Saturday, January 03, 2009

A Century of the Gideons

As I write this I am sitting in the lobby of my hotel in New York City. I am attending the American Society of Church History winter meeting, which meets every year with the larger American Historical Association. I love NYC. But I also love being in the company of so many historians.

So, with history on my mind, I came across this story. The Gideons are one hundred years old. Here's the story:

http://www.contracostatimes.com/nationandworld/ci_11346492?nclick_check=1

The Gideons International is an organization of lay people devoted to distributing Bibles worldwide. I appreciate the fact that it is an effort of laity and not clergy. I have also enjoyed hearing the incredible stories told by Gideons of how the Bible has impacted the lives of those who have at times literally stumbled upon it in a hotel room. Even today, as I checked into my hotel and opened up the desk drawer, there was a Gideon Bible.

And so, here's a word of congratulations to the Gideons for their good work of distributing Bibles around the world for a hundred years.

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