Hundreds of Grade 7 pupils from rural schools in Limpopo stood in absolute awe this week as they were handed their own Bibles as part of the Bible Society of South Africa’s third annual Word Riders motorcycle tour.

One of these schools was Muthuhadini Combined School in Elim. There was much excitement at the school on Monday morning as the group of motorcyclists roared into the school premises. With them, the Word Riders brought a message of hope and, upon being handed their own Bible, many Grade 7 pupils stood in absolute disbelief as they would not be able to afford a Bible under normal circumstances. The need for Bibles became even more evident when some of the teachers at the school also asked if they could be given a Bible.

The week-long Word Riders tour began on Saturday (13th) when 31 motorcyclists left Bible House in Kempton Park, with stopovers at towns and villages not only in Limpopo but also in Mpumalanga. In total, 1 700km will be travelled with 2 000 Bibles, as well as booklets explaining how the Bible should be read, being distributed to the Grade 7 pupils at 31 schools. On Monday, six rural schools were visited.

According to the Bible Society’s communications officer, Mr Leon Steenkamp, who accompanied the Word Riders during the visit to Muthuhadini, the donation of the Bibles was made possible by the Bible Society’s Bibles for Grade 7 Learners Project, as well as funds that were raised by the bikers themselves.

Steenkamp invited people who would like to learn more about this tour or who would like to become involved with the Bibles for Grade 7 Learners Project to contact the Bible Society. For more information, Mims Turley can be contacted at 083 255 5765, or email her at [email protected]. Every R35 the Bible Society receives helps towards giving a child in need an Outreach Bible.

(For day-to-day feedback on the tour, readers can visit Steenkamp’s blog at wordpress.wordriders)