A Little Blurb on Gideon Bibles
Gideons International
A copy of a Bible distributed by Gideons International.Gideons International is an evangelical Christian organization dedicated to distributing copies of the Bible over 80 languages in more than 180 countries of the world to those who might not otherwise encounter it, most famously in hotel rooms. The organization was founded in 1899 in Boscobel, Wisconsin as an early American parachurch organizations dedicated to Christian evangelism. It began distributing free Bibles, the work it is chiefly remembered for, in 1908, when the first Bibles were placed in the rooms of the Superior Hotel in Iron Mountain, Michigan.[1]
The organization describes its link to the story of Gideon thus:
"Gideon was a man who was willing to do exactly what God wanted him to do, regardless of his own judgment as to the plans or results. Humility, faith, and obedience were his great elements of character. This is the standard that The Gideons International is trying to establish in all its members, each man to be ready to do God's will at any time, at any place, and in any way that the Holy Spirit leads."
In keeping with this symbolism, the symbol of the Gideons is a two handled pitcher and torch, recalling Gideon's victory over the Midianites as described in Judges chapter 7.
In addition to their well-known hotel-room Bibles, the Gideons also distribute Bibles to members of the military of various countries, to hospitals, nursing homes, prisons and also to students. A typical Gideon Bible or New Testament will contain:
a short preface;
an apparatus suggesting Bible verses which may be of assistance in various sorts of trouble;
translations of John 3:16 into a variety of different languages and scripts;
the Bible text itself, without notes, references, or any other reference matter other than chapter and verse headings - this can either be the full Bible (typical of the copies placed in hotel rooms with the expectation the copy will remain in that room, rather than be taken by any one guest), or just the New Testament, Psalms, and Proverbs (typical of the copies handed out as gifts to particular individuals);
a short description of biblical salvation, with biblical quotations, and generally a place for the reader to sign and date his confession of Jesus (this is especially common in the shorter editions of just the New Testament and Psalms).
Popular culture references
The placement of Gideon Bibles in hotel rooms has made the Gideon Bible a frequent subject for comment in popular culture; it is alluded to among other places in the Beatles song "Rocky Raccoon", the Jethro Tull song "Locomotive Breath", and the Bill Hicks comedy album Rant in E-Minor, in which the legendary comedian speculates how Gideons operate and considers capturing and studying them as hobby.
"Gideon's Bible" is a song by John Cale, from his solo debut album "Vintage Violence" (1970).
The Manic Street Preachers titled their third album The Holy Bible. It included the lyrics "I know I believe in nothing but it is my nothing" and "All I preach is extinction". Of the album title, Richey Edwards (lyricist) said "In every hotel in the world, the only constant is the Holy Bible."
More recently, the Louisville, Kentucky band My Morning Jacket released a song called "Gideon" the lyrics of which say in part "Religion - Should Appeal To The Hearts Of The Young. Who Are You? What Have You Become?" The band The Hold Steady mentions a character named Gideon who rips the pages he likes from "the Bible from his bedstand in the motel" (presumably left by Gideons) in their song "Cattle and the Creeping Things".
Also in the 1996 film Mission: Impossible, Ethan Hunt stumbles upon a clue to unraveling who is conspiring against him when he notices that the Bible in his hotel room is a Gideons Bible but stamped from a hotel in a different city. When this clue is later revealed to the conspirator (played by Jon Voight), he remarks, "They stamped it didn't they, those damn Gideons."
Me:
For some reason I thought they were associated with the Jehovah's Witnesses or Mormons. Not really sure why, but I guess I do have some skeptism about most things. Cults scare me. But then again, in a wider sense every religion can somehow be seen as a cult. I think it's always good to have some rationality and think for yourself. I don't really care if some people judge me and think I'm a heathen for believing that there are some brainwashing tactics involved in religion. While I'm a basically a pluralist and yet still a christian, I know quite the contradiction I try to look into things before labeling something a cult or insane. Anyway, just some literature on those bibles you see in hotels, specifically Marriotts or if you go to UCF and saw the Gideon bibles being passed out in front of the student union.
A copy of a Bible distributed by Gideons International.Gideons International is an evangelical Christian organization dedicated to distributing copies of the Bible over 80 languages in more than 180 countries of the world to those who might not otherwise encounter it, most famously in hotel rooms. The organization was founded in 1899 in Boscobel, Wisconsin as an early American parachurch organizations dedicated to Christian evangelism. It began distributing free Bibles, the work it is chiefly remembered for, in 1908, when the first Bibles were placed in the rooms of the Superior Hotel in Iron Mountain, Michigan.[1]
The organization describes its link to the story of Gideon thus:
"Gideon was a man who was willing to do exactly what God wanted him to do, regardless of his own judgment as to the plans or results. Humility, faith, and obedience were his great elements of character. This is the standard that The Gideons International is trying to establish in all its members, each man to be ready to do God's will at any time, at any place, and in any way that the Holy Spirit leads."
In keeping with this symbolism, the symbol of the Gideons is a two handled pitcher and torch, recalling Gideon's victory over the Midianites as described in Judges chapter 7.
In addition to their well-known hotel-room Bibles, the Gideons also distribute Bibles to members of the military of various countries, to hospitals, nursing homes, prisons and also to students. A typical Gideon Bible or New Testament will contain:
a short preface;
an apparatus suggesting Bible verses which may be of assistance in various sorts of trouble;
translations of John 3:16 into a variety of different languages and scripts;
the Bible text itself, without notes, references, or any other reference matter other than chapter and verse headings - this can either be the full Bible (typical of the copies placed in hotel rooms with the expectation the copy will remain in that room, rather than be taken by any one guest), or just the New Testament, Psalms, and Proverbs (typical of the copies handed out as gifts to particular individuals);
a short description of biblical salvation, with biblical quotations, and generally a place for the reader to sign and date his confession of Jesus (this is especially common in the shorter editions of just the New Testament and Psalms).
Popular culture references
The placement of Gideon Bibles in hotel rooms has made the Gideon Bible a frequent subject for comment in popular culture; it is alluded to among other places in the Beatles song "Rocky Raccoon", the Jethro Tull song "Locomotive Breath", and the Bill Hicks comedy album Rant in E-Minor, in which the legendary comedian speculates how Gideons operate and considers capturing and studying them as hobby.
"Gideon's Bible" is a song by John Cale, from his solo debut album "Vintage Violence" (1970).
The Manic Street Preachers titled their third album The Holy Bible. It included the lyrics "I know I believe in nothing but it is my nothing" and "All I preach is extinction". Of the album title, Richey Edwards (lyricist) said "In every hotel in the world, the only constant is the Holy Bible."
More recently, the Louisville, Kentucky band My Morning Jacket released a song called "Gideon" the lyrics of which say in part "Religion - Should Appeal To The Hearts Of The Young. Who Are You? What Have You Become?" The band The Hold Steady mentions a character named Gideon who rips the pages he likes from "the Bible from his bedstand in the motel" (presumably left by Gideons) in their song "Cattle and the Creeping Things".
Also in the 1996 film Mission: Impossible, Ethan Hunt stumbles upon a clue to unraveling who is conspiring against him when he notices that the Bible in his hotel room is a Gideons Bible but stamped from a hotel in a different city. When this clue is later revealed to the conspirator (played by Jon Voight), he remarks, "They stamped it didn't they, those damn Gideons."
Me:
For some reason I thought they were associated with the Jehovah's Witnesses or Mormons. Not really sure why, but I guess I do have some skeptism about most things. Cults scare me. But then again, in a wider sense every religion can somehow be seen as a cult. I think it's always good to have some rationality and think for yourself. I don't really care if some people judge me and think I'm a heathen for believing that there are some brainwashing tactics involved in religion. While I'm a basically a pluralist and yet still a christian, I know quite the contradiction I try to look into things before labeling something a cult or insane. Anyway, just some literature on those bibles you see in hotels, specifically Marriotts or if you go to UCF and saw the Gideon bibles being passed out in front of the student union.