Modern takes on Scripture included generating awareness for homelessness and breast cancer, as well as new interactive product

Publishers brought forth the Word in many shapes, sizes and formats during the show.

Crossway, still riding high from the success of its ESV Study Bible, gave a 55% "ECPA Book of the Year" special to retailers ordering the study Bible at ICRS.

The publisher that saw its Bible sales increase 94% in the last 12 months also announced new covers available on its ESV Study Bible , the Aug. 31 release of the Oswald Chambers Devotional Bible with ESV text and the ESV Christmas Outreach New Testament, a Christian retail exclusive.

Other new Bibles being promoted at the show were Zondervan's the Stewardship Study Bible, a Thompson Answer Bible for youth from Hartnell House Publishing, in cooperation with Kirkbride Bible Co., and the Transformation Study Bible with General Editor Warren W. Wiersbe from David C. Cook.

B&H Publishing Group announced a major re-launch and re-branding of its Holman Christian Standard Bible (HCSB) in the coming year.

The Christian Walk Bible, from Word to World Publishing, was heavily promoted during the week with an army of enthusiastic volunteers passing out fliers across the exhibit hall floor. The Bible, from general editor Mathews Vergis, stresses the disciplines of fasting and prayer.

Bold, new modern takes on Scripture also generated attention, including Bibles aimed at generating awareness for homelessness and breast cancer as well as a new interactive product.

Teen-issue authors Michael and Hayley DiMarco, whose bus was parked outside the convention center, were to head out from Denver on an ambitious, long-distance project to give the Bible an "authentic" voice and raise awareness of a growing social problem.

The husband-and-wife team, whose Hungry Planet publishing enterprise has seen more than 30 books released in the last six years, will be traveling about 10,000 miles in the next few months to record the entire New Testament using narrators who are homeless.

Touring the country with their 3-year-old daughter in a 40-foot mobile home, the DiMarcos will be recruiting volunteer narrators for the project through homeless ministries. The New Living Translation will be used for the project, due to be released by Tyndale House Publishers.

The couple will be writing and video-journaling about their trip, and posting resources on their Web site, www.hpbp.org, which will provide ways for readers to get involved in local community projects. Michael DiMarco said the new Bible recording was intended for the generation to which he and his wife were committed, which "connects with social justice and authenticity, grittiness and rawness."

The Message Solo: Remix Pink (NavPress), arriving Sept. 15, was promoted during CBA's Members Breakfast. The project, a Christian retail channel exclusive, will give proceeds to a breast cancer charity. It also presents shoppers with the opportunity to write personal messages on bookplates included in The Message Book of Hope, a booklet given to those fighting breast cancer. NavPress was also at ICRS to make videos of those affected by breast cancer for a compilation video to be shown later this fall.

The Pink Ribbon Bible, also promoting breast cancer awareness, was announced at the Zondervan/HarperOne booth. One dollar from the sale of each Bible will go to support breast cancer awareness.

Also at the Zondervan booth, the Glo Bible, arriving in October, was presented on video screens. Glo marries a digital edition of the Bible with thousands of articles, photos, animations, videos and maps. Interactive features allow users to customize reading plans and to journal, with access available from any computer and on smart phones.

With a suggested retail price of $79.99, Glo will initially be available only through Christian retail stores, with distribution by Zondervan. "We hope this will motivate stores to pick up on this in a special way," said Nelson Saba, founder and CEO of Glo creator Immersion Digital. Initial reaction to the new product had been "very encouraging," he said. Saba was also the creator behind Tyndale's iLumina, which has sold 600,000 units to date.

"Two entire generations have been born in a digital world who favor digital media over any other," Saba said. "But there’s very little that is good interactive media that connects them with the Bible, that is designed for them. We really felt that the time was right to create a digital Bible that would connect with this generation, as an alternative to paper for them, because they don't use it."

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