I was involved in Bible quizzing the first year (1956–57) on the first denominational winning team, comprised of quizzers from the Cross Roads, Elizabethtown, and Maytown congregations. We studied the book of John that year.

I have so many great memories of those days: the fun of competition; the strategy of getting off the chair—in those first quizzes where we used judges standing at the back of sanctuary to tell who was “in full standing position” first; and much more . . . but of course, the lasting effect of the Scripture in my heart.

One of the most exciting things to me about quizzing was to see my daughter, Melissa Stoner, become a much better quizzer than I was. I think it was in her blood, and when she finally found that out, she became a lover and a supporter of quizzing in every aspect of the program.

—Ethel Musser Stoner and her husband run a small vegetable farm in Lancaster, PA, and are members of Hempfield BIC Church.

Being part of the quizzing family

I suppose that what first prompted me to begin Bible quizzing was watching my older cousins and friends quiz. I can remember my cousin Becca studying as we warmed ourselves in the summer sun—reciting one of Paul's shorter epistles, both forwards and backwards, to my aunt Esther—and being amazed at the way in which the verses seemed to be part of who she was. And I also have clear memories of watching practice quizzes, as well—peeking out from behind a folding chair as the quizzers jumped and paced back and forth and celebrated correct answers. To anyone who isn't familiar with Bible quizzing, the sight of young people sitting on chairs with little black boxes on them can seem rather humorous, but as I joined my church’s quiz team during my sixth grade year, I found myself delighted by the friendships and the challenges and the plunge into the Word that quizzing brought.

The friendships, especially, were what tugged me back to quizzing, year after year—the mentor-friend relationships with my coaches, my dear friends on the Dillsburg team, and the special friendships that I formed within the conference and beyond. Going to tournaments meant the chance to reconnect with friends from other teams, both during quizzes themselves and in free time outside of the tournament schedule. And though quizzing meets (and many quizzers) are competitive by nature, I was always deeply grateful for the loving way that the teams related to each other. Quizzing opened the door to meet amazing young people from a whole handful of BIC churches—giving me a precious connection across the denomination as a whole and a new appreciation for what it means to belong to the body of Christ.

And, yes, I do remember certain verses that I memorized during my years as a Bible quizzer, although I find that I don't remember nearly as many as I once did. One of my favorite verses is Philippians 1:9 (and 10), in which Paul's prayer for the Philippians is that their “love may abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight. . . .” Verses do come to mind at random times, as well, which the Spirit uses to keep my heart in check or sometimes even to bless others, through me, as I'm able to share that tidbit of the Father’s heart with them. Beyond memorized verses, though, I love how comfortable the verses of the New Testament are to me as a result of those hours of reading, and re-reading, the Word. As I read though certain books of the Bible, the words seem like old friends—known and well loved—while still springing new truths to my heart as the Spirit speaks though them.

Quizzing taught me much about myself, as well—lessons that have continued to challenge me as I walk this journey with the Father. In the process of jumping and making errors and jumping again, the Father taught me not to be so afraid of mistakes; in the nature of needing to depend on my dear teammates, He gently showed me how to work with others in humility and love—and how to give Him the glory in all that I do. For the chance to spend time in His word, for the opportunity to be well loved by my quizzing “family,” and for the joy of participating in something wholesome and fun with other people my age, I'm deeply grateful. I’d joyfully recommend Bible quizzing to any of my younger brothers and sisters in Him, and I praise the Father for the chance to grow in Him through my years involved in quizzing.

—Rachel Spurrier is currently serving in Honduras with Brethren in Christ World Missions’ STEP program. A 2005 graduate of Houghton College, Rachel quizzed for the Dillsburg (PA) team from 1994–2001.

Remembering the words

My dad had always talked about how much fun he had quizzing back in the 60s, so when our church started a team when I was in 9th grade, I was eager to try it out for myself.

I would always start the quiz year off quite enthusiastically, so because of that, I memorized the first part of almost every book we quizzed on. I can still quote the first chapter of Luke, John, and Hebrews. I also have other familiar passages memorized, like I Cor. 13. My recollections of these passages are usually triggered by something. If a verse or two of a passage I have memorized is read in church, I usually lean over to my husband, Mike, and continue to quote the passage until he tells me to be quiet.

Quizzing taught me a good chunk of the New Testament. It also taught me how to memorize, a skill that comes in handy. I also learned a lot about teamwork and how one person is never entirely responsible for a win or a loss. As a coach, (I quizzed for five years and then I coached for five years) I learned creative ways to motivate (or should I say bribe) people to study.

—Janelle (Stauffer) Schriver

A place to belong

I first joined the Grantham Church’s quiz team soon after my family returned to the United States from mission work in Zambia and Zimbabwe. I was a socially awkward and shy teenager, desperately needing to fit in and belong in an environment that was very different than what I was used to. Another girl invited me to join the quiz team. Quizzing gave me a place to belong.

Because quizzing requires fairly rote study and memorization, one doesn't necessarily get a broad understanding of the Bible as a whole, but the exposure to significant portions of Scripture over the course of several years is invaluable. While I can no longer quote all hose verses I once memorized (it’s been many years, after all!), I very clearly remember where to find certain verses, and the basic concepts still remain.

Later, as a coach, I enjoyed working with the teenagers who came through the quizzing program. I was glad to be involved in helping young people study the Bible. I was also glad to help “mentor” some of those young people. I enjoyed the competition part, too—quizzing gets in your blood! It was also fun to be part of a successful quiz program. As a quizzer, I was part of a championship team. During my two years as assistant coach, our team won he denominational championship. When I was the head coach, our team won the denominational championship four times (and the Susquehanna Conference championship something like eight years in a row).

In addition to having the opportunity to learn to know a group of youth, I really enjoyed traveling to/participating in tournaments, and learning to know and appreciate other quizzers and coaches.

—Harriet (Sider) Bicksler, a writer and editor, attends the Grantham (PA) congregation, where she quizzed for four years and coached for 11 years. She is also the editor of Shalom!

The joy of coaching

In our experience as coaches, we benefited by a deeper study of the Scriptures. The association with the team we coached and all the other teams and coaches was also a blessing then and since. Our understanding of the Bible was mainly enhanced by learning the Scriptures in greater detail even as coaches. We were glad to participate in quizzing because we were fully convinced that it was the best possible activity for young people to be involved in. It provided among other things: in-depth knowledge of the Scriptures, wonderful fellowship with other Christian young people of the church, team devotions, and good Christian role models for younger quizzers.

We wish we could personally thank all the denominational people over the years who put endless time and effort into organizational aspects of the quizzing program.

—David M. Brubaker and Laona Brubaker attend Grantham BIC, where they coached the winning team of 1964. As missionaries to Zambia in the late 60s and early 70s, they were also involved with organizing BIC Bible quizzing there.

Quizzing: an exercise in discipline

Bible quizzing helped me to discipline myself to memorize verses and greatly increased my knowledge of the New Testament and Jesus. I wish I could say that the memorization has stayed with me. I remember parts of verses and basic principles but not complete verses. Quizzing was very valuable to me as a young person. There was lots of great fellowship with other quizzers and other young people from other BIC churches. At that point in my Christian walk, it was a blessing. I'm so glad that quizzing is still available to our young people. I have fond memories of my time spent learn the Bible and quizzing.

—Kathleen (Beard) Cutman, an administrative assistant for the PA Dept. of Agriculture, quizzed for two or three years with the Messiah Home Chapel. She attends Harrisburg (PA) Brethren in Christ Church.

Generations of quizzing

I appreciated the bond with teammates and other quizzers, travel, intensive study and memorization of Scripture (I still love those passages we studied most intensely), and the satisfaction in passing those same benefits on to the next generation. Familiarity and deeper understanding with the passages I learned in quizzing have bred a love for the Scripture. After all these years, I can still quote (unfortunately in King James Version) many of the verses I learned.

—Esther (Dourte) Spurrier, currently serves with BICWM in Zambia, participated in quizzing first as a quizzer on the Upland (CA) team in the 1960s. Later, she became a quiz parent/groupie for the Grantham (PA) and Dillsburg (PA) congregations, as well as a Susquehanna Conference official and quizmaster.

Travels to remember

I benefited from Bible quizzing in many ways: learning of Scripture and the social aspects of being a member of the team. The trips to General Conference with the team were exciting and memorable. Bible quizzing was helpful in my understanding of the Bible, and some of the passages I learned have stayed with me. My participation in Bible quizzing was a very positive experience.

—Carl Raser quizzed for five years with Dallas Center Church in Iowa. He is the former Director of the Pacific Christian Center of the Brethren in Christ and now works as an attorney in Claremont, CA.

“I Jumped When I Knew the Answer”

Quizzing was good enforced motivation to study the Bible, which I needed. And it provided a good healthy setting for social interaction (and competition!) with other Christian youth in our congregation and others.

Since my quizzing years were such a long time back, the books we studied during those years have not “stayed with me” in a memorization sense. What has stayed with me is a warm sense of familiarity—when I read those books and chapters now it's like visiting with an old friend . . . I’ve been here before!

I think “denominational perspective” was an important indirect byproduct of my time in quizzing. In those years, General Conference met every year, instead of every second year. The Upland team was fortunate enough to win the regionals every year for five years straight. So for five years, I got to make the complete rounds of every General Conference meeting site: four times as a quizzer and once just as the coach’s kid. It was a wonderful way to observe the diverse elements of our denomination and to feel like I was rubbing shoulders (very young shoulders!) with the movers and shakers in the church.

—Art Bert quizzed from about 1960–64 (“Gotta’ love those matching quiz uniforms from the 60s!”) with the Upland, CA quiz team. He currently lives in Dillsburg, PA and works as a carpenter doing historic restoration. He attends the Grantham BIC Church.

An aid to growth

Quizzing helped me to mature spiritually in a team setting. Any time you work hard at something in a team setting you will grow. When you center it on studying the Bible, the growth occurs spiritually.

Obviously, quizzing has given me a good knowledge of the Bible, but there are so many applications that come out of competition, teamwork, coaching and modeling behavior, too. The passages I learned as a young person have stayed with me. I am glad to have participated in Bible quizzing because most of my denominational friendships (and there are many) have come through the program.

—Doug Shirk attends Hershey BIC Church. He has had 28 years of quizzing involvement with the Hershey and Pequea congregations, including roles as quizzer, coach, quizmaster, and the Atlantic Conference quiz director.

Remembering the fun times

Great benefits from the quizzing program were close friendships both within our church and with those from other teams, as well as hiding so much of God's Word in my heart during my teenage years. We also had chances to travel, which was fun.

As I quizzed, my knowledge was probably greater than my understanding of the Bible, though I'm sure understanding came as well at the level I was at. Greater understanding came in the years to follow, but I believe the fact that I was spending so much time in God's Word no doubt had its effects, even if I may not have realized it at the time.

I find myself quoting Scripture along with someone who might be reading a passage, so yes, I'd say they've stuck with me. Even if not word for word, the message is still there. When I think back, I memorized a good portion of the New Testament at a time when memorizing came a bit easier than it does now . . . and I'm glad that I did! I'm not always so great at remembering references, but even they come back sometimes, at least I remember the book the passage comes from.

I am glad to have participated in Bible quizzing because of the great friendships, great competition, great trips and retreats, great memories, and so much Scripture hidden in my heart at a young age. The quizzing years were some of the most fun years of my life.

—Lisa Weaver lives in Dillsburg, PA and attends the Grantham BIC Church. She spent about seven years in the quizzing community, both as a quizzer and as an occasional quizmaster.

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