April 6, 2009
Bible Classes
This past Friday, we had the privilege of participating in Bible classes for the local elementary school. What a great opportunity the school is opening up, with pretty much carte blanche as far as teaching. Since this is Holy Week (Semana Santa), the children were asked to draw a picture of what the week represented. Most drew a picture of chipa and a few drew Jesus on the cross.
I asked Saul why chipa is the food of the week, and he explained that when the Catholics first came to this area, they were trying to implement Lent and the observations surrounding Easter. The closest thing here to unleavened bread is chipa, which Paraguayans consume in massive quantities anyway. So they say the last few days of this week, every house will be full of chipa. If the number of people in the grocery store today was any indication, that's pretty accurate.
Back to the Bible study... there are 80 children at this particular school, and seven other schools with open doors to the class in this area. After asking the children to raise their hands if there was a Bible in their homes, we found that basically NONE had a Bible, except those living in the Children's Home nextdoor. So we are now looking for a simple child's Bible with pictures, in storybook format, written in Spanish. Do any of you have any connections/resources here, or ideas of a good one that could maybe be bought from the United States? It's exciting to think that we could use these Bibles in the classes and then let the children take them home and share what they've learned within their homes. Please pray for this to be a successful learning experience for these precious little people and their families, and that the Living Word will take root in their hearts.
The Paraguayan Bible Society has a kids Bible called "Amigos Por Siempre" that is hard cover and illustrated. I can get you a discount through our Christian bookstore if you're interested.
ReplyDeleteHow much are they? How many can you get at one time?
ReplyDeleteone other question? What age of Bible are you looking for...6 and under; 8-12; etc?
ReplyDelete