A Youth Bible review to LIVE for

Intermountain Catholic

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"LIVE" is a Bible published specifically for teens.

I was recently given the honor of reviewing a new Bible, "LIVE," that was published specifically for teens. After going through and getting an understanding of what this particular Bible was trying to accomplish, I did not really know what I was going to say about "LIVE." I wanted to give my opinion without offending anyone, so I wrote a draft that seemed to tip-toe around eggshells. I hated that draft. I realized withholding anything that I thought about "LIVE" was counterproductive to my goal of reviewing this Bible. So here goes; eggshells not included.

When considering all possibilities in choosing the right gift for a teen these days, one would normally go out and pick up a gift card, a book, or even a car. But very rarely does even the consideration of a Bible come into play.

The main goal of this review is put into a single, simple sentence – Would "LIVE" be a good gift for a teen? For a teen my age, my answer has to be no. I say that with such conviction because of the way teens are these days. Personally, I can’t even remember the last time I picked up a Bible for my own personal use. I have asked others my age if they had read a Bible for their own spiritual gain and all but one said no. And when I inquired as to why they had not, it seemed to be that reading the Bible was just boring for them. Now, "LIVE" aims to appeal to the modern teen, but being a modern teen, I found it almost distasteful to read. I felt that, in this version, the publishers had "dumbed" down the Bible to the point where my intelligence and comprehension were being questioned.

When trying to win over a teen by today’s standards, primitive and/or pretentious are not the ways to go. Things must be short and snappy, and to the point. Just look at the ways we as teens communicate with one another. Texting is a big deal, more importantly, quickly texting. In order to quickly text, a new language has emerged. Longer phrases such as ‘be back later’ and ‘talk to you later’ have been cut down to ‘bbl or bbl8r’ and ‘ttyl’. Short and snappy. Even emotions and single words have been cut down. For instance, the phrase ‘I love you’ has been reduced to ‘I <3 u’ and the word ‘thanks’ has become ‘thnx’. To keep a teen’s attention and draw interest, things must be quick and to the point. It may well seem that these abbreviations are dumb, but really it requires one to think about what is trying to be conveyed.

I am not saying that "LIVE" is a horrible Bible and should cease print; that is not my intention at all. Overall, this version was quite refreshing from the everyday, normal Bible. By providing sidebars and assessments throughout, readers have the opportunity to reflect on particular passages. It is my opinion that "LIVE" is better suited as a gift to a younger teen; or as a Holy Communion, Confirmation, or a Baptism gift; or to someone who is newer to the Church. Perhaps because I have been in the Catholic School system for a while now and have a strong opinion on how to improve it, I believe "LIVE" would be an appropriate version to use in a religion class for middle school and freshman classes. I firmly believe that this would be the most suitable audience.

 Dion A. Granger-Troy is a member of Judge Memorial Catholic High School Class of 2012