This week marked the second World Bible Translation Day. In honor of the holiday we gathered up some of our favorite stories of the last year about Bible translation and brought them all together here.
In 2017, the United Nations General Assembly passed a resolution officially recognizing the fact that translation of important texts preserves languages and declaring September 30th International Translation Day.
The date for the holiday was set on the date that the Orthodox and other Christian denominations celebrate the feast of St. Jerome, the Bible translator who gave us the Latin Vulgate translation – the most commonly used translation for about 1,000 years.
As the world’s Bible translators work toward their shared goal of having the Bible available to more than 99 percent of the earth’s population by 2033, we believe they ought to enjoy a day of being honored. Read on to learn more about Bible translation and the precious and weighty role of translators around the world.
Video: Do you love your Bible as much as this Kenyan tribe does?
By Seed Company
In August 18th of last year, the Rendille of Kenya finished translating the New Testament into their own language. Thousands of people from the surrounding villages came for a dedication celebration. And what a celebration it was!
In worship, they sang and danced for more than six hours … and then led a procession carrying the New Testament Bibles on the backs of camels. After 37 years of work, God’s Word was available in the language of Rendille! Watch this moving video.
My God speaks my language: Church-centric Bible translation
By Calvin Edwards
The celebration lasted four hours. A nonstop extravaganza of speeches, dance, video, and awards, it was a high-energy production, appropriate for the remarkable achievement it honored.
What was being celebrated there, though, was incomparably more important than the work I had come there for, and I was delighted to be where the action was. This ministry I was evaluating had facilitated the complete translation of the New Testament into 12 minority languages – the “mother tongue” of some obscure people groups mostly hidden away in the foothills of the Himalayas. Read the full story.
Unprecedent unity speeds Bible translation
By Christianity Today
Since 2015, 10 Bible translation agencies have invited a select group of givers to a shared annual gathering, to see how Bible translation is progressing around the world and to join in this effort through their own generous giving.
Next October, just a year from now, the same 10 organizations will launch a new, collaborative website to connect visitors to the initiatives and organizations that best fit their interests. Learn more.
Celebrating the 1,000th Bible translation in South Sudan
By The Christian Post
Hundreds of Christians, with nothing to give, gave themselves to God as Wycliffe Bible Translators celebrated its 1,000th full translation of the Bible in South Sudan. This major milestone was the distribution of the Keliko New Testament.
The day after the dedication of the Keliko New Testament, there was a church service in the Bidi Bidi Refugee Camp, the second largest refugee settlement in the world, with more than one-quarter million refugees. Some refugees gave bills and coins, but those who had none came forward too. Read the story here.
What does it take to translate the Bible?
By Eternity News
Translation work may seem like a pretty simple job. You just take one language and translate it into another, right? Yes … but not exactly. If you consider the difficulty of work with words that just don’t translate into another language or having to wrestle with cultural connotations and complicated grammatical structures, it can get pretty complicated.
That’s why translation teams are made up of people from all different places with any number of different skill sets. These include native language speakers, linguists, teachers, and even pilots, mechanics, and doctors who can facilitate the work. Hear from some translation consultants about the work they do.
$2 million, 1 billion souls
By Philanthropy Roundtable
It was an ordinary Sunday in 1954 in Marcus Hook, Pennsylvania. But once Nancy and Bernie May slid into the pews of their Baptist church, an unusual dream began to shimmer before them. Rachel Saint, who worked in jungle villages of South America as a linguist and alphabet-making missionary, sketched a grand vision.
She and a small number of devoted colleagues would translate the Bible into every language in the world. Saint’s story didn’t end with a plea for money. Instead, she asked for people to join her in the jungle. Specifically, she needed a pilot and a secretary.
How did one couple’s obedience to a specific request for help during a church service impact the speed of Bible translation around the world? Find out here.
