'The Words of our Lord'

It doesn't matter if their covers are cracked or missing, or their precious pages are tattered and torn.

When Chaplain Juan F. Colon speaks about his large collection of Bibles and holy manuscripts, his eyes light up as bright as his smile.

Monday, Colon had another reason to celebrate. His newest favorite Bible had arrived, a 1727 Latin text from the Anglican Church, which he ordered through eBay.

"I bought it three months ago," he said, cradling it in his hands. "It came from England."

Starting today through Aug. 24, Florida Hospital Heartland Medical Center in Sebring invites the public to view Colon's "The Words of Our Lord" display, outside of the hospital chapel.

To kick off the display, the hospital will host a grand opening ceremony at 4 p.m. today.

Colon began collecting the books about 21 years ago while he was a pastor in the Seventh-day Adventist Church.

"When I had six, I realized I'm going through something here," he said grinning. "I realized people should have this opportunity to see these books in this part of the world."

The Bible is important because it is the mind of God, a display card stated.

"In it, he shows the way of salvation, but also the doom of those who reject Jesus as their savior. Read it to be wise, believe it to be saved and practice it to be holy."

Many of his Bibles are very large and not made to be carried around. The heaviest Bible in his collection weighs 27 pounds.

"They were made for the pulpit," he explained.

He owns several very small Bibles, as well.

"But size doesn't matter," he wrote in a display. "What matters is the message that God wrote to us so we should consider God's word as a lamp to guide us."

The display includes more than 210 holy books, scrolls and manuscripts in many languages through the ages.

His oldest book is a 1637 copy of a Dutch New Testament.

He also has an old copy of the Kopah, the Koran in Russian, on display.

It has been Colon's passion to collect holy books, records and tapes - not only in English, but in Greek, German, Dutch, Spanish, Swedish, Arabic, Russian and Hebrew.

He also has a small copy of the Gutenberg Bible, he said.

"The Gutenberg Bible was the first substantial book printed with movable type. It was printed at Johann Gutenberg's shop in Mainz, Germany, and completed in 1454 or 1455," according to the Harry Ransom Center at the University of Texas.

"I feel honored that God has put me on this track to do this," Colon said. "He wants everyone to know his word."

Colon said the Bible has now been translated to nearly every language in the world and that many people have risked their lives to reproduce it, transport it, read it and hold it.

In some parts of the world, merely possessing a page meant death, he said.

One of the Bibles on display was copyrighted in 1831 and was donated by Pastor Fred Ball, of Memorial Methodist Church, in Lake Placid.

Ball will give a short lecture today on the importance of the Bible.

A portion of this collection was previously on display at Florida Hospital in Lake Placid.

"They were in Lake Placid," said Kristy Harris, in charge of special projects and community relations at Florida Hospital. "They're going to be here for a while, then they're going to Wauchula."

Colon said Monday that he eventually planned to have a small display in each of the three Florida Hospital facilities.

Ultimately, Colon said he hopes to find a facility where his growing collection may be indefinitely displayed for the public to learn from and enjoy.