The Casper Church hosted John L. Sliffe from the Enduring Word Museum in Weatherford, Texas, on the last Sabbath in April. Sliffe and his wife, Angel, brought a replica of the Gutenberg Printing Press and an original King James Version Bible from the first 50 ever printed (one of only 17 original pieces of Wycliffe work).
Sliffe fascinated students at Mountain Road Christian Academy the previous day with his presentation on the history of the Bible, the history of Reformation, the history of written communication, their work with the Dead Sea Scrolls, and their work with the ossuary of Simon of Cyrene. He even gave them the opportunity to print their own text with the working Gutenberg Press.
The exhibit and the presentation was advertised as a community event, and the Casper Church welcomed members of the Casper community to this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.
Erin Zavodny, a member of the Casper Church and a music teacher, said, “I found it fascinating, affirming and humbling. To see relics such as a page from the original Gutenberg Bible was amazing. The detail and preservation of the different scrolls and seeing how God gave so much evidence that His Word is true and valid was affirming. It was humbling to be reminded that many people gave so much, including their lives, to bring us the Word of Life.”
Traci Pike, a Mountain Road Christian Academy teacher, added, “How truly awesome to learn about the Bible in such a hands-on way. We even got to print a page. And we got to see and touch a page Gutenberg printed. Amazing stuff!”
If you are interested in hosting the exhibit and presentation, contact John Sliffe at john@theenduringword.org or 817.771.3942.
Gabriela Anca Vincent is a member of the Casper Church in Casper, Wyoming.
