Saturday, December 6^th, 2003, at 8:15 PM

For the third consecutive year, the Bible Society held its annual Christmas fundraising concert at the UNESCO Palace. The purpose of the concert was to:

• Celebrate the birth of our Living Savior, Jesus Christ. The mystery of incarnation illustrated through music, singing and drama.
• Enjoy the warm fellowship of many church groups. This year’s celebration included the largest participation of inter-confessional groups representing all the major churches in Lebanon.
• Celebrate the declaration of the Year of the Bible 2004 campaign. The concert served as a follow up of the week’s public promotions.
• Raise funds for the Year of the Bible 2004 programs. The support will be allocated towards achieving the goals and objectives of the campaign.

The evening commenced with Byzantine hymns, skillfully performed by The Choir of the School of Church Music – Orthodox Archdiocese of Beirut, under the direction of Father Romanos Jubrane. The sound of A Capella mixed voices filled the hall with awe and respect to this centuries-old worship that had survived so vividly.

This was followed by a short video film presenting the Bible World program, which was supported through last year’s fundraising concert. More than 5,000 children have experienced Bible World in the past 12 months, each receiving their own copy of the Gospel of Luke. The video showed children and teens going through the Scripture-encounter program and expressing their joy and commitment towards the Word of God.

The next group to stage the UNESCO Palace was the Jesus, My Joy choir and drama team. This Maronite-Catholic group suddenly reminded us that we are in the 21^st century. They sung and danced to His Glory, the stage springing with life, as they celebrated in their young and dynamic style the evening. Then singer Salpi Keleshian joined them with her majestic voice, singing three solos-duets.

Another video presentation followed, focusing on the Year of the Bible 2004 campaign. “What does the Bible mean to you?” Several young people were interviewed as they explained what the Scriptures meant to them and how each one of them found a unique way of reading the Bible and interacting with its message. The printed Bible, audio Bible, Bible-on-the-Internet, CD-ROM Bible, Hand-held Bible – these were examples of what the young people are using to draw closer to God.

The Armenian Apostolic Orthodox Men’s Choir of the Great House of Cilicia presented in four traditional Armenian hymns in A Capella. They harmonized the music beyond comparison as they lifted their voices in true worship to Him. A word of welcome by Bible Society chairman, Rev. Dr. Salim Sahiouny, paved the way for the Bible Society Chorus to take the stage and close the evening, starting with Bach’s Jesus, Joy of Man’s Desiring and ending with O Holy Night! In between those two master pieces, several Christmas carols were presented and sung-along. But the peak of the performance was a solo presentation by Dr. Reem Deeb: Ave Maria.

The celebration ended, and as the people moved out of the hall, they were met by Scriptural book-tables manned by Bible Society staff, where many found an opportunity to do the right Christmas shopping!

 

Saturday, December 6^th, 2003, at 9:30 AM

Télé Lumière, the local Christian television/satellite, invited Rev. Lucien Accad for a “live” interview to talk about the Year of the Bible 2004. The interview lasted for 30 minutes, where several questions were addressed. The live interview was followed by an airing of the entire Press Conference held earlier that week.