And the Word became water-proof

The Bible is the best selling book of all times. About 25 million Bibles were sold in the US in 2005. There are over 500 English translations and the Bible comes in varying forms. We have the Students Bible, The Grace for the Moment Study Bible, Women Bible, Brides Devotional Bible, Couples Bible, Cowboys Devotional Bible, Soul Surfer Bible, the colorful Rainbow Study Bible, Good News for Modern Man, Super-Heroes Bible, Outdoors Bible, Woman Thou Art Loosed Bible, etc, etc. They come in hard covers, leather bound, bonded-leather, imitation-leather, red letter edition, ribbons, special boxes, special message from Max Lucado and so on. It may not be long before we have customized Bibles, say one with personal autograph from Rick Warren? Nelson inc. got help from the fashion industry color reports to decide on the Bible cover color. The BibleZine drew inspiration from teen girls’ magazines. The sidebars of the Bible sharing beauty secrets as:

“Have you ever had a white stain appear underneath the arms of your favorite dark blouse? Don’t freak out. You can quickly give deodorant spots the boot. Just grab a spare toothbrush, dampen with a little water and liquid soap, and gently scrub until the stain fades away. As you wash away the stain, praise God for cleansing us from all the wrong things we have done. (1 John 1:9)” (From the book “Rapture Ready: Adventures in the parallel universe of Christian pop culture” by Daniel Radosh) Along came the water-proof Bible, published by the same Nelson Publishing House, Texas. They also have the 'Flap Bible' which has to be read with a magnifying glass. The water-proof Bible was launched in India by OM in Kerala and hit the news in Kohima today. Interestingly the Bible is printed in China. The size and shape are described. It costs Rs. 290 only (not 299, for we are Christians) and the OM expects to sell 5000 copies in India. This makes me wonder how many Bibles have become ‘un-readable’ after wetting it that warranted one to come up with a water-proof Bible. Unless of course, the other name for the water-proof Bible is ‘The Swimmers Bible’ or ‘Bathroom Bible’ (they're calling it 'Immerse Bible'). It would take spirituality to a new high in allowing one to have Bible study while in the showers. The statistics are not however encouraging. Majority of the people who have Bibles do not read them. Those who read the Bible ‘correctly’ will be less and those who put what they read into practice even lesser. Now, will this Bible really sell in Nagaland? Yes, on one condition: if the Bible’s appearance goes well with the Sunday morning dress.