Very interesting visit to printing press

August 21, 2006

HI!

We have now arrived in our next-to-final destination, Nanjing, and we will be here through Thursday, when we FINALLY fly to Cheng Xian, our final destination and new home!

I just had to write a little extra note to say where we were today. It was very inspirational! (I hope all that I write here is accurate; it is just from my memory and notes).

We were able to visit Amity's Printing Press, where they print Bibles. Amity's press is the only Bible press that is legal in China, since apparently each printed material OR the printing press must be registered under a permit. However, Amity is an organization which is recognized by the government, so they are operating under this permit. In other words, all the Bibles printed there are perfectly legal, and a person who is found to have one of these Bibles cannot get into trouble at all. (in theory anyway) So far they have printed just over 50 million Bibles!!! And the good news is that these Bibles are heavily subsidized, so that they are also affordable. A regular Bible (regular size) costs only about 12 kronor, or under 2 dollars! They also print other Christian literature, like hymnals. Apparently Amity Printing Press is a joint venture between Amity and United Bible Societies. A big reason the Bibles are so cheap is becuse the paper is donated by the United Bible Societies.

So, this really interesting man told us about Amity and how the printing press was started. All the Bibles and other literature are printed here, in Nanjing, and then they are sent by train to 70 different distribution centers throughout China. After that, about 40 Bible Distribution Vans (which have also been donated) drive all over the place to bring the Bibles and other literature to 55,000 different churches or shops where they can be sold. (not in regular bookstores).

Along with printing in Chinese, they also print some Bibles in Braille, and in 8 minority Chinese languages, and they even print in English for other countries, such as African countries, who have ordered through them.

So, to finally answer the question of WHY people are still trying to smuggle Bibles into China... we finally now know that this is probably still going on due to a lack of knowledge that China is now able to handle the need for Bibles by itself--at least the printing can be done by itself. The way the nice man explained it, the Chinese government (he thinks this is a miracle in itself) has entrusted Amity (since they know and approve of, and apparently even like) Amity, to print literature, including Bibles. Therefore, nobody can get into any trouble for these. But if people bring in foreign Bibles and distribute within the country, the government becomes nervous and these are also not legal. Therefore, someone who has one of these Bibles could definitely get into trouble. Also, and this is what we find very important to remember, this type of illegal or underground activity only perpetuates the prejudices against Christians which already exist here, instead of trying to build up the positive work that is going on here! Christianity still has, unfortunately, a lot of old baggage here and it is still seen as basically a foreign religion. This is part of the reason the government is so nervous about it. But Amity, and its printing press, and so on, really seem to be doing a great job building trust, proving that Christianity is not so wierd or foreign, etc. That is why it is important that this printing press is run by a Chinese organization. That is why it can exist.

So China can handle the printing of the Bibles it needs; however, this is because they receive outside funding from other countries. So the nice man we spoke with said that if people "back home" want to help to put Bibles in China, they can help by contributing to their National Bible Society, and then by designating the gift to putting Bibles in China (he said that when each year begins, they only hope to receive all of the necessary paper in order to print the Bibles). Apparently 1 dollar will provide the paper for a standard Bible, and 2.50 will pay the entire cost of a Bible. When I saw that, I realized that a latté at Starbucks costs more than that... Anyway, I can hardly think of a better or more concrete cause to which to contribute!

Any profits they make they either put into giving away Bibles to poor areas, or they just channel the money back into Amity for their projects.

Anyway, it was VERY interesting to see how the printing is done, and to hear the nice man's inspirational talk. As he put it, "We want to get these Bibles out, and then let God do the rest!"

Good night all! Write back please...we love to hear from you!!!

love
Rachel and Tomas

Bible paper and Ray

Printing press fast

Piles of Bibles