My name is Marty, and I do not claim to be a Christian. Regardless, since 2010 I have wanted to read the Bible in its entirety. I believe that as an American, gaining a personal understanding of the book that sits at the foundation of our country is important for thoughtful citizenship in our great country. To date I have not achieved my goal of reading the Bible, which is why I've launched this campaign to create a service that will help me and others like me overcome the obstacles that have stalled my progress.
Short Summary
The Cover-to-Cover service helps you and I achieve our personal goal of reading the entire Bible (or just the Old Testament or New Testament) in a single year. It addresses two main problems with self-guided reading plans:
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Accountability. Humans stay more committed when they have skin in the game. Cover-to-Cover is a paid service that connects you with other similarly motivated individuals, creating social and financial incentives for you to finish the marathon.
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Comprehension. If you're planning to read the entire Bible, chances are you also want understand what you're reading. On your own, you can scour the internet and hope you find good answers, but this tactic is hit-or-miss and creates fatigue. Cover-to-Cover provides a qualified, non-denominational guide to handle Q&A live on your year-long journey.
Mark Kwiatkowski will be your full-time guide for the program in 2017. Mark is a candidate in the Master of Theological Studies (MTS) program at Boston University. He brings not only a diversity of personal experiences but, more importantly, objectivity in presenting facts and opposing perspectives about the Bible.
What You Get & What We Need
The program starts on Monday, January 2, 2017, and it's simple.
- Live, recorded GoToWebinar sessions Monday-Friday, online with your guide and other students.
- If you miss one, you can catch up by listening to a recorded session, which will be uploaded to a private YouTube channel for all active students.
- Each 45-minute session contains three segments: Read. Explain. Discuss.
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Read. The guide will read the day's passages aloud.
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Explain. The guide provides additional historical and cultural context around the day's passages.
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Discuss. Ask your questions and get perspectives (not absolute answers) first from your guide and then from other students. A private online forum for students and the guide will be available to continue the conversation outside of scheduled sessions.
Sessions will be recorded and run daily at the following times (in Eastern Time):
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5:00pm Old Testament
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5:45pm New Testament
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9:00pm Old Testament
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9:45pm New Testament
If we meet our goal, Indiegogo will collect 8-10% and the remainder will be used to fund the full-time, salaried guide and to pay for operational costs like GoToWebinar. If the funding goal is not met, no funds will be collected.
The Impact
The Bible is not something to take lightly, regardless of whether you are a Christian. And I believe to engage in intelligent, informed conversations on the subject of Christianity one should have at least read the Bible, cover-to-cover.
Risks & Challenges
Funding aside, there is no serious risk to successful delivery of the program. If you see any risks or concerns that we have not anticipated, please start a conversation on the Comments tab.
Other Ways You Can Help
Even if you're this commitment is not for you, you just might know people in your network who would be interested. Please help by spreading the word (no pun intended)!
NOTE: Cover-to-Cover will run as one of the first JN1:5 operations.
