A Bible written in 66 languages, which has visited some 150 cities in more than 100 countries, will arrive on the campus of Southern Adventist University on Monday.
The book, which began its journey in Manila, Philippines, in 2008, will be brought to Wright Hall on the Collegedale campus by a horseback-riding preacher.
While on the campus, it will be read aloud in various languages that are represented in the Chattanooga area.
The 12-inch by 15-inch Bible is the focus of the denomination’s “Follow the Bible” initiative, which is to renew excitement about the book within the 16 million-member denomination and to spark conversation, according to church leaders.
The Bible was transported to the Wailing Wall in Israel, entered the Arctic Circle and traveled through Port-au-Prince, leaving only hours before the January earthquake struck. Its journey will conclude at the Seventh-day Adventist General Conference in Atlanta on June 24.
” ‘Follow the Bible’ events have been a place where whole communities have gathered to celebrate this piece of sacred literature, history and culture,” Garrett Caldwell, public relations director for the Adventist church, said in a news release. “It hasn’t been about denominational or religious differences; it’s been about what we have in common.”
Adventist and non-Adventists are invited to witness the arrival of the special Bible.