The Bible Society in Russia (russian: Российское Библейское Общество) is a Christian non-denominational organization for translating and distributing the

Bible The Bible (from Koine Greek , , 'the books') is a collection of religious texts or scriptures that are held to be sacred in Christianity, Judaism, Samaritanism, and many other religions. The Bible is an anthologya compilation of texts ...

in Russia, in languages and formats accessible to anyone.

Early history

The first attempts to translate books of the Bible into the modern Russian language of the time took place in the 16th and 17th centuries. However, these works (undertaken by deacon of Posolsky Prikaz Avraamiy Firsov, pastor E. Gluk, and archbishop Methodiy Smirnov), were lost during political turbulence and wars. A full-scale Bible translation into the Russian language began in 1813, after the establishment of the Bible Society in Russia. The full edition of the Bible with both the Old Testament and the

New Testament The New Testament grc, Ἡ Καινὴ Διαθήκη, transl. ; la, Novum Testamentum. (NT) is the second division of the Christian biblical canon. It discusses the teachings and person of Jesus, as well as events in first-century Chri ...

was published in 1876. This work, called the Russian Synodal Bible, is widely used by Catholic and Protestant communities all over Russia and in the former soviet states, and is also used by many Russian Orthodox adherents for all kinds of teaching and private study, outside of liturgical use (for which the Old Church Slavonic version is preferred). More recently, several modern translations have appeared. The Bible Society in Russia, between its establishment in 1813 and 1826, distributed more than 500,000 Bible-related books in 41 languages of Russia. This early work was led by Dr John Paterson, D.D. (1776 - 1855) a young Scottish Minister. Dr Paterson was granted an

ukase In Imperial Russia, a ukase () or ukaz (russian: указ ) was a proclamation of the tsar, government, or a religious leader ( patriarch) that had the force of law. " Edict" and "decree" are adequate translations using the terminology and concep ...

to publish bibles by Tsar Alexander I who actively supported the work of the Bible Society in Russia and provided a building beside the Catherine Canal (now Kanala Griboevova) for the Society's use. The work of the Society ended when Nicholas 1 placed the Society under the control of the Holy Synod. Dr Paterson returned to Scotland and lived until 1855 on a pension from Tsar Nicholas. Several times in the 19th and 20th centuries, activities of the Society were stopped by reactionary policies of the Russian Government.

Recent history

The Society was restored in 1990-1991 after a pause connected with the Soviet regime restrictions.History of The Bible Society in Russia, in Russian
/ref> The opening ceremony of the Building of the Bible Society in Russia in Moscow was visited by representatives of

Orthodox Orthodox, Orthodoxy, or Orthodoxism may refer to: Religion * Orthodoxy, adherence to accepted norms, more specifically adherence to creeds, especially within Christianity and Judaism, but also less commonly in non-Abrahamic religions like Neo-pa ...

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy * Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD * Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a let ...

, and

Protestant Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that follows the theological tenets of the Protestant Reformation, a movement that began seeking to reform the Catholic Church from within in the 16th century against what its followers perceived to b ...

churches, who joined their efforts in the cause of Bible translation and distribution. The well-known Orthodox priest and

theologian Theology is the systematic study of the nature of the divine and, more broadly, of religious belief. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of analyzing the ...

Alexander Men was one of the leaders of the refounded institution. The editions of the Society are based on the universal doctrine of the early Christian church and include non-confessional comments. Over 1,000,000 Bible-related books are printed per year by that institution. The Bible is also being translated into more than 50 native languages and dialects of the ethnic groups in Russia. Since 1995, the Bible Society in Russia is a member of the

United Bible Societies The United Bible Societies (UBS) is a global fellowship of around 150 Bible Societies operating in more than 240 countries and territories. It has working hubs in England, Singapore, Nairobi and Miami. The headquarters are located in Swindon, Eng ...

association.

References

External links

Official Page of the Bible Society in Russia
{{Authority control Christian organizations established in 1991 History of Christianity in Russia Bible societies Christian organizations established in the 20th century 1991 establishments in Russia