Church pastors living in remote parts of the world will be able to access Christian training resources thanks to a new app from Mission Aviation Fellowship.
The Estante app is available to Android users for free and allows them to easily store, view and share Bible study tools wherever they are.
The app takes its name from the Spanish word for bookshelf, reflecting its function to give isolated pastors and church leaders a digital library they can access without the need for internet connection.
The app complements the ministry's main work in supporting remote Christian workers and communities through aviation.
It has been developed to provide resources to the estimated three million isolated pastors around the world who have had little or no Christian training, and lack access to even the most basic resources, like a Bible commentary or dictionary. Despite the lack of Bible resources, many of them do own a mobile phone and MAF is tapping into this by developing suitable technologies.
The Estante interface has initially been made available in English, Spanish, Russian and French, with plans to add more languages soon. The library can store files created in any language and users will be able to share entire libraries with other Estante users and even very basic phones that do not have Estante.
"Estante gives isolated pastors a simple way to carry the Bible and Bible study tools anywhere they go," said Jay Clark of MAF-Learning Technologies.
"For many, it will be the first time they'll have easy access to the Word of God anytime they want."
Estante is available to download here
