Fans of a best-selling audio Bible will now get to hear distinguished African-American voices read the Old Testament version, available for the first time Wednesday through the release of Inspired by… The Bible Experience: The Complete Bible.
Its predecessor, Inspired by… The Bible Experience: New Testament, was named 2007 Audiobook of the Year by the Audio Publishing Association in early June and has become the best-selling audio Bible in history with more than 310,000 units sold.
The Old Testament version features the voices of over 400 distinguished African-American actors, musicians, personalities and clergy, including 2007 Academy Award-winning actor Forest Whitaker (Moses), Angela Bassett (Esther), Cuba Gooding Jr. (Jonah), Denzel and Pauletta Washington (Song of Songs), LL Cool J (Samson), and Bishop T.D. Jakes (Abraham), among others.
As they read the Old Testament, based on Zondervan’s contemporary Today’s New International Version (TNIV) translation, the voices of prominent African American figures will be accompanied by original musical underscore by the Prague Symphony Orchestra and Hollywood-style sound design created at Technicolor Studios.
“Set to life-like sounds effects and an original musical underscore, this cross-generational and cross-cultural roster of talent breaks new ground in their unique presentation of the Bible and literally transports the listener back 2000 years, in the time of Christ,” stated a news release.
While Inspired by…The Bible Experience: The Complete Bible is expected to be welcomed by similar markets that made the first release a selling success, the audiobook is also expected to garner criticism from Christian conservatives who disagree with the TNIV translation, particularly with its rendering of male terms – replacing "son" and "father" to "child" and "parent."
Notably, however, despite the replacement of “father” with “parent” in the audiobook, the voice of God is recorded by a male actor, Samuel L. Jackson.
The Bible Experience is also available for download on a book-by-book basis through the internet.
The project is produced by Los Angeles-based Inspired By...Media Group.
On the Web: More info on The Bible Experience at zondervan.com or inspiredby.com
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MY LORD THIS IS THE BEST READING OF THE BIBLE I HAVE EVE HEARD AND MY KIDS LOVE IT ALSO, THIS IS NOT ABOUT COLOR, AND IT SEEN NO ONE HAVE A PROBLEM WHEN THEY MAKE MOVIES ON TV AND BIG SCREEN THEATER WHERE THEY SHOW JESUS WHITE AND ALL THE CAST ARE WHITE ALSO THIS IS GOOD FOR BLACK PEOPLE BECAUSE SOME PEOPLE THINK JESUS IS A WHITE GOD AND THIS MAKE HIM REACHABLE TO EVERYONE, I CAN'T WAIT UNTIL THE MOVIE COME OUT ALL BLACK CAST. THIS EASTER WHEN YOU LOOK AT THE MOIVES THEY WILL ALL BE WHITE PEOPLE IT'S TIME FOR GOD TO BE KIND AND RAIN ON THE BLACKS WE HAVE GIFTS AND TALENTS TO AND WHEN THE BLACK COME UP AND OUT THE WHOLE COUNTRY WILL RAISE UP THERE WAS NO WOMEN RIGHT UNTIL BLACK GOT THIR RIGHT THIS WAS GOD DOING THEN THE WOMEN RIGHT CAME THEM OTHER RIGHT CAME OUT WHEN BLACK PEOPLE RISE THE WHOLE WORLD WILL RISE TO BE MORE THEN COPY CAT.I LOVE THIS AND I AM GOING OUT TO BUY IT GAIN TO DAY IT ALL ABOUT THE LORD AND THIS PROJECT HAVE CAUSE SO MANY TO UNDERSTAND AND TO BELIEVE IN GOD AS A REACHABLE GOD AND NOT JUST A GOD FOR THE WHITE PEOPLE HE IS EVERYONE GOD JESUS CHOOSEN HIS GROUP TO WORK WITH ALSO, SO Bible Experience CHOOSEN THERE GROUP AND GOD CHOOSE TO BLESS THE WORK OF THERE HAND THANK YOU FOR DOIN THIS AND FOR DOING IT WITH ALL BLACK CAST DID ANY OF THE WHITE MOVIE CALL BLACKS FOR THEIR MOVIE TO GOD BE THE GLORY BECAUSE JUST ASK HE GOT GLORY OUR OF ALL WHIE DOING SOMETHING HE GETTING GLORY OUT OF ALL BLACKS DOING SOMETHING HIS GLORY IS ON GOING WE CAN LAY BACK AND MIX COLOR SOMETHING ARE AND WILL BE DOIN WITH A ALL BLACK CAST MANY TIME FOR THE GLORY OF GOD . MAY GOD BLESS THIS WORK AND CAUSE IT TO OVERFLOW FOR THE PEOPLE HE HAVE CAUSE TO LEARN OF HIM AND COME TO HIM BY THESE CD THANK YOU FOR THE GIFT THE TIME THE LOVE THAT WAS PUT IN THESE CD, AND IF WE HAD TO SIT AND LOOK AT WHTE PEOPLE ON ALL THE TV CHANNEL AND ALL THE MOVIE IT TIME FOR THEM TO SEE BLACK EOPLE ON ALL THE TV CHANNEL AND MOVIE WE HAVE GOOD WORDS ALSO
I love the Bible Experience it makes it so easy to read the Bible if you can hear the words as you read them. I have a Bachelor's so its not like I can't read, that's not what I mean. I mean it comes more alive to hear the different voices speaking the words while you read them. With that said there is something I have to get off my chest and I hope it doesn't offend anyone but I really must say it.
Has anyone ever heard that old saying "if you ignore something it will go away?" If you compound upon it then it will stick around. I know its only been 30-40 years depending on what part of the country that you live in that desegration has occured and I know God says the sins of the Father will be visited even onto the third and fourth generation, but if you segregate in any shape form or fashion then you propogate a system that should have never happened in the first place.
Also it is not reverse discremination, it is simply discremination because you limit everyone when you limit to skin pigmentation. No not a certain race because we are all the same race. God enjoys diversity he encourages diversity but we are not a seperate race, we are one race we all stem from Adam and Eve and so we are one race.
I will continue to listen to "The Bible Experience" because it is beautifully read and beautifully done, I just wish the color issue had not touched the Bible.
You know after being on this site for awhile, I am finding it hard to explain these thumbs down on these posts. It is not like we have offended anyone on anything. If you do not agree then post it, don't hide.
As far as SLJ being the voice of God... I wonder how they are going to do that since the voices for The Angel of the Lord, The Lord, and the Lord God Almighty will have to be different considering that The Angel of The LORD is Jesus, the Lord is too and depending on which Hebrew word is used then God the Father would have to be different as well... cannot role them all up in the same voice.
I really enjoyed the New Testament edition. That being said, I really didn't like Samuel L. Jackson doing the voice of God. I have nothing against him, his voice is just too distinct and hard to take seriously.
LOL... on the other hand, I find it a little humorous to think about SLJ being the voice of God... a certain movie title comes to mind... :)
Samuel L. Jackson... OK can someone explain to me why they would use this man for the voice of God? Besides his grossly socialistic and liberal agenda...