how to read the bible | Rows of Sharon

Whether you frequent your local bookstore, library, or Amazon for your reading pleasure bookmark this page for titles to look for in the first six months of 2020. This time of year (autumn) I am steeped deep into projects that will publish in the spring (January through June) as an editor. Spring 2020 will bring some (I believe) great titles for children, youth, and the adults who love them. It has been inspiring to work with authors with a passion for sharing the Good News with others beyond their own ministry settings. Hopefully you will find some that will fill a need in your home or ministry.

The Way of Love has been an initiative of Presiding Bishop Michael Curry and the Episcopal Church since its launch at General Convention in 2018. Resources have been created from across the church, but these have mostly been created for adults and church events. The Very Best Day: The Way of Love for Children by Roger Hutchison fills the void by bringing the Way of Love in word and image to children. Through rhyming prose and the artwork we have come to love from Roger we now have a book designed specifically for children. Coming in January.

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The Christian Century is the only magazine that I continue to subscribe to via snail mail. Another words – it’s a paper magazine I get delivered by the mailman every other week. I don’t always read ALL of the articles, but I enjoy reading the “faith” news, snippets, lectionary reflections, editorials and several of the regular contributors. I also follow CC on Facebook, which alerts me to articles that will be coming soon.

Today I got such a sneak-preview of an article that I think many of you involved in ministry with children – as a parent or teacher – will be interested in.

The simple fact is that the Bible is not a book fit for children, neither in its unsavory parts—murders, rapes, genocides, betrayals, mauling by wild animals, curses, divine retribution and apocalyptic horrors—nor in many of its neutral or even uplifting parts, including statutes and ordinances, proverbs, genealogies, geographies, prophecies, censuses and pretty much all of the epistles. It’s no surprise that most of these sections get dropped from children’s versions altogether, though at some point we may begin to wonder with what justification they still call themselves Bibles. Scripture is definitely something to ease the little ones into, not drop them in cold. So what’s the best way to go about it?

I’ve written and shared numerous articles and other people’s blog on how to choose a bible to use with children. And how to be truthful in sharing biblical stories – not candy coating them. I don’t agree with everything stated in it, but it will get you thinking, for sure. Read this great article here – and think about subscribing to The Christian Century!

R-rated: How to read the Bible with children | The Christian Century.