I first learned that the Bible Museum has a FREE ENTRANCE PROMO for all Saturdays of January to celebrate National Bible Month through Facebook. I just saw it on my feed and I got excited. I had been planning to bring our kids there for a field trip but we have not found time for it in the past years. When I saw the events on Facebook, I checked our calendar right away and found one Saturday wherein we could squeeze in a field trip to the place.

Although the Taal volcano eruption has affected our activities, I’ve decided to push through with our planned field trip because I learned that the museum is air-conditioned anyway.

Also, I reminded my husband and our boys to wear masks or to cover their noses with damp hankies or towels when they go out of the house and into our vehicle.

We went to the Bible Museum last Saturday after my meeting with other fellow homeschool leaders at BGC. My husband and kids fetched me.

Traffic was bad on our way to Manila. We targeted to arrive between 1 to 1:30 PM but because of the traffic, we arrived at past 2 PM.

I was starting to get worried that we would miss the window for the free entrance to the museum.

It was a blessing that we still arrived early enough to avail of their free entrance. Thank God that we were allowed to park in front of the PBS or Philippine Bible Society building.

A few people were also there to join us on the guided tour.

Where is it located?

The Bible Museum is the only Bible Museum in the Philippines. It is located on the second floor of the PBS building at UN Avenue in Manila.

The tour could be finished in 30-45 minutes. The place is relatively small. But we stayed there for over an hour because the kids were happy to try out different costumes of Bible characters. My husband and I joined in the fun as well.

We also spent some time browsing some books and Bible that PBS was selling. Since buying new Bibles and books was not in our plan, we left after a few minutes of checking out their products. But I made a mental note to check their booth at the MIFB this year in September. They have a number of nice and affordable materials that are good for children. There were board books about the Bible that were at 50% off. Praise God that I had the strength and discipline to resist buying out of impulse. hahaha

Let me share about our tour.

Our Guided Tour

We had three (3) tour guides — 2 males and 1 female. It was our family’s first time at the Bible Museum last Saturday. The museum had standees that marked the various milestones in the history of the evolution of the present-day Bible. At various points, they showed and highlighted materials which we usually read in the Bible.

Although there were many things that I already knew about the Bible and its history because I have read about them in books and our mentor Fr. Jun Lingad, SDB has discussed some of them during our Bible studies with him, I still learned new things during our field trip.

It was my first time to see some of the things on display at the museum. I found it helpful to see the actual things mentioned in the Bible stories that we read. I think this was helpful for the kids also. It would make their Bible reading more insightful.

Moreover, it’s like a foretaste of what you can see if you make a pilgrimage to the Holy Land and the places mentioned in the Bible.

The explanations of the tour guides were in Filipino. It was a good thing that my all kids can already comprehend Filipino now. Maybe, the guides would also adjust if there are guests who cannot understand Filipino.

We were allowed to take a few photos during the tour. But flash photography was prohibited.

Part of the tour was the discussion of how the Bible was first printed.

They also showed samples of the first Bibles printed.

How the books of the Bible were chosen were also discussed. The guide discussed the difference between the Catholic Bible and the non-Catholic Bible.

They had a Bible gallery wherein different kinds of Bibles of different sizes and languages or dialects were displayed. We were read a Millenial or Youth version of the Bible, which we found very funny. It was also in this area where we saw a really tiny Bible. According to our guides, this tiny Bible is quite popular and is a fast-moving item in their store.

After the tour, we were led to an area where you and your kids can try out some costumes and pose like you were in the places mentioned in the Bible.

Overall, we enjoyed and learned from our field trip.

I would recommend this museum to Christian families.

Tips

Give allowance for traffic, especially if you will go there on a Saturday. There were many trucks and trailers on the road. Traffic was at a standstill in some streets.

Eat lunch or breakfast first so you don’t get hungry while in traffic.

Or bring snacks and water with you.

Use the toilet before going there so you would not need a toilet break during the travel time to the museum. Remember, traffic is bad. You don’t want one of your kids screaming during traffic that he needs a CR break. It was a good thing we were already close to the building when our eldest child said that he needs to pee.

Budget some money for shopping for Bible or books for kids. You might want to do some shopping. There were materials at 50% off when we went there last Saturday. But I didn’t bring cash with me and I did not plan on spending on books that day.

National Bible Week

I learned that this week (January 20 – 26) is National Bible Week also. Thus, I’ve decided to include in this blog post some suggested activities you can do with your kids or family at this time.

1. If you are not yet reading the Bible daily to or with your kids, I’d say this is a good week to do it. In our family, the first lesson of the day for all of us come from reading and studying God’s Word in the Bible. We read the Bible together over breakfast usually. Then, we discuss it a bit most days. Some days, we discuss the Gospel or the readings longer. It’s not only the kids who learn from this practice. Even my husband and I learn new things as we read the Bible every time.
2. Watch videos that discuss the Gospel or other Bible passages. Our go-to video for this is Brother Bo Sanchez’ Full Tank video series. He makes videos daily. You can subscribe to his videos here.
3. Print out Bible-themed coloring pages or activity sheets for the kids. There are many blogs and sites that provide these materials for free. Two of our favorites are Holy Heroes and Catholic Icing.
4. Read Children’s Bibles to younger kids. We have many kinds of Bibles at home. We have different versions of children’s Bibles, from those meant for toddlers to those meant for older children. We also have Bibles of different versions and sizes. I usually read the adult Bible version during our family Bible time, usually at breakfast time. But I also sometimes read stories from our children’s Bibles so the kids can see pictures.
5. Use props, costumes, and your children’s toys to make your reading time more interesting. Let the kids play with the toys as they retell the story from memory. It’s a good exercise for their memory and communication skills.
6. Read storybooks inspired by the stories in the Bible to your kids or bring out those storybooks and make them accessible in case the kids want to read on their own.
7. Ask your kids to memorize some verses from the Bible.
8. Attend a Bible study or Bible sharing event in your church.
9. If your children do not have their own Bible yet, this would be a good time to give them this gift. Each of our children has their own Bibles. Giving them their own Bible encourages them to read it even when you are not there to read to them. It also communicates to them that they should build a personal relationship with God by studying Holy Scriptures.
10. Play Bible games. You can make your own questions or get from the resources available on the internet. If you have Echo devices at home that use the Alexa app, you can play Bible games using the Alexa app. Both kids and adults can test their knowledge, learn and have fun while bonding over a Bible game. This is one of the games we like playing as a family since we got Echo devices. If you are interested to buy an Echo device, head to our Abode Automation PH Facebook page to check the prices and to order. We still have some stocks on sale.

I hope these tips and activities bring you and your family to a better appreciation and understanding of the Bible.

You can still visit the Bible Museum for FREE next Saturday. Remember, free entrance is only from 9 AM to 3 PM. But even if you miss it because of the traffic, the entrance fee is only P50 per person.