Fotos: SBU
P rayer C alendar
Korean Bible Centenary Get to know the work developed by the South Korean Bible Society, and check the prayers for this quarter. In this edition, the Prayer Calendar section features the Korean Bible Society (KBS). In 2011, the Asian country celebrates the 100 years of the translation and publication of the first full Korean Bible. Before that, only the Gospel of Luke–translated in 1882 in a partnership with a Scottish missionary and a group of local young people–was available in the Korean language. Since its launch in 1911, the text of the Korean Bible has been revised three times. Most churches use the last edition (1998), called New Revised Korean Version. “It was through this Bible, 100 years ago, that Korean Christians were able to experience God's love and apply the Word to their lives,” tells Eui Hyun Kwon, KBS's General Secretary. According to the Secretary, as the Scriptures became available to the people, they also offered opportunities for Koreans to learn to read and write. “With the translation of the Bible into Korean people were able to rediscover the beauty of Hangul, the Korean writing and alphabet system developed in the 15th Century, but that for a long time was disregarded in a culture where Chinese was the most noble language,” explains the Secretary. He points out that the illiteracy rate in South Korea is lower than 1%. “The Bible has always been at the heart of our churches. Even today, churches encourage their members to read the Bible as many times as possible, copy it by hand, and even memorize it,” he concludes. In order to celebrate the centennial of the Holy Book, KBS has been investing resources and efforts in five Bible translation projects for minority communities in the neighboring country of Myanmar. In addition, it will launch a series of thematic Bible DVDs. The organization is also prominent in the academic field and has created the Biblical Text Research Institute, which is dedicated to Bible studies and translation projects in different languages. At the same time, the initiative includes a successful fund raising model with churches in order to support the projects. “Since 2008, we have developed a donation program to produce and distribute Scriptures on demand to our sister Bible Societies.
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Every year we help the Fellowship of the United Bible Societies with a contribution of US$1 million to further the Bible cause worldwide,” says Eui Hyun Kwon. Not even the separation and the hostile climate between South Korea and North Korea discourage the institution's missionary work. “We serve God in the only divided country in the world, so we still have to face many barriers in supplying Scriptures to North Korea, where Christianity is forbidden,” he explains. Even though, since 1990, KBS heads a fund raising program in order to produce and distribute one million free Scriptures to the neighboring nation. “Please pray for opening new doors for missionary work in the North, so that the Word of life can be spread to our North Korean brothers,” says Eui Hyun Kwon. The Korean Bible Society develops biblical programs and many outreach projects throughout the country in order to promote the Holy Book. It donates Scriptures to recently founded churches, the Army (45% of the 600,000 existing soldiers are Christians), hospitals, missionary organizations, schools, companies, and outreach centers. In its editorial line, KBS tries to launch publications with new designs and cover layouts, containing many colored and illustrated pages. “We try to develop more friendly formats, which are easily accessible to the readers of the Word,” says Eui Hyun Kwon. Aligned to the current technological revolution, the organization is already preparing itself to distribute Scriptures in digital media, particularly to reach the youth. “South Korea is the world leader in terms of number of users and accessibility when it comes to the Internet. Therefore, we offer several services to the computer generation, such as Bible reading and research, CD-ROM editions, and biblical content for mobile devices and social networking websites like Facebook,” he concludes.
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100 milhõesBibles de Bíblias Million The Bible Printing Press, after 16 years, has reached the milestone of 100 million Bibles produced, of which 20% were exported to every continent worldwide. “Sow the Word that Transforms Lives.” This summarizes the mission of Bible Society of Brazil (SBB), which inspired the organization to invest in order to realize the dream of having a printing press specialized in Bibles Brazil. Now, after 16 years, the Bible Printing Press celebrates the production of 100 million Bibles that met the demand not only of Brazil, but also of 105 countries in all continents. The milestone was celebrated with a special worship event thanking God for sowing His Word, attended by authorities, religious leaderships and Christians from all over the planet. The great Holy Bible party was held on June 10–when SBB celebrated its 63rd anniversary–at José Corrêa Sports Arena in Barueri (State of São Paulo). At the same time it celebrates this unprecedented milestone, SBB is getting ready to reach new goals working towards the ultimate purpose of contributing to evangelization together with the Brazilian Christian community. “We'll double our efforts to awaken more and more the genuine interest in God's Word in partnerships with churches. We have to ask our heavenly Father for ways of expanding our printing
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plant and modernizing our tools, thus enabling us to meet the demand for the Word and keep pace with the revolutionary technological evolution of our time,” says Adail Carvalho Sandoval, SBB's President. The project of implementing the new Bible Printing Press is already in full development. The objective is to expand in 50% the built area, with an extra area reserved for another 50% expansion in the future, therefore doubling the production and storage capacity in the medium term. The first phase of the project should be operational in 2012, together with the implementation of a new rotary press totally dedicated to the production of Study Bibles, whose demand has been consistently growing. “With these investments we can estimate a 5% increase in our production each year, which would result in reaching the milestone of 200 million Bibles by 2020, when the annual production shall be of approximately 14 million copies,” predicts Celio Emerique, Bible Printing Press' General Manager. Based on such plans and on the opportunities created by the development of new technologies, Rudi Zimmer, SBB's Executive Director, predicts an even stronger
The Bible in Brazil
Photo: Eduardo Cesar
Celio Emerique: new investments will enable the production of 200 million Bibles by 2020.
growth. “Technology itself will contribute more and more to the accomplishment of our mission. In addition to the print format, which will still grow, there will be new formats to bring the Word of God to people. SBB's challenge is to use effectively every available media, so that the good news of God's love in Christ can spread more and more,” he says. SBB is also making plans to maintain the operational efficiency by using resources with responsibility, thus avoiding wastes. “Our administration should always look for mechanisms to reduce expenses and eliminate wastes by improving processes mainly through the use of skilled people in every area,” says Orivaldo Veloso, General Administration Secretary. “By showing efficiency in the use of resources we encourage donors to participate in the Bible Cause and the outreach projects,” he adds. The youth and people who still do not have access to the Bible will be the focus of the activities to be developed in the following years. According to Erní Seibert, SBB's Communications & Social Outreach Secretary, domestic production must be raised to 15 million Bibles per year so that each Brazilian can receive his/her own Bible by the age of 15. “As we are the largest producer worldwide, our situation is more comfortable than in other countries. There is a growing percentage of repressed demand, since the world population is increasing faster than the distribution of Bibles. This must be an alert for Christians to dedicate themselves even more to bring the Word of God to everyone.” SBB has hosted a great celebration to mark the milestone and convey this message of hope in the future. The UBS Publishers’ Fair was held in Brazil from June 6 to 10. The event has gathered approximately 200 representatives from the 147 Bible Societies spread in all continents. “On June 10, at night, a large audience attended a celebration worshiping God for this remarkable feat accomplished within the guidelines of our mission. It was a moment of praying to achieve our new goals,” tells Seibert, who coordinated the event. Every year 12 million Bibles must be produced so that every Brazilian may have his/her own copy at age 15.
Seeds of Love According to SBB's Executive Director, the joy and gratitude SBB wishes to share with everybody is, above all, due to the fact that the 100 million Bibles effectively reached the hands of Christians, in Brazil and in over one hundred countries. “Each copy passed on the message of love of God's Word to someone who was seeking it. Therefore, this number represents the transformation of millions of lives, hence its importance,” he explains. “We did not dream, back in 1995, that 16 years later we would reach this number. And there is no other explanation for this, except the compassionate multiplying action of Jesus the Savior, told in the story of the multiplication of loaves and fish,” stresses Zimmer quoting Matthew 14:13-21. “We are convinced that Jesus, with the same compassion he multiplied a few loaves and fish to satisfy the physical hunger of a crowd, has also multiplied the divine bread through the Bible Printing Press in order to satisfy the spiritual hunger of millions of people.” SBB's President adds that a key factor to reach this milestone was the participation of Christian churches. “We produce so many Bible because the Brazilian people, together with other peoples, have manifested an immense thirst for spiritual realities that only the Word of God can satisfy. This milestone shows with fidelity the growth of Christian churches in Brazil and in some other countries, especially in Africa and South America,” says Sandoval, adding: “This fact means that the Lord is in control of SBB
and is using it as a precious instrument in a fruitful period for evangelization in our history.” The intensification of outreach activities carried out by Bible Society of Brazil (SBB) throughout Brazil has contributed to increase the demand for and the distribution of Bibles, as points out Erní Seibert. “Our outreach work could not be done without the Bible. And having Bibles specially developed for several specific audiences helps even more to make the transformations we want in our society.” In every outreach program developed by SBB those benefited receive, free of charge, biblical literature ranging from Braille publications, specifically for the visually impaired, to copies distributed in hospitals, schools and prisons, as well as during emergency situations. “It's important to notice that, with the implementation of the Bible Printing Press, it was possible to produce Bibles for an increasingly lower cost. This was critical to make us able to contribute to the realization of the biblical word that says that people 'will hunger and thirst for a message from the LORD' (Amos 8:11),” he observes.
Impressive Numbers Bible Society of Brazil (SBB) opened the Bible Printing Press with an estimate of producing three million Bibles and New Testaments per year. However, in a very short time it exceeded this goal. “In 1991, when the idea of building the Bible Printing Press emerged, Bible Society of Brazil distributed about one million Bibles and 100,000 Testaments per year. So the bold plan of building a facility capable of producing 2.5 million Bibles and 0.5 million Testaments per year was presented to the Board of Directors,” remembers Luiz Antonio Giraldi, who, as SBB's Executive Director from 1984 to 2005, was the main supporter of the Bible Printing Press. Today, the plant operates six days a week, producing approximately 700,000 copies a month, or 28,000 copies a day, or 20 copies a minute, or one Bible every three seconds. In order to meet the domestic and international demand, every month 400
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Photo: Eduardo Cesar
C over
Bible Printing Press: Scriptures in production
metric tons, or 800 reels, of paper are consumed that, if unwound, would reach almost 15 thousand miles. This means that the paper used to produce Bibles in one year would be enough to go round the world 7.2 times. The low cost, the high quality and the variety of editions, together with the growth of the evangelist movement in Brazil and the world, increased the demand, thus making SBB expand its production year after year. The average annual production was 8.5 million copies over the last five years. According to Celio Emerique, the number reached is the result of the continuous work carried out during these 16 years, mainly focused on meeting and boosting the demand. “Before 1995, Brazil systematically lacked Scriptures, both in quantity and in variety, because the country didn't have specialized printing and binding plants. The Bible Printing Press was established with the main goal of offering the conditions to promptly meet the growing demand for Scriptures and, additionally, providing more editorial options, with diversified sizes, binding models and pricing. And all this stimulated the demand,” he explains. The Bible Printing Press produces primarily for SBB, but it also renders services to other domestic publishing houses and exports to Bible Societies worldwide. Out of the 100 million Bibles produced in 16 years, 23 million were shipped to 105 different
The Bible in Brazil
C over countries. The management is focused on efficiency, trying to meet all the customers' needs regarding deadlines, quality and costs. Edgar Carvalho, SBB's Logistics Secretary, points out that the technological advance represented by the implementation of the Bible Printing Press directly impacted the type of management. “In addition to the agility, our Printing Press resulted in a giant leap of quality in Bible printing in Brazil. We have modern equipment, use the best raw materials, are specialized and, mainly, have a Printing Press prepared for large print runs, which enabled a huge reduction in production costs,” he says. Before 1995, the Bible with the lowest selling price distributed by SBB cost US$6.50, or about R$10.90. Today, it costs US$1.19, or just R$2.00.
In Different Formats Another characteristic of the Bible Printing Press that contributed to its constantly growing production was the diversification of the catalog through the development of Bibles and New Testaments in different formats, with customized covers and additional content. Paulo Teixeira, SBB's Translation & Publications Secretary, explains that
the decision of diversifying came from the need of serving different audiences. “We soon realized that with different editions we could spread the Word of God in a more adequate and effective manner. This is proven by hundreds of testimonies we received from readers grateful for having at their disposal the Scriptures in a format or medium suitable for them,” says Teixeira. One of the highlights of this new editorial line was the Bible in giant print and the series of Study Bibles. One way of improving management and keeping the production aligned to the demands of different Christian communities is the close relationship between SBB and the churches, developed and maintained by the Regional Offices that are at the end of the distribution cycle. “Our role is to serve churches and Christians. By maintaining a direct contact with our partners in the distribution of the Word, we can listen to them, identify their needs and contribute to the development of publications that can be proper tools for the evangelization work developed by the churches,” stresses Marcos Gladstone, SBB's Coordination of Regional Offices Secretary.
Different types of Bibles and binding: diversified editions meet the needs of every audience.
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The Bible in Brazil
C over Christian Leaderships Recognize and Celebrate the Milestone
According to Brazilian Christian leaderships, the milestone of 100 million Bibles is also a reason for praise. Some of those leaders comment on the fact: Pastor José Wellington, President of the General Convention of the Assemblies of God in Brazil: “This fact greatly benefits the entire Brazilian people and Christians of several countries as well. We, from the Assembly of God, are jointly praying for SBB to keep up its good work, together with the growth of churches in our country, so that we can establish new records very soon. Therefore, I wish from the bottom of my heart that SBB can grow in every dimension, but especially in publishing Bibles by using its experience and the new technologies in benefit of the Christian people.”
Photo: Eduardo Cesar
Pastor Eliseu Martins, Executive Director of Assemblies of God’s School of Missions: “It is another great victory that we need to celebrate together because the world will only be changed through the Word. SBB carries out its missionary work, and we, therefore, have to thank God for it. Because He is certainly acting through SBB so that the Word can reach every people, every language, every country. The production of Bibles is essential for our work of preparing missionaries. So I am also grateful to the Lord for SBB's staff that, committed to continuous evolution, has been offering us high-quality Study Bibles.” Walter Feckinghaus, Esperança Publishing House's Executive Director: “As partners of SBB, we understand this moment as reason to thank God for His blessing in providing us with the conditions accomplish our mission of bringing the Bible to the people, because only the Word has the power to transform. I wish that each one of the 100 million Bibles may reach the hands of someone who can be an agent of God within Brazilian families and abroad. May this feat inspire future actions by trying to awaken the interest in reading the Bible in groups of people that still have not been touched by this blessing.”
Bishop João Carlos Lopes, President of the Methodist Church: Producing 100 million Bibles is, undoubtedly, an impressive feat, since the Bible Printing Press was opened a little over 15 years ago. Those Bibles, in addition to reaching millions of people in Brazil, bring the Word to dozens of countries worldwide too. We know how SBB tries to make the Bible accessible to low-income people by developing outreach programs. This only confirms the certainty that the Bible Printing Press has been a wonderful instrument of cooperation with the Body of Christ in its mission of making disciples in every nation. Congratulations for the 100 million copies, and thank you for the partnership.” Pastor José Carlos de Lima, Brazilian Publishing House's General Director: I've been following SBB's work for many years, and I receive the news with great joy. Once again we acknowledge SBB's role in preaching, developing evangelization, and modernizing Bible printing with different editions suitable for all audiences. We are extremely satisfied for having a partnership with this institution managed by friendly people we care so much for.
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The Bible in Brazil
C over 100 Million Lives Transformed
Photo: Eduardo Cesar
Anderson Elias member of the Municipal Council for the Disabled of Contagem (State of Minas Gerais) and participant in The Bible for the Disabled program: “The Bible is essential in my life. It's through it that I understand better the Word of God, and it's where I look for inspiration to prepare my preaching. The Bible is my daily book where I find all the answers.”
Photo: Gladyston Rodrigues
Fernanda de Paula Lima, 19 years old, Passos (State of Minas Gerais), benefited by The Bible in Situations of Emergency program: “Since the moment my family had contact with the Bible, the change was noticeable, both in the way they talk and behave. I believe that God will work many miracles in our lives through the Word.”
Paulo Souza Filho, Barueri (State of São Paulo), benefited by the Third Age project and The Bible and the Family program: “It was the best gift I have ever received, because there is love, truth, peace, dignity, understanding and rules to live well in the Bible. We just have to put its message into practice.”
Mário Janone Paula de Queiroz, Elementary School teacher, coordinator of The Bible in Schools program at Monteiro Lobato Municipal School in Novo Gama (State of Goiás): “The Bible entered my life during catechesis when, at age 10, I learned that we must be thirsty for justice and that Jesus is justice. Today I'm an evangelical Christian, and I believe that the Bible is the voice of God that guides me, exhorts me, and encourages me to believe in life.”
Osvaldo Souza Silveira, former chemical dependent, currently the coordinator of Deus Proverá Rehabilitation Center, in Planaltina (Federal District), partner in The Bible in Dependency Recovery project: “I'm 29 years old, and for 24 years I didn't know the Word of God. I had the opportunity to get to know the Word when I arrived at the Rehabilitation Center, and they gave me a copy of the Bible donated and published by SBB. At that moment, my story began to change, because God's love filled the void that before I tried to fill with drugs.”
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The Bible in Brazil
Photo: Abelardo Barbosa
Photo: Abelardo Barbosa
Jussara da Conceição, Nova Iguaçu (State of Rio de Janeiro), benefited by The Bible in Situations of Emergency program: “The little we had we lost because of all this rain. The Word of God arrived at a very important time, and I believe that from now on it will help me to restore my life.”
P artner
in
E vangelism
Teaching to Evangelize In 2011, Bible Society of Brazil (SBB) will organize 15 editions of the Evangelization Training with Literature and launch a youth version of the Partner in Evangelism program. Form a legion of evangelists. This is the mission of the Partner in Evangelism program, maintained by Bible Society of Brazil (SBB) for about 30 years, with more than four thousand volunteers registered. In order to train and encourage Christians to develop this work, SBB has been organizing for six years the Evangelization Training with Literature, which emphasizes the importance of evangelizing with biblical materials. The number of editions increases every year. In 2010, 14 editions were held in 11 Brazilian states, attended by approximately 5,000 participants. “The meetings last year helped to demystify the idea that only certain people or leaderships can evangelize. Everyone can share the Word at work, with the family or with friends. This is evangelization. The seed of the Gospel spreads and God uses Christians for it,” says Mário Rost, SBB's Institutional Development Manager and national coordinator of the program. In average, 20% of the participants already are or become partners in evangelism on the day of the training. This is the case of the student Konny Alarcon, 20 years old, who joined the program during an edition held at the Assembly of God Church temple in Barueri (State of São Paulo). “The biblical pamphlets we distribute have the power of changing lives. Six years ago my parents received leaflets with the Word and modified their lives. The routine at home has changed for the better. Today, our family life is full of love, peace and harmony,” she says. Young Partner in Evangelism There will be 15 editions of the Evangelization Training with Literature in 11 Brazilian states throughout 2011. The great innovation this year will be the launch of
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the Partner in Evangelism program for young people on September 3 in Blumenau (State of Santa Catarina). The idea of the new project–still without a name– is to train groups of young people, and to make sharing evangelization strategies and practices easier among their leaderships. “The Partner in Evangelism program with groups of young people is an old idea within SBB, which gained force late last year after the World Assembly of Bible Societies in South Korea. The Assembly posed the challenge of meeting the needs of the Christian youth worldwide,” explains Mário Rost. As part of the version for young people of the program, fascicles of the Gospel and special Bible Portions with relevant themes, such as drugs, loneliness and access to university, will be produced. Materials with digital resources and a website will be developed, where young people will be able to share their experiences and download materials used for evangelization, among other resources. “The intention is to hold a large annual meeting of the Christian youth in Brazil,” says Rost. The main tools of the Partner in Evangelism program are the illustrated biblical pamphlets distributed at busy and crowded locations throughout Brazil. Known as Bible Selections, these pamphlets include selected Bible passages in order to encourage reflection on themes that affect the daily routine of urban populations, such as loneliness, violence and the value of human life. For more information on how to participate in the program, send an e-mail to relacionamento@sbb.org.br.
The Bible in Brazil
T estimony
Only the Path of the LORD Saves I have great joy in sharing my testimony of the wonders Jesus Christ worked in my life. Today I am a servant of the Lord and participate in a group of mothers who are Partners in Prayer. I had a daughter, called Jéssica, who was born with an illness that doctors could not understand. My faith only increased, and with a lot of prayer she was cured. There is nothing impossible to God. Soon after my daughter was cured, I started to have severe headaches and feel my left side numb. Initially, doctors said that it was just stress. Until a CT scan showed I had a malign tumor in the bulb. So I went to São Paulo to undergo a surgery. At the hospital, during the surgery, I had a convulsion and ended up in ICU. One day later I woke up feeling really bad. I asked God to take me, because I no longer could bear the excruciating pains. Soon after that, I felt the anesthesia kick in and I fell asleep. Later I woke up in another hospital to where I was transferred. There I asked once more in silence and then prayed out loud for God to help me. After that, I was cured.
Our God works any miracle when it comes to illnesses if you follow and obey His commandments. As it is shown in Matthew (9:22): “Jesus turned around and saw her, and said, 'Courage, my daughter! Your faith has made you well.' At that very moment the woman became well.” I returned to my hometown in the State of Bahia and immediately looked for a church to attend. I chose the First Baptist Church of Teixeira de Freitas, where I was baptized and got married. That is why I really love our living God. As the Word says in Isaiah (58:11): “And I will always guide you and satisfy you with good things. I will keep you strong and well. You will be like a garden that has plenty of water, like a spring of water that never goes dry.” *Testimony sent by Lídia Maria Correia de Morais, by mail, Teixeira de Freitas (State of Bahia).
Evangelizing With the Good News In 1998 I bought four Bibles: one for my wife and me, and one for each of our children. Then God helped us little by little and brought salvation to our home. God has done great things. We read the Bible every day. It is our bread from heaven. My wife, my children and I were converted by Jesus Christ. God has been supporting us, and our family is even more united. I also thank the Lord for pulling me out of the valley of death. God helps at every moment, that is why we are grateful for the Word. I am a Partner in Evangelism and distribute SBB's Bible pamphlets evangelizing a lot of people with the Good News. The Word of God is the truth that cures, saves and frees everybody for the eternal life. *Testimony sent by João Eduardo Rodrigues, by mail, Santos (State of São Paulo).
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The Bible in Brazil
B razil
Bibles for Evangelization The economy edition of the Holy Bible offered by Bible Society of Brazil (SBB) is successfully helping the evangelistic work carried out by many churches and Christians in Brazil. Easy to carry and featuring the biblical text of the Portuguese New Translation in Today's Language (NTLH), the edition is being largely used by different Christian denominations and missionaries. Each copy is sold for R$2.00 (about US$1.30) and they can be acquired in cases to make distribution easier. In Monte Alegre (State of Paraná), the Assembly of God Church initially bought more than 200 copies of the edition. The material will supplement the Church's weekly evangelization actions, since it will be distributed to its members: family groups, the newly converted, and young people who evangelize on the streets. “These Bibles will help us make more people committed to Jesus,” believes Ozilda Vasconcelos, a missionary of the church.
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Not only churches are using this edition of the Holy Scriptures in their activities. Christians working for the Bible cause are spreading the Word of God on their own using the publications. Such is the case of the businesswoman Pablina Hadid Souza. She buys copies of the economy edition to give to customers of her five stores in Rio de Janeiro, as well as to members of a nearby church. In average, Pablina distributes about 50 Bibles in her businesses and 20 Bibles at the church every day. “People, in general, are open to receive the Word of God. Many customers who receive the Bibles end up going to a service and start attending the church. And this material impacts neighboring store owners and their staff as well,” says the evangelist.
The Bible in Brazil
E - commerce
Bible Society of Brasil (SBB) launches new online store With over 200 biblical publications available, SBB DotCom was entirely remodeled to simultaneously meet the needs of retail, wholesale and e-book online customers. The new version of SBB DotCom online store was launched in May. The name and electronic address (www.sbb.com.br) are still the same. However, the project–that took approximately eight months to be completed–added a series of new benefits for users. Starting with the more modern and easier-to-navigate new layout. “In order to keep up with technological advances, we decided to invest in a new more functional platform that offered additional resources to users,” tells Márcia Carneiro, SBB's Communications Manager. Developed in the “three-in-one” format, the store is capable of serving different audiences throughout Brazil. There are more than 200 publications available for sale not only to retail customers, but also to wholesale customers, in addition to offering electronic books (e-books). “Since the beginning, the project was focused on online users from different segments, in order to offer a much more pleasant and quick shopping experience within a secure environment, 24/7,” explains Guilherme Lunardi, Jet Tecnologia's New Business Manager, the company in charge of developing SBB's new online store. With the enhancements implemented, the final customer will have resources and tools that will make the navigation and the whole shopping process even more dynamic. In addition to having access to their purchase history, users will be able to use new channels to post messages and comments on products. Following a trend in the literary market, SBB DotCom incremented its selling area of electronic publications. Called Bible Digital Library, it was designed to offer e-books compatible with the Libronix platform. Therefore, it provides more technological possibilities that will enable the sale of book packages, in addition to
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increasing the options available. “The idea is to expand the offer of digital products in a short while, including other biblical publications in the ePub format,” adds Márcia Carneiro. But the main new feature is the wholesale area developed specifically for churches and bookstores. Geographical barriers will no longer be an obstacle to acquire biblical literature in large volumes. “Previously, virtually only churches, bookstores and other organizations located in cities and towns closer to our Regional Offices benefited from the special conditions offered by SBB. Now, customers from everywhere will have access to a wide range of biblical literature and will be able to place their orders wherever they are: at the office, at home, or at church,” celebrates Marcos Gladstone Silva, SBB's Coordination of Regional Offices Secretary. Operating experimentally, the pilot-store for the wholesale market will allow customers, at any moment, to place a pre-order, check promotions and discounts, and also get information on new releases. “In this first phase of the project, customers will be able to choose publications that interest them, but not complete the purchase. The pre-order will be forwarded online to the closest Regional Office, which within two business days will get in touch with the customer,” explains Márcia Carneiro. Furthermore, the store will be a channel to post videos with information about products and promotional materials. The access to the wholesale store will be restricted, and customers will need a user name and a password. “I see churches, colporteurs and bookstores from the most distant places, where access to the Bible is harder, acquiring several diversified publications in order to spread the Gospel,” predicts Gladstone.
The Bible in Brazil
N ew R eleases
"Final word" Bible is back Considered a classic of biblical literature in Brazil, the Holy Bible in the Brazilian Translation is relaunched in a new print edition and also in digital format. A biblical literature classic is once again made translation in Brazil,” complements Vilson Scholz, available by Bible Society of Brazil (SBB). It is the new SBB's Translation Consultant. edition of the Holy Bible in the Brazilian Translation, The new edition features some changes and considered the first Bible fully translated in Brazilian updates compared to the biblical text of 1917, although soil. Its original version was published in 1917, as part it still keeps the characteristics of language from that of a pioneering translation project that took 11 years to time. The text in this new version was approved by those be completed (1903 to 1914). A translation committee who had contact with it. “The Brazilian Translation was formed at the time, including acclaimed Brazilian is not important only because of the integrity of the authors, such as Rui Barbosa, José Veríssimo and holy text, but because it preserves the aesthetic of the Heráclito Graça, who worked as linguistic consultants. Portuguese language,” according to Pastor Claudionor Led by Hugh Clarence Tucker, an American Methodist de Andrade, Assemblies of God Publishing House's missionary, the task also included religious leaders from Publications Manager. Brazil and the United States. The main changes were grammatical and Known as Brazilian Version or Faithful spelling updates, according to the current norms of Version as well, the Brazilian Translation got famous the Portuguese language, as well as the use of proper as the “Final Word Bible” for being very literal. That names written in Portuguese format. Originally, names is, because of its fidelity to the original meaning of the were transliterated in the Brazilian Translation, for biblical text. “This translation, which is more erudite example, Jehoshaphat, Habakkuk, Nebuchadnezzar than the Almeida translation, includes some Brazilian and Zephanias. In the new edition, the names are mannerisms. Using the Portuguese from Brazil for the written as Josafá Josafá, Habacuque, Nabucodonosor and first time, the Brazilian Translation Sofonias, respectively. “The Brazilian was an attempt to translate literally Translation is still valued for being each word and expression of the literal, and continues to be the 'Final original texts. It was an extraordinary Word Bible',” says Paulo Teixeira. accomplishment for the time,” praises Another innovation is that Paulo Teixeira, SBB's Translation & the publication was adapted to digital Publications Secretary. platforms. It is available in electronic It was widely used until the format in the translation package 1950s by every Christian church offered by Glow Digital Bible, in ePub in a context where Bible editions format at Gato Sabido and Saraiva did not abound. Furthermore, online stores, and for the Libronix through the Brazilian Translation, platform in the Bible Digital Library in many cases, one can understand of the new SBB DotCom online the origin of formulations found store (see article in this issue). “In in the Almeida Revised & Updated the year that SBB commemorates the translation. “This relaunch is useful production of 100 million Scriptures, to remember a generation that the pioneering Brazilian Translation played an important role and revive had to be offered again to the Code: TB063 Format: 13.5 x 21.0 cm (5.3 x 8.3in.) a milestone in the history of Bible Brazilian people,” celebrates Teixeira. Binding: Black hardcover
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The Bible in Brazil
N ew R eleases
Psychological counseling in light of the word New Testament of the Counseling Study Bible is launched with therapeutic approaches to improve the emotional and spiritual health. The Counseling Bible, an unprecedented project worldwide, has just generated another fruit: the New Testament. This is the second product of the project, whose first publication was the Gospel of John in 2008. In order to develop this outstanding work, since 2005 a group of renowned Christian psychologists and psychiatrists–supported by CPPC (Christian Psychologists & Psychiatrists Association) and SBB–has been dedicated to the task of understanding, explaining and emphasizing the therapeutic richness of the Holy Scriptures. The goal of the project is to promote the physical, mental and spiritual health of human beings through the biblical text. “The great encouragement to this work was the need of developing materials with a psycho-theological approach targeting the emotional and spiritual health of God's people. I have always felt the need of a Study Bible containing notes and texts with therapeutic and counseling approaches to help pastors, missionaries and Christians in general,” tells the pastor and psychologist Jairo Miranda, creator of the Counseling Study Bible. He started the project when he was SBB's Regional Secretary in Rio de Janeiro, and was in charge of putting together a multidisciplinary team to develop the pioneering biblical publication. The project intends to include the full Holy Bible. The edition of the New Testament features the biblical text from a therapeutic perspective to be applied to situations of psychological and pastoral counseling to help people recover from traumas, and strengthen values and relationships of individuals with God and their fellow human beings. “The most therapeutic content in the Bible is always the love of God. Our therapeutic approach is a kind of an extension of this universal grace, this love that tries to save instead of condemn,” explains Karl Kepler, CPPC's Director and general editor of the study and counseling notes of the publication.
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According to him, by reading the explanatory notes and charts of the edition, readers will find the support and guidance they need in the Word of God. Kepler also thinks that the most special feature in this Study Bible is the listening attitude of therapists, developed in years of practice with individual sessions in their offices. “It's not us, the therapists, who introduce our technical knowledge into the Bible, but rather it's our experience that helps us to discover in the biblical text the several elements of acceptance, reflection and grace that not everyone sees, but that were there since the beginning,” he explains. With the biblical text in the Portuguese New Translation in Today's Language (NTLH), the New Testament of the Counseling Bible includes several resources. There are over 2,500 study notes, in addition to 100 thematic, explanatory and chapter charts. “It's a very useful publication in the scope of family, church and society,” points out Paulo Teixeira, SBB's Translation & Publications Secretary. Those who enjoyed the Gospel of John will be even more surprised with the New Testament. “It seems that the Counseling Bible approach enabled the Word of God to communicate health and salvation, as did the doctor of doctors, Jesus,” compares Karl Kepler, already working with his team in the counseling content of the Old Testament in order to complete the next step of the project. Karl Kepler, editor of the publication's study and counseling notes.
The Bible in Brazil