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Man copies Bible out by hand


Still Waters

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In the beginning, Phillip Patterson decided to write out every word in the Bible.

On empty pages, he wrote of Adam, an ark, locusts, loaves, fishes and the resurrection in his neat, looping cursive. Four years of work begat more than 2,400 pages and left a multitude of pens in its wake. Now, as he copies the last words of the last book, Patterson sees all that he has created.

http://www.dailymail...-day-years.html

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It begs the question "Why?" It's all been done before, and that effort looks more like a huge pile of my daughter's homework. Now if he'd produced something like this........

bookoflindisfarne4_zps0627d76d.jpg

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Must of really been bored.

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It begs the question "Why?" It's all been done before...

If you need to ask "why", chances are you'll never know.

I personally think it was a great thing. Not just because it was the Bible. Anyone who writes out by hand an entire set of ancient texts deserves some noteworthiness. In the days of the printing press and computer technology, the written form has become almost a lost art. And to devote his time to something that means so much to him, I expect it was a journey in itself to write it. The highs as he finishes a chapter or book, the lows as he struggles through tough parts, the frustration when a single error requires him to re-write the whole page, the exertion as he goes through weariness and disease to the point of exhaustion. I imagine May 11 will be a somewhat cathartic day for this fellow. Having a hand-written modern Bible is something of a unique artefact. Who knows, when the world destroys itself, maybe that will be the last book available :P

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'The next day I started researching pens and pencils and paper and never looked back,' and 'On empty pages,'

==================

I think this is being over dramatized.ofcourse its going to be empty pages! And researching pens, pencils and paper? oh come on, any good stationers should give you the answer straight away.

This guy definitely had a lot of time on his hands, sad this is the best he could do with it.

I am thinking about writing out "War and Peace" does any one know what kind of chair I should sit on and do I drink normal coffee or decaf?

Edited by freetoroam
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'man spends 14hrs a day and four years copying out bible by hand.'

.

something tells me he's single?

and unemployed.

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'man spends 14hrs a day and four years copying out bible by hand.'

.

something tells me he's single?

and unemployed.

Unemployed I would imagine, he could have used those hours looking for a job.

As for single, do you mean as in braincell?

Edited by freetoroam
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Interesting. A similar profound and lasting devotion to Holy Writ was represented cinematically in the post-apocalyptic film of a few years ago, "The Book of Eli." This appears to be a remarkable instance of "life imitating art." If you haven't seen the film, it's worth a gander if only for its twist on the durability of human memory and of what lasting knowledge which still exists in print in this, The Electronic Age.

Edited by szentgyorgy
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Ealdwita--Is that Saxon or Gothic? And if your daughter has that much homework, he or she must be a Helveti, or just a Vandal. Regards.

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Unemployed I would imagine, he could have used those hours looking for a job.

As for single, do you mean as in braincell?

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Whats with the art thing, this is not art, its just a man who`s lack of imagination to keep himself occupied by other means, has driven him to copy a book by hand, a book which is freely available in every hotel room.

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How long did it take?

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As for single, do you mean as in braincell?

:-D

.

I meant single as in 'voted most likely to die a sad, lonely, embittered virgin' freet, but the one braincell thing works for me too.....

:-)

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How long did it take?

14 hours a day for four years.

I see he is a retired interior designer, so am surprised someone with that kind of knowledge would of had to "research" pens, pencils and paper. I can think of better ways to send my retirement when it comes, but this is not it...each to his own i suppose.

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If you haven't seen the film, it's worth a gander if only for its twist on the durability of human memory and of what lasting knowledge which still exists in print in this, The Electronic Age.

.

i've got a couple of thousand books (none of which i'd copy out by hand, no matter how good they were!), and wouldn't have a kindle for all the opium in chinatown.

books are things of beauty, to be treasured. physical objects, to be held and touched, not a mass of zeros & ones on some impersonal piece of plastic, to be deleted when read.

:-)

Edited by shrooma
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I can think of better ways to send my retirement when it comes, but this is not it...each to his own i suppose.

.

true.

it must've meant something to him, have been important in some way, so who are we to mock eh?

*s*******

:-)

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who are we to mock eh?

*s*******

:-)

.

aw, come ON language filter! I used a word meaning 'a smothered or suppressed laugh', not a racially offensive term!

it's a good job I don't live in scunthorpe, or like eating cockles, or have a parsemonious attitude, or go yachting on lake derwentwater isn't it for god's sake!!

:-P

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Eh. So many people waste most of their retirement. What good does bingo games or puttering about in the garden do?

This guy just has a rather odd hobby.

If he enjoyed it and got something out of it, good for him.

It really always amazes me how upset people get about other people 'wasting time.' The vast majority of the world wastes tons of time every day.

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Ealdwita--Is that Saxon or Gothic? And if your daughter has that much homework, he or she must be a Helveti, or just a Vandal. Regards.

It's Latin - The first page of the Gospel of St.Matthew (known as the Chi-Rho illustration) and is from the Lindisfarne Gospels, (Ireland 7th.Century.)

This page has the Latin text for the birth of Christ beginning: "Christi autem generation sic erat" or "The birth of Christ took place thus."

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.

i've got a couple of thousand books (none of which i'd copy out by hand, no matter how good they were!), and wouldn't have a kindle for all the opium in chinatown.

books are things of beauty, to be treasured. physical objects, to be held and touched, not a mass of zeros & ones on some impersonal piece of plastic, to be deleted when read.

:-)

Absolutely agree.

Same here, we cherish our books and would never replace it with a kindle thingy.

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Eh. So many people waste most of their retirement. What good does bingo games or puttering about in the garden do?

This guy just has a rather odd hobby.

If he enjoyed it and got something out of it, good for him.

It really always amazes me how upset people get about other people 'wasting time.' The vast majority of the world wastes tons of time every day.

No ones getting upset by it, we are just commenting on it, its not the most common of hobbies out there! Can`t you tell the difference between a rant and a bit of humour?

I think you are getting up set cos you think people are getting up set when in fact no one is getting up set. :whistle:

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It's Latin - The first page of the Gospel of St.Matthew (known as the Chi-Rho illustration) and is from the Lindisfarne Gospels, (Ireland 7th.Century.)

This page has the Latin text for the birth of Christ beginning: "Christi autem generation sic erat" or "The birth of Christ took place thus."

Maybe the text was in Latin, but the name is not Latin'. it's Germanic (here: Saxon):

eald = old, wita = 'knower', one who knows

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HIs penmanship is pretty, he writes like a girl, I am envious.

q:

Definitely a worthwhile endeavor and the sense of serenity he felt most likely has to do with the activity and not the content. Doing the rosary or prayer beads in other traditions offers the same. Rote activity of any kind, regardless of religion, can offer the same.

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The box, think outside of it.

.

what, you mean like you did?

if you'd actually read the article, or indeed any of the posts on here, you'd know that he is in fact retired.

but doing that would probably be too 'inbox thinking' for you I guess.

smartarsery. think before you do it.

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Can`t you tell the difference between a rant and a bit of humour?

Can't you tell the difference between a general statement and one directed at someone in particular about the topic at hand?

I have seen people mocking and expressing anger even over people with odd hobbies. They've complained that it was such a waste of time and the person who did it must've been insane. This is what amazes me. That people would randomly get upset in such a way over what other people choose to do with their time.

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