Engaging Canadians with the Bible …
Despite our high view of Scripture, Evangelicals are trending away from reading and reflecting on God’s Word. That may be an issue for some, but for Scripture Union, it’s an all-consuming concern.
Scripture Union’s mission is to connect Canadians with Jesus and His Story. That’s what we endeavour to do every day of every year. But with fewer and fewer people engaging with the Bible, it’s increasingly challenging to invite people to immerse their stories in God’s Story.
So the question is, what do we do? How do we help people find their way into the Word? And how do we help the Church find its way out of the present decline in Bible engagement? These, and many other related questions, weigh heavily on our hearts and minds.
There are no easy answers and no quick fixes for the decline in Bible engagement. But we’re learning things that may contain their own seed, their own lessons for how we might help people engage with the Bible.
One obvious lesson we’ve learned is that the decline in Bible engagement isn’t just a Bible agency problem. It’s a problem for the whole Christian community. We all suffer, all struggle, and all experience loss when we drift away from the Word.
Another lesson we’ve learned is that we’re better together. It’s going to take all of us, united in purpose, to deal with the decline in Bible engagement. Going it alone is not an option. Each one of us has to play a part. Collaborations and partnerships are crucial for success.
These two lessons, in part, informed the birth and development of theStory™ – a free online Bible reading guide in French and English. (A Bible reading guide is different from a Bible reading plan. A Bible reading guide provides textual commentary, teaching, insight and reflection).
Everything about theStory™ smacks of community and collaboration. The writers of theStory™ are some of Canada’s leading Evangelical teachers, preachers, communicators, and authors. They come from different denominations, provinces, and walks of life. While different, they have a common objective – to help individuals and communities engage with God’s Word.
Partnerships power theStory™. Ligue pour la lecture de la Bible does the translation of the writer’s reflections, the Canadian Bible Society provides the online Scriptures, and Deeks Insurance is the sponsor.
All told, theStory™ is a wonderful testament to how Bible engagement can be advanced when we work together. It takes more than 120 writers, translators, editors, copy editors and administrators to publish the daily posts. The outcome? Since May 2013, when the first post was published, there have been hundreds of thousands of distinct downloads. People from every province and territory are reading the Scriptures, reflecting on the texts, and responding in prayer.
While theStory™ is only one of many good Bible reading guides, it’s unique because it’s a great expression of Canadian Evangelical unity.
Who would have thought Pentecostals and Plymouth Brethren could have back-to-back reflections on the Scriptures in the same publication? Amazingly, Calvinists, Arminians, Charismatics, Wesleyans, and other writers collaborated. How do they do it? They choose to be kingdom-minded. They agreed to avoid discussing contentious or divisive theological issues and refrain from taking sides on matters over which Christians legitimately disagree. And that’s the spirit that may help people trend back to reading and reflecting on God’s Word.
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Faith Today Blog, March 27, 2015
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Summary
Evangelicals in Canada are trending away from reading and reflecting on Scripture, which is a growing concern for organizations like Scripture Union. To address this, Scripture Union advocates for Scripture engagement and connects Canadians with Jesus and His Word. Collaboration and unity among the Christian community are essential to reversing the decline in Bible engagement, as seen in theStory™, an online Bible reading guide developed through partnerships across denominations. Since its launch in 2013, theStory™ has helped hundreds of thousands of Canadians engage with Scripture, demonstrating the power of unity in advancing Bible engagement.
