Johann Gutenberg invented the printing press in 1450. Four years later, he printed the first copy of the Bible using this new moveable type system. This accomplishment began what is known as “The Age of the Printed Book.” Over the following centuries, this technological advancement revolutionized the surrounding culture by making it possible for the Bible to be accessible to nearly everyone.
Currently, we are in the beginning of another revolution that is defined by the ability for almost anyone to publish content and quickly distribute it worldwide using the Internet. This revolution is at the center of what is called “Web 2.0.”
At LifeChurch.tv, we are working on several initiatives to leverage this revolution in our effort to lead people to become fully devoted followers of Christ. Today, we are revealing one of the most significant and far reaching of those projects:
We’d like to introduce you to YouVersion.
YouVersion is a free online Bible that allows users to associate video, audio, images, text, tags, and links to other websites with any verse or series of verses in the Bible. Each piece of contributed content can be labeled as public or private, so the application can be used both as a personal study tool and a public expression of user-generated commentary. In addition to contributing content, Scripture can be organized by assigning user-defined “tags” to any verse of the Bible.
For users who are skeptical about whether the Bible has application for their lives, YouVersion provides a platform to learn from the experiences and perspectives of others from around the world in a non-threatening and easily navigated environment.
If you have questions or would like to discuss the project you can do so on this post at LifeChurch.tv:swerve. If you’d like to contribute your services and be a part of this project, please contact us here.
In the coming weeks we will post updates on the development of the project here. You can subscribe to the rss feed to stay informed or leave your email address to be notified when we release trial versions.