| In a Word--Fall 2007 |
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 Modified-literal Bible translating, as done by Bibles International, is much more than what many people would fantasize; that is, a conservative transfer of meaning from the biblical text in its Hebrew, Aramaic, or Greek form to a receptor language. It involves many aspects of faith and practice, proper methodology, and faithful management. Let me illustrate with a partial story of the Hakha Chin Bible translation being conducted under the auspices of BI in Myanmar. About a hundred years ago, missionaries primarily from the now defunct Northern Baptist Convention in the US followed after Adoniram Judson and successfully evangelized many parts of Myanmar (then called Burma). They especially impacted the three major Chin tribes (Tedim, Falam, and Hakha), planted churches, and established Bible schools. As the decades passed, liberalism spread rampantly among the Chin people. A few missionaries, among them Baptist Mid-Missions Missionary James Garlow, preached zealously against liberalism and influenced men like Dr. Goza Kham (former BI projects coordinator in Myanmar) and many others from the Tedim and Falam tribes to leave the Chin Baptist Convention. God blessed those believers and caused their work to flourish. But the Hakha believers remained under the grip of liberalism. In fact, when BI began Bible translation and literacy work among the three Chin tribes a number of years ago, we were not able to find any Hakha conservative churches with whom to associate. With much effort and careful strategies, we started a translation and literacy work in Hakha, only to terminate the project some years later in order to safeguard our core values and philosophy. All hope then seemed lost. But God changed the circumstances and helped us revive the project. He brought to us men of like precious faith such as Dr. Timothy Mang, Paul Van Hre (current BI projects coordinator in Myanmar), and others. The BI projects coordinator for Asia and the Pacific explains it this way: One outstanding professor of a Hakha Bible School within the Baptist Convention was being disciplined because of his anti-liberal stance over issues such as the virgin birth, etc. This man was talking about starting his own Bible college. [An associate of BI] called him on the telephone while we were there in Yangon and BI paid this man’s way to Yangon to meet with us. We asked if he would be willing to work with BI and help BI find new translators and put together a new and credible sponsoring committee. He agreed, and he and his friends put together a remarkably good committee. Meanwhile, conservative Falam Chin believers committed themselves to somewhat re-evangelizing the Hakha people, and revival ensued. Many of those soldiers of Christ were armed with the Scripture portions and the Old Testament Bible story books that BI had produced in Falam. As BI Consultant Ross Hodsdon says, “These [Bible story] books provide quality presentations of the Gospel and key doctrines in a format that fits Bible studies, Sunday schools, or family devotions.” The new Hakha translation is progressing well and rapidly; it is poised to become one of the best translation projects in Myanmar. Indeed, conservative Bible translating is so tedious, so daunting, and so complex that it is impossible to describe it … in a word. It is an intricate fabric of faith and scholarship, historical and present relationships, trials and triumphs, eagerness to provide the word of God to people who are in desperate need of it, and integrity to that very Word for the whole production process from beginning to end. And that end may be dismay for one project and bliss for another. |