A Kids & Moms Book Review from Books At a Glance
by Hannah Ahlgren
Where can we start with our kids to teach them the core beliefs of Christianity? There are many ways, but one especially helpful way is through creeds. With three kids in tow, my husband and I desire to teach them early on what it means to follow Jesus. We desire to do this in a way that communicates the reality that we are part of a global church that God has preserved through the ages. Written by Ben Myers and illustrated by Natasha Kennedy, The Apostle’s Creed: For All God’s Children, has helped our family grow in understanding the earliest summary of the apostles’ teaching.
What a wonderful tool this book is for family worship or daily reading. Each page takes a section of The Apostles’ Creed. Kids and parents alike will be instructed on these truths which believers have professed through the history of the church. There are also some interactive elements to this book. One of these is finding the “FatCat” on each page. The illustrator incorporated a cat into each page that our kids loved finding. The meaning behind this comes from the words catechism(cat) and fat(or bursting with meaning). The goal of this element was to make it fun and approachable for the littlest of minds. Two more helpful elements are the “Family Prayers” section and the “To Parents” section at the end. These sections help parents and kids apply what they have been working through while reading the creed.
The artwork is engaging and beautifully executed. The illustrations help bring images to mind that further our understanding of each line of the creed. Ben Myers and Natasha Kennedy were careful to stay true to the Scriptures. The “To Parents” section is faithful to break down the lines and give scriptural references for why the artwork is a certain way.
There certainly is difficulty in summarizing each line of the creed in a way that is both faithful to scripture and understandable to children. The famously disputed “descent into hell” line is included; the authors explain it well, but parents will want to be ready to clarify further. But some of the statements in the book are themselves rather confusing and will at least require clarification. Some examples are, “Jesus lives in God with the Holy Spirit,” “Jesus lives forever with God in the Holy Spirit,” and even “God wanted Jesus to have sisters and brothers, that’s why I’m here.” Parents will therefore need to be ready to clarify and talk about each page according to the needs of their children and the questions they have.
Hannah and Jonathan Ahlgren
Buy the books
THE APOSTLES’ CREED: FOR ALL GOD’S CHILDREN, by Ben Myers