Heart Reflections Live
Wednesday, June 10, 2009
I Think They've Gone Too Far
I always look forward to getting the book and media catalogues from our Christian Book Store, Koorong in the mail. I think it's great that there are so many avenues God uses to get His Word out there, indeed I long for the day when more of these products will be found in the mainstream stores and not just the Christian ones. Now, don't get me wrong here, I have nothing against Bob the Tomato and Larry the Cucumber as such- the same goes for Max Lucado's Hermie and Friends. They provide clean, moral entertainment for Christian children, with a child level faith message from the Bible (Though I feel compelled to add that these entertainments should never be relied upon to teach the gospel or the Bible accurately, and they Should never take the place of plain, old-fashioned family devotions). But I believe that products such as The Veggietales Bible and The Hermie Bible go too far.
The Holy Bible is SACRED. It is to be esteemed above ALL OTHER BOOKS, and should never be filled with cartoon type characters to make it more relevant or appealing to children. It is timeless- it transcends age or time. It is as relevant to a child as it is to the elderly. If YOU love and read the Bible AND READ IT TO YOUR CHILDREN, then they will come to love it too. We only use the King James Version in our home and Church, and our children have no trouble with it. They get used to the language very quickly. We Do use Bible Story Books with reverent pictures in them, but explain the difference between Stories and The Bible itself.
I guess I hoped on my soapbox a bit, but I really think they've gone TOO far. What do you think?
Labels: Bible, commercialism
posted by Father's Grace Ministries at 8:28 pm
7 Comments:
Hi CLaire,
thank you for that writing. I must say that I never liked the Veggietales at all - too artificial.
Veggietales Bible has certainly gone too far, no doubt. Why would those Bible stories need to be transformed? Kids do understand the Word of God in its original form, as you said.
Yours, Kaisa
Many of them are not even complete Bibles, but just a collection of Bible stories. But the ones that are complete Bibles, even if in another translation than the King James version are alright with me.
I have a study Bible edited by Max Lucado (which means it has study notes in the margin that Max Lucado put together). It's not my favorite Bible, but was given to me as a wedding gift. Every so many pages (maybe every 100?) it has a thicker, glossy page that has thoughts and bible verses relating to a particular topic like sorrow, patience, righteousness, etc. My daughter has a Precious Moments Bible with similar pages interspersed, except her pages might have a picture of a precious moments figurine bowed in prayer with a Bible verse printed underneath. I don't really see the difference or the problem. Of course these pages are not necessary and I could live without them. The important part for me is that scriptures be complete and easily accessible.
However, I agree that cartoons can never take the place of family devotional, just like a study Bible can never take the place of the Holy Spirit's leading. Even if my daughter had a completely grown up, plain, King James Bible with absolutely no commentaries, notes, etc, just the scriptures, she'd still need me to help her understand them and apply them to her life. I believe that is part of my responsibilities as a parent.
Thanks for your comment!
I don't have a problem with the gift Bibles , or the study Bibles, really. It's mainly the combining of the cartoons with God's Word that I object too. Cartoons are pretend, but Jesus is real.
All Bible versions have enough of the gospel message in them to get people saved. We like The King James, as it is the closest version in English to the Tectsus ( I know I spelt that wrong!)Receptus, which was the original Greek and Hebrew. I've used many Bible versions in the past, but after comparing them individually with the KJV, I noticed there were many verses and half verses omitted in the N.T. in the modern translations - esp. bits about the blood of Christ and the virgin birth. So we only use the KJV now, but that being said, we still have a few books on our shelves that quote from other versions.
I loved your last point- we are all responsible to help our children understand the Scriptures and apply them to their lives.
Claire
Hi Kaisa!
Yes, I agree that Veggietales can be a bit artifical, but I think the creator's heart was in the right place to produce "Saturday morning fun, with Sunday morning values". We have some from when Talitha was younger. Some I've found are very inventive and make a good point, others I've had an opportunity to borrow, and haven't liked at all. I think they can be a good "cross-over " product to have if non-Christian Kids come over on a rainy day.
Claire
I agree with you about the modern versions. One Bible (also given to me as a gift) I have even adds to the scriptures. Everywhere, in the New Testament at least, where men are addressed "brothers", this particular Bible reads "brothers and sisters". Talk about being politically correct. I've never really been as comfortable with the KJ as I have been the NIV, but the more I know, the more I tend to agree with you. Then of course, some well known verses just sound strange in anything other than the KJ. Try reading the Lord's Prayer, Psalm 23 or the ten commandments in the NIV.
We find we never have to push the KJV thing with others. Anyone who comes to our Bible study can bring whatever Bible they like. They soon ask questions though when they realize bits are missing from theirs.
I read somewhere too about a gender nuetral Bible, that has come on the market. That's getting into dangerous territory.
Claire
I like what you said about how if parents obviously value the Bible (in whatever version!) their children will as well. That is the key. No amount of pictures will help if children are not taught by example to love God's word.
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