21 centuries after Jesus Christ, the Bible is still revealed

Twenty-one centuries after Jesus Christ, somewhere in the South, Marion Muller-Colard invites three people to discover a text of the Bible of which they know nothing.

"That same day, towards evening, Jesus said to them: Let us go to the other side." Mark 4:35

Are you ready to cross over? Let's travel together. In your hands, a book. Like the bow of a skiff, it opens in your hands. A breath shakes the pages. In front of the book, the water splits. Lines of foam spring from the words. The sea roars softly. Jesus sleeps at the bottom of the boat.

It is Sunday March 12, 2023. Somewhere, in a sunny garden, Marion Muller-Colard made an appointment with Dominique Hernandez, pastor of the United Protestant Church of France, Claire Bastier, author and Pascal Bourjac, psychiatrist and psychoanalyst.

When she handed them a Bible, one of the guests said:

"At one time I consulted the Bible a little more than now, but I loved to open it somewhere and just read what came to my hands… In front of my eyes."

Then the other resumed:

"So me, it's been a very long time since I had a Bible in my hands."

And the third guest concluded:

"The Bible for me is a book to live in. I believe that I came into existence by reading the Bible." 

Who do you think said what? And you what would you say? How would you cross the Word? What would you say she is, for you?

The Word was God. At the bottom of the boat, Jesus is sleeping, but he is there. Some of us read the Bible every day - red highlighter, green highlighter, yellow highlighter - some dissect it in fanatical exegesis, seeking scientific and rational truth between the lines, some read it without faith, others read and share it with method and humility - lectio divina - others read it at Fnac, on the sly, without understanding it, others go through it at full speed, without really reading it, still others learn it by heart, and finally others live it, without always reading it, without reading it every day, online, in print, in person. A Bible in a library is good. A well-placed verse is pious.

And you, how do you read the Bible?

I was visiting a professional audiovisual trade show the other day. The slogan this year was: "Data is dead". An image without a player (in every sense of the word) is dead. A parchment without a reader is Qumran for centuries, until 1947.

It was Sunday March 12, 2023. At 10 a.m., somewhere in a sunny garden, Marion Muller-Collard had made an appointment with three people.

If their crossing tempts you, do not hesitate to join them. They are still there. Untie the links of the replay and open your bibles to the Gospel of Mark, chapter 4, verse 35 to 41. Good luck.

A magazine produced by Denis Cérantola

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Christopher Zimmerlin, for Protestant Presence