10 March 2010

Living Biblically

Alister McGrath expressed his hope that as the nation celebrates the 400^th anniversary of the King James Version of the Bible in 2011 that people will open the pages of the Bible and see it as a text through which God spoke and still speaks today.

Professor McGrath, Head of the Centre for Theology, Religion and Culture at King's College, London addressed Alliance council members and guests at the Biblefresh launch in the Houses of Parliament on 04 March.

He said: "One of the challenges we face is to be able to translate biblical notions into lived lives.  To be able to bring out the deeper meaning of these, so they have the capacity not simply to be understood, but also to transform."

The Biblefresh movement is a partnership of over fifty agencies, festivals, colleges and denominations who have joined forces to see churches grow their confidence in the Scriptures during 2011, coinciding with the 400th anniversary of the King James version of the Bible. 

It is the first time so many agencies and organisations have come together to promote God's word in this way. Partners include the Bible Society, Wycliffe Bible Translators, Scripture Union, London School of Theology, CWR, UCB radio and the Evangelical Alliance among many others.

The coalition has been 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.

Biblefresh is a movement to help the Church gain appetite and confidence in God's word.

A 13 city tour is nearly completed, under the title "The Bible: Tedious, Taboo and Toxic, or Transforming, Treasured and True?" sharing the vision for practical ways churches can re-engage with the Bible. Regional events are still to come in Liverpool and Bournemouth.

For more information visit www.biblefresh.com
Read here for the full transcript of Alister McGrath's speech at Council