On May 7, 2020, the theme song of the Bible Museum in China, called The Journey of Bible through the Divine Land, was published, praising how God’s love is rooted deeply in the hearts and blood of Chinese Christians.
The song was especially dedicated to all the western missionaries who devoted their youth to preach Christianity in China, and also a large number of nameless missionaries who never managed to return to their home countries.
Last year marks the 100th anniversary of the publication of the Chinese Union Version (CUV) Bible, which took almost 30 years to translate. It was officially published in 1919 and has been widely used in most Chinese churches since then.
To commemorate the evangelistic efforts and CUV Bible translation in China, the Three Beams of Light Society, whose mission is to bring biblical revelation to China and enlighten the country with ecumenical values, promoted social progress, intiated a “2019 CUV Bible 100th Anniversary Hand Copying Project”.
A total of 1,189 pastors and followers worldwide were supposed to participate in the project as the Bible consists of 1,189 chapters. According to one of the initiators, Pastor Wang Wenfeng, who also launched the notable “Oxford Consensus 2013”, the society received versions from different provinces in China and overseas, including scripts copied in local dialects and ethnic minority languages.
Therefore the Society planned to build a Bible museum in China that can host all these hand-written works and provide more information about the Bible.
To celebrate these achievements, and also giving consideration to this year’s global coronavirus crisis, Pastor Wang and Brother Xiao, who are initiators of the Society, found it extremely urgent to reiterate the Bible’s revelation and enlightenment and to pray for mercy and grace from God. After they completed the lyrics, Mr. Li Guangping, producer of the museum theme song, composed the music together with his wife, Ms. Lin Jing.
The song was then recorded by four Chinese singers, who performed independently under strict quarantine, which was also viewed as a great miracle and a blessing from by God.
Here are some of the lyrics from “The Journey of Bible through the Divine Land”:
In the days and nights, gone with the years,
Filled with your sorrow and melancholy.
Upon the stretching paths and trickling streams,
your precious blood and your heartbeat flowed.
The western regions may be wild and vast,
The ancient roads may be endless and all thorns,
Your grace winds through the Great Wall and the Yangtze River.
