Christians and Jews have always been known as people of the book.  But most of the members of Special Gathering, a ministry within the mentally challenged community, do not read.  The Melbourne and Vero Special Gatherings have about 100 people who are developmentally delayed who attend each week.  We do classic ministry, evangelism and discipleship.  Because of their inability to read, I have a difficult time selecting different people each week to read the Scripture text. 

While some of our members can read the words slowly, there are probably only three or may four who are comfortable reading in front of a group.  Even the best readers must be prompted and given help.  So how can this small band of dedicated Christians be “people of the book?”

The early Catholic church faced the same problem in the early centuries.  Most of the people they evangelized were not able to read.  In fact, it is the Christians who have been the largest proponent to education over the generations.  It is considered essential to the Christian faith to understand the scriptures.  Growing in grace is deep wrapped in becoming a part of the Word of God.  However, the developmental disabilities of our members make this difficult. 

There are things which can be done, however.  My father was a brilliant man with an 8th grade education who taught himself to read, only after he became a devoted Christian.  He wanted to be able to read the Bible.  He used tape recordings of the Bible to help him.  He would read along with the Bible tapes.  He not only became knowledgeable about the Bible but a great reader.  

In the same way, we encourage our members to purchase Bible CD’s and listen to them.  The Dollar Stores have Bible CD’s for $1.  For Christmas this year, we gave all our members a Bible CD.  We encourage our members to get additional CD’s and listen to them.   The whole Bible on CD’s can often be purchased for a nominal price.

I have begun to incorporate one Bible verse each quarter as our Call to Worship.  In this way, they are exposed to an essential Bible verse 9 times a year.  One of our Bible teachers in Daytona took well over a year to teach his lower functioning members one Bible verse. “I will pray morning, noon and night.”  What a great verse to learn.  At first, I thought he was really wasting their time until the verse began to penetrate my spirit.  I came to love hearing his recitation of that verse.  Often, it comes back into my mind, reminding me of the importance of prayer and reminding me to pray.

What are some of the methods that you have used to teach your members the Bible?  Do you teach Bible verses or the principles of the scriptures?  Which do you think is more beneficial?