From the mountains of India to the plains of East Africa, millions of people around the world are still waiting to hear the gospel through Scripture. Many are still waiting on a complete Bible translation in their heart language. Others can't read, or are accustomed to learning through oral tradition. With End-to-End, unique and alternative methods for sharing Scripture are opening God's Word to oral communities around the world for the first time.
OPPORTUNITY
End-to-End is a ministry designed to share the gospel with non-readers and people in oral cultures by showing The JESUS Film, organizing Faith Comes by Hearing® Audio Bible listening groups, and facilitating Bible reading programs for those who can read. As people begin to encounter God through his Word, they also join or establish local churches.
TRANSFORMATION
End-to-End is currently operating in 26 countries around the world—including India, Mexico, Suriname and Togo—with plans for implementation in an additional 6 countries, including Nigeria and Myanmar, in 2017. The work is a collaboration among Bible Societies, the JESUS Film Project®, Faith Comes by Hearing and the Timothy Initiative.
Participants experience the End-to-End ministry in three phases: watching, hearing and reading God's Word.
- Watching: Community members gather to watch screenings of the JESUS Film, a portrayal of the Gospel of Luke that has been translated into more than 1,300 languages. After they watch, event leaders follow up with viewers—both individually and communally—to present the gospel.
- Hearing: Next, community members are organized into Faith Comes by Hearing Bible listening groups so they can listen to Audio Scripture recordings together.
- Reading: Once community members have watched the JESUS Film and joined a listening group, literate members who have listened to at least 60 percent of the New Testament in listening groups receive their very own Bibles. This Bible can be used for personal Scripture engagement and discipleship, but it can also be used by literate community members to help other people in their community to access God's Word.
By engaging with God's Word in this comprehensive and community-focused multimedia experience, people from oral cultures can encounter God in Scripture, often for the first time.