More copies of the Bible are still being printed than any other book, according to United Bible Societies (UBS), based in Reading, England.
According to the UBS's report on Bible distribution in 1996, the 124 national Bible societies around the world distributed "530 659 106 Bibles, New Testaments, Portions and Selections and New Reader materials". Although that figure was smaller than that for 1995, UBS said that the 1996 distribution "19.4 million copies - of the complete Bible was a new record and an increase of 9.1 per cent over 1995".
The significant increase in distribution of the complete Bible is largely the result of mass publication in the Americas and the Asia-Pacific region. Amity Press in Nanjing, China, which began operations in 1987, recently printed its 15-millionth copy of the Bible. In 1996 three million copies of the Bible were distributed by Churches in China.
After China, the two countries with the highest numbers of Bible distribution were the United States and Brazil. Bible distribution for the Americas was up by 19 per cent in 1996 (compared to 1995), and in the Asia Pacific region distribution increased by 11.6 per cent.
A huge increase - 72.4 per cent - in distribution of the New Testament in the Europe-Middle East region in 1996 was due in part to figures from Denmark where the Danish Bible Society distributed more than half-a-million copies to a total of 98 per cent of households in Copenhagen during 10 days in September to mark the city's role as 1996 European Cultural Capital.
John Ball, publishing services coordinator at UBS, said this week: The sheer size of some of these totals, sometimes representing breathtaking growth in distribution in particular parts of the world, leaves the reader with a sense of gratitude to God for what has been done. But they can also disguise reality. There is still much more to be done if we are to provide everyone with easier access to the Scriptures, whether as a printed item or CD-ROM or as an audio or video tape, in a way that best suits their needs.