Bible Reading and Retention

Recently, I read a published article with the Journal of Religion, Media and Digital Culture. It is an article titled “The Habits of Hermeneutics of Digital Bible Readers: Comparing Print and Screen Engagement, Comprehension, and Behavior.” The article is a summary of several studies done recently on the subject of Bible retention in screens vs. print Bibles.

I was eager to read it due to the burden I have for the modern church on how it engages with reading the Bible when they gather when alone. Fewer and fewer Christians are bringing their Bibles to church and more and more preachers aren’t saying anything about it.

Thus, this article is a resource I wanted to digest in order to help me better understand this modern trend with using screens for Bible study and reading and what the implication of that are.

So, without further delay, here are 4 things I learned from the article.

1. Studies continue to show that retention of what you read in your Bible is better if you read it on a page vs. on a screen (e.g., tablet, phone, other mobile device). These numbers have been getting worse as screens become more popular. And, the retention ability is worse among male readers compared to female readers. The reason for a decreased retention from the use of screens is because of the fatigue to the eyes caused by looking at a screen, accuracy of scrolling, and slower reading rates.

2. Bible readers are more likely to read the Bible daily IF they have a screen. That is some encouraging information. Screens seem to be more readily available every day more than a printed Bible.

3. From 2011-2019, the percentage of Americans using a smartphone to read their Bibles went up from 18% to 56%.

4. Most people use both paper and digital. They use the NAB – nearest available Bible.

So, what does all this mean?

Well, one thing it means is this: we need to be aware of the most useful took for reading in each situation. Everyone is different with what will assist them best in retention. With me, paper is always better. It’s one of the reasons I buy “paper books” and not e-books. I enjoy turning pages and smelling the paper. If I want to put myself in the best circumstance to remember what I have read, I need to choose to read a book on paper.

Another thing that could be learned is this: if you are a screen-only reader, consider reading smaller portions to increase your reading retention. Studies are showing that the longer the person reads on a screen that they run the risk of their retention decreasing.

What Bible readers need to know is what is best for their reading habits. Do you need to read the Bible in 15-minute segments on a screen? Should you bring a printed Bible to church instead of a screen to better understand what the preacher is saying? These are questions each Bible-reader must answer for themselves.

Whatever we ask, we must keep in mind that our goal is to know the Word and the God who revealed it better than we did when we began reading it. God deserves our attention and we need to remember as much of it as we can, in order to grow in holiness.