Posted in Bible Translation Video

[VIDEO] The First Step of Bible Translation: Exegesis

We thought we would do a video series on the various steps behind the Kwakum Bible translation project. We are still new at this and learning a lot along the way and yet we thought we would share what we have been doing thus far. Throughout the series, you’ll be hearing from our 8 Kwakum colleagues as well as Dave and I. (Also, you’ll notice a woman sleeping in our translation center…She is a blind woman that lives in our village who likes to come just listen as we translate…and sometime she sleeps too.)

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Posted in Bible Translation Encouragements and Exhortations

4 Steps to Pursue Diversity in Bible Interpretation

One day, near the beginning of his public ministry, Jesus was approached by a Roman centurion. Jesus had already been doing some shocking things; just a few verses before he touched a man with leprosy, healing him. So, maybe his disciples were growing accustomed to his “different” methods. Maybe his offer to heal the Roman’s servant would not have seemed so strange. They may have been surprised to hear that the centurion believed that Jesus could heal from a distance, but I suspect what surprised them the most was when Jesus replied to him: “Truly I tell you, I have…

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Posted in Bible Translation Christian Missions Encouragements and Exhortations

A Case for Diversity in Bible Interpretation

I would like to make a claim at the outset of this post: proper biblical interpretation requires diversity. Specifically, we need to study the Bible with people different from us in order to best understand the meaning of the text. This claim is not unique to me and when I have heard it in the past, I have brushed it aside. My reasons for rejecting such a conclusion were: 1) as a believer, I am indwelt by the Holy Spirit who guides me into all truth (John 16:13), and 2) I believe in the perspicuity (or clarity) of Scripture. By…

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Posted in Africa Bible Translation Christian Missions Literacy

3 Literacy Surprises

On Saturday we finished our first Kwakum literacy course (we have worked through the material with some people, but this was the first official class). We went to a village called Sibita every weekend for 4 weeks. The group varied between 4 adults to 20 adults, depending on the week. We explicitly said this class was for adults, but there were always 10-20 kids there too. The kids participated and learned probably more quickly than the adults. Being that it was our first official literacy class, there were some things that surprised me. Here are three: 1. No Abstract Categories…

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Posted in Africa Bible Translation Christian Missions VBS Video

[VIDEO] Can We Come to Your VBS?

We have the exciting opportunity to participate in VBS at Grace Church Frisco this summer. How? Well, they are doing VBS completely virtually, online. They are using the curriculum Incredible Race by Answers in Genesis. The main theme throughout is the story of the tower of Babel, which works pretty well with our jobs as Bible translators. So we recorded five short videos talking about ministry here and relating it to the Babel story. I was thinking, if Grace Church Frisco is doing VBS this year, maybe other churches are too. And maybe even if churches are not able to…

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Posted in Africa Bible Translation Christian Missions Video

[VIDEO] “Before Hearing Word of God, I lived like an Animal”

Here is a quick, informal video that we put together on why we do what we do. It is designed for churches or individuals who are just learning about Bible translation among the Kwakum.

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Posted in Bible Translation Christian Missions God’s Work in Cameroon Newsletter

[Newsletter] The Firstfruits of Translation

“Understanding Scripture in a language other than the heart language in which we think and experience emotion is like trying to eat soup with a fork. You can get a little taste, but you cannot get nourished.” – Cameron Townsend These past couple months, we have been training a group 8 Kwakum people in principles of translation and we have seen them go from getting a ‘taste of a Word of God’ into being nourished by it. Let me give you an example. I (Stacey) was teaching on how we can translate concepts that are unknown to the Kwakum people…

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Posted in Bible Translation God’s Work in Cameroon Oral Bible Storying

Introducing…The Kwakum Bible Translation Team!

Meet the eight people that we have asked to work with us to translate the Bible into Kwakum! Throughout the years, we have worked closely with many Kwakum individuals and watched how they interacted with people, especially when they disagreed with each other. We have watched how teachable they were when criticized. We have also watched to see how capable they were in their knowledge of the Kwakum language. Then, this past month we put out an application to see who would be interested in becoming official translators with us. We received 18 applications, called references, interviewed people, and prayed….

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Posted in Bible Translation Linguistics Literacy Oral Bible Storying

Selecting Kwakum Bible Translators Saturday

This coming Saturday will be a big day. On the literacy front, we will be administering a 10-page exam in Kwakum to determine who among our students is ready to receive a diploma and an “I can read in Kwakum” T-shirt (one of the many tools that we are using to get people reading…). In addition to students reading various texts and answering comprehension questions, they will be required to teach someone who has not participated in a literacy class the ABCs. We’ve set the bar high in literacy and so far people are rising up to this standard. On…

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Posted in Bible Translation

How Hard Can Translation Be?

I was once that young, bright-eyed, seminarian. I studied Greek and wondered at how easy it was to translate passages of Scripture that I already had memorized in English. And when I eventually heard that the vast majority of languages in the world (~91%) do not have the entire Bible, I was a bit shocked. I mean, we have had the whole of the canon for about 2,000 years. Surely, it should not be taking this long. How hard could it be? For those of you that are in the same place, or who at least are asking these questions,…

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