Nathan Finds New Life in Jerusalem
From SPARK
One-sentence summary
Flipchart children's story about sharing the good news of Jesus, the Messiah with Jews.
Description
Nathan Finds New Life in Jerusalem is a ten-chapter, children's flipchart story about a Jewish boy. He and his family move from a large city in the United States to Jerusalem. Nathan meets an Arab Christian boy. They become friends. Tension builds when Nathan becomes a Christian. The story teaches about salvation through faith in Jesus and the importance of witnessing to Jewish people. It describes Jewish customs, beliefs, and Old Testament doctrines.
The story is available in a two-CD dramatized version.
The story script has been translated into the following languages:
- Arabic (Classical)
- Ewe
- French
- Greek
- Indonesian
- Polish
- Spanish
Considerations
- The story would be best used with children ages 7 - 12 years old.
- This story will teach children in other cultures something about the Jewish religion.
- There are forty 10" x 14" pictures in a two-color format.
- In the recorded drama, some script has been deleted. It was not needed to tell the story.
- In the recorded drama, soft Jewish music indicates when to show the next picture. An echo represents what the viewer is thinking.
- Only a few sound effects are used. More would add greater interest.
- A glossary of unusual words is included.
- Words and music to a song are included. These may not be useful in some cultures.
Limitations
- The dramatized English version is poorly done. The different voices that did the recording are not well cast. They do not speak in a believable way. This would not happen when a minority language group does their own recording.
- Children who are not literate may find this story hard to understand.
- Many pictures show just parts of people. This will confuse children who are not picture-literate.
- A picture within the picture on page five shows Nathan dreaming of the city of Jerusalem. This will need to be explained.
- Many other pictures within pictures show what is being discussed in the story. Each one will need to be explained.
- Some charts will be meaningless to many children if they are not explained.
- The map of Israel on page twelve will need explaining.
- The symbolic pictures will need explaining in many cultures. For example:
- The picture on page fourteen shows a lamb ready for sacrifice.
- Jesus on the cross above it will need an explanation.
Guidelines for Use
- Use as an audio cassette or CD along with the flipchart.
- Use as a flipchart while the teacher tells the story.
- Useful as a ten-part radio drama.
- Use in Sunday school, school, Bible club, or at camp.
Where to Obtain
Link to Producer or Source Organization
Cost
- Book with script, $11.95 (USD) as of August 2007
- Book with CD English dramatization, $18.95 (USD) as of August 2007
Producer/Owners
Author/Artist/Producer
Current copyright owner
Bible Visuals International
Other Information
If you are interested in translating this story for a minority language group, contact Bible Visuals International. Together with them, you can work up a Creative Commons License agreement.
Reviewed by
Vida, VMS Children's Resources
Date
August 13, 2007
