MH page 43

Let not your un-Christlike character misrepresent Jesus. Do not keep the little ones away from Him by your coldness and harshness. Never give them cause to feel that heaven would not be a pleasant place to them if you were there. Do not speak of religion as something that children cannot understand, or act as if they were not expected to accept Christ in their childhood. Do not give them the false impression that the religion of Christ is a religion of gloom, and that in coming to the Saviour they must give up all that makes life joyful.

Believers should represent Christ warmly to children, avoiding harshness, gloom, or false representations of religion. This is an ethical and behavioral exhortation for caregivers and Christians, not an empirical assertion.