Contact: Ruth Chodniewicz, Prison Fellowship International, 703-481-0000

WASHINGTON, July 1, 2015 /Christian Newswire/ -- Prison Fellowship International (PFI) received 15,000 additional copies of The Prison Bible for PFI's breakthrough in-prison evangelization program, The Prisoner's Journey, thanks to a newly signed agreement with Bible League International (BLI). PFI and BLI entered a formal partnership in February 2014 to support PFI's efforts to share the Gospel with 1 million prisoners in 60 countries overseas by 2020.

In 2014, PFI piloted The Prisoner's Journey in Nigeria and South Africa to share the hope of the Gospel message to prisoners outside the United States. With more than 10 million people incarcerated around the world, prisoners are one of the largest unreached groups of people. The Prison Bible was developed by BLI, customized for this audience in the Easy-to-Read Version (ERV), with 52 devotionals geared toward the needs and experiences of prisoners. To date, BLI has provided nearly 25,000 English and Spanish-translated copies of The Prison Bible to distribute to The Prisoner's Journey graduates in 161 prisons.

"The response to the program was greater than we anticipated," says Frank Lofaro, PFI chief executive officer. "We know from experience a relationship with Jesus Christ is the only thing that truly transforms prisoners' lives, and prison officials are now asking us to come work with their inmates. We're grateful for the support of Bible League International in this vital program."

BLI Executive Vice President of Operations Jos Snoep also commented, "Bible League International has put a lot of effort in developing tools for prison ministry with the focus to help prisoners read and understand the Word of God. We are very happy to be able to share these wonderful resources with Prison Fellowship International."

This year, PFI expanded The Prisoner's Journey to 11 countries throughout Africa, Asia Pacific, Europe, and South America. By year-end 2017, PFI expects nearly 100,000 prisoners in 33 countries to graduate from The Prisoner's Journey and receive The Prison Bible.

About Prison Fellowship International
Founded in 1979 by Charles Colson, Prison Fellowship International communicates the redemptive love and transforming power of Jesus by helping alleviate the suffering of prisoners and their families and advance restorative justice in more than 125 countries. For more information, visit www.pfi.org.

About Bible League International
Since 1938, Bible League International has planted more than 160 million Bibles and New Testaments in 80 countries. For more information, visit www.bibleleague.org.