Dean Mandis, a father of two students in the Rockwood School District (also the school district of my children) addressed the district’s school board last week regarding his concerns that his daaughter was being taught the concepts of B.C.E. (Before the Common Era) and C.E. (Common Era) as alternatives to the dating system that has been in place for HUNDREDS OF CENTURIES!

“Introducing B.C.E./C.E. in conjunction with B.C./A.D. in the classroom is to deny the historical basis of the dating system and ultimately leads to confusion,” Mandis told the board. Mandis said this teacher’s decision was “irresponsible” and possibly “a dangerous and slippery slope.” (quoted from Tim Townsend’s article in the Post and on stltoday.com.)

Apparently, according to a source in the article, the movement to use C.E. and B.C.E. in western academia began in the 1980s. When something similar happened in Kentucky in 2006, Christians fought it and the effort to use the new dating system disappeared. Gotta hand it to you, KY! (that’s for my husband and his relatives.)

Not surprisingly, the same textbook companies that have been re-writing history for the last few decades to make it more politically correct and less offensive are at least partially to blame for this effort. Craig Larson, Rockwood School District superintendent, wrote this explanation  on his blog:

“Within the last 10-15 years, CE/BCE has started to appear in student textbooks, usually along with AD/BC and sometimes with just one or the other mentioned. Teachers make sure that students are aware of both designations so they are literate when they encounter either notation.”

I understand the textbook companies desire to sell textbooks. When I was a newspaper reporter, people used to accuse us of writing things “just to sell newspapers.”  I’d say, “We need to sell newspapers, folks. This isn’t a not-for-profit operation.”  But that didn’t mean we had license to write things that were false. I understand that you can probably sell more textbooks if your books are vanilla enough to not offend ANYONE, that doesn’t make them accurate.

I’ll never forget when my oldest came home from kindergarten telling me that the pilgrims celebrated Thanksgiving to thank the Native Americans (see, I can be PC) for helping them survive in the new country. Seriously? While the pilgrims may very well have owed a debt of gratitude to any Native Americans who helped them learn to live in this untame land, it was NOT the Indians who they were thanking that first Thanksgiving. Still, when I investigated, that was the message of the book my daughter’s teacher was reading to her class. No mention of thanking God on Thanksgiving — just the natives.

As Larson pointed out, Rockwood School District doesn’t write textbooks, and the district has a responsibility to help our students understand dates in any way they may be presented. But I’m with Mandis — it’s a slippery slope. I think the district should reject any textbooks that teach an inaccurate history of Thanksgiving, and then the textbook companies won’t print falsities about that holiday.

Our dating system shouldn’t offend anyone. B.C. doesn’t stand for ”Before Christ, the one true God, Son of Man, Risen Savior.” And the newer system of dating doesn’t change anything — the calendar is still measured in terms of the birth of  Jesus Christ. So let’s stop erasing God from our history.

Larson says the school district doesn’t have a “policy” on dates. Maybe we should have a policy and that policy should be that we will continue to teach our children the principles upon which this country was founded in regard to everything, including the dating system. If you are a Rockwood parent and you feel strongly about this, a group of parents have started a petition on the topic. You can sign it here.

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Tiny Baby Jesus offers a fresh look at the Christmas story as it talks about Jesus in terms of his very human condition. Plus, it’s a perfect book to share with my toddler, because she loves the idea of identifying Jesus from his head to his tiny toes.

As you read this book to your children, they will discover the wonder of hands that develop into those of a carpenter and swaddled shoulders that grow to carry the weight of all mankind. Readers can share in the humble birth of tiny baby Jesus while remembering the life and teachings of the grown savior. The book’s messages are simple yet profound, and the illustrations are beautiful.

You can purchase this book on Amazon, but three lucky Lipstick to Crayons readers can win a hard copy for free by entering the contest below. 

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This giveaway closes at 11:59 p.m. Central time Nov. 24.  Be sure to include a valid email address with each of your entries. Contest open to United States residents only. Winners will be randomly chosen via random.org and will be notified via email and announced on this post.

If winners do not claim prize by Nov. 27, 2009, they will forfeit the prize to an alternate winner.

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I liked the overall message of this children’s program: God is with you, even when you are afraid.  This colorful tale, done in a puppet style similar to Sesame Street, is both funny and encouraging, with more than a little bit of randomness thrown in.  It is also a musical, so if your child tends to learn best audibly there are several catchy songs with the story’s message woven throughout them. 

Do It Afraid begins with four friends, a girl, a penguin, a frog and a beaver, all landing on an island in search of another who has been captured.  They learn that all of them will have to face a certain fear of theirs in order to obtain one of four keys to open the door to where their friend, Miss Ruby (voiced by Joyce Meyer) is being held.  They are encouraged to not back down in face of their fear, to ‘do it afraid’ anyway.  Along the way they face an interesting and varied array of personal fears: two of which I feel are applicable to the audience of children watching (the fear of being laughed at, and the fear of being alone), and two that are I think thrown in for a bit kicks and giggles (fear of chickens and fear of, ironically enough, puppets). 

All in all, I think this film is an entertaining story that is done well, with a Christian foundation at the center of it.  However, Christian parents who are wanting a flat out, openly Biblical movie for their kids to watch may be surprised to find that this film isn’t one, per se.  However, I think this is because the film has been created as an apologetic piece to reach little viewers who are not being brought up in Christian homes.  By this I mean that instead of coming out and saying ‘God’, ‘Jesus’, and ‘The Bible’, terms like ‘The Creator’ and ‘The Book’ are used.  Satan (here represented by an evil pink snake) is called by one of his other names, simply ‘the enemy’.   I liked that for a kids’ program, the producers were still very real and upfront about the presence of Satan, addressing the very true reality of how he attacks us when we are afraid.  What I liked most is that they managed to portray this without scaring the kids gratuitously. 

In the end,  I’d recommend this film to parents, especially if they have friends that they’d like to show God’s love to in some way.

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After hopping from city to city after fleeing her hometown under suspicious rumors ten years previously, PJ has finally made it back for her sister’s second wedding, to confront her past: A past that includes an old flame that betrayed her, a critical mother, a difficult nephew, and town still wary of her character. When PJ’s seemingly perfect sister needs her to stay for a few weeks to look after her rambunctious but troubled four-year old son, she agrees, with a mixture of trepidation at opening old wounds and hope at the possibility of redemption. What PJ encounters is a good long hard look at both herself and those who used to be dear to her, and finally discovering the grace that she’s craved all along. With a fun mystery backdrop, a little romance, and a cast full of quirky and entertaining characters, Warren proves yet again that she is the master of the Christian Lit Mystery novel. Those who agree with me about the magnetism of Warren’s latest work will be thrilled to know that another installment of PJ’s antics and adventures is on the way.

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