The leader of a large city-based Christian church is asking the Board of Education to audit all library books in local schools for sexual and occult content, a review the district’s top official said isn’t needed and won’t be done.
Bishop Jay Ramirez of Kingdom Life Christian Church said his request for the audit is based on previous and recent incidents in which questionable reading material turned up in middle schools.
“I definitely think the books need to be reviewed by people at the school,” Ramirez said. “Audit is a better term.”
New Haven Register has the story.
THE BERENSTAIN BEARS?!
Challenging Berenstain Bears picture books or chapter books ranks up there with challenging Dr. Seuss and Alphabet Primers. Here’s my list of books I’m willing to bet this irReverend Mucky-muck wants taken out circulation. And a good thing that district has got some intelligent administrators along with a review process in place.
The Berenstain Bears?! Oh, yeah! — there’s a load of sex, smut, and satanism!
Narking idiots!
Berenstain Bears and God
Whats sad is the Berenstain Bears promote Christian values. There is even a “Berenstain Bears and The Big Question” that deals with God.
This church is making a fool of themselves but I do understand where they are coming from. I blame it partly on those who promote witches and occultism as something real. Both sides need to understand that witches and ghosts belong strictly in fiction.
Kids and reading
A sure fire way to get kids to read more–just tell them they can’t.
Re:Berenstain Bears and God
🙂
Some people may find Christianity just as “fictional” as you find witches and ghosts. Personally I see it as yet another variation of the sacrificial king/god mythology — there have been plenty of other gods sacrificed throughout time, many even crucified. Christianity is not unique in its themes, most aspects of its major stories can be linked back to the mythology of earlier civilizations in the region.
What I’m trying to get at is that the “truths” of your belief system may sound just as ridiculous to someone else, as occult or other beliefs sound to you. The first part of your comment was interesting and informative, the second part is what I’m referring to as it seems rather close-minded and you don’t seem to understand that others may feel differently about both these items and your own belief system than you do.
Since all the books involved were fiction to begin with I believe, I would agree with you that those books do belong in the fiction section of the library.
Re:Berenstain Bears and God
Well, further complicating things is that they are real – just not in the sense that these hysterics mean. There are “witches” (i.e. pagans), there are people who believe in “magick” as much as Christians believe in “prayer”, and so forth. What would immensely benefit them is a realization that 1) no one is trying to “corrupt” their children, and 2) if pagan and “occult” texts were to be removed, Christian texts should also be removed on the very same grounds.
Re:Berenstain Bears and God
You have 2 groups complaining about Harry Potter, one saying it promotes wicca and the other complaining that it doesn’t take wicca seriously.
The first groups recognizes that the second group exists and (excessively) fears their influence in books, media, and entertainment. The second group is simply trying to gain respect where it continues to get none. The fact that they do so by complaining that Harry rides his broom the wrong way is why they don’t get said respect.
I will sympathize with the first group because the second group does in fact exist and would like to be more influential. I will laugh at the second group because in fact brooms don’t fly.
If that makes me close-minded then I’m close-minded. Having a belief system requires me to actually stand by them, thats what it means to believe.
Disclaimer: I actually purchase for these subject areas in the nonfiction collection of our public library. I just recently bought new copies of an Enc. of the Occult, a Torah, a Koran, and a King James Bible. I am happy to let people make their own choices and I will continue to stand by my own.
Re:Berenstain Bears and God
Neither wicca nor Christianity not any of these stuff is in the 500s or 600s — Science.