The idea was something that the Redeemed of the Lord Church in Ripley, N.Y., began after a Francis Chan book inspired a family in that church to read through the entire Bible out loud together. With only 10 people in that congregation at the time, it was not an easy task, some even thought impossible. More than 100 letters were sent inviting area churches to join and before long people from Warren, Jamestown and Erie came together to participate.

“The biggest thing I noticed throughout the reading is there was holiness to simply reading the Word aloud,” said Pastor Chris Martin of the Redeemed of the Lord Church. “People would begin to weep as they read. Hearts were being touched with just the Word of God, no preaching, no expounding.”

Praise Fellowship congregants Rick and Amy Hooks of Jamestown decided to bring the idea home.

“We had participated in the Ripley cover to cover and believed God wanted it to spread across the region. The word of God is alive and active and has been so powerful when spoken out loud and heard by ears young and old,” said the Hooks.

Pictured here is the Bible read from the podium at Praise Fellowship during their “Cover to Cover” event held that brought in the new year.

Pastor Jordan Spencer of Praise Fellowship, along with the members of the church, undertook the task by asking the congregation to sign up for time slots in which to read the Bible aloud and it was recorded and streamed on YouTube. The reading began on New Year’s Eve and began with a time of fellowship, followed by the Bible reading at 10 p.m. The completion occurred on Sunday, Jan. 4, at noon. The normal Sunday morning message was replaced with the reading. Once the Bible was finished being read, the church was led in a time of worship together.

Approximately 80 individuals from senior citizens all the way down to children as young as 4 read chapters from the Bible. Out of those readers multiple church congregations and denominational backgrounds were represented from across the region. They all agreed that the one thing the whole Christian church should be able to unify around, is the Bible being read aloud.

Believing that reading the Word is important, but also that it is the manual for human living, pastors and congregation members agreed that when the Bible is applied to our lives,

“The spiritual implication and ripple effect of committing to the endeavor has no means by which to be measured,” Spencer said. “There is no metric in the natural realm for weighing the impact that committing to reading the whole Bible has on our region. It is an eternal act that is in direct conjunction and partnership with God our Creator. The Bible is the Truth of all things being declared into the atmosphere.”

Amy Hooks, guiding her daughter, Lane in the reading of the book of Jonah from the Bible. People of all ages joined in reading the Bible to bring in the New Year.