The Church of England gets behind the Bible for 2011
24 February 2010
At the General Synod two weeks ago, a motion was agreed that means that the Church of England will join Christians across the country in celebrating and promoting the Bible as part of the 400th anniversary in 2011 of the Authorised Version.
They voted unanimously to approve a motion which expresses a confidence in the Bible and calls on churches, deaneries and dioceses to use 2011 to teach, preach and share the Bible afresh with our nation.
The Revd John Dunnett, General Director of CPAS and General Synod member proposed the motion on behalf of the Diocese of Chelmsford. He said: "I am delighted that the General Synod gave such an unambiguous call for churches to teach, share and educate people about the Bible in 2011.
"It was Abraham Lincoln who referred to it as 'the best gift' of God and I hope that this clarion call of Synod will enthuse us all to offer it afresh to men, women and children throughout the
UK"
Biblefresh, a partnership of over fifty agencies, festivals, colleges and denominations, was formed in response to recent findings about the Bible's place in the Church; for instance, only 1 in 7 churchgoers say they are confident in their knowledge of the Bible, and 76% of church leaders associate Bible poverty with the UK where the Bible is no longer at the centre of public or family life. The movement will encourage churches in practical ways and help them re-engage with the Bible and regain more confidence in God's word.
Dr Krish Kandiah, Executive Director of Churches in Mission at the Evangelical Alliance said: "We are absolutely delighted that the Church of England has made 2011 a year of focus on the Bible and the Biblefresh movement looks forward to working with churches across the country to provide practical and inspirational ways of helping the Bible".
The Bishop of Durham spoke during the Biblefresh tour last month about the power of the Word of God to change people and situations: "The Bible is there to enable us to be the people of God for the world, the people through whom God's story becomes the world's story. Bible readers, Bible prayers and Bible understanders are world transformers."
Notes to editors:
The Evangelical Alliance, formed in 1846, is the largest body serving evangelical Christians in the UK, and has a membership including denominations, churches, organisations and individuals. The mission of the Evangelical Alliance is to unite evangelicals to present Christ credibly as good news for spiritual and social transformation. According to a Tearfund survey (Churchgoing in the UK, 2007), there are approximately 2 million evangelical Christians in the UK. For more information, go to www.eauk.org.
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