The Bible Illuminated, New Testament - A Bible to Display and Browse

Posted by Susan Whelan Oct 27, 2008

Any author of a sequel to the beloved Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen, including Colleen McCullough with her recent release of The Independence of Miss Mary Bennet, will tell you that fans don’t always react well to someone “meddling” with their favourite characters. Taking on a text that is a religious cornerstone can only be more fraught with danger.

Nevertheless, Illuminated World is bringing their visually evocative contemporary version of the New Testament to an American audience. Extremely successful in Sweden, publishers are hoping that both Christians and non-Christians in America will embrace The Bible Illuminated: The Book, New Testament (Förlaget Illuminated Sweden, 2008).

Making Historical Texts more Relevant and Appealing

Surprisingly, The Bible Illuminated isn’t the result of a Christian campaign to bring the Bible to the people. It’s not an attempt to proselytise, but rather an objective campaign by business and advertising professionals to get modern audiences reading and talking about historical documents.

Personally, I find The Bible Illuminated quite appealing. There are some images that I feel are inappropriate and I am somewhat confused by the selection of others, but I’m inclined to think that anything that gets people thinking about what they are reading is a good thing. This applies not only to the Bible, but to newspaper reports and books in general. The photographic images are often quite beautiful and frequently thought-provoking. Some people will object to the book simply because it doesn’t look right and others will welcome the coffee-table book appearance as a welcome update. So does the Bible need a PR campaign? It seems to have done okay sales wise without one, but who knows? A round of botox and collagen injections, a lash tint and a new hairdo might be just what this ancient text needs to step forward with confidence to meet a new generation of readers.