Latest News #270 – Various
January 28, 2004

Bible Sunday unites churches far and wide

A boy lights a special candle at a Bible Sunday service held by a church in Harderwijk, Netherlands. This service took place in October 2003, but many other Dutch churches celebrated Bible Sunday on January 25, 2004. The Netherlands Bible Society supplied almost 100,000 leaflets giving Bible Sunday prayer, worship and activity suggestions based on the theme 'Precious Words'. Harderwijk, Netherlands. Photo: NBS/Sandra Haverman (NER04DJ-1.JPG)

Bible Sunday and the following Bible Week have long been one of the highlights of the Philippine Bible Society's year. Every year, the Society seizes the opportunity to stress the Bible's relevance to people's everyday lives and chooses an attention-grabbing theme (see World Report 368/34 and 360/24). The tone for Bible Sunday and Bible Week in 2004 was set by new General Secretary Nora Lucero when she was formally installed on December 4. "More than ever before," she said, "God's Word has to permeate all sectors of Philippine society." The specific theme for this year was 'God's Word: Living Hope and Lasting Peace', chosen to draw people to the Bible at a time of national and international social, economic and political upheaval. Through resources such as a colourful poster and a pocket calendar, the Society equipped churches to make Bible Sunday a time of celebration, reflection and refocusing.

Supplying churches with a wide range of thought-provoking resources was also a priority for Bible Societies in other countries where Bible Sunday was celebrated on January 25. Churches located in French-speaking Belgium were able to request a range of materials, including study notes and sermon ideas, relating to a theme based on the fourth chapter of Luke's Gospel, in which Jesus encounters fierce opposition after revealing himself as the fulfilment of Isaiah's prophecy. As well as rediscovering the Bible as, in the words of Germain Mahieu, Deputy General Secretary of the Francophone Bible Society of Belgium, "a treasure for humankind", churches were encouraged to raise money for Scripture-based literacy work among children in Madagascar.

Pastor Florida de Kok leads the congregation in an action song at a Bible Sunday service held by a church in Harderwijk, Netherlands. This service took place in October 2003, but many other Dutch churches celebrated Bible Sunday on January 25, 2004. The Netherlands Bible Society supplied almost 100,000 leaflets giving Bible Sunday prayer, worship and activity suggestions based on the theme 'Precious Words'. Harderwijk, Netherlands. Photo: NBS/Sandra Haverman (NER04DJ-5.JPG)

The focus of fundraising connected with Bible Sunday in the Netherlands was Ghana, and the resources made available by the Netherlands Bible Society included a children's comic containing stories about Bible work there. The build-up to Bible Sunday began as early as last September, when the Society started to send out leaflets to clergy and congregations. The leaflets, of which almost 100,000 were eventually despatched, contained prayer, worship and activity suggestions based on the theme 'Precious Words'. The Society was particularly pleased to be able to include in the leaflets two extracts, one from Luke's Gospel and one from Nehemiah, from the new interconfessional Bible due to be launched in October.