Bartholomew's Passage : A Family Story for Advent (Paperback)

by Arnold Ytreeide (Author)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description
Let the exciting story of Bartholmew’s adventures prepare your family for Christmas!

Day by day through the Advent season, you and your family can prepare for Christmas by reading Bartholomew’s spellbinding story. Follow him from when Roman soldiers destroy his village and disperse his family, through his enslavement to a tyrannical master and his escape with his new friend Nathan, to his reunion with his family and a wonderful climax in Bethlehem. Along the way Bartholomew makes a new pal, Jotham, whom many readers have grown to love in Jotham’s Journey.

This family Christmas story and devotional includes: a portion of the story--always a cliffhanger--for every day of Advent and for Christmas day, reflections for family devotions, an Advent calendar from now to 2075, and ideas for family Advent customs.

From the Publisher
In hard to put down chapters, this engaging story takes readers through Advent to Christmas as they follow young Bartholomew on his adventures. You will accompany this delightful boy from the time Roman soldiers destroy his village and disperse his family, through his enslavement to a tyrannical master, his escape with Nathan, his stay at the community of Qumran, to his reunion with his family and the wonderful climax in Bethlehem. Along the way he makes a new friend, Jotham, whom many readers grew to love in Jotham’s Journey. Following each chapter is a spiritual reflection that gives readers an opportunity to respond personally to a spiritual truth embedded in the story. Ideal for family devotions.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 168 pages
• Publisher: Vine Books (July 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1569553378
• ISBN-13: 978-1569553374
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 8.6 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #750,986 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

20 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Exciting Family Adventures!, December 26, 2003

By	Trishie "notenoughtime" (The Sandhills of Nebraska USA) - See all my reviews

This is the first year that we have read BARTHOLOMEW'S PASSAGE as a family for Advent devotions. We read JOTHAM`S JOURNEY, by the same author, two years in a row, and really enjoyed the way the two stories intertwine! You can enjoy BARTHOLOMEW'S PASSAGE without ever reading JOTHAM`S JOURNEY. Both stories stand on their own as an exciting adventure set in the time just before the birth of Jesus. As both stories allude to the other, you will enjoy alternating a different book each year. Along the way, you'll learn about the way that the Bible was copied and stored, the tyranny of the Romans over the Jewish people, and culture and daily activities of people in Bible times. The story of Bartholomew is very exciting! There are some parts that are brutal or violent, so I would rate this as a "PG" story and not read to very young children that might be scared of "murderous slave-traders" and the like, at bedtime. After an exciting story chapter is read (always with a "cliffhanger" ending!), there is a short "lesson" or devotional following. I think the devotions are even better this time, than in JOTHAM'S JOURNEY. The author, Arnold Ytreeide shows a spiritual maturity, and an insight into the spiritual development of kids that is outstanding. Instead of "God will always keep you safe", we learn that sometimes bad things do happen, but, God will be there with you through the hard times. The devotional goes down easy because the story is so good! The story, itself, is about a boy that is taken away from his family, and sold as a slave to a cruel master. He is saved by a monk from Qumran and the two must escape from Roman soldiers. Bartholomew's adventures take him from the Dead Sea to Bethlehem, where he helps a man and a very pregnant woman find a place to spend the night. Many good morals and family values are shown along the way. The kids keep begging for one more chapter--which I usually oblige. We don't read this "every" night during advent like the book says to. We read when there are no Christmas or school activities scheduled for that night, then read ahead a little (because we may get behind again), but usually end up with the final segments on Christmas Eve and Christmas morning. The story culminates with the birth of the Christ child and a happy ending all around. Through these Christmas devotional books, our family experiences a very rewarding month of read-alouds each December. What a wonderful way to keep Jesus at the forefront of the season! Thank you, Arnold Ytreeide!

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Nice family time story during advent, December 29, 2003

By A Customer

I read this book to three of my children ages 5, 8, and 12. They all liked it and looked forward to reading it each night, often begging for more. I did not read the devotional at the end of each chapter, but let the story speak for itself. I did think that the character Nathan, a Jew awaiting the Messiah, seemed more like a modern day evangelical. But the story was interesting and gave my children a good idea what life was like during the time of Christ and how the Jews longed for the Messiah to come. It also showed God's merciful love, in taking harsh circumstances and working good out of them. Reading this book each night during advent was well worth it.

5.0 out of 5 stars Family Devotional for Advent, August 26, 2008

By	Caitlyn Savannah (Texas) - See all my reviews

I cannot say enough good things about this book! It is part of a trilogy. Each section is exciting and ends like a cliffhanger making your older children want you to read more. Sometimes the adventures are even a little scary. Each section also ends with a brief devotion section and Scripture. These books are hard to find, so if you find one, grab it!