In the United States the First Amendment to our Constitution protects the right of each citizen to choose his faith and to practice that faith openly, without persecution or retribution.  The five First Amendment freedoms are the freedom to choose one’s faith, the right to practice that faith, freedom of the press, freedom of assembly and freedom of redress…all supportive of the ability to worship, evangelize, assemble to worship, and redress the government in case of grievances against religious freedom.  Our first amendment is critical to many of the functions of a free people.  Our founders placed religious freedom first for emphasis.

 

The First Amendment’s establishment clause and free exercise clause are the strongest of supports for the use of the Bible and all religious writings in the study and worship  of individuals and groups.  Freedom of press to print Bibles and freedom of assembly to gather in Bible study and Bible-centered worship are essential supports for the development and practice of their faith for many millions of Americans.

 

Reading the Bible, teaching its lessons and evangelizing the word of God are practices flowing from our rights, not to be taken for granted. 

 

A wonderful and unique opportunity to appreciate the beauty of the Bible is to make a plan to  see one of the volumes of the hand calligraphed St. John’s Bible on display at museums, universities, and churches around the USA.  This first Bible of its kind commissioned in over 500 years was the project of monks at St. John’s Abbey in Collegeville, Minnesota.  From his scriptorium in  Wales the calligraphy was done under the direction of Donald Jackson,  the calligrapher to the Queen of England and to the Pope.  There his team hand calligraphed the entire Bible and added 160 original illuminations.  The pages open to two feet high by three feet wide.  Each location has its own viewing schedule:  

 

See the St John’s Bible:                                       

https://tinyurl.com/y7k5kbz3  https://tinyurl.com/2s48m8nh  https://tinyurl.com/mry3asf7