Aparecida, Brazil, May 17, 2007 / 11:47 am (CNA).- During his visit to the Farms of Hope in Brazil, which offers a drug rehabilitation program for young people, Pope Benedict XVI was formally handed the 10 millionth copy of the Aid to the Church in Need’s Children’s Bible in Brazilian Portuguese by Hans-Peter Röthlin, president of the international charity body.

The Children’s Bible has become an “integral part of the catechetical program at the diocesan level,” said Bishop Manoel Delson Pedreira da Cruz of Caico, Brazil. Copies of the Bible have been distributed to the poorest communities of Brazil and have been translated into Portuguese, Guarani and Tucano.

ACN has already distributed 45 million copies since 1979, in no less than 153 different languages and in 138 different countries.  The books contain a simplified retelling of key Bible texts in 99 short chapters.  For many children, the Bible is the first book they touch with their own hands, as many families lack the money to be able to buy books.  Therefore, the Bible serves not only as a catechetical but also an educational tool, especially in Africa and Latin America.

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