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Blood Stained Bibles
The other night I watched an episode of the BBC drama Robin Hood which was about the Bible. The story – The sheriff of Nottingham was blackmailing a priest and getting him to do terrible things because he (the sheriff) had found a copy of the Bible the priest had been working on… he was translating it into English, a definate “no-go area” in those days.
To put things right Robin and his gang decide to steal the Bible from the sheriff thereby loosening his hold on the aging priest. In the process of stealing the Bible Robin and his gang find themselves involved in several skirmishes with the sheriffs men and quite a few of the sheriff’s men are killed… needless to say none of Robin’s gang are killed but their lives were on the line nonetheless.
As I watched the episode unfold I said to my wife, “I’m sure glad we don’t have to go through that today to obtain a Bible.” Think about how easy it is for us to go and buy a Bible. Looking at the shelves in my office I have over fifteen Bibles that I have bought over the years and probably a load more elsewhere in the house.
But it wasn’t always that easy to get a Bible. It was once a crime to translate the original text Bible into English… any language for that matter. And to own one meant time in a barbaric prison, torture and many times death. This was exampled to me a couple of years ago when I visited a Bible museum in Florida and saw a Bible in German (from Medieval Europe) that had the blood of it’s original owner spattered across the pages, killed for just possessing the Word of God… a sobering moment to say the least!
Imagine a world like that, where just owning a Bible could get you killed. Then spare a thought for our brothers and sisters around the world who are taking that very same risk because in the country where they live it is still illegal to own a Bible – countries such as China, Malaysia, Myanmar, Turkey, Turkmenistan, Saudi Arabia, Iran, Afghanistan, North Korea, and some parts of Russia.
Christian St John M.Div, BChM, ACS
October, 2009
I think about this a lot lately and the amazing bloody “stones” that our faith is built upon. Theocracy’s song “Martyr” comes to mind as well. I love that song. It also makes me think about the millions (billions?) that churches spend to bring the lost into their doors. With such things as coffee shops and restaurants, rock climbing walls and such. What a contrast. And I don’t think it helps. What kind of witness could we be if we suffered more? I am glad that our brothers and sisters that are suffering at this moment, will sit at greater seats than we will.
Speak the truth in love my brother. What you say is something I have heard myself say a thousand times. But I would take it a step (or leap) further in that we oftentimes cater for those already in the church… keeping them happy and looked after. Many churches I have been to have so many internal struggles that the last thing on their minds is actual outreach, and usually they argue and squabble over stupid things like who sits where, who serves the coffee, who takes the Sunday school classes, and who looks after the church library. I think we have made church a comfortable place when in fact it is supposed to be on the edge ready to jump if needs be.
Someone once told me that the church is the only organization that should exist primarily for those outside of it's membership. We would all do good to remember that!