Contemporary Issues

Controversy often seems incompatible with love. Tame discussions are thought to go hand in hand with kindness. But a simple review of the greatest saints from the Bible and from Church history shows how groundless such a view is. There are times in which a stern word is the most loving, kind, and gracious thing that can be offered. Granted, it is not always that time, for often gentle words or even no words at all are appropriate. But today is a day of controversies. It is time to speak and to do so boldly. If we love our neighbors as ourselves we must not remain silent.

In most cases, controversies get to be controversies because they treat something important. Few mature people will enter into a controversy over the flavor of toothpaste they deem best. One hears of churches splitting over the color of the new carpet to be purchased, but we hope that such is the rare exception. There are, however, issues and questions that are not insignificant. Matters of life and death confront us daily. In general, the more important a subject is the more likely folks are to get worked up when it is discussed. Controversy is not always evil. It is frequently an indication that we are getting to something important.

In the topics discussed below you will find much to “get worked up” over. It is not our intention to produce controversy for controversy’s sake, but rather to press for the important things. Nothing is more essential in our day than that Christian people recover their collective prophetic voice. It is shameful, in the face of the tragic and evil deeds being done in our land, for godly men and women to remain silent. We must lift up our voices. We must point out that the emperor really has no clothes. We must show our neighbors that the paths they are on will end in their eternal horror. We are ambassadors of King Jesus. He has sent us to announce His Gospel and the terms and standards of His Kingdom. How can we not speak?

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Active Filters: 4th grade (Ages 9-10)
America in the Time of Lewis and Clark
by Sally Senzel Isaacs
from Heinemann-Raintree
for 2nd-5th grade
in 19th Century America (Location: HISA-19C)
$6.00 (1 in stock)
Bobby’s Friends
by Phia van den Berg
from Inheritance Publications
for 4th-7th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$9.95
Built to Last
by David Macaulay
from Houghton Mifflin
for 4th-6th grade
in Oversized History Books (Location: HISW-OVER)
$24.99
Coal Miner's Bride
Dear America
by Susan Campbell Bartoletti
from Scholastic Inc.
Fictional historical journal for 3rd-6th grade
in Dear America Books (Location: SER-DEAR)
Copper Lady
On My Own History
by Alice Ross, Kent Ross
from First Avenue Editions
for 2nd-5th grade
in Immigration & Emigration (Location: HISA-20IM)
Dreaming of America
by Eve Bunting, Illustrated by Ben Stahl
from Scholastic Inc.
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in Immigration & Emigration (Location: HISA-20IM)
$3.00 (1 in stock)
Dreams in the Golden Country
Dear America
by Kathryn Lasky
from Scholastic Inc.
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$6.00 (2 in stock)
Ellis Island
Cornerstones of Freedom
by Melissa McDaniel
from Scholastic Inc.
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in Cornerstones of Freedom (Location: VIN-CORN)
Enchanted Schoolhouse
by Ruth Sawyer
for 3rd-6th grade
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First Farm in the Valley
by Anne Pellowski
from Bethlehem Books
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$9.50
Great Wheel
by Robert Lawson
from Walker and Company
Realistic fiction for 4th-8th grade
1958 Newbery Honor Book
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House on Walenska Street
by Charlotte Herman
from Avyx, Inc.
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How I Became an American
by Karin Gundisch
from Cricket Books
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$8.00 (1 in stock)
How Many Days to America?
by Eve Bunting
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How They Built the Statue of Liberty
by Mary J. Shapiro
from Random House
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How They Built the Statue of Liberty
by Mary J. Shapiro, illustrated by Huck Scarry
from Random House
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If Your Name Was Changed at Ellis Island
If You Were There
by Ellen Levine & Wayne Parmenter
from Scholastic Inc.
Historical Non-Fiction for 2nd-5th grade
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Immigrant Kids
by Russell Freedman
from Puffin Books
Non-fiction for 3rd-6th grade
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$8.99
Immigrants to America
History of America
by Linda Thompson
from Rourke Publishing
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$6.00 (1 in stock)
Jane Addams
A Discovery Book
by Helen Stone Peterson
from Garrard Publishing Company
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Journey to America
Journey to America Saga #1
by Sonia Levitin
from Aladdin Paperbacks
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$7.99 $4.00 (2 in stock)
Journey to the New World
Dear America
by Kathryn, Lasky
from Scholastic Inc.
Fictional historical journal for 3rd-6th Grade
in Dear America Books (Location: SER-DEAR)
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Kids on Strike!
by Susan Campbell Bartoletti
from Houghton Mifflin
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$10.99
Kirsten's Cook Book
American Girl
by Jodi Evert
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$2.40 (1 in stock)
Lady Liberty: A Biography
by Doreen Rappaport, illustrated by Matt Tavares
from Candlewick Press
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$4.50 (2 in stock)
Letters from Rifka
by Karen Hesse
from Puffin Books
Realistic Fiction for 3rd-6th grade
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Letters from Rifka
by Karen Hesse
from Square Fish Publishing
Realistic Fiction for 3rd-6th grade
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Liberty
by Lynn Curlee
from Atheneum
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Life Before Birth
by Gary Parker
from Master Books
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$10.39
Long Way to a New Land
An I Can Read Book Level 3
by Joan Sandin
from HarperCollins
Historical Fiction for 2nd-4th grade
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Meet Rebecca
American Girl
by Jacqueline Dembar Greene
from American Girl
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Mosque
by David Macaulay
from Houghton Mifflin
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in Oversized History Books (Location: HISW-OVER)
$12.99
Mosque
by David Macaulay
1st edition from HMH Books for Young Readers
for 4th-8th grade
in Oversized History Books (Location: HISW-OVER)
$10.00 (1 in stock)
On Board the Titanic
by Shelley Tanaka, illustrated by Ken Marschall
from Hyperion/Madison Press
Historical Non-Fiction for 2nd-6th grade
in Titanic & 20th Century Disasters (Location: HISW-20DIS)
Orphan for Nebraska
A Guild Book
by Charlene Joy Talbot
from Atheneum
Realistic Fiction for 4th-8th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$8.00 (1 in stock)
Orphan Train Rider
by Andrea Warren
from Houghton Mifflin
for 3rd-6th grade
in Gilded Age (1865-1918) (Location: HISA-19GI)
$9.95
Orphan Train Rider
by Andrea Warren
from Houghton Mifflin
for 4th-6th grade
in Gilded Age (1865-1918) (Location: HISA-19GI)
$8.00 (1 in stock)
Other Words for Home
by Jasmine Warga
First Ed from Balzer & Bray
for 4th-8th grade
2020 Newbery Honor Book
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$16.99
Penny from Heaven
by Jennifer L. Holm
from Yearling
for 4th-6th grade
2007 Newbery Honor Book
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$7.99
Prairie Star
by Nina Hermanna Morgan
from Viking Press
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in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
$6.00 (1 in stock)
Rise of Islam
Modern Knowledge Library
by Anton Powell, edited by Frances Clapham
from Warwick Press
for 4th-8th grade
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Science in Early Islamic Cultures
by George W. Beshore
from Children's Press
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Sky at Our Feet
by Nadia Hashimi
from HarperCollins
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$6.99
Snowshoe Thompson
An I Can Read Book Level 3
by Nancy Smiler Levinson & Joan Sandin
from HarperCollins
Historical Fiction for 2nd-4th grade
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$4.99
Sod-House Winter
They Came From Sweden
by Clara Ingram Judson
from Follett
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Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island - Coloring Book
Dover Coloring Books
by A. G. Smith
from Dover Publications
for 2nd-6th grade
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$4.99
Stink Alley
by Jamie Gilson
from HarperCollins
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$10.00 (1 in stock)
Story of Ellis Island
Cornerstones of Freedom
by R. Conrad Stein
from Children's Press
for 4th-6th Grade
in Cornerstones of Freedom (Location: VIN-CORN)
Story of Ellis Island
Cornerstones of Freedom
by R. Conrad Stein
from Children's Press
for 4th-6th Grade
in Cornerstones of Freedom (Location: VIN-CORN)
Story of the Statue of Liberty
by Betsy & Giulio Maestro
from William Morrow & Company
Historical Non-Fiction for 2nd-4th grade
in Immigration & Emigration (Location: HISA-20IM)
$7.99
Story of the Statue of Liberty
by Natali Miller
from Children's Press
for 4th-6th Grade
in Cornerstones of Freedom (Location: VIN-CORN)
Story of the Statue of Liberty
by Natali Miller
from Children's Press
for 4th-6th Grade
in Cornerstones of Freedom (Location: VIN-CORN)
Story of the Statue of Liberty
by Natali Miller
from Children's Press
for 4th-6th Grade
in Cornerstones of Freedom (Location: VIN-CORN)
Story of the Statue of Liberty
by Betsy & Giulio Maestro
from William Morrow & Company
Historical Non-Fiction for 2nd-4th grade
in Immigration & Emigration (Location: HISA-20IM)
Story of the Titanic
Cornerstones of Freedom series
by Deborah Kent
from Children's Press
for 4th-7th grade
in Cornerstones of Freedom (Location: VIN-CORN)
Tales of Persia
by William Miller
from P&R Publishing
Biography for 4th-8th grade
in History of Missions (Location: XCH-MIS)
$11.99 $7.00 (2 in stock)
Titanic Lost...and Found
Step into Reading Level 4
by Judy Donnelly, illustrated by Keith Kohler
from Random House
for 1st-4th grade
in Step into Reading (Location: EAR-STEP)
$5.99
Turtle of Oman
by Naomi Shihab Nye
from Greenwillow Books
for 4th-8th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$7.99
Valley of the Moon
Dear America
by Sherry Garland
from Scholastic Inc.
Fictional historical journal for 3rd-6th Grade
in Dear America Books (Location: SER-DEAR)
When Stars Are Scattered
by Victoria Jamieson and Omar Mohamed
from Dial Books for Young Readers
for 3rd-6th grade
in Comic Books & Graphic Novels (Location: FIC-COMIC)
$12.99
Where Did Your Family Come From?
by Melvin and Gilda Berger; illustrated by Robert M. Quackenbush
from Ideals Children's Books
for 1st-4th grade
in Immigration & Emigration (Location: HISA-20IM)
$6.00 (1 in stock)