A new appeal by the Scottish Bible Society aims to raise funds to help people in the vast and conflict-ridden Democratic Republic of Congo in central Africa.

The money is sorely needed to aid the local Bible Society in bringing the message of the Gospel to its people through three projects: Scripture booklets to educate about the dangers of HIV/AIDS, publication of the first-ever New Testament in the Ketiine language, and improved Scripture distribution to communities isolated by overgrown tracks.

"With a good response to this appeal," says the Scottish Bible Society's chief executive Elaine Duncan, "we hope that the country's wealth in mineral resources can again be matched by its people's richness in spiritual resources."

As in many African countries the Congolese people are suffering from the devastating effects of HIV and Aids ripping families apart and orphaning children. Scripture-based materials developed by the United Bible Societies are being used widely both with victims of the disease and to warn teens and adults about its dangers.

Peace is only gradually returning to Congo after years of war, during which an estimated 3 million lives were lost through fighting, disease or malnutrition.

Conflict not only deprived people of their loved ones and their homes; the Christian population is also lamenting the shortage of Bibles. In some areas clergy are asking, "How are we to preach the Gospel without the Bible?"

Years of violence have left roads and tracks through tropical forest poorly maintained. The local Bible Society is asking its Scottish colleagues for funds to provide motorbikes and even simple bicycles that can help deliver Scriptures to remote communities.

Language is another barrier: the New Testament has just been translated for the first time into Ketiine, spoken by some 88,000 people upriver from the capital, Kinshasa. Funds are needed to print the book, so that this minority group can at last enjoy the biblical message in its heart language.