Participants at the 3 December presentation of the Bible edition in Wittenberg included, (left to right) Dr Thies Gundlach (EKD), LWF President Bishop Dr Munib A. Younan and Bishop emeritus Jobst Schöne (Independent Evangelical Lutheran Church). © BILD/Daniel Biskup
Launching of Special Edition of the Bible
A specially decorated edition of Martin Luther’s translation of the Bible was launched on 3 December in Germany by BILD newspaper together with the Evangelical Church in Germany (EKD) and the Quadriga publishing house.
The Bible, decorated with a Jerusalem cross carved from olive wood and containing a large number of lithographs, was presented in public in the presence of The Lutheran World Federation (LWF) President Bishop Dr Munib A. Younan.
In his foreword to the Bible edition, Younan who is bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Jordan and the Holy Land (ELCJHL) writes: “Luther‘s wish was that the Holy Scriptures should be available to everyone.” This new edition would also serve that goal.
The ELCJHL bishop expressed the hope that even people who are religious sceptics would read the Bible. The Bible had “formulated fundamental values which have characterised our ethics, culture and legislation. Seen from this point of view, the Bible is not just a book for Christians, but it promotes true human values, which are essential to our living together in today’s society.”
In addition to the LWF president, other participants at the presentation in Wittenberg included the chairperson of the International Lutheran Council Bishop Hans-Jörg Voigt, the Saxony-Anhalt Prime Minister Dr Reiner Haseloff and Dr Thies Gundlach, vice -president of the EKD church office. (244 words)
(By Florian Hübner, public relations officer of the LWF German National Committee)
