It has been a few weeks since I posted - (the week on the beach at Hattaras was divine). I thought that I might toss out a discussion starter to tap into our collective scripture & historical expertise. The article below addresses a question that I hear often: Why do Catholic Bibles have more books than Protestant Bibles? The article is the Catholic response with additional input from me at the end. I am curious to see samples of Protestant responses to this issue.

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So when was the last time you looked in your education toolbox and pulled out developmental theory? Strange question? Maybe but it is the focus of this post. Throughout the fall I will address different developmental theorists and how their theory might relate to Christian education.

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As a former principal of a private school I suppose I can be accused of being biased on the issue of private “vs.” public schools, parental choice, vouchers, etc. The school I served was in Miami with a 93% minority student population and a 99.5% minority faculty (we had one anglo faculty and three anglo staff persons). The students consistently scored an average of 1.5 years ahead of national standardized scores across the board, with many grades consistently averaging two years ahead of the national norm. The families that made up our school were not affluent. They were low income, blue collar, to middle class whose only commonly shared value was a commitment to their children’s education and a will to do whatever they needed to ensure they got it.

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Due warning: this is a rant of uncommon impatience.

Now that I’m on the other side of the pulpit, in the pews as part of the congregation, I find that my impatience with “bad worship” has increased. This summer I got to visit a lot of different churches while traveling to do seminars, consultations, and workshops, often participating in Sunday worship. For the most part I’m able to set aside my critical brain and enjoy the existential experience of worship with a congregation. At times I’m pleasantly surprised by a well-crafted service and a thoughtful sermon. But there are times when I’m tempted to walk out of the worship service when inflicted upon by some of the things that go on during the sacred hour.

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Ryan Hamm, of Faithvisuals.com makes an insightful point about the use of media that educators would do well to consider when using media as participation, not just presentation.

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Paul L. Escamilla is Senior Pastor at Spring Valley United Methodist Church in Dallas, Texas, and the author of an intriguing new book, Longing for Enough in a Culture of More.  It’s worthy of small group study, with a free downloadable study guide, and addresses a timely topic - - how to “escape the lifestyle and attitudes of a weighed-down world.”  That’s not my primary reason for recommending it, however.  I think it’s worthy of attention here because it’s relevant for educators as persons. 

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This Sunday my church will have it’s “Recovenanting Sunday.” (You know, the service which marks a new year without really being a new year because the church year starts with advent and the calendar’s New Year’s starts in January!) One of the many things we will do this day is give a bible to the children who just started second grade. We give them the Abingdon’s NRSV Children’s Bible. Starting this year, we are also going to give their parents Abingdon Press’s recently published Discovering Together: A Parents Companion to Abingdon’s NRSV Children’s Bible by Joyce Brown.

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I’m the kind that’s wired with a thirst for knowledge and wisdom. As a child one of my favorite books was Proverbs, in the Bible. My dad introduced me to it, extolling the virtues of acquiring wisdom. Seeking wisdom and delving into the “secrets” of life, the universe, and everything (to quote Douglas Adams) remains a pastime.

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I was in High School when I first heard about businesses keeping “two sets of books”. My father was a manufacturer’s representative, and he dealt with small, medium, and large sized companies. Almost all of them, he told me, kept two sets of records regarding their income, expenses, and salary. One set was what the government saw and showed lower income for the business and lower salaries to the owners and higher expenses. This caused the business and the owners to pay less in taxes. My dad was always amazed at how little people actually gained by doing this, especially compared to how much worry and fear it caused them.

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