All the Good News That's Fit to Print

Connecting biblical themes to today's news

Supplies: Bibles, newspapers, news magazines

Discuss:

How would you summarize the major events or themes of the biblical story?

Examples:

  • Major Events: creation, rebellion, redemption, restoration
  • Progressive revelation: nature, the law, prophets, the Messiah, final judgment
  • How God calls: matter into being, individuals to a promise, a people to repent and turn back, the broken to follow, the dead to eternal life

Activity:

Using the newspapers and news magazines, find articles and photos that exemplify the major events or themes you came up with. Some categories will be easier to find than others.

Find examples of:

  • The beauty, order, wonder or purpose of creation in photos
  • The fall, rebellion, and breaking of laws in news stories
  • Redemption and healing of humankind in human interest stories
  • Hopes, longings, and dreams in the opinion pages

Debrief:

  • What was the most difficult part about summarizing the Bible?
  • How might you benefit from summarizing the Bible's major events or themes in just a few words?
  • Were you surprised to find biblical themes in these sources?
  • How might you read news stories differently in the future?
  • What has impacted you most in this activity? What are you taking away?

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