The Just Love Story Bible

A groundbreaking, justice-oriented storybook Bible for children and families.

In a bold and inspiring new storybook Bible for children, Rev. Dr. Jacqui Lewis and Rev. Dr. Shannon Daley-Harris join a long line of sacred storytellers and question-askers. For thousands of years, people have told stories, sung songs, asked hard questions, and shared experiences to learn about God and how to live as God's people. The big message of the Bible is that God loves us and created us to love God and each other, to do justice, and to love kindness.

The Just Love Story Bible invites you into this big story. This isn't a book of answers but an invitation to ask important questions. People have always wondered about the great mysteries and, most importantly, the great questions of life. What are the best, most loving, and fairest ways to live with each other? Can we believe in something huge and mysterious and invisible like God and still have questions, doubts, and disagreements? What does it look like to be a follower of Jesus?

Through retellings of thoughtfully selected Bible stories, The Just Love Story Bible presents a way to hear how others have also had questions about God, and the answers they discovered; to have your own ideas and ponder your own experiences; and to keep on wondering.

The Just Love Story Bible includes:

Fifty-two Bible stories: Twenty-six from the Old Testament and twenty-six from the New Testament.

Bold, striking illustrations created by Cheryl "Ras" Thuesday, depicting gorgeous scenes and biblical characters in various shades of brown.

Cultural, religious, and historical context to help kids learn about the experiences of people in ancient times.

Exploration of genre and biblical storytelling styles in words kids can understand.

Cheryl "Ras" Thuesday is an illustrator originally from South London, England. At an early age, her family moved to the United States and settled in a small town in New Jersey. Later, she attended the School of Visual Arts in New York City, where she learned to marry fine arts with commercial artistry. Her Caribbean and Asian heritage influences her color choices throughout her illustrations. She has created artwork for various companies and publications including the New York Times, NPR, Adobe, and others. She has illustrated several picture books including Kind Like Marsha, Willis Watson Is a Wannabe, and Edie for Equality. Cheryl lives in New York City.

The Rev. Dr. Jacqui Lewis is Senior Minister and Public Theologian at Middle Church in New York City. In her activism, preaching, speaking, writing, and teaching, Jacqui advocates for racial equality, gun control, economic justice, and equal rights for all sexual orientations and genders. A world-renowned theologian, Jacqui has been featured on The Today Show, All In with Chris Hayes, Good Morning America, The Jonathan Capehart Show, The Brian Lehrer Show, The Takeaway, NY1, ABC, NBC, PBS, CBS and many more. Her writing has appeared in outlets like Harper's Bazaar, Vox, Ebony, Essence, The Huffington Post and Religion News Service. She is the author of several books, including the children's books You are So Wonderful and The Just Love Story Bible. Her most recent book for adults is Fierce Love: A Bold Path to a Ferocious Courage and Rule-Breaking Kindness That Can Heal the World.

Jacqui created two television shows, Just Faith (MSNBC) and Chapter & Verse (PBS) and is a frequent guest on national television talking about faith, politics, and art. Her podcast, Love. Period. is produced by the Center for Action and Contemplation. She and her husband John live in New York City. Together, they have a son, daughter-in-law, and two magical little grandchildren who keep them laughing.

The Rev. Dr. Shannon Daley-Harris is the Associate Dean of Auburn Theological Seminary. Previously, she was the director of Just Love Families and worked with Middle Church to develop its Just Love Families initiative to equip parents and other caregivers across the country with resources, approaches, and coaching to use the power of story to nurture a justice- and love-centered faith in their children. Shannon served for over three decades with the Children's Defense Fund including creating and directing CDF's Proctor Institute for Child Advocacy Ministry and National Observance of Children's Sabbaths. Shannon is also the author of Hope for the Future: Answering God's Call to Justice for Our Children and numerous other publications. An ordained minister of word and sacrament in the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), she holds an M.Div. from Wesley Theological Seminary and a D.Min. from Drew Theological School. Shannon lives in Princeton, New Jersey with her husband Sam, and is the mother of two young adults, Micah and Sophie.