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You could also have an interesting discussion about mitochondrial Eve and Y chromosome Adam...

Thank you for clearing up that metaphor confusion for me, aeh! This is a little more deconstructionist than my mind can usually travel...I love it.

Some people take it literally, which is pretty obviously explained -- they believe the author did mean it literally.

Other people take it symbolically. I've heard that explained a couple ways. Either, it's not as though the people who wrote the bible were sitting there with a notepad and paper, court-reporter style, writing everything word for word -- "Sorry, Moses, could you repeat that? I cannot write down a nod" -- and thus, there are some things that might not be exact. I've also heard it explained that, for example, certain events might have been embellished by the writers to make a better story and thus a better lesson.

Honestly, I'm not sure exactly who believes what and exactly how, but I do know there's no specific consensus -- you don't need to give him a definitive answer.
Also, I would maybe focus on some things too about values, etc that your family believes in just so that he has something definitive to latch onto -- it might help so that he doesn't feel too "lost" while he's figuring everything out.

Now it looks like I'm going to have to delve into evolution. They asked me about that as well, whether we are descended from chimpanzees, and I said no, we are both descended from something else, and there is fossil evidence showing that we do not look anything like humans millions of years ago, but my own scientific understanding is pretty limited. These "Bible Story" books make out Adam and Eve to be like modern humans. How many kids even understand it when you say "Look, it's not a literal story, it's metaphorical." So then what is it trying to tell us if it's not literal? And which parts of the Bible are methaphorical and which parts are historical fact (as the ancient people knew it). Don't even kids with average IQs question any of this? What do the very conservative religious parents say to their kids? Are there any resources out there explaining how the VERY LIBERAL churches interpret the Bible? Maybe that is something I could give DS (and maybe now DD as well, since she's starting to ask questions). Then they can decide for themselves if it makes any sense.

You wish. :P

To further complicate matters--it's not really so much a liberal v. conservative issue. Roman Catholicism, for instance, would not be considered "liberal" by most (I'd think), although there are both (politically) liberal and conservative Catholics. RC doesn't read the bible literally (with some exceptions--and some mystical beliefs that extend beyond literal/figurative).

"Liberal" might include: Disciples of Christ, Episcopalian, (some) Methodist, (some) Presbyterian, Unitarian Universalist (not really Christian)...I'm sure many more, no expert.

Do you think your DS is more interested in the bible itself, or the nature of religious belief?

UU is a good place for an academic type of religious study. This would likely not go over well with your parents, though, so DS should keep it on the down-low if you go this route.

Not sure. When we were at the art musueum, with a lot of ancient art, he wanted to read the captions about all the different religions (like Buddhism), not just the Christian ones. He was really into the Percy Jackson books, which I think have to do with the greek gods. He talks about mythology, but at the same time talks about God as factual, like there is no question about God. So I'm not really sure what his line of thought is.

Another resource might be the Unitarian Universalists. The UU, from what I have seen from friends, embraces a freethinking experience within a church-like community. It's a mix of the theists, agnostics, atheists, etc. The children's programming (Sunday school) explores various beliefs in a personal search for meaning. It's member-run so it really depends on your community whether the vibe fits you, but it might offer a space for discussion among peers, and people of different ages and backgrounds.

blackcat, it sounds as though your family's mixture of belief/inquisitiveness is similar to ours.

In our case, we treated this as a matter of VERY gentle 'coaching' and a sort of social life-skills learning opportunity, aside from the obvious drive that DD had to understand religious faith and different belief systems.

She was much more intellectual than 'spiritual' about the entire thing-- it was quite clinical to her. She approached this as a historian/archaeologist, and not as a mystic, if that makes any sense at all.

She wasn't searching for her own Truth, but for an understanding of the "what" of others' beliefs-- and the why of them, which was obviously much more challenging, but led to some very interesting discussions. All of it arose rather naturally out of her insatiable curiosity regarding the nature of global conflicts and geopolitical strife-- NO discussion of which can truly be complete without understanding the role of religion (and differences) in that history.

Great Courses has some good comparative religions materials-- often local public libraries have these available for check-out.

We made it VERY clear that in spite of being spiritually color-blind ourselves, we aren't ardent about that agnosticism, by any means, and that on some level we have some envy for those who do have such faith. However, NOT everyone has a "God-shaped hole" in themselves. I explained this to my child from a scientific/clinical sort of stance. Atheism/belief seems to be at least partly genetic. Having both believers and atheists in one's genetic family tree often means that it's a bit unpredictable. One's belief system can be fairly idiosyncratic or unconventional under those conditions.

I explained that I couldn't tell her what her own spiritual life needed to be-- that nobody ever can tell that to another human being.

I suppose that means that we did some indoctrination on a humanist side-- but it was mindful and transparent in motivation. We leveled with her, in other words.

She did in fact make up her own mind at about 12 years old. Or rather, she had been pulling those threads together into her own tapestry since those conversations at 4-7yo, and finally found the thing that "matched" for her at about 12. I think that it has surprised her that we are entirely supportive of her desire to go to worship and take part in a faith community. It makes me happy that my daughter is comfortable enough that I take her beliefs seriously so that she talks to me sometimes about her spirituality. Not with an eye to conversion-- but as an act of sharing parts of herself.

That's a pretty good place to get to. I don't know if how we treated her curiosity at 4-7yo made the difference, or what-- but that is the place that we were then, and this is where we are now.

DD is unabashedly liberal and social justice is, in and of itself, an article of faith for her-- which means that we happen to be quite fortuitous that she has found a faith community that 'fits' her so well. My family believed in training (and pruning/scaffolding) for spiritual life-- we did not do that. We basically watered and met obvious needs, and let things grow as they would.

"Exigesis" is the keyword you'll want to include in your searches on different biblical interpretations of various topics, blackcat.

exegesis