EVERY family in Sydney would be given a free Bible under an ambitious plan by the Anglican Church to revive a 19th-century tradition of door-to-door distribution of the word of God.<\/p>\n
In an increasingly secular society, it could no longer be assumed that most people had read the Bible, or had one in their home, the Archbishop of Sydney, Peter Jensen, said.<\/p>\n
Dr Jensen lamented that knowledge and ownership of the Bible – Christianity’s chief evangelistic weapon – is in serious decline, especially among young people<\/p>\n
The Bible giveaway – termed Connect09 – will be proposed by the Archbishop at the opening of the Sydney diocese’s annual synod later this month. If endorsed by diocesan representatives, the project will be timed for 2009, the 50th anniversary of the first Billy Graham Crusade, at which Dr Jensen and his brother, Phillip, the Dean of St Andrew’s Cathedral, converted to Christianity.<\/p>\n