6.29.2011

You let your kid read what?

What are the best books to pass on to our children?  A parenting website called parenting.com (the home of parenting and baby talk) gives us some ideas.  You have probably read a lot of books on their list: The Polar Express (Okay, I admit I only watched the movie); Where the Sidewalk Ends; The Very Hungry Caterpillar; Corduroy. Here is the entire list they compiled: Best Books to Pass Down to Our Children







There are even a few religiously toned books that made the list including the Quran and the Holy Bible.  Tell the truth; it makes you feel more spiritual to call it the Holy Bible instead of just the Bible. So do parenting.com.  Here is what Jason from Owosso, MI--a reader I assume--wrote about the Holy Bible on the website:

"The Bible. It's God's word, preserved over thousands of years for us. Great stories, excellent advice, true wisdom and above all, the answers to all of life's most challenging questions." -Jason, Owosso, MI

I am sure Jason is a nice guy.  Is there anyone who is not nice that lives in a place called Owosso?  After all, it is "a pleasant, unpretentious community of fewer than 20,000 people, with solid midwestern values--a place where residents clearly take pride in their property."  These people take care of their property so you know they are nice.  But I don't know.  There is something unsettling about Jason's idea of the Holy Bible.  If it were just the Bible then maybe I would agree, but this is the Holy Bible, brother.

Excellent advice?  Jason, do you mean like Dear Abby?  True wisdom?  Okay, I can go along with that, but something tells me he is thinking of Proverbs.  Confession: I can only read so many Proverbs at one time.  Proverbs overload kicks in.  What about the wisdom of Paul: No, ‘if your enemies are hungry, feed them; if they are thirsty, give them something to drink; for by doing this you will heap burning coals on their heads.’ Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good (Romans 12:20-21).  Still, Proverbs is wisdom and it is in the Holy Bible.  So, rock on, Jason.  Now, the "answer to all of life's most challenging questions" is difficult.

Are life's most challenging questions answered in the Holy Bible?  Which ones do you think he is talking about?  Sometimes it feels like the Holy Bible spurs more questions than it does give answers.  Please do not misunderstand me.  The Holy Bible is God's word for God's people (Liturgically correct church goers should say, "Thanks be to God.")  Which of life's challenging questions are answered?  I wonder if it is fair to say that the Holy Bible--man, I'm feeling pretty spiritual right about now--gives inspiration.  The answers come to us.  That is why we struggle.  Each of us can come up with different answers, and many times we have scripture as our basis.  How many check list answers are there in scripture?  I'm not quite sure there are that many. 


In the end, Jason thanks for your description of the Holy Bible.  I am sure it mirrors what a lot of people think about it.  However, it just seems like I could say some of the same things about fortune cookies and the Learning Channel.  Isn't scripture a little more than that?

What do you think?  I am off-base?  What books do you want to make sure to pass on to your children, or children's children.  Or what Bible stories are most important for you to share with your children?

This isn't just any Holy Bible.  It is a KJV Holy Bible, baby!


+another shout-out

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