The evangelistic initiative Bible Reading Marathons 2005 organised by the US-based Bible Pathway Ministries is coming up in many parts of the world. In America, it is scheduled for next month on dates leading up to the 5th May National Day of Prayer. With the venue set at Cinco de Mayo this year, Bible Pathway wanted to put a special emphasis on reaching out to the Hispanic community.

The history of the scripture-reading marathon saw it first take place on 1st January 1990 when East European communist bloc governments declined it one by one. So at 00:00am, a small group of believers began reading from Genesis Chapter 1 on the Mount of Olives in Jerusalem, followed in 30-minute segments by believers from Japan, France, Holland, and the United States, people from all around the world read the precious Word in their own language.

The initiative has awakened people across the globe to realise the desperate need for a return to reading the Word of God.

Dr John A. Hash, Founder of Bible Pathway Ministries, has also expressed deep concern about growing biblical illiteracy throughout America. In his point of view, the Godless spirit that envelops the world is deeply rooted by its lack of knowledge of the Bible, our Creator's Guide on how He expects us to live. Dr Hash therefore is determined to carry out a massive initiative in a bid to raise the awareness of the importance of reading the Bible.

The International Bible Reading Association (IBRA) was established under the Co-Chair of Dr. Hash and Dr. Bill Bright, the founder of Campus Crusade for Christ and the presidency of Richard Dingman of the Free Congress Foundation. IBRA urged the US President George Bush to declare a Decade of Bible Reading and to enlist one billion people in the world to read the whole Bible. This is the first and only proclamation in the history of the United States urging people to "read all the Bible."

Since 1990, Bible Reading Marathons have spread to all nations such as Canada, England, France, Germany, India, Holland, Hungary, Mexico, Nigeria, New Zealand, Peru, Sweden, and Russia.

In America, the event has become a tradition. Every year, Christians gather on the steps of the US Capitol Building in Washington, DC for a continuous public reading from the Holy Bible for approximately 80-hours. Bible Reading Marathons have been held in conjunction with the National Day of Prayer.

The National Day of Prayer Coordinators Conference said, "God's Word and prayer are the real solutions to our nation's problems. This can only be accomplished by reading all the Bible because God has magnified His Word above His Name [Psalms 138:2]."

Barbara Bivens of Bible Pathway Ministries said to Crosswalk.com that the scripture-reading marathons in 2005 will be in early May at public places throughout the United States and Canada. The 2005 Marathon effort hopes to stress on the freedom to read God's Word and to pray in public venues among the Hispanic people, according to Bivens.

To organise the Bible Marathon event in your country, please visit the Bible Pathway Ministries website for online resources.