Since Wayne Dye’s “Eight conditions for scripture engagement” article was first published in 2009 over 2,500 Bibles, New Testaments, and Scripture portions have been made available online, in print, audio and video forms.
Digital publishing brings huge opportunities for access, and for not only getting a message out, but in many contexts for creating dialogue and community.
But, publishing alone does not guarantee that Scriptures will be accessed and engaged with. Here is a brief reworking of the eight conditions with a focus on digital products and strategies:
- Appropriate Written, Spoken and Visual Language – Is your main content in the appropriate language? If you are using a language of wider communication for your interface is that acceptable or a barrier? For audio/visual media are your audio and visuals culturally appropriate? Are they attractive and engaging? Where do they add to your message, where do they detract?
- Appropriate Translation – Not just the words and meanings, but visuals, and design elements (eg right to left menus as well as text, checking video products created from a different worldview, soundtracks being less universal than thought.)
- Accessible forms of Digital Scripture – This might include correct video region, operating system, online or offline sharing, factoring common screen sizes, exploring appropriate media eg comics, style of illustrations, offline content downloadable in different formats.
- Background Knowledge of the Hearer – For Scripture this would include existing knowledge of Bible, culture, and other worldviews. Does the community know how to operate the tech, do they know what they should and should not share, how media literate are they, do they regularly watch other western media and how do they interpret that – what extra information needs to be provided and how?
- Availability – Online or offline – Can they find it? Can they download it? Can they share it? Legal and physical restrictions. File sizes, download time and cost, possibility to adapt and incorporate.
- Spiritual Hunger of Community Members – How ‘hungry’ may determine how hard you have to work. Hungry doesn’t mean they will recognize that what you offer is edible food.
- Freedom to Commit to Christian Faith – Is the content considered okay, uncool, or blasphemous? How will this affect how you promote? How freely can your audience openly own or share resources? How much do you require contact details and tracking for analytics? How much does your usage data put people at risk? Will being associated with you or your product/agency on social media put someone at risk?
- Partnership Between Translators and other Stakeholders – Partnership between producers of digital media and other stakeholders. Are you producing materials for people, producing materials with people, serving and equipping people to reproduce or produce fresh material themselves?
So there are some quick thoughts. Do they fit your own context? Are some more applicable than others? As this is online you are welcome to comment, tweet, post, reblog, share, affirm, disagree, or expand on these ideas further in a post or video of your own.
Adapted from digital2031.wordpress.com/2015/07/27/eight-conditions-for-engagement-with-digital-scriptures/
For the original Eight Conditions article see: scripture-engagement.org/content/eight-conditions-scripture-engagement. These eight categories also form the framework for conversation starters and a more detailed assessment tool at EMDC.guide.