The
church was packed as the presentation service got under way on January 16. People
had come from the surrounding villages and from across the border in Finland.|
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Excitement as Film Team Visits School
Ex-Prisoners Testify to the Power of the Gospel
Selling Bibles To All Who Come
Helping Disadvantaged Children
Free Bibles for Summer Camp Children
Bible ‘Plays Major Role in People’s Lives’
Pensioners Eager to Have Their Own Bibles
Baptists Want Bibles
PAJALA, Sweden — In the valley of the Tornio River, which lies within the Arctic Circle, villagers gathered despite the January cold in the church at Pajala to sing praises to God for a Bible Portion in their own language: Meänkieli.
The
church was packed as the presentation service got under way on January 16. People
had come from the surrounding villages and from across the border in Finland.
There has been much movement of Finns into Sweden and Swedes into Finland, but in the northern parts of eastern Sweden, known as the Nordkalotten, a traditional Finnish-speaking minority numbering some 50,000 has revived its own unique dialect of Finnish known as Meänkieli. The people have also developed a written language. Meänkieli – which means ‘my language’ – is one of five minority languages to have been recently officially recognised in Sweden.
Bengt Pohjanen, a member of the Orthodox Church, is a well-known author and translator who has written significantly in Meänkieli. He has been translating the New Testament into Meänkieli and, having finished the four Gospels, is now working on the Letters and the Psalms. He is supported by the Swedish Bible Society (SBS).
He attended the presentation ceremony along with the Rev Anders Alberius, the SBS General Secretary, and the Rt Rev Rune Backlund, Bishop of Luleå, who is the SBS President and chairman of its board.
“The people were delighted to handle and read copies of the Gospels in their own language,” Mr Alberius said. “Mr Pohjanen gave a description of the history of the language and his translation work, and he thanked the Bible Society for the support he had received.”
Although trial Portions of the Gospels of Mark and of John were available at the dedication, the full edition of the four Gospels in Meänkieli is expected to be available later this year.
In recent years this minority group has seen its long battle for recognition in Sweden become successful with the establishment of Finnish-language primary schools. The Swedish churches in the Finnish areas have also become bilingual, adopting Finnish as the second language.
A similar language group exists across the border in Norway, and here Meänkieli is known as Kven. This is the first time all four Gospels have been published in this dialect of Finnish. (WR 350/7 - 4/5.00) [PHOTOS]
READING, England — The impact the Bible has had on culture over the centuries and the way it has prompted developments in technology will be highlighted in a major exhibition opening in Rome this summer.
The event represents a collaboration between the Apostolic Vatican Library (AVL) and the joint resources of the Italian Bible Society and United Bible Societies. It is part of a millennium series of exhibitions sponsored by the AVL and the Italian Ministry of Culture.
The others, held in various Italian cities from 1996 to1998, were entitled Virgil and Christ, Insight into the Classics and Humanism and the Fathers of the Church.
This summer’s collaboration will take the form of an exhibition of manuscripts and books from before 1400, which will be displayed by the Vatican Library, and a complementary display by the UBS telling the story of the Gospel among the peoples of the modern world.
The UBS was invited to take part last autumn by the Director of the Vatican Library. After a feasibility study, planning for the exhibition began in earnest in December.
“We wanted to be sure we could do justice to such an important event and find sufficient funds,” said the Rev Fergus Macdonald, the General Secretary of the UBS.
Thanks to the generosity of the Italian Ministry of Culture and Environment, the setting for the UBS exhibition will be Rome’s Palazzo dei Dioscuri, located near the president’s palace. It will run until November.
The displays will include interactive elements, using the latest media to show how the Scriptures have had a major impact not only on culture but also on technology. For instance, the demand for printed Bibles in the 19th century meant that printers accustomed to print runs of some hundreds had to extend them into the thousands.
The UBS sees the exhibition as an opportunity to celebrate the increasing co-operation which has developed over the past hundred years between the different Bible translation agencies.
In recent years the Bible Societies, the Roman Catholic Church, the Orthodox Church and agencies such as the Institute for Bible Translation and the Summer Institute of Linguistics / Wycliffe Bible Translators have come closer in a determined bid to work together. Their efforts have helped to ensure that the best use is made of the available resources. (WR 350/8 - 4/5.00)
ALMATY, Kazakhstan — On the first Sunday in 2000, young people from Almaty attended an evening of celebration entitled the ‘Most Christmas Show’. Several churches were involved in the evening, and the Bible Society organised a Bible stall. Dr Igor Savich, Executive Director of the Bible Society in Kazakhstan reports.
This celebration evening took place in the hall of the Academy of Sciences and an invitation went out to young people to bring their friends. The event started with everyone singing “Happy Birthday dear Jesus”.
Then young people from the Resurrection Church in Almaty performed a play about the Annunciation (the Angel Gabriel appearing to the Virgin Mary). After this, a choir from Canaan church sang several Christian songs. Then there was a music and dance version of the Prodigal Son story. This story differed quite a bit from the biblical story and ended in a cemetery where the young man repented beside the graves of his father and mother.
At the beginning of the show there was a noisy and rude group of young men who were set on being disruptive. However, as the show progressed they gradually became more silent. Finally, when a young Christian named Dimitry took the stage to give an evangelistic message they listened very attentively.
His talk was well prepared – he had a Bible in his hand and read verses from it from time to time to confirm what he was saying. All of the 500 young people in the hall were very attentive. Dimitry spoke about repentance and called on people to join him in prayer. When he asked people to raise their hands if they wished to repent and follow Jesus, some of the noisy young men held up their hands.
Every person in the hall was given a booklet describing the purpose and activities of the Bible Society in Kazakhstan, and they also received a recently-published Portion entitled Turning to God. It was like a real birthday because a huge cake with 2000 lighted candles appeared at the end and everyone enjoyed a piece of what was a very tasty millennium cake. (WR 350/9 - 4/5.00)
ALMATY,
Kazakhstan — Issik is a small town some 50kms (30 miles) from Almaty. There
the Rev Viktor Bovadulin, a member of the Bible Society board, works and distributes
Scriptures. He introduced the Bible Society Executive
Director, Dr Igor Savich, to Aunt Shura, who had not long been a Christian.
“That day there was a lot of snow because this town is situated quite close to the mountains,” said Dr Savich. “The sun shone very brightly and our mood was almost festive.
“We were sharing a meal with pastor Viktor and his wife, and I was introduced to an old lady called Aunt Shura. She explained how her niece had brought her to know God. Having heard her story, I decided I must look up this niece who lives in Almaty. Several months later I tracked Svetlana down and she told me her story.”
“ It happened in 1994. It was a terrible time for my family, a kind of economic crisis. I was in despair and I did not know what to do. One evening I was quite close to suicide.
That evening was the first time I had ever appealed to God for help. I had no idea how to do it, but the next morning my grandmother came to visit and invited me to a Christian mission. I went, quite reluctantly, but there I received a copy of the New Testament as a gift. It was the first time I had held a New Testament.
I started to read it and found that I could not stop. I read it practically without interruption for three days. My eyes became red from the sleepless nights. For me it was an absolutely amazing book.
I decided that I had to do something, react to it in some way but some inner voice said to me: ‘You should read this book to the end’. So I read the whole book and then went to church with my grandmother, and there I understood for the first time that I should repent.
That evening I began to pray to God about forgiveness for my sins, and tears began to fall from my eyes as if somebody had squeezed them. But oh, the lightness in my soul, the joy I found after repenting!
I knew that the Old Testament existed and some time later I was eager to obtain a copy to read it straightaway. Finally, I managed to get hold of the whole Bible and I read and read it, every day. I began to attend a Bible Study, and that is when I understood that although I was saved, my family was not. I realised that I did not want to be in heaven alone, without them, and I talked to God about this.
I began to pray about my husband and my two sons. After half a year my husband also became a Christian. We continued to attend the church together and prayed for our sons. One day my elder son came to me and said that he had met some students from South Korea. They had asked him about the Bible and he admitted that he had never read it. They were very surprised, and told him that Christians cannot exist without the Bible.
In time God has answered my prayers, and now the whole of my family are Christians. I have six brothers and one sister and they and their families have also become Christians.
Two years later I started a study course in the local Theological Academy and finished this year. For me and my family the Bible remains the most important book to read. Indeed a Christian cannot exist without the Bible.” (WR 350/10 - 4/5.00) [PHOTOS]
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their First Bible |
“My
friends from the mission visit this orphanage from time to time to provide the
children with some clothes, food and other necessary things.
This time they decided to show the children a puppet theatre which would bring home the Gospel story. From the Bible Society we took with us 150 copies of the Children’s Bible.
After an hour of driving first on good roads and then on very poor roads we had arrived. The orphanage is housed in a relatively large two-storey building. On our arrival, we were met by a crowd of children with their teachers. Some of the youngsters helped to bring our gifts into the building.
The children were very attentive and watched the puppet theatre with wide eyes. After the performance every child was given one big orange, a tasty present which the children obviously enjoyed. Then we distributed the Children’s Bibles.
I was absolutely taken aback by the reaction of the children. All of them simultaneously rushed to me with hands stretched out: it seemed at that moment the most important thing for them was to get a copy of the Bible.
I was worried we had not taken enough copies with us, but happily everyone received their copy. The eyes of the children were full of gratitude and joy, and many of them held what was undoubtedly their first Bible close to their chest.
We found that we had several extra copies which I presented to the workers
of the orphanage. They were very pleased. As we left, many of the children waved
goodbye and begged us to visit them again.”
(WR 350/11 - 4/5.00) [PHOTOS]
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All
Ukraine stories by Maurice Harvey,
former UBS photojournalist |
KIEV, Ukraine — A party led by the Ukrainian Bible Society (UkBS) got an especially warm welcome when they visited a secondary school in Kiev last year.
Along
with the party went a team from a Christian video organisation based in Australia,
called See It, Believe It. They were making a video about the work of
the UkBS for the Bible Society in Australia. A New
Zealand journalist formerly on the staff of the United Bible Societies, Maurice
Harvey, also went along, acting as the video’s Executive Director and taking
still photographs.
“Not often do we have foreign visitors to our school and you people are especially welcome,” said the school’s principal, Olena Alexandrivna Khystevich. “We are thankful to you for your work of bringing the Bibles to our children. This great mission of yours will help them to grow spiritually and morally.”
Built in 1961, General Secondary School No. 1 has some 700 pupils and 64 teachers. When pupils first enter the school they are taught in Ukrainian but this changes to Russian when they reach grade nine. All the pupils learn English and in grade five they start French as well.
Most of them come from working class homes where both parents work long hours in order to make ends meet. This means the parents do not normally have much time to spend on helping their children with homework. The teachers therefore try to give the pupils as much personal help as they can.
Although in Ukraine there is an official separation between religion and the state, Mrs Khystevich said that the school recognised the importance of the Bible and the teachers encouraged all the children to read it.
Last summer religious education teachers attended a special conference organised by Ukraine’s Department of Education to outline government policy on Bible teaching. Currently, this encourages teaching about the Bible as history and as literature but not the examination or comparison of individual strands of Christianity.
In the course of their visit, the UkBS team gave out free Bibles to class 7A. In response, a girl called Katcha Savchenko, who was 13, stood up to offer them her thanks.
“For me it is something wonderful that someone cares for us enough to bring us the Bible,” she said. “I like the Bible story about Noah and his ship. My mother was pleased that we were being given Bible lessons in school but was unhappy when they stopped this year. Now we have two ladies who come to our flat every Tuesday to teach us about the Bible and all my family go to church regularly.”
Another girl, Jana, from the ninth grade, told the visitors about her memories of learning Bible stories as a child. “The story of Creation was so interesting,” she said. “I think it is very good to study the Bible while we are young because as we grow up and begin to think that no-one really cares for us, we shall always be assured that God does. We really ought to be taught the Bible right here in school.”
As the team prepared to leave, a pupil called Andrei approached them and said very carefully and in his limited English, “Thank you for bringing the Bible to us”. (WR 350/12 - 4/5.00) [PHOTOS]
LVIV, Ukraine — Former prisoners in Ukraine are returning willingly to a jail in Lviv (Lvov) to testify publicly to the dramatic ways in which God has improved their lives.
“We were the first to open a prison to the Bible Society and other Christian groups and we are not sorry that we did,” declared the Regional Director of Prisons in Lviv, Valery Gudima.
He was supported by the Assistant Prosecutor responsible for the prisons. A believer himself, the latter said that it was clearly very important for the people in prison to be reached with the Word of God.
Mr Gudima says that the message of the Bible has a positive influence on the prisoners, changing their behaviour for the better. To his delight, after completing their sentences, several ex-prisoners have even returned to speak to inmates about the effect that reading the Bible has had on their lives.
A Ukrainian Bible Society (UkBS) team visiting the prison was greeted by a gathering of about 100 men only a few of whom did not already possess a Bible of their own.
One young prisoner, Gritson Yaroslov, who was serving a two-year sentence for stealing a car, described the way he had received a New Testament. He read it carefully and decided to give his life to God.
He was glad on this occasion to receive his first complete Bible from the UkBS. “I am thankful to the Bible Society for providing this Bible,” he said. “You are doing a very important and serious work in getting the Bible to people. There are so many who need it so much.”
Situated in the centre of Lviv, the jail is a huge complex of many buildings housing some 2,000 men and women some of whom have babies. When the prison authorities granted the UkBS permission to visit, they made a request for them to bring some food as well as Bibles. In Ukraine, government funding for prisons is not sufficient to cover all the food and medicines needed.
On receiving the request, the acting Director of the Bible Society, Roman Vovk, contacted Pentecostal, Baptist and Seventh-day Adventist churches and asked for their help. Between them they were able to provide 400 litres of cooking oil and 50 kilos of margarine.
Expressing his thanks for the gift, the Governor said that it would be used to provide an improved diet for the inmates in the prison hospital.
One of the oldest buildings in the prison complex includes part of a monastery dating back to 1642. Although the present occupants of the prison are not in the same category as the seventeenth century monks, the authorities are drawing encouragement from the fact that many of them, through reading the Bible, are nonetheless being led into a relationship with God. (WR 350/13 - 4/5.00) [PHOTOS]
Selling Bibles To All Who ComeRIVNE, Ukraine — Light of the Gospel, a literature distribution organisation in Rivne (Rovno) established by Baptists, serves customers from all confessions: Protestants, Orthodox and Roman Catholics. ‘There are all kinds of people searching for the truth and they know they will find it here,’ sums up the mission’s philosophy. “We sometimes sell two or three thousand Bibles a year,” says Anna Fedikovitch, the bookshop manager. “We just keep on selling the Bible to all who come.” The tiny shop is packed from floor to ceiling with Christian literature – including the full range of Scriptures published by the Ukrainian Bible Society. “Although there are many different books that we distribute, as well as music cassettes and videos,” says Anna, “the most important thing we do is provide the Bible.” (WR 350/14 - 4/5.00) |
KIEV, Ukraine — Some years ago Christian businessman Paul Hudoler and his wife felt God calling them to do something to help the disadvantaged children of Ukraine.
Altogether there are some 154,000 disadvantaged children living in the country's 754 orphanages, including 30,000 orphans. At the time Mr Hudoler was working for a company which supplied equipment to the oil industry. The couple decided that by setting up a similar business of their own they could use some of the profits to help children languishing in orphanages and special hospitals.
The number the Hudolers have helped so far now stands at more than 8,000. Inevitably, many are among Ukraine’s ‘Chernobyl children’, inheritors of the deadly radiation sickness which blew across the country following the nuclear power-plant explosion in 1986.
Thanks to the Hudolers, these children fare better than they would otherwise do in respect of food, clothing and special medical care. Every time they drive into Kiev, the Hudolers go to the offices of the Bible Society in Baumana Street.
“We must see to it that these children also have the Word of God,” said Mr Hudoler. “Today the Bible Society is giving us 135 Children’s Bibles free of charge for us to distribute. When we come to town we always come to collect as many Bibles as we can carry in our small car. We are so thankful that the Bible Society cares for the children like this.” (WR 350/15 - 4/5.00) [PHOTOS]
| RIVNE, Ukraine — Rivne (Rovno) is a historically important city, dating back to the 13th century, and is situated on the Ustya River 321km (200 miles) from Kyyiv (Kiev). Its population today stands at approximately 300,000. Every summer during the three months of the school holidays, the Baptist and Pentecostal churches of Rivne get together to run a children's camp in the forest outside the city. Children attend in groups of 170, for three weeks at a time. The camp can accommodate a total of 1,500 children over the holidays but a limit on funds restricted numbers last summer to under a thousand. For the past four years the Ukrainian Bible Society has worked with the organisers supplying a free Bible for every child who attends the summer camp, many of whom come from non-Christian backgrounds. (WR 350/16 - 4/5.00) [PHOTOS] |
LVIV, Ukraine — “We are just beginning our relationship with the Bible Society,” said Father Michael from the 600-year-old cathedral in Lviv (Lvov). “Your work is the same as ours: to make God's Word available to the people. You are publishing it and we are preaching it.”
In 1365 the city was in Poland and so the cathedral served the Polish people. Now located in Ukraine, it serves a large congregation made up of both Poles and Ukrainians. “God’s Word has a major role to play in the life of the people,” said Father Michael. “It shapes their lives and their morality, as well as teaching them the way of salvation. In my opinion it is very important to have a strong Bible Society, and we are thankful to God for the co-operation we receive from them.”
The great church was full with a crowd of worshippers preparing for the next day's Pentecost services. In the foyer, sitting on a pew with sunlight streaming in on her, was a young woman carefully reading aloud from her New Testament. (WR 350/17 - 4/5.00) [PHOTOS]
KIEV, Ukraine — When a team from the Ukrainian Bible Society (UkBS) led a service in a government nursing home in Kiev, one of the residents seemed reluctant to believe that the persecution of Christians which was so common in the days of the Soviet Union was over. All the 250 residents had devoted a lifetime of service to successive communist governments so it was perhaps not surprising to find that the instinctive desire to hide any enthusiasm for Christianity had not entirely gone.
Before the meeting had even got started, one old soldier, his medals still proudly displayed on his chest, grabbed one of the free Bibles on offer and quickly wrapped it up in his newspaper in case anyone should see him with it.
But his caution was not typical. In fact, after the service all but two of the residents who attended gladly took up the UkBS’s offer of a free Bible. Several talked openly to the visitors about their love of Scripture. One lady of 80 was called Alexandra. She said she had had a very hard life and that it was only by reading the Bible that she had survived.
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She remembered, for example, the night her daughter died. “I turned to my Bible and read and read for about four hours. God’s comforting words to me as a believer helped me through.” During the Second World War her family was incarcerated in a Nazi concentration camp. Despite being beaten many times, Alexandra survived.
“There were times when I strayed from the path but I always returned to reading the Bible and it changed my life completely. Thank you for bringing the Bible to us,” she said. “It gives hope to the people.”
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The average age of the residents was 68. There were some 32 over 90 and one aged 98. Among these older ones the extra-large-print Russian Gospels were asked for frequently.
After the service, Anna, aged 81, approached the team. Smiling broadly, she said, “I have often heard the Bible read but I have never owned one.” Given a Ukrainian Bible she clutched it to her breast and, with tears of joy in her eyes, said, “Now I have a Bible of my own”. (WR 350/18 - 4/5.00) [PHOTOS]
LUTSK, Ukraine — “We would like the Bible Society to give us a thousand Bibles for our new converts,” said the Rev Volodymyr Chaika, western Ukraine's leader of the All-Ukraine Union of Christian Baptists.
Although
the growth of Christianity in Ukraine reached its peak in the months after the
country became independent in 1991, some nine years later the people continue
to seek peace with God “at a steady rate”, according to Mr Chaika.
“They have not gained materially since independence was established and, finding a void which needs to be filled, many are willing to consider the Christian faith.”
The frontline experience of mission teams sent out by Baptist churches confirms his assessment. As a result, membership of Baptist churches is currently growing by more than 10 per cent a year.
Of two recent crusades in the Lutsk region, in the north-west of the country, one saw 60 people converted and the other 80. During the past 12 months, some 1,500 people from the region have become Christians and 580 have been baptised. It is the Baptists’ custom to present all baptismal candidates with their own Bible. Hence the recent request to the Ukrainian Bible Society from Pastor Chaika.
There are some 96 Baptist congregations in the Lutsk region but at least 100 villages and towns have no evangelical church of any denomination, so the Union of Christian Baptists plans to send missionary teams to them to hold more crusades.
Outreach teams use a large caravan as their mobile outreach centre. The Jesus film is shown in a local hall and the gospel preached. A group of young people singing hymns helps to attract passers-by.
“We and the Bible Society are like brothers,” says Mr Chaika. “They supply us with the Bible which is vital for any Christian to have if he is to grow in the faith.”
Ironically, however, “growing in the faith” is something which many people in the region will never be able to achieve. The Lutsk region is not far from Chernobyl, where the explosion occurred at the nuclear power station in April 1986. In local communities there are still many thousands of children who are suffering from radiation sickness.
“Many are dying at an early age,” says Mr Chaika. “But a few of the older ones have found peace with God through reading Scriptures and putting their trust in Christ as their Saviour.” (WR 350/19 - 4/5.00) [PHOTOS]
MOSCOW, Russia — When 17-year-old Andrei was given a copy of Bible Stories he could hardly believe his luck. He had been saying the Lord's Prayer for years but he had never fully understood where it came from or even heard the story behind it.
With excitement he opened the book and leafed his way through it until he came across the prayer. He was soon reading all about how Jesus had taught his disciples to pray.
Andrei was just one of hundreds of patients at the Moscow Psychiatric Hospital who received Scriptures from the Bible Society in Russia (BSR) in January. Together with volunteers from several churches and monks from a local monastery, the BSR organised a programme of entertainment for the patients, bringing them some cheer and the good news of Jesus.
The patients, aged between 14 and 80, seldom have the chance to celebrate, and some of them are destined to spend years confined in the hospital, with little hope of leading a normal life.
Many inmates have the innocent, open attitude similar to very young children and their sincere welcome endeared them to the Bible Society representatives and friends.
Hospital staff also welcomed the visits, but were worried that their patients would be overwhelmed by all the excitement. So the programme was split into two parts.
During the first visit, volunteers from St Kosjma and St Damian churches performed a musical puppet show for the patients. The second visit began with a church service, led by the monks. A member of the hospital staff then read from the Bible about the birth of Jesus.
This was followed by a concert, led by the choir of St John Warrior’s church. Patients and staff were soon singing along. Afterwards, the BSR gave Scriptures to the 238 patients who had attended the concert.
Holding their new books close to their hearts, the patients smiled with delight. Some were anxious to keep their books safe, and hid them under their clothes.
The BSR and church representatives then visited the patients who were too ill to attend the concert, distributing Scriptures and telling them about God’s love for them. (WR 350/20 - 4/5.00)
MOSCOW, Russia — More than 7,600 children living in orphanages, special homes and detention centres received Scriptures from the Bible Society in Russia (BSR) during December and January; the distributions were part of a project to bring light and hope to children whose lives have been filled with suffering.
In December, the BSR participated in a series of Christmas concerts for children, organised by The State Concert – a long-time Bible Society partner. Disabled, orphaned and homeless children were invited to the concerts, where they responded with delight to the entertainment provided by actors, musicians and singers who performed Bible stories.
The children were even happier when they were given children’s Scripture Selections (Bible Stories), which were handed out after each concert. More than 5,000 Scriptures were distributed in this way during the Christmas season.
The Bible Society was also invited to an orphanage in December. The orphanage is organised into ‘family’ groups, each consisting of a ‘mother-tutor’ and seven or eight children. Each ‘family’ has three children who are under school age, while the rest attend school.
The BSR distributed Scriptures to these fatherless children in the hope that they will learn about God their father who cares for them and has a plan for their lives.
Children who have fallen into a life of crime are particularly in need of the Bible’s message, and so in late January the BSR visited the young offenders of the Moscow Isolation Unit for Minors.
Working with the International Bible Society (IBS) and a local Christian organisation called the Messiah Centre, the BSR helped to organise a concert to entertain the children. A children’s Christian group called Krug (the Circle) had been rehearsing for days in order to put on a good performance for the children in the Isolation Unit.
When the group of young offenders filed into the hall to watch the concert, they were unusually quiet and subdued, unsure of what they were about to see.
But as they watched the Christian children performing Bible stories through dance, puppets and pantomime, their eyes lit up, and they began to smile. Forgetting their trouble-filled lives, the children soon became absorbed in the performance, applauding loudly and laughing.
For these young offenders it was an eye-opening experience to see young Christians of their own age performing for them on stage. By the time the performance was over, the children were bursting with questions.
Representatives from the BSR, the IBS and the Messiah Centre spoke to the young offenders and encouraged discussions about how God could make a difference to their lives.
To help the children learn more about the Bible and discover its message of hope for themselves, the BSR distributed Scriptures to each age group. Illustrated Selections about David and the Good Samaritan were given to the youngest children, while the older group received Children's Bibles. Young teenagers received Gospel Stories, and New Testaments were given to young adults.
For most of these children, life has been hard. Coming from poor families, or having no family at all, these eight- to 18-year-olds have fallen into a life of vagrancy, theft and drug and alcohol abuse. Some have been involved in violent crimes.
Not surprisingly, their experiences have made them distrustful and introverted, but many of them are desperate to find some hope of a better life. While these young offenders are in the Isolation Unit, waiting for the courts to make a decision about their cases, the BSR and other Christian organisations take the opportunity to visit them. (WR 350/21 - 4/5.00) [PHOTOS]
CAIRO,
Egypt — Sales of the popular Millennium Packages received a boost during
this year’s Cairo International Bookfair despite poor attendance the first
week, reports the Bible Society of Egypt (BSE).
Although official sales figures were not yet available, initial indications are that about 140,000 packages were sold during the bookfair, bringing the total to about 300,000 sales since December. The bookfair ran from January 26 to February 8.
This means that the BSE is well on its way to achieving its target of one million sales by the end of the year. The packages, which contain eight items including the Jesus film, a New Testament, a children’s cartoon video, and audio cassettes, were on sale at the bookfair and in the eight Bible Society bookshops around the city. The ‘bookfair specials’ in the shops ended on February 26.
“We entered the bookfair on a high, expecting to sell a very large number of Millennium Packages from the first day on because of the remarkably high sales during the Christmas season,” said Ramez Atallah, BSE General Secretary.
“We also felt we were well-prepared with five attractive booths, well-trained staff wearing ‘Messiah 2000’ sweatshirts, and daily adverts on national television, subway station television screens, and in a variety of newspapers.
“To our dismay, however, heavy rains and unusually cold weather meant that there was very poor attendance, and the fairgrounds were empty,” continued Mr Atallah.
“Four days into the bookfair we had a sales leadership meeting to pray and analyse the situation. We realised that there was nothing we could do about the lack of crowds, and that we may have depended too much on our previous success.
“We decided to increase prayer and fasting for the bookfair sales, and invited the UBS fellowship to join us in this.”
On February 4, nine days into the bookfair, attendance soared to one million – the biggest daily attendance in the bookfair’s 32-year history. By the end of the fair, organisers claimed that six and a half million people had attended – two million more than last year. With the increase in attendance, sales of Bible Society products increased dramatically.
“The increased prayers made a tangible difference,” said Mr Atallah. “Staff told me that in the beginning people were ignoring the Bible Society booths, but by the middle of the bookfair, our booths were attracting more people than the booths around them.”
The extensive publicity campaign for the Millennium Packages gave the Bible Society more coverage in the national media than ever before. This led to a definite increase in the number of people who came to the bookfair specifically to buy Bible Society products.
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Attendance soared to one million
– the biggest daily attendance in the bookfair’s 32-year history.
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“Many customers came to our booths with newspaper clippings in their hands
asking for the packages by name,” said Mr Atallah.
But what really left staff with a feeling of achievement was that many customers this year were people who had never bought Scripture products before.
“We sold so many Millennium Packages to our regular church customers over the Christmas season that most of our sales during the bookfair were to people we had not dealt with before,” explained Mr Atallah.
“We felt that for the first time the majority of our customers were from our intended audience. Although it was much harder selling to them, and took more time, it was also very satisfying.”
One day a man who had never before heard of the Bible came to the stand. Surprised at the friendly and welcoming attitude of the staff he came regularly during the bookfair, saying that they did not act like ‘typical salesmen’.
A woman who had never before visited the Bible Society stand approached the staff very hesitantly, asking if she could buy a Millennium Package. She was not sure that she would be allowed to buy the product.
When staff helped her to purchase one, she left the stand very happy, and returned a few minutes later with a group of friends, all of whom happily bought packages and audio cassettes. During the bookfair, the Jesus film was shown continually on a television screen just outside a Bible Society booth.
A woman working in a small booth directly facing the screen must have seen the film hundreds of times over the 14-day period, but when staff offered her a copy as a gift she refused to take it. Staff later found out that she went to one of the other Bible Society booths to secretly buy the film.
It was also satisfying to meet customers who had bought Bible Society products at previous bookfairs. Some of these customers came specifically to talk about changes in their lives, and to buy more Scriptures.
One man came to one of the booths to buy a large number of dramatised Bible stories on audio cassette. He explained that although he himself did not have any children, he had bought a few tapes last year for the rowdy children in his apartment block.
The tapes had a very positive effect on the children, and he was buying more in the hope that these would continue to help the youngsters. (WR 350/22 - 4/5.00) [PHOTOS]
JERUSALEM
— For the Bible Society in Israel, the United
Bible Societies’ Opportunity 21 expansion program, has taken the form of
beautiful stone walls, modern glass display cases, and the reality of sharing
the story of the Bible with residents and visitors to the Holy Land.
The Jerusalem Bible Experience is one of the first projects to be funded by gifts to the Opportunity 21 campaign. The exhibition opened on March 2. For the ceremonies, about 70 invited guests crowded into the expanded Bible Society facility on Jaffa Road, just across the street from the walls of the Old City.
“I
want this place to be a place of peace between people,” declared Doron
Even Ari, Executive Secretary of the Bible Society in Israel. “I want it
to be a place that will promote peace between people, between enemies, and between
man and God. This place was once a border – a place of conflict. Now we
have an opportunity to make this a meeting place of friends – and of enemies.”
The exhibition, which contains historical biblical material written on stone, ceramic, papyrus, and leather, includes the earliest text from the New Testament on papyrus and the oldest known Book of Esther on papyrus in Greek.
A full-size replica of the first Gutenberg printing press is also on display, along with a leaf of Gutenberg’s 1455 Bible and a German Bible printed on a Gutenberg press in 1550.
A collection of first-edition Bibles printed in over 50 languages helps tell the story of the Bible and the history of the development of biblical languages. A distinguishing feature of the exhibition is the floor-to-ceiling glass columns that encase some of the displays.
“These displays, which extend from the floor to the ceiling, represent how God’s Word takes us from the earth to heaven,” Mr Even Ari explained. “They make a subtle statement about the role of the Scriptures in our lives.”
A major additional exhibition is scheduled to open later on the top floor of the three-floor exhibition. An interactive computer display will feature a database of Scripture pages in some 2,000 languages, so visitors can see at least one page of the Bible in whatever language they choose. (Click here to visit the site).
Expectations that the exhibition will prove attractive to some of the millions of visitors and pilgrims who come to Israel each year were quickly borne out with the first tour group visiting the new facility just three days after it opened.
“As we contact tour operators, I believe we will have our hands full,” admitted the Executive Secretary shortly after the event. “But right now, I am happy just to have it open.”
Mr Even Ari noted that the facility on Jaffa Road already draws great interest from local people who pass by. “We have a large historic Bible in the window, opened at Isaiah 53,” he noted. “People come by and read it – and many come in and look around. Some ask questions, which we are happy to answer.”
“But I am not just interested in a ‘passive’ exhibition,” he added. “We also are developing mobile exhibitions which will take many of these same materials into the schools for perhaps a week at a time. I believe that many teachers will be interested in having their students see these historic documents and learning about the history of the Bible.”
Attending the opening ceremonies were a top adviser to the mayor of Jerusalem and leaders of local churches.
Representing the United Bible Societies were the Rev Miller Milloy, Regional Secretary of the UBS Europe-Middle East Region, who cut the ribbon to open the exhibition, and UBS Head of Communications, Larry Jerden, from the World Service Center in Reading, England.
Trevon Gross, Vice-President of Partnerships and Programs for the American Bible Society, addressed the guests on behalf of ABS, one of the major supporters of Opportunity 21. (WR 350/23 - 4/5.00) [PHOTOS]
JERUSALEM
— Peace in the Middle East has been a dream for untold generations. But according
to Doron Even Ari, Executive Secretary of the Bible Society
in Israel, peace does not come as a result of mass movements.
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“In this part of the world, there are no mass conversions,” he explained. “People come to God one person at a time.” That is why, at the launching in Jerusalem of a colourfully-illustrated Portion entitled The True Peace, thoughts were not of mass distribution, but about how individuals may read about the peace offered through Christ and how it can change their lives. Mr Even Ari explained the power of such peace to those attending a celebration banquet by sharing his personal experience.
Referring to Labib Madanat, Executive Secretary of the Bible Society in the West Bank, he said: “Labib’s uncle and I fought in a bloody battle in Jerusalem. But we didn’t fight side by side – we fought on opposite sides. Much blood was shed. In human terms, there was enough hate produced that day to last for generations.
“But there is a saying that it takes two to dance the tango. It also takes two for reconciliation. And God does reconcile. He brings peace between individuals, between enemies. This is what brought Labib and me together – not only to work together, but to be melded together through the deliverance of our Lord Jesus Christ. Today we work together, we mourn together, we rejoice together because of God’s reconciliation.”
Mr
Madanat responded by saying he was “honoured to be standing next to Doron.
It is an illustration of the peace of Jesus Christ that brought us together.
It is a peace stronger than any act of injustice, stronger than any bomb, stronger
than any act of violence. “I am not here to share a testimony about a project,”
he added, “but about what God has done in our hearts.”
Mr Even Ari said that, some time ago, he and Mr Madanat were struck by their responsibility to make available to people in conflict this peace found in the Word of God. That was the genesis of the Portion entitled The True Peace.
“I am convinced that the roots of our conflict in this land go back to the days of the early books of Moses,” he explained. “That is why I am even more convinced that the solution also must come from the Word of God.”
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“It works at many different levels,” Mr Madanat said. “We in the Palestinian areas will distribute it through church schools, youth groups, pastors, officials in the Palestinian Authority, and others. We will also make it available in our bookshops and through advertisements in Palestinian newspapers.
“It is a simple book with a powerful message: that the peace of Jesus Christ is not only extended to those in the family of faith, but to everyone.”
The development of The True Peace, funded by an early grant of Opportunity 21, includes photography and design by Randy Capp, a designer who is contributing his time and talents to help Bible Societies around the world.
Mr Capp said his dream for this Portion is that it will bring together people
from both sides of this Middle East conflict, and that it could eventually be
adapted to other countries where reconciliation is needed.
(WR 350/24 - 4/5.00) [PHOTOS]