A consultation with representatives of most of the churches ( Church organisations) in Nigeria was held in Enugu in February, 1965 which was initiated by the first indigenous Governor of the defunct Eastern Region, Elder Dr. Francis Akanu Ibiam. At that meeting the question of the formation of a National Bible Society was fully discussed and all its implications considered. It was the unanimous decision of that meeting that a Bible Society of Nigeria be formed which consequently led to its formation on February 8, 1966.
 Before
1966, The Bible House, Apapa was serving as a distribution centre to other
neighbouring African countries i.e. Ghana, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Cameroon etc.
Ross J. Manning, who was the representative of the British and Foreign Bible
Society (BFBS) in West Africa during the independent era became the first
General Secretary of The Bible Society of Nigeria. The significant role
Manning played towards the formation of BSN was his ability to ensure the
unification of the East and West Blocks otherwise, the UBS would not have
recognized the two factions. The BSN owes her existence first and foremost
to Ross J. Manning, then to late Elder Dr. Francis Akanu Ibiam, who worked
closely with the UBS and with a lot of pressure presenting the issue of
BSN to the parent body of Christian Council of Nigeria. His immense contribution
is commendable but it took the dedication and extra selfless service of
Manning to put Bible Society of Nigeria on a solid footing in translation,
production and distribution of Scriptures in Nigeria. |
 |
THE CHURCH AND THE BIBLE SOCIETY
The Bible is God’s gift to the Church and does not belong to any one Church or to any one country or generation. The Bible Society of Nigeria is the major source of Scripture distribution in Nigeria. The Church in Nigeria depends on the Bible for its spiritual life and development. The Bible Society of Nigeria serves Christians of every Church denomination. The Society calls on all Christians to read the Bible, to study it together and to seek to understand its message, through Bible competition and Bible Week Celebration across the churches in Nigeria. It encourages and guides those who are doing translation work both for the Society and in relation with other translation agencies.
We believe that if the Church is to reach the masses in our land, the most effective way of doing so is through the distribution of selections (passages from the Scriptures), portions of the Bible (single biblical books that provide potential access to the biblical message for people who are put off by the size or complexity of the whole Bible) and New Testaments. We solicit from all Churches and Christians to support our operations by their unseasonable prayers, gifts and by placing Scriptures in the hands of all people who can read. The Bible Society has tremendous goodwill among the Churches and this is borne out of the fact that we have the moral obligation to cause a great spiritual re-awakening across the land as many are de-railing from the path of light. This is achieved by continuous efforts of providing the good news with vigor and unflinching clarity across the country.
|
Click the
|
 |
for the Home Page
|
