Published: 5/17/2013 6:03 PM | Last update: 5/17/2013 6:03 PM NY man handwrites entire King James Bible By Michael Hill - Associated Press 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.
"I hadn't counted on the fact that it would end up being beautiful," Patterson said. "Or that it would be so exhilarating. And so long."
Patterson, 63, might seem like an unlikely scribe for the King James version of the Bible. Tall and bald with a hearty laugh, the retired interior designer is neither monkish nor zealous. He goes to church but has never been particularly religious. Health issues - including AIDS and anemia - have sent him to the hospital and slowed the work. He relies on two canes and will lean on walls and furniture to get around his apartment near the Massachusetts border.
But he has always been curious.
One day in 2007, his longtime partner, Mohammad, mentioned that Islam has a tradition of writing out the Quran. Patterson, who refers to his partner by only one name to protect his privacy, replied that the Bible was too long. Mohammad said, well, then, Patterson should do it.
"The next day I started researching pens and pencils and paper and never looked back," he said.
Patterson began copying the first five books of the Bible, known as the Pentateuch, in 2007. Work on this "prototype" allowed him to figure out technique, layout and technical details like the type of paper (19-by-13-inch watercolor) and writing instruments (felt-tip pens). He tackled the complete King James Bible in 2009.
Patterson works at a wooden desk by his bed, near neatly shelved pages of his completed volumes. Fingers on his left hand track the words on a small hardcover Bible while he methodically writes with his right hand. Patterson pencils in ruled lines on the sheets to guide his writing and erases them when he is done, leaving black ink on creamy white pages.
The Bible's exact word count depends on who is doing the tallying, but multiple sources put the King James version at around 788,000 words or more. Patterson used to work up to 14 hours a day on the project, though he averages around six to eight hours a day now that his stamina has ebbed. He usually works until he can't stay awake.
Read the original post:
A good Word