| What I Believe is a brightly illustrated "first-person" introduction to various world religions, including Judaism, Christianity, Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism, Sikhism, Shinto, and Taoism. Each major belief system is told through the eyes of a cheerfully drawn child who compare and contrast the major tenets of their faiths. Color photographs are interspersed with drawings of the children describing what it means to be of their faith, traditions, festivals, and practices around the world. This is a simple introduction to comparative religion, and it would be nearly impossible to try to describe all of the variants of each religion, so it comes as no surprise that there are a few details that have been left out. For instance, no mention is made that while Jews remember the near-sacrifice of Abraham's son Isaac, Muslims believe that the story is told about his son Ishmael - a minor differenc to some, but obviously not to Jews and Muslims. Much of the section on Christianity focuses on Catholic and Anglican worship, describing special garments that priests wear, saints, candles, and other trappings not traditionally found in many Protestant services. Finally, there are a few editing mistakes that obscure meaning: is the Buddhist meditative cloth a thanka or a tharka? Other than those glitches, this is a nice addition to any library for children, as it seems to be written from an ecumenical point of view, encouraging children to learn about and respect one another's faith systems. From a non-expert point of view, it does not seem to contain offensive or questionable information, and the fun illustrations are an easy way to introduce children to a variety of cultural and religious practices. |
What I Believe Used Books New.