Bible Society Australia is telling the story of Christ’s death and resurrection in a series of text messages this Easter under the banner of a campaign aimed at helping people engage in a greater way with the Bible.
People who sign up to the ‘Holy Text’ campaign will receive a series of texts – about seven a day – from eyewitnesses to the events of Easter, starting on Palm Sunday (9th April) and running through until Easter Sunday (16th April). Those who will be texting include Mary Magdalene, Simon Peter, John Ben Zebedee and Mark.
While the text messages will be based on Scripture, they have been dramatised, according to BSA spokesman John Pearson. “Relevant SMS’ will include the Bible reference (chapter and verse) where the text is from. The scripting has been assessed by our senior Bible consultant Rev Dr John Harris.”
Mr Pearson says the motivation for the campaign is to “re-tell the Easter story in a new way, in an everyday context and throughout a week where commercial distractions can drown out the core message of Easter”.
“We want to encourage people to enagage with the Bible this Easter. The initiative has the potential to connect with people who may not read a Bible or hear the Easter message at church.”
Thousands of people have already signed up the campaign. To do so, simply text the word ‘Holy’ to 0488 222 777. The service is free but people will be charged by their own mobile provider when they SMS to register.
Those who don’t wish to receive texts can follow the story in real-time via Facebook or Twitter.
