Germany publishes children's Bible with 'gender-neutral' God

The new children’s Bible, released in Germany, according to the publishers, reflects the diversity of modern society.

The German publishing house Neukirchener-Verlag on Monday, March 13, published a Bible for all children, focused on primary school age. The initiator of the project was the United Evangelical Mission of the city of Wuppertal, Christian Megaportal inVictory reports with reference to dw.com.

Until now, in children’s Bibles published in Germany, the characters, as a rule, were portrayed as immigrants from Central Europe, although they lived in the territory of the modern Middle East. God, too, if portrayed, then as a white man.

“We wanted to create a Bible that would be easier for children with a multinational family history to navigate,” says project initiator Sarah Vechera. According to the woman, the idea for the book came from a conversation with her four-year-old daughter: “She imagined God as an old white man.” The New Bible gives children a new perspective on Jesus and biblical events, both visually and linguistically. In the new edition, people are depicted in different ways: adults and small, with different skin colors, heights, and weights. In addition, attention is paid to characters with disabilities.

At the same time, according to Sara Vechera, the publishers wanted the language of the new Bible to be gender-diverse: “We wanted to make it clear that God is neither male nor female.”

Representatives of Christian communities in Germany, children’s organizations and universities, among whom were colleagues from Africa and Asia, took part in the two-year work on the book.

“I am happy for my children that they can finally read a Bible that reflects the diversity of our society,” says Sarah Vechera.

The Bible for all children is also available as an audiobook. Lyricist Andrea Carime worked as a primary school teacher before becoming a children’s book author. She has already published 23 children’s books and has been awarded the Austrian State Prize for Children’s and Youth Literature. Artist and illustrator Anna Lisicki-Khen studied social sciences, in addition to working in multicultural projects, she writes and illustrates children’s books.

Source: В Германии издали детскую Библию с «гендерно-нейтральным» Богом | Новости inVictory