Posters help to promote biblical values among children

SAN JOSÉ, Costa Rica — The Bible Society of Costa Rica is enjoying great success with a series of posters it is publishing to promote biblical values among school children and their families. Reactions to the posters from the children, the teachers and the local education authorities have all been extremely positive.

In a report produced in the latter part of last year, the Society noted that, thanks to the co-operation of the Association of Teachers of Religious Education, the posters were going regularly into more than 900 schools.

Motivation

Gloria Araya, the Association’s Director, said that they had been a great motivation for the students, their teachers - and their parents. Of the thousand copies they take of each poster as it is published monthly, some are displayed for the pupils to see and others are used at parents’ meetings.

When a new poster arrives at a school, the pupils often have to write about its theme and sometimes, at the request of the college or school, the delivery is accompanied by a talk from a Bible Society representative.

The posters are attractively designed. Each consists mainly of a brightly-coloured photograph of contemporary life or nature with a theme stated as a headline across the top. So far they have included ‘Do the Right Thing’, showing a man helping a boy in a swimming pool, ‘Wisdom’, with a little boy learning about fishing from his grandfather, ‘Helping Each Other’, with a brother and sister building sandcastles, and ‘Make Use of the Time’, showing a hamburger bun stuffed with schoolchildren’s paraphernalia such as pens, pencils, paintbrushes, a sharpener, scissors and so on.

Below each headline is a Bible quotation expanding on the theme and then at the bottom is a short reflection with an invitation to live out the value in question.

The Society has not been afraid to broach controversial subjects, either. One takes sex as its theme and another, headed ‘Is it suitable for me?’, shows a young man smoking a cigarette. The Bible quotation beneath runs: “It is said, ‘I am free to do whatever I want.’ It is true, but not everything is suitable. Yes, I am free to do what I want but I must not allow anything to have a hold over me.” (1 Corinthians 6:12)

The reflection offers the thought, “I must abandon everything that deprives me of freedom; everything that has a hold over me makes me a slave.”

Go forward

“I have the posters stuck upon my cupboard and I read them when I go to bed,” said another. “My mother and father also say thank you. The posters have helped them to go forward, too. The talk which Noelia gave has helped me to change a lot.”

A girl who signed herself Ana Grace Castro Trezos wrote, “When I am sad I read the poster and it helps me to cheer up. I keep it safe with my important papers. I thank you for the good work that you do and I hope that you keep doing it because it is something very nice for the other people and me.”