednesdays after school so I didn’t have to go to “primary” ie: “weekly child indoctrination seminar.” My mother would drive around the neighborhood trying to find me until she confronted my friends and I inevitably got ratted out. Have to say though, I never thought about stealing the family car. Like the other posters have said, This kid is my hero!

  • https://twitter.com/ahollis1225 Aaron

    My little brother and I used to beg, scream, plead, and fight so we wouldn’t have to go to church on Sundays. It was boring and stupid, and when it managed to be something other than that, it was just frightening because we were told we would go to hell if we misbehaved…

    I do hope the kid isn’t being sexually abused, but isn’t the emotional and intellectual abuse that goes on in these places bad enough?

  • harry morgan

    my next door neighbours are very over-strict Christians. They are Church of England people and they don’t drink alcohol, smoke or eat meat. and they have to go to church, and if they don’t they are dragged there.