a) How should old or torn religious/holy/blessed books, images, photos, and other items be disposed of? -> If the old items can still be repaired, it is preferable to gift or donate them to the temples (for the Hindu religion). The photographs and books can be recycled and given to those who come to the temples to worship.
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What to do with old devotional books?
Consider gifting an old Bible to someone or donating it to a local church or mission before throwing it away. At their own yard sales, some Christians like to give away old Bibles for free.
What can I do with unwanted books?
Books are one of those items that I can't seem to get rid of, therefore we have shelves upon shelves of them. Because both of my girls have a fondness for books (and magazines) and an unwillingness to get rid of any of them, I believe it is a genetic problem. Unfortunately, there are only so many bookshelves available, and a purge is required. If you're in a similar predicament, here are ten ideas for repurposing your old books.
- Make a contribution to your local library. Bring your gently used books to the library where you live. Some libraries will accept magazine donations, particularly if they are instructive.
- Make a few of envelopes.
- It's fun to have unique envelopes to place gift cards or cash in when putting them in a birthday card or giving them as a gift. This is a fantastic idea for books that can't be donated due to missing or broken pages. Choose a template that appeals to you; here are a few to get you started: Then, to construct your envelopes, go to https://www.template.net/design-templates/print/gift-card-envelope-template/ and utilize your book pages.
- Create a set of gift tags.
- Another option for the book that isn't in excellent shape is to construct gift tags out of the pages. Punch or cut out your tags and write your message on them with a black ink.
- Recycle any books that are no longer in use.
- Paperback books that have been ripped or are no longer usable can be recycled in your curbside recycling bin.
- Create a “Free Books” section.
- Find a place where people wait, such as a doctor's waiting room, a railway station, or a bus stop. Place a book with the title “Before bringing your books in to “Free Books” at that location, as always, verify with the staff for permission. You may even keep a box in your office or school's lunchroom.
Where is the best place to donate used books?
You should have no issue locating respectable groups eager to accept your old books if you're starting a decluttering campaign that requires some literary victims. Some run real stores or warehouses with drop-off locations near your home, while others work remotely and accept books sent by mail.
Your Local Library
Used book donations are accepted by several local libraries and library systems. If you want to know if your library or library system accepts donations, go to their website and seek for information about their donation policy.
Don't assume your library accepts used books; certain big library systems, such as the Chicago Public Library system, will not accept physical contributions without prior permission. Even if yours does, book drives may be limited to annual or seasonal events. Check with a nearby school library if your public library does not accept donations.
Your Neighborhood Little Free Library
Drop them off at a Little Free Library (or several) in your community if you have a small number of books to get rid of. Little Free Library is a nationwide network of little drop boxes set up by ordinary people where others can freely take or give their old books.
It's a great method to re-read an old favorite while picking up a new one at the same time. Just make sure the books you contribute to the Little Free Library are appropriate for a wide audience. Old manuals, college textbooks, and reference books have no place in these boxes. These should be saved for used bookstores, where you can sell them for cash.
Use the map option on Little Free Library to identify active sites near you, keeping in mind that most don't have the capacity to hold dozens of new volumes at once.
Check out Little Free Library's launch guide if your neighborhood lacks a Little Free Library and you're willing to invest some time and money to build one. Starting your own has the advantage of allowing you to seed it with as many of your old books as it can hold.
A School or Community Book Drive or Fundraiser
Book drives are frequently organized by school groups and community organizations to raise revenue, collect books for deserving recipients, or both. If you're already associated with a school-based organization that could benefit from books (or that uses books to earn funds), your donations will most likely have the most impact.
If not, check for local charity organizations that collect and distribute books. The Children's Book Bank, for example, is a Portland, Oregon-based organization that conducts book drives to provide reading material to low-income families.
You may have to wait until these organizations begin requesting donations for seasonal book drive initiatives before contacting them.
Freecycle
Freecycle is a loose network dedicated to free trade and sustainable reuse. Books are always popular among Freecycle network members since they are inexpensive and numerous. If you live in an area where Freecycle is active, you should have no trouble locating many people willing to take your old books.
Just don't expect to be able to get rid of a lot of books or receive a federal income tax deduction for your donation here.
Reputable Charities
Goodwill is one of the country's largest and most well-known charitable retail store chains. If you reside in or near a large city, there's a strong chance you'll be able to find a Goodwill. Goodwill has a generous, tolerant contribution policy that doesn't change with the seasons, at least when it comes to books. If you itemize your deductions, gifts to Goodwill are tax-deductible.
Another well-known mission-driven group that accepts all types of donations is the Salvation Army. It has a large network of thrift stores that are available to the public. If you itemize your deductions, gifts to the Salvation Army, like Goodwill, are tax-deductible.
The Salvation Army and Goodwill aren't the only trustworthy charities in the game. The Society of St. Vincent de Paul, Vietnam Veterans of America, and Habitat for Humanity ReStores are among the national and regional charitable groups that accept secondhand books and other household items.
Local Faith-Based Organizations
If there are no suitable national charities in your area, or you'd prefer to support smaller faith-based groups that are doing good work in the community, look for local churches who are accepting book donations. You may need to wait for annual or seasonal drives, just like you did for school-sponsored book donations.
If you want to claim a tax deduction for your donation, make sure the receiver is a tax-exempt nonprofit organization that qualifies.
Your Neighborhood Thrift Store
Hundreds of small thrift shops and dozens of local thrift store chains operate across the country. Even if you're not a seasoned thrift store shopper, you're undoubtedly aware of the more well-known locations in your city and if you aren't, a quick Google search will help you find one.
Your local government may also have a master list of donation-accepting thrift stores. In the past, I've used the Choose to Reuse map in my local county to arrange my book-giving. If you're stuck for ideas, go to Savers, which is one of the larger secondhand store chains in the United States and accepts books and other paper media.
Local Museums & Other Cultural Organizations
Reach out to local museums, historical organizations, higher-education institutions, and performing arts groups to see whether any of your books have historical or cultural importance (beyond simply being classics). Such organizations collect books pertinent to their fields of study or interest for both public benefit and historical research. They're also more likely than mass-market thrift shops and charitable buyers to take proper care of expensive or significant books.
Prison Libraries & Literacy Programs
Do you want to make a meaningful impact in someone's life by donating your old books? Donate to literacy organizations that serve jailed people, such as books-to-prisoners initiatives. Find groups operating in your home state using the Prison Book Program's master list, such as Books Through Bars, which serves Pennsylvania and the surrounding area.
If you're hoping for a tax break, double-check with possible receivers.
Armed Forces Charities
Books for Soldiers and Operation Paperback are two literary organisations that help soldiers and support workers who are stationed overseas or in hospitals or rehabilitation facilities.
Books for Soldiers collects and posts requests for specific titles from soldiers, which contributors can subsequently fill out from their own libraries. Operation Paperback has a kinder contribution policy and invites people to come together for collection drives and packing parties.
Domestic & International Public Literacy Programs
Thousands of public literacy groups and initiatives serve at-risk children and adults in the United States and around the world. Many domestic literacy initiatives operate on a local or regional level, which is convenient if you want to make an impact in your own backyard. The Children's Literacy Foundation, for example, largely serves Northern New England.
To identify tax-exempt organizations that accept book donations, look through Charity Navigator's list of high-quality literacy organizations.
Look for international literacy organizations that accept physical book donations if you'd rather assist literacy initiatives in another country. Not everyone does, because the cost and logistical complexity of sorting and transporting books internationally is prohibitive. And, because to their publisher links, reputable organizations usually have enough of mint-condition books on hand.
Some literacy organizations, such as Book Aid International, encourage supporters to give used books in an indirect manner. They organize book drives or yard sales in the community and donate the money.
How do you dispose of religious books?
It should be wrapped in something pure and buried somewhere where no one can see it. Many religious leaders who spoke with NPR believed that burying their treasured texts was the most respectful method to do it.
What can I do with unwanted religious items?
When we receive an unwanted donation, we endeavor to return it to the giver as soon as possible. However, when things emerge anonymously or the donor does not want them returned, this is not always practicable.
Someone who has driven several hours unannounced to drop off Grandma's statues typically just wants to get away from it all. So, wherever possible, we look for suitable homes for objects, such as local Catholic schools or parishes.
We're faced with a predicament when regifting isn't an option. While certain undesired nonreligious donations to libraries may be able to be thrown away, this is not the case with many religious items. As a result, we've had to look into the proper disposal of religious artifacts.
Certain forms of extremely sacred substance, such as holy water and holy oil, must be handled with care and disposed of in certain ways, according to Catholic Church canon law.
The law clarifies this “Sacred things that have been dedicated or blessed for divine worship should be treated with reverence.” However, the legislation does not specify which objects are sacrosanct.
According to Catholic tradition, artifacts such as statues, rosaries, and palms from Palm Sunday should be respectfully burned or buried. However, most libraries do not practice this, and the burning of books and artwork has troubling associations with censorship and even war crimes.
However, it would be more shameful in Catholicism to dump sacred things in the trash or sell them for a profit than to burn or bury them, even if no one wants them and they do not fit in our collection.
Many other Catholic artifacts, in addition to procedures around certain sorts of objects, could be considered sacred based on how they have been utilized. This is especially true if they have been blessed or prayed with.
As librarians, we may not be able to know the history of how an object was used by past owners especially if it was given to us by a third party. Any holy card, statue, or painting could have been blessed and so recognized as sacred as an image.
In addition to blessings for sacred items, the Catholic Church literally possesses a book of blessings “Any object may have been blessed by a priest, implying that any object could have been blessed by a priest. While this does not make an object sacred, it does show the flexibility with which blessings are bestowed.
What organizations distribute Bibles?
- Gideons International is a Christian organization based in the United States. Gideons International was founded in 1899.
- Spirit One Ministry is a two-person ministry. In 2004, Spirit One Ministry began as an Internet-based Christian broadcasting stream.
- 3 Bibles that have been recycled. Many groups collect and give discarded Bibles to those in need.
Who will collect books for charity?
Book Donation Collection Points in London
- The London Children's Book Project is a non-profit organization dedicated to publishing children's books Before being given to their partner organizations, the books contributed to this charity are cleaned and classified by age and topic.