Gabon’s President welcomes
the gift of a Bible

GABON — Barely two years after gaining official recognition, the Bible Society in Gabon has achieved a first for a Christian organisation in Gabon: officially presenting a Bible in public to the country’s President.

In April, the Bible Society was invited by the Women’s Association of the Assemblies of God Church to take part in events held to mark the third National Women’s Day. As Bible Society staff set up their stall at a large conference hall in Libreville, they could not have known that it would soon attract the attention of President El Adj Omar Bongo Ondimba himself.

Touring the various stalls, President Ondimba and his entourage, which included government ministers and foreign ambassadors, paused to look at what the Bible Society was displaying. Seizing their opportunity, Bible Society staff presented the President and his wife with an annotated Bible with Deuterocanon. The President expressed his admiration for this publication and spent some time reading it. The Society’s gesture also prompted several ministers and ambassadors to indicate that they would be interested in paying a visit to its premises. Later, an opportunity arose to present a Jerusalem Bible to Angélique Ngoma, the Minister for the Family.