Nancy Humes

I received this book for free through Goodreads First Reads.

This book is a Bible study for teens published by Emmaus Road Publishing, a Catholic book publisher. I am not Catholic, but the description of the book made it sound as though it could be beneficial for non-Catholic teens, and after reading it, I believe it could be. However, it would be useful to explain common Catholic rituals to non-Catholic teens before they begin this book, as well as differences in beliefs.

The topics, language, and intensity are aimed at teens, but I think many of the questions could be used with younger children. It could also be useful for someone preparing Sunday school lessons.

The twenty lessons are each divided into three sections: Read, Reflect, and Respond. The topic of each lesson is introduced with a short paragraph and the lesson ends with a verse to memorize. The brief introductory paragraph to each lesson and the Respond section are where the Catholicism aspects are found, when they are there. Some of the topics covered are God's character, praying, spiritual gifts, the Second Coming, heaven and hell, sexuality, family, the right to life, self-esteem, controlling the tongue, and forgiveness.

Here are some examples from the book to provide a sense of it. In the How God Defines Love lesson in the Read section, one of the questions is "How did Jesus prove His love for us? (John 3:16)". In the God's Gift of Sexuality lesson in the Reflect section, one of the questions is "What are come [sp] negative consequences that may result from misusing God's gift of sexuality?" In the Contentment lesson in the Respond section, one of the points is "God does not make junk. You have the features, body, and intellect that God planned for you. He has a marvelous plan for your life. Be glad you're you."… (més)