Talking dolls designed to teach children Scriptures
In the marketplace of interactive toys, there are stuffed animals that recite the Lord's Prayer, a cross-bearing teddy that sings ''Jesus Loves Me," and a talking Bible that intones passages from the New Testament. But according to Cliff Rockwood, of Westford, there are no Talking Bible Dolls like the ones he's manufacturing.
Squeeze the heart of one of these dolls, and a computer microchip emits paraphrased passages from the Bible.
Rockwood, who previously helped his wife, Laureen, run a house-cleaning operation, ventured into the business of religion last fall after feeling a desire to bring God's teachings to more people. So, he and a fellow church member designed the 12-inch-high robed, plush Jesus and Moses dolls, hoping they will foster faith in children.
''There's dolls that wet the bed, there's dolls that cry," said Rockwood. ''There's every kind of doll except one that speaks hope and tells you I have a plan for your life."
The Jesus dolls are on sale for $15.95 each at Once Upon a Prayer, a religious gift and bookstore in Tewksbury. His Moses doll, now getting its finishing touches in Hong Kong, will soon hit the market, and other Biblical characters, such as David, Esther, and Joshua, are in the design phase.
Between Jesus and Moses, Rockwood said, he has produced 2,000 dolls so far, invested ''hundreds of thousands of dollars," and spent six months marketing the toy messengers.
His efforts just got a boost. Morning Star, a nine-store chain that includes an outpost in Nashua, bought 50. In November, Christian Book and Supply of Burlington took 25 on consignment, and now Christian Book Distributors of Peabody is expressing interest, he said. Bob Mulvey, owner of Once Upon a Prayer, said he purchased about 50 since November and has sold more than 30.
But here in the Northeast, where religion tends to be a private matter, Rockwood is facing an uphill battle to find a niche. If only Northeasterners had a little more Bible Belt religion in them, said his wife.
''This is a leap of faith," Laureen Rockwood said of her husband's business endeavor. ''We think if we can get them out there and get the correct distributor, then it would get big. In the part of the country we live in, it's very difficult. The Northeast is a very closed area."
Robert Zaloba, an industry consultant to Christian publishers and retailers, agrees.
''It's going to be difficult [to market the dolls] because you do not have the interest in faith-based products in the Northeast like you have in other parts of the country," said Zaloba, a transplanted New Yorker who now lives in Nashville. ''I've lived all over the country, and it's very different down here in Nashville. There's a code of conduct and a way of living life that's different from what one would expect in the Northeast."
The dolls certainly have their skeptics.
''It's so very American," Catherine Minkiewicz, director of adult faith formation for the Archdiocese of Boston, said when she was told about the toys. ''We're always trying to find products. It's right up there with the Happy Meals" from
While the marketing of the dolls ''trivializes important figures in church history," Minkiewicz said, ''it's certainly better than the oversexed and violent dolls that are on the market. Would I get one for my grandchildren? I don't think so."
But Angela Hemenway was happy to purchase three last week for the Easter baskets her children will receive on March 27. She brings the younger children to Mulvey's story hour on Thursday mornings, she said. Mulvey lets the children hold the talking dolls during the storytelling session.
''My 2-year-old loves the doll," she said.
It's not clear, however, whether Matthew Hemenway, 2, is listening to the message or simply delighting in the cause and effect of his squeezing.
Rockwood is convinced that his dolls will bring comfort and hope to children far beyond New England, and he wants to manufacture dolls that speak the Scriptures in different languages.
''We'd like to have these placed in children's hands all across the world," Rockwood said, ''so they have messages of hope and love. So they have a toy. It may be the only toy they have."
The phrases spoken by the Jesus doll, such as ''The mountains and the hills may crumble, but my love for you will never end" [a paraphrase of Isaiah 54:10], were recorded by the Rev. David Helfor, who heads Westford's New Song Church. Rockwood, who attends the church, said Helfor chose verses from the Bible that he deemed to be appropriate messages for young children.
But Steven Bonsey, a canon evangelist at the Cathedral of St. Paul, opposes the concept. The Boston-based Episcopal church offers a Montessori-based educational program for its youngest members called the Catechesis of the Good Shepherd. In it, a teacher is likely to show children a picture of Jesus holding a sheep, for example, and then give the children a plush sheep to hold, he said. But that's a far cry from hearing words from a Jesus doll.
''Putting the words of Jesus in a chip is a little scary," Bonsey said.
Packaging the word of Jesus in a toy could circumvent the child's exploration of a relationship with God, Bonsey said.
''We want to open a way for a relationship between the child and God. In my experience, [the children] know who God is. What we do is encourage those relationships. God has made each of those souls with uniqueness. Our role is to give that soul room to grow in its own way."
Though Rockwood declined to speculate how Jesus would view the dolls, he said he has no qualms about the product.
''I feel good about it," he said, ''because I'm trying to share his love with children."
Joyce Pellino Crane can be reached at crane@globe.com.
