Customer Reviews

205 Questions Children Ask About God, Heaven and Angels: With Answers for Busy Parents from the Bible

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This book won't suffice to answer the questions of a truly inquisitive, curious child. It's full of circular reasoning. One of the questions is essentially "How do we know that what the Bible says is true?" The answer, of course, is that it is God's Word. Q.E.D. And how do we know it's God's Word? Bible citations. Another quibble: It neatly skips around the issue of nonbelievers going to hell by saying that only Christians will go to heaven, so wouldn't it be a good idea to tell all your friends and neighbors about Jesus now?--implying, but not willing to put it down on paper, that your kid's Jewish best friend or agnostic Aunt Martha are headed for eternal hellfire. You'll be in trouble if your kid takes the conversation in that direction and you're relying on this book to help you "explain" things!

The essential answer to *all* the questions in this book is "because God is infallible." That's fine for some people, but, as I said, it won't satisfy a child for whom these questions are more than idle curiosity. I don't expect such a book to give scientific or non-Christian answers, but I didn't see much discussion of *faith* at all. That, to me, would have been a much better answer to many of these questions, and would be of such greater value to a developing child than, essentially, "because I said so." Who needs a book to tell them how to give that answer?

Note: Catholics will want to stay away from this book--it is of an evangelical cast and I noticed at least one question/answer which contradicts Catholic doctrine.

I bought this as a gift for new parents who are ex-pats raising a child in a Muslim Country.They very much appreciate having the book and have found it very useful.

I respectfully disagree with the previous reviewer. A life of faith means living according to God's word. To be a Christian means to accept Christ as the one True Savior. The Bible is God's word, and we need know nothing more or nothing less than is in it. Those seeking a more academic bent will not be satisfied with this book because it adheres strictly to Scripture in giving its answer. God Himself tells us to seek Him as children, and the answers given in this book respectfully and beautifully follow that mandate. Things of faith simply can't (and shouldn't) fall into academic frameworks, aside from learning Bible history or the particulars of the events and/or people presented in it.

The previous reviewer mentioned that many of the answers seemed to stem from the same idea: "God is infallible." Therein lies the answer. God IS infallible, and thus should be trusted even beyond our human capacity to trust. I believe it is incredibly important for children to know this, above all, if they are to live lives rich in faith. Believing in God means completely trusting that His word is the ONLY word. This book does a beautiful job of reminding children (and adults, too!) that God is constant, faithful, and unchanging, and so is His word.