International (MNN) — What do Bibles and McDonald’s McNuggets have to do with each other?
Hopefully nothing.
A recent study conducted by the Willow Creek Association asked more than 200,000 church members what they needed most from the Church. Almost 90 percent said they wanted help to understand the Bible more in depth.
That's why Paul Caminiti has been appointed the new vice president of Bible Engagement at International Bible Society-Send the Light.
"The whole idea of the whole Bible is something that people are hungering for," Caminiti said, who begins his new position today. "There seems to be less interest in a Bible 'McNugget' approach to the Bible, and people don't want to dabble in it anymore. People are saying, 'God has given us this big volume,’ and I think people are frustrated that they know so little about it."
This new attitude has replaced the old approach win which people simply hoped they and others took the meaning of Scripture seriously, and they and settled for a small 'McNugget' of Scripture.
Part of this shift in thinking includes not only studying the Bible alone, but studying the Bible in community.
"For the most part, we've been sending people off by themselves into their sunrooms with a reading plan, saying, 'Go out and read the whole Bible. Good luck'," Caminiti said. "I think part of this movement is a result of churches saying, 'No, this is something that if it's ever going to get done is going to have to be done together.'"
Caminiti said two things caused the shift in attitude. First, with the spread of technology and more and more knowledge at our fingertips, people have become more educated. Because of this education, they want to know more about the past, which includes history in the Bible.
Also, Caminiti believes that as atheists form more sophisticated arguments for why God cannot exist, Christians are growing concerned that these arguments will cause doubt. Knowing more about their faith will prevent such doubt.
Getting this knowledge into the hands of vast number of Christians who want to know more is the main reason IBS-STL created Caminiti’s new position. Caminiti worked for Zondervan for the past 11 years. From his biblical training as a young boy to his last position with Zondervan, Caminiti said he feels God has prepared him for this new mission.
"We’re hoping to be a catalyst to other groups of people, denominations, churches, who want to get there, who want to help lead their people into that deeper dive," Caminiti said about IBS-STL. They plan to do so by developing programs for churches. These programs will not just be centered around one single person, but the church as a community.
For more information on these programs, or to find out how you can help, go to ibsstl.org.
