Bible movies featuring Gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John translated to 1,137 dialects
Through an endeavor titled the Lumo Project, Bible Media Group and Faith Comes by Hearing have partnered to produce 1,137 language translations of four Bible movies — the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John — in unabridged biblical format.
The Lumo Project is described as “the chronological filming of the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John.” The films are produced by Big Book Media, its distributor, in partnership with Toy Gun Films.
The four movies were initially released in 2014 and translated only in four English translations: New International Version, the King James Version and the English Standard Version.
Get Our Latest News for FREE
Nearly a decade later, the four films, which use the unabridged, word-for-word text of Scripture for the dialogue and scripts, are available in more than 1,000 languages.
The president of Bible Media Group, Tessie DeVore, told The Christian Post in an interview that the concept for the Lumo Project started with an idea that the creator and producer of the film, Hannah Leader, had over a decade ago to “produce Scripture-based movies in an effort to bring the Scriptures to life.”
“Hannah Leader is experienced in film work and her goal was to increase Bible engagement for many globally,” DeVore said. “The Lumo Project is such a good tool to allow people to do biblical ministry to promote Bible literacy.”
Bible Media Group has 160 partners globally using the Lumo Project in multiple ways on the ground.
The partners, DeVore said, use the Lumo Project online for broadcasting and on apps. There are ministries that put the Lumo Project’s content on SD cards and distribute it overseas to spread the Gospel through film.
Additionally, DeVore said, the Lumo Project is used for in-person showings in small church settings, family homes and the field where the films are screened in front of mass audiences.
The Lumo Project effectively spreads the Gospel message in combination with other films and movies that have similar goals, she explained, citing the biblical series “The Chosen.”
“There are so many good projects out there,” she said. “‘The Chosen’ is a great tool. It’s not about which one is better. If anything, they complement each other and are both different ways to engage with the Bible. Lumo is good for discipleship and the Bible aspect. But, they both have a good place in this process of enhancing Biblical literacy.”
“You won’t sit and read all four Gospels at once. You will do it little by little and study it. With Lumo, it works well because you can watch in chapters and sections. And you can use Lumo in your reading, discipleship and for your personal relationship growth with the Lord,” DeVore added.
DeVore hopes that the Lumo Project will expand and reach larger audiences as it is translated into more languages.
In April, the Lumo Project will release an Old Testament narrative film titled “The Covenant,” she said. The film will focus on the Dead Sea Scrolls by bringing to life the stories of the Old Testament figures Abraham, Joseph and Moses.
“We hope to expand to more languages,” DeVore said. “We want to keep going. Faith comes by hearing. We are so excited about that. I don’t know if we have a goal of when we will stop. As long as there’s a need and we receive requests to have it in more languages, we will keep going until we run out of languages.”
“It’s important for people to have the Bible in their heart language to engage with. We get testimonies almost on a daily basis through our partners who are on the field and on the ground,” she added.
Of the many testimonies Bible Media Group receives, DeVore shared the story of 24-year-old Charles Mitota, who lives in Africa.
Mitota said his life was changed after attending a series of outreach meetings for Lumo in Africa, which showed the films in the Chichewa language.
Mitota told Bible Media Group that he hung out with “bad company” before attending the outreach
“I must say I was lost,” Mitota said.
But on the evening that he watched the Jesus crucifixion video, he was struck by how Jesus Christ suffered for sinners “like himself.”
“I decided to give my life [to Jesus] when alter call had been made,” Mitota was quoted as saying.
“Since that day, I am now born again and inviting my old friends to join me.”
Mitota was given a book from Bible Media Group titled Have You Been Born of Water and Spirit. Now, he’s using the book to teach others and encourage them to join him in his Christian walk.
Leader, the film’s producer, said seeing her goal of producing an unabridged film version of the Gospels come to life and helping many people globally is a dream come true.
“I dreamt of producing a filmed version of the Gospels that would be accessible and transformative for people throughout the world by the simple expedient of using the Bible translations as the soundtrack so everyone can see and hear the Gospels in their mother tongue,” Leader said in a statement.
“With a lot of help and a lot of faith and in God’s good time we have achieved [our] goal – I am overwhelmed with joy.”
DeVore said in a statement that what her staff does is “by the Kingdom and for the Kingdom.”
“We know that to accomplish our mission and vision, we need to walk side by side with like-minded ministries. And we would not have been able to fulfill Hannah’s dream without our partnership with Faith Comes By Hearing,” DeVore said. “It is through this amazing partnership that millions of people can engage with Scripture by watching God’s Word unfold in their own languages.”
