Narratives of the prophets in early childhood: A qualitative and comparative analysis of Coptic Christian and Muslim parenting approaches

This thesis examines how parents interpret and tell religious stories to their children, focusing on prophets' stories in Islam and Bible stories within Coptic Christianity. It explores how parents understand these sacred narratives, communicate them to their children, and why they regard them as effective tools for nurturing moral understanding, spiritual awareness, and character formation. Through selected case studies, the research highlights parents who regularly share stories of divine figures, showing how they adapt moral lessons to children's level of comprehension and their observations such as greater kindness, thoughtfulness, respect, and spiritual awareness. The study addresses key questions about how Muslim and Coptic Christian parents interpret and transmit prophetic stories, how they communicate their religious and moral lessons, what emotional and spiritual values they emphasize, and how storytelling integrates with modern technology. Using qualitative analysis methods, the research combines theoretical perspectives on religious storytelling with practical observations, analyzing specific prophetic stories from both traditions in terms of their theological and moral interpretations. Twenty parents participated in interviews—ten Muslims and ten Christians—sharing experiences with storytelling practices, their personal understanding of the stories, and how they convey these meanings to their children. Findings suggest that parents act as interpreters between sacred texts and children's comprehension, using storytelling to connect abstract spiritual and moral ideas with everyday experiences. By engaging with religious narratives, children encounter positive role models who embody honesty, gratitude, forgiveness, courage, mercy, and altruism. Parents adjust tone, detail, and focus to match children's understanding, shaping how religious meaning is received and internalized. This research contributes to religious studies by illuminating how parents transmit prophetic stories as frameworks for moral reflection and spiritual formation within contemporary Muslim and Christian family life. Key Words: Bible Stories, Prophets' Stories, Religious Education, Storytelling