A story from England-The words “thou shalt not steal” – or at least the book containing them – had been eating away at the thief’s mind for over 40 years.
That’s how long it took for a guilty, unidentified man to return a 200-year-old Bible he says he swiped from a dusty corner of Holy Trinity Church in Hastings, England, in 1971.
According to the Hastings Observer, Church Treasurer Simon Scott received an anonymous, typed letter from Germany explaining the Bible’s intriguing story.
The letter reads: “It may be astonishing to you to receive a letter from one whom you do not know. More than ever to receive a parcel which contains an old Bible. In 1971 I was just married and went with my wife to Hastings to upgrade our English knowledge for a better start in our occupations. The English lesson we had were in some rather old and dark rooms not made for lecturing. The lecturer himself seem to be very old and he had no teaching skills. He confused us totally. So we were very disappointed as we paid a lot of money for the four week course. In this excited moment I made a big mistake. I saw some gorgeous Holy Bibles in a corner underneath a bench. It seemed they were no worth for the community or the church and I took one with me home. It was a compensation for the poor course. In my mind I wanted to read and study chapter by chapter to complete my English. But in reality I did not. Back home I felt my action was not correct. Even more my wife was very angry and tried to persuade me to return the book. This Bible always brought me a guilty conscience. I was too cowardly to hand it over personally. Now I am retired and I make a final impulse to clear my conscience. I deeply regret what I did and can only hope this Bible finds its rightful home again.”
Read more at
http://www.wnd.com/2013/08/guilty-thief-returns-this-to-church-after-40-years/#35qYKtffcb1zdrcJ.99
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