British Public to Present Handwritten Bible to Queen

By Anugrah Kumar, Christian Post Contributor Monday, October 31, 2011

A web-based project allowing the British public tohandwrite the Bible from Genesis to Revelations for the 400th anniversary of the King James Bible will reach Oxford Monday, days before the completed version will be presented to Queen Elizabeth II.

At two designated venues, St. Michael at the Northgate Church and St Mary Magdalene Church, people will have the opportunity to write at least two verses of the Bible with a digital pen.

“The People’s Bible” tour, a roving project aimed at reconnecting the people with the Bible, is a joint venture between the Bible Society in England and Wales and the Scottish Bible Society. It began at Edinburgh Castle on June 19 and will end at Westminster Abbey on Nov. 16.

Once finished, the completed hand-written edition of the Bible will be presented to the queen in November, according to BBC.

Many celebrities have also contributed to the Bible writing project. The Prince of Wales, who is first in line to the British Throne, has written Genesis 1:1,2. BBC host Sally Magnusson chose to write Genesis 1:3,4. Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams has penned 2 Corinthians 12:9,10.

Volunteers at “The People’s Bible” arrive at a town or city with a big ScribePod containing individual scribe stations. People read their verses displayed on an iPad and write them on to digital paper. The verses then go straight on to the project’s website. Contributors are also allowed to add a comment or signature along with their names and other personal details.

Dr. Watcyn James of the Bible Society hopes that the project will help people understand the impact that the King James Version of the Bible had on them. “It has been so important within the English-speaking world, in churches and chapels all across the world, and also within culture generally,” BBC quoted him as saying. “You could hardly begin to understand either literature or culture or politics without reference to this bible.”

An English translation of the Bible by the Church of England began in 1604 and was completed in 1611.