The Big Wide WelcomeWritten by Trillia Newbell and Illustrated by Catalina Echeverri

This article was first published in French at TPSG.

In this book designed for children ages 3-6, the authors walk us through a story penned by James, the brother of Jesus. Juxtaposing how a church would welcome a rich man versus a poor man, we learn a powerful lesson about hospitality: At the feet of the cross, all are welcome!

I have a soft spot for children’s books by the dynamic duo of Newbell and Echeverri. (See my review of their teamwork on God’s Very Good Idea.) They carefully craft both words and illustrations to tell one united story, employing allusions to historic moments or figures: from a bus with African Americans sitting in the back during the segregation era, to Pharaoh building his empire on the back of enslaved Hebrews. In one illustration highlighting the diversity of the body of Christ, they even include a drawing of a surfer with a missing arm, whom my daughter identified right away as Bethany Hamilton, a disciple of Jesus and world champion surfer who lost her arm to a shark attack. 

In an age of such polarization, this refreshing short story will give parents tools to teach their kids the beauty of Christ’s multicultural, multilingual, multifaceted Church. 

To offer you a child’s perspective, here are some thoughts on the book from Evangeline, my 10-year-old daughter:

How would you summarize the story in your own words?

Never exclude people, even though they’re different or have a disability or don’t look the same. Because everyone deserves to be loved and cared for and we should be kind to everyone, even though they’re not always kind to us. We should act this way because Jesus could have let us die in our sin, but instead, he let us live in eternal life with him. Jesus taught us to love others and care for them even though they don’t look, act, or talk like us. 

What did you like most about the story?

1. I like that they include people of different races, who speak different languages, who want and deserve to be loved. 

2. I like the drawings that show the rich man coming into the church and being able to sit in the front and being treated like a king and then a poor man coming in and being told to sit in the back and being treated like a stinky, worthless person.  

3. I like how they compared the heart of the rich man to the heart of the poor man. 

What one lesson did this story teach you?

To be kind and encouraging to people of different colours and who don’t have the same abilities as us.

Would you recommend this book to others?

Yes, especially to people who are mean to those who are different, to help them maybe be nicer to those who are different colour or have a disability or come from a different country.

Find it here.