Gideons International Set to Commemorate 100th Anniversary of First Bible Placement
"The organization of Christian businessmen had humble beginnings, starting with a placement of only 25 Bibles in a hotel room in Montana."
On Oct. 4, 2008, The Gideons International will commemorate the 100th anniversary of its first placement of Bibles in hotel rooms. Gideons are in more than 180 countries, printed in over 80 languages, they have given away 1.3 billion Bibles (enough to reach about one in five people on earth), and are currently placing one million copies every five days. They also place Scripture in hospitals, prisons, military bases, schools and colleges.
According to a Christian Post report, at the 1908 Gideon Convention in Louisville, Ky., Gideons members were discussing how they could more effectively witness in the hotels, where they spent so much of their time, when one trustee proposed that they furnish a Bible for each bedroom of the hotels in the United States. The plan was adopted by the convention and dubbed, "The Bible Project."
