TRUMP THAT: Sunday Express Article Saturday August 8,2009

Old Testament figures have been updated to appeal to today’s youngsters

By James Fielding

THEY started off featuring sports stars and superheroes but now Top Trumps trading cards have been given an almighty revamp.


The playground favourite has a new a religious twist to encourage children to learn more about the characters in the Bible.

Cartoon versions of Old Testament figures such as Moses, Samson and Eve appear in cartoon form on 35 colourful playing cards.

Each character is rated in four special categories – strength, obedience, times mentioned in the Bible and years BC and their cards carry a biblical verse about them.

The deck also has two golden cards which challenge players to name all of the Ten Commandments and the Ten Plagues of Egypt.

The £4.99 game, Testament Trumps, was devised by businessman Steven Strongman.

He said: “They are a bit of fun but have a serious message. I want schoolchildren to enjoy playing the game but also take on board the decent values the cards represent.

“A lot of youngsters are unfamiliar with the Bible and its teachings but are huge fans of Top Trumps so there was no better way of addressing that issue. We launched the cards in May and so far we have had a lot of positive feedback.

“When you make something children enjoy they pick things up much quicker. The real challenge we faced was making stories that are thousands of years old appeal to today’s children.

“We had to find something they would identify with. For example Delilah, who took Samson’s strength by cutting off his long hair, is pictured as a hairdresser and the Pharaoh of Egypt who enslaved God’s people is a gangster.

“As well as providing a fun game, the cards can also teach children the basics of ethics and faith on a level they can understand.”

A spokesman for the Church of England welcomed the idea. He said: “Fresh interpretations like this demonstrate the durability of the Bible’s greatest figures.

“Facing an opponent who has drawn the strength of Samson or the wisdom of Solomon will hopefully encourage new audiences to find out the whole story.”

Testament Trumps is available online and from Christian book shops around the UK.

Bible Top trumps - Jesus and 12 Disciples

Apostle Paul wins Olympic Gold

With the Olympic Games coming to London in 2012 and athletes training hard all over the world to clench the coveted prize of the Gold medal; the newly released second Volume of Testament Trumps has confidently depicted the Apostle Paul as a Gold Medal winner alongside other characters including Jesus and the 12 Disciples.

Bringing the New Testament characters to the next generation of children in a fun and engaging way, the most recent pack of cards depicts 34 of the best known New Testament characters in a way they have never been seen before. Steven Strongman, the director and designer of the game stated:

‘We want to present a game which is relevant to children today so we created fun cartoon characters based in the 21st Century. Many children find it difficult to associate with characters wearing long cloaks, sandals and having long beards – I know I do! But the bible brings a firm message of hope that The Lord is the same yesterday, today and Tomorrow and so it is fair to assume that God can use people today in the same way and with the same power as He did in the past’.

Taking the unchanged Word of God, each character has been designed to reflect a modern day person whilst retaining the message of their story in the bible. In addition to Paul being an Olympian ‘pressing on to towards the goal to win the prize’ (Phil 3:14), John the Baptist appears as a sundrenched lifeguard from a beach in California where he can save people through water baptism and the Disciple Thomas as a forensic investigator looking for clues to a possible crime. A number of cards are based around the parables of Jesus (thus making them a fun way to share a bible teaching) whilst the card for Apollos shows scripture references which prove that Jesus is the promised Messiah.

Behind all the fun and colour lies a message that points players to the fact that Jesus is the son of God through memory verses and Golden Trump cards. It is therefore a great resource for parents who want to teach their children about the Bible in a fun and relaxed way - and being pocket sized, it can even be played in the park, on the beach or in the car on a wet day.

This bible version of the playground favourite Top Trumps is available on line, through local Christian bookshops and various Christian catalogues at a retail price of £4.99. It is currently being used by youth pastors across the UK and is being exhibited at most of the Christian camps and conferences this summer. In addition with Volume 1 ‘the Old testament’ there are now over 70 fun characters for children to meet.

‘’It’s a game where everyone is a winner!’ states Steven Strongman. ‘’At the end of the game, if you have all the cards or none of the cards, everyone has learnt a bit more about God and the Bible, and as far as God is concerned, that makes you a winner!’’