Socinus Bible Support

Socinus Bible brings together the Bible and the writings of the Socinians: the Luther Bible 1912, the King James Version and the Racovian New Testament of 1630, with Strong's numbers, a lexicon and a library of works by Faustus Socinus, Johannes Crell and other authors, together with the Racovian Catechism. Everything works offline.

Contact

Please send questions, bug reports and suggestions about the app by e-mail to info@socinianism.com. It helps to include the app version (Settings › About › Version), your device and its iOS version.

The app is published by Marcin Poholski; full details are given in the imprint.

Frequently asked questions

Do I need an internet connection?

No. The Bible texts, the works in the library, the lexicon and search are built into the app and work offline. Only links that open the browser need a connection, for example under “Sources & Licenses” or to a work’s printed edition at Amazon.

How do I back up my entries, and how do I move them to a new device?

In Settings under “Back up and restore”, “Export entries” creates a backup file in JSON format. It contains bookmarks, highlights, notes and reading positions as well as reading plans, collections, the history and the chapters read. Use the share menu to save the file to the Files app, for example, or to send it to yourself.

“Import entries” reads such a file back in, on another device as well. You choose between “Merge” (existing entries stay, new ones are added and changed ones updated) and “Replace” (all existing entries are replaced by those in the file, as far as the file contains them). If iCloud Backup is turned on, your entries are also part of the device backup.

Does reading aloud continue in the background?

Yes. The speaker icon next to the name of the edition reads the chapter aloud from the beginning. Reading aloud continues in the background and when the screen locks; the lock screen, Control Center and headphone buttons pause, resume and skip back and forth. At the end of a chapter reading continues with the next chapter, at the end of a book with the next book.

In the Racovian NT reading stops at the end of each chapter, in the works of the library at the end of the section (after about a quarter of an hour at most); the bar in the app continues from there. From the works and the Racovian NT the app reads at most 45,000 characters per hour, about 45 to 50 minutes at normal speed; after that it shows when reading can continue.

The device’s voices are used. You choose the voice for each language in the app’s Settings under “Read aloud”. More and better voices can be downloaded in the iOS settings under Accessibility › Spoken Content › Voices.

How do I set the language of the content?

In Settings under “Content language” you choose German or English; the choice applies to the Bible text, the list of works and the lexicon. The language of the menus is set separately under “App language”. Under “German Bible” you choose between the Luther Bible 1912 and the Racovian New Testament of 1630; as the latter contains only the New Testament, the app then shows the Old Testament from Luther 1912. In the library the list can also be filtered by the language of the works.

What are Strong's numbers, and how do I show them?

Strong's numbers link a word of the translation to the Hebrew or Greek word of the original text. The “S#” switch in the bar shows and hides them; it appears with every edition that has Strong's numbers. Whether they are visible from the start is set in Settings under “Strong's numbers”.

In the King James Version the numbers come from the CrossWire Bible Society edition. In the Luther Bible 1912 and the Racovian NT they come from a mechanical word alignment by fixed rules, without AI and not checked by a person; these numbers can be shown or hidden separately in the reading menu. In search, an entry such as H2902 or G3056 finds every occurrence of a Strong's number.

How do I open the lexicon?

Tap a word in the Bible text. The panel opens below with the Hebrew or Greek word, its meaning and every passage where it occurs; if a word has several Strong's numbers, they appear side by side as tabs. The lexicon entry shows the word in the original text, its grammar and its meaning. The lexicon language can be switched in the entry; where an entry has no checked German version yet, the app shows the English one.

Tapping a verse number, by contrast, does not open the lexicon but selects verses to highlight, copy or share. The lexicon entries are based on Strong's Dictionary (public domain) and the lexicons of STEP Bible (CC BY 4.0).

Privacy

Socinus Bible collects no personal data; everything you create in the app stays on your device. Details are in the Socinus Bible privacy policy.