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As dawn broke in Kulawi District, Central Sulawesi, Indonesia, to the casual observer it might have seemed like a normal Monday morning. It was anything but, however. Here, in one of the district’s remotest villages, over 500 people had gathered in the local church, taking time out of their busy lives to celebrate a moment of huge significance. After 12 years of translation work, today the Moma New Testament was being launched – and many in the community wanted to be there to witness this historic occasion. The sense of anticipation had been growing. One of the Moma Bible translation team commented: ‘Many have been asking when the New Testament would be finished. Now, finally, it is!’ What the Moma speakers said at the launch event summed up the impact that Moma Scriptures have already had – and the impact the Moma New Testament will have: ‘People understand the Scriptures better; they understand grace. Some people who were involved in occultism have stopped because now they understand the Scriptures.’ ‘People prefer to hear the Scriptures in Moma. They are more interested than when they hear them in Indonesian.’ ‘We had a sermon in our church in Moma and all the songs were in Moma. People loved it!’ ‘Our old people understand Moma better than Indonesian. Also, many people in our community have a low education level, so they understand Moma better.’ The groundwork had been thorough, as the translation team had involved the Moma community in reading Scripture in their language. Several years of literacy work had been done in the schools, enabling the next generation of Moma speakers to learn, hear and read their language. Thirteen primary schools had participated in a ‘Local Content in Schools’ project, which Julia*, who serves with Wycliffe in Indonesia, had spearheaded. As part of this project, these schools had access to over 60 reading books in the Moma language. The impact on the community has been clear. Use of the Moma language in public situations has increased significantly. With the Bible translation team being at the centre of developing and promoting the language, the church has played a key role in spreading the use of the written language beyond the classroom. ‘Previously, the children were only taught using Indonesian in children’s church. They like being taught in Moma,’ said one person. And a primary school teacher noted: ‘We held a Moma reading competition. Adults had to read aloud a full chapter of the New Testament, children a few verses.’ And as the church has adopted Moma into its services and practices, so the impact of using the language that speaks to people’s hearts most has become obvious. The Moma are gaining a greater understanding of Scripture, and lives are being changed. Now that the Moma finally have their New Testament in their own language, hopes are high for a long-term impact – an impact that will stretch across all generations of the Moma community, and far into the future. The Moma New Testament was launched on 24 October 2022. The Moma community numbers over 10,000, and comprises 25 villages in Kulawi District, Central Sulawesi, Indonesia. *name changed for security reasons Reproduced with permission from Wycliffe UK

19-25 August 2023 Nestled between active volcanoes, Tomohon is a city on the Minahasan peninsula of North Sulawesi, Indonesia, just a few kilometers south of the provincial capital, Manado. It is also the location of the headquarters of GMIM, the Evangelical Christian Church in Minahasa. The Minahasa (also known as the Manado) people are the largest ethnic group in that region. In August, Simon Wan of Wycliffe Singapore, Ps. Desmond Soh and Bro. Kasim Ong of Bethany Evangelical Free Church, and Ps. Kenny Lee of Ambassadors for Christ Singapore (AFCS), visited PPA-GMIM (The Bible Translation Centre of GMIM) to explore how they could partner with them to provide training and other resources. One of the main goals of the trip was to observe part of a Minaku Project workshop. This project is currently crafting Oral Bible Stories in Bantik, Pasan and Manado Malay. These will be shared in Story Fellowship Groups and also used to teach the Bible in churches. As Bethany EFC has been supporting this project, the translation teams were happy to demonstrate how they craft an oral Bible story. The first step is to do an exegesis of the text to understand and internalize the story. Then, they share what the story means for them personally. This process enables them to craft and recite the story from memory to their fellow villagers. The Bantik and Pasan teams demonstrated storytelling from the passage on Peter’s reinstatement (John 21). Ibu Ayu of PPA also shared about the next phase for the Minaku Project. An interesting side visit was to the Tomohon Extreme Market, a famous market selling all sorts of vegetables and meats, including exotic meats such as rats, cats, bats, pythons and, until a recent ban, dogs. Not a sight for the squeamish! The Singapore visitors were able to provide some teaching: Ps Kenny preached at a GMIM church service and Ps Desmond preached at a revival meeting. The Singapore team also conducted a session on Discipleship for 30 members of GMIM’s Youth Wing. The theme of the meetings was "Being a disciple in order to disciple others". Many responded to the altar call to grow in their walk with God, and we pray that the Scriptures in their heart language will play a significant part in this. By the end of the visit, the Singapore team had gained a much better understanding of the Minaku project and the needs in the area. Some of the ideas might include short-term teams to visit the project and serve the churches and communities in the area, and the provision of theological training to PPA. Discussion is ongoing, and we hope that these plans will come to fruition in the near future!

Whose loving aunt preserved the line of David? 2 Kings 11:2 – [Jehosheba] stole [Joash] away from among the royal princes, who were about to be murdered. King Joash of Judah (reigned 835–796 BCE) was hidden by his aunt, Jehosheba, in the temple for six years to protect him from his murderous grandmother, Athaliah. Jehosheba and her brother, King Ahaziah, were children of King Jehoram, a descendant of King David. After Ahaziah died, his mother, Athaliah, made herself Queen and ordered the massacre of the royal family. Jehosheba took Ahaziah’s infant son, Joash, and hid him and his unnamed nurse in the temple. When Joash was seven, Jehoiada the priest, Jehosheba’s husband, revealed the boy king’s existence and instigated the Athaliah’s overthrow. King Joash “did what was right in the eyes of the Lord” while Jehoiada lived and advised him. For more about the later years of his reign, see 1 Kings 12.

Stories from the Field, 7 November 2023 Speaker: Josh Matsumaru Do you need to be a linguist or translator to play a part in Bible translation? How do other skills support “heart language” ministries? Josh Matsumaru, now the Executive Director of Wycliffe Japan, shared his journey in missions and Bible translation, despite not being a translator. When he was 19 years old, he went on a mission trip to Indonesia. Already planning to be a teacher, he saw first-hand the difficulties faced by missionaries in providing a good education for their children. After graduating and teaching in Japan and the US for seven years, he felt the call to teach missionary kids on the field. Josh shared Jeremiah 1:11–12 through which he felt God confirming his call to serve as a missionary teacher: The word of the Lord came to me: “What do you see, Jeremiah?” “I see the branch of an almond tree,” I replied. The Lord said to me, “You have seen correctly, for I am watching to see that my word is fulfilled.” He felt God asking him: “What do you see?” He saw his years of interest in teaching missionary kids, his experience as a teacher, his abilities and skills. He was also assured that God would be watching to see his Word fulfilled – for his Word to reach all people in their own languages. Josh and his wife, Mika, went on to spend over 15 years (1999–2014) teaching at the Ukarumpa International School in Papua New Guinea (PNG), a missionary school for over 200 children of missionaries serving in PNG. While he taught sports at the secondary school campus, Mika taught art at the primary school campus, Japanese language and culture, and also provided some member care to female missionaries. Teaching sports and art Josh was also able to help in the Jesus video ministry – travelling to remote villages to screen the video which had been translated into the local language of the villagers. Often, it would be the first time they had ever seen a video in their own language! Other highlights of his time in PNG were the opportunities to attend some Bible dedication celebrations. They returned to Japan in 2014, and Josh took up his current appointment in 2017. He gave a summary of some of the activities of Wycliffe Japan: Literacy and Ethnoarts workshops Cross-cultural Missions seminars Wycliffe Café (discussions and seminars) Partnership with Japanese Sign Language organisations Mission trips/volunteer programmes About the speaker: Josh Matsumaru, a missionary from Japan, served in Papua New Guinea for over 15 years. During his time there, he and his wife helped support Bible translation work by teaching at an international school for missionary kids. Both of his children grew up in Papua New Guinea. Josh and his family returned to Japan in 2014, and he has been serving as the Executive Director of Wycliffe Bible Translators Japan since 2017. Prayer pointers: Pray for Wycliffe Japan as it carries out its various activities to engage churches and individuals to understand and participate in God’s mission. Pray for potential missionaries to clearly sense God’s leading in their lives.

Today there are more than 350 known sign languages around the world, representing more than 70 million people. Only 2% of the global Deaf community are estimated to have been introduced to the gospel, with only American Sign Language (ASL) having the full Bible. But God is on the move in new and exciting ways among the global Deaf community! In April 2023, a milestone was reached in Deaf Bible translation when more than 170 Deaf leaders representing more than 50 sign languages came together for a consultation. At this consultation, 49 countries were represented on behalf of more than 95 churches and organizations to ask themselves the question: “How do we address Deaf Bible translation needs across Eurasia and start a translation project in every sign language still needing it within the next three years?” This consultation was an opportunity for Deaf leaders to come together and collaboratively discuss how to address these remaining language needs in their surrounding communities and countries so that all people can encounter Jesus in a language and format they clearly understand. The Complexity of Language At this consultation, there were a minimum of eight interpretations happening simultaneously. If you’ve ever been in a multilingual setting, you’ve experienced the need for translation simply to understand basic conversation. Perhaps you have served as an interpreter, helping communicate back and forth between two or more languages at the same time. At this consultation, there were a minimum of eight interpretations happening simultaneously — American Sign Language, Russian Sign Language, International Sign, Arabic Sign Language, Polish Sign Language, Bulgarian Sign Language, Swedish Sign Language and English (verbal) — just to lay a foundation for any additional group-led interpretation so that all participants could understand the presenters and surrounding conversation. For hearing communities, interpretation requires a back-and-forth dynamic. You hear someone say something, pause to process and repeat it aloud in another language. The conversation is like ping pong, volleying back and forth between the different languages. Sign language is a visual language, and therefore interpretation is simultaneous between the input and output of the conversation. An interpreter is seeing the signs and interpreting them into a secondary sign language at the same time. This complexity alone is something that the average hearing person can’t begin to truly fathom! But praise God for each one of these participants and their dedication to pursuing the conversation, even in the midst of such a complex language setting. Empowered by God “We’re just here to encourage you. You are the movers and the shakers.” Adan Burke is a sign language partnership specialist at Wycliffe Bible Translators USA. His life was changed when he encountered Jesus through Scripture in a language and format he could clearly understand: ASL. Today Adan plays a vital role in Deaf Bible translation. As one of the leaders and organizers of this consultation, Adan had the privilege of not only seeing God’s hand at work in the months leading up to the gathering but also in the months following. When sharing about the consultation, one of the key moments Adan highlighted was a group discussion around the “how” of Deaf Bible translation. It can be easy to assume that a partner organization such as Wycliffe USA is the one empowering others to do the translation work, but that’s not really true. “It’s not us-empowering, but God-empowering,” Adan shared. Adan shared with the group, “We’re just here to encourage you. You are the movers and the shakers. It isn’t us empowering you; you are able to see God empowering you. God did that and He moved, and He’s going to continue to move.” Over the consultation, the group coined a phrase and a corresponding sign from these discussions: “God-empowered.” “It’s not us-empowering, but God-empowering,” Adan shared. “The sign for ‘empowerment’ comes from just that: me empowering you and implying that I have the power, I have the control and I am the one that is now relinquishing it to you. But that’s not the case in this situation. We have to be very intentional about making people aware that it’s not me, it’s not us. It’s God empowering us!” This is a beautiful representation of the true heart of Bible translation: It’s not about us empowering each other, but is instead about God empowering us to see His name made known among the nations. In many ways, this milestone in Deaf Bible translation is just the start. All around the world, more and more Deaf leaders, churches and organizations are coming together and asking themselves the same question: “How do we address Deaf Bible translation needs in our community and surrounding regions?” The answer is that we can only do this when we’re empowered by God. Because when He is at the center of our efforts — and when we intentionally lay aside our differences in pursuit of a common goal — we can trust that God will move! Reproduced with permission from Wycliffe US

Remember the Clay House project in Wycliffe Thailand? The building is now almost complete - the walls just need to be painted. Watch the video below to see the painting in action, and the final product!

by Ling Lam, Wycliffe Global Alliance Evelyn Gan serves as a Bible translation consultant with Wycliffe Malaysia, and is part of the Area Consultant Taskforce for the Wycliffe Global Alliance’s Asia-Pacific Area. She works with two oral Bible translation (OBT) projects: the Penang Hokkien in Malaysia and the Kahak (pseudonym) in a neighbouring country. What are some of the opportunities you have experienced with OBT? The Penang Hokkien is actually quite close to my heart, because I’m also Hokkien. But it’s a different sub-dialect. Like most of the Chinese languages that have come over to Malaysia, they have become what you call colloquialised, meaning, they have changed, they adopted a lot of local words, and sometimes even the grammar is slightly different. YWAM is our partner in this project — they actually started the project and they started off with the JESUS film. Then I got involved because they needed a consultant. After that, they were all excited. They said, “We can do this. We can give Scripture to our people.” And so they wanted to do more. At first they were thinking of a written translation, but a lot of Malaysian Chinese here, they either go to Chinese school or the national language school or English school, so they don’t share a common script. So what script do you use? If you use Chinese, then these people will not be able to read it. Hokkien is the lingua franca (bridge language) of Penang. You don’t have to be Hokkien to speak Penang Hokkien. So I suggested to them, “Why don’t we try oral translation? At that time, Faith Comes By Hearing (FCBH) was really wanting to start a new project. So people got in touch with people, and then that’s how it started. It’s exciting to see how God brings people together — YWAM, FCBH, the local church, and pastors who are involved in the Hokkien ministry. All four organisations got together to do this project. What are the differences between OBT and the written translation you have done in the past? In OBT, the passages are divided into what you call sets. So one set is like one story from the Bible. The most exciting thing for me is that we are able to use an oral translation as soon as I approve a set. Nowena, who is the coordinator, will take it and put pictures to the audio, and send it to someone who puts it into video. And then we send it out. So it’s unlike a written translation where you have to wait until you finish the whole book to print and distribute it. OBT is more instantaneous. If I compare working with a written translation, I find that when I’m checking [OBT] with the community, more people get more excited. Somehow, when it’s a written page, they tend to be more careful in answering. But because it’s oral, they hear it and they respond more enthusiastically. They’re not afraid to tell what they think. It is not that one is better than the other. They are different for different needs. Is OBT more difficult in some ways, also? I guess the challenge that all OBT projects face is when we discover that there is actually a better way to say something. How do you change it? You know, with written translation, you can do a “change all” to correct it. But with OBT, do we re-record the whole thing? Do we have time to re-record? Can the translators remember five stories back or five sets back? When it comes to recording, you can’t change just one word. Even if you change a paragraph, you have to make sure that there’s no difference in the background. The sound will not be the same. Some of the sets that we did were very long. There was one set that was the whole chapter. So by the end, the translator’s voice was heavy and hoarse. She couldn’t really speak after that. And the more anxious you get, the more mistakes you make. You miss even one small word, or you mispronounce something, because you want to get it right. So if you get it wrong, you have to re-record the whole thing. Our translators are in their late 50s, early 60s. We don’t get very young people. Living in Penang, a small city, it’s hard to find people to be involved. Even our translators are not full time. They all have their other ministries. So that’s one of the other challenges. We all communicate orally, but we don’t see ourselves as an oral society. So when is a culture considered an oral culture, and what are some of the characteristics of oral people, especially those you’re working with in Malaysia? That’s such a difficult question! But I think in Malaysia, we are basically an oral culture. It’s just that we’ve been trained in literacy. Therefore, it’s a tool and it’s like, because you have a phone that takes great pictures, you take the picture. And it’s the same thing with us. We might be very oral people, but because we have a tool, which is the written or typed word, we can rely on that. Like in a Christian circle, people enjoy Bible studies where they can speak out what they want to say, and then they prefer if somebody tells them instead of having to read a book. I think that shows that you’re pretty much more oral and from an oral culture. In Penang Hokkien, we don’t have a written script. That’s why we went oral. But also, most of our target group are older people who either don’t want to read anymore or because of their eyesight, find it difficult to read. So they prefer to listen. And if they have to use the eyes, they prefer it to be in video form. So, even though I grew up in a very literate society, I can be of oral culture also? Right? And maybe I was more oral when I was little and when I’m older, while I tend to be more read-and-write now in my middle age? Some people are more visual when they learn. Some people are more oral. But we also have [preferences] generally, as a culture, as a community. For example, how do we prefer to learn a skill? Like our mothers don’t give us a recipe but just show us? And then you ask her, “How much? How much salt? How much flour?” And then she says, “Well, you put in one cup. If it’s not enough, you put more. If it’s too much…” That’s not really an answer. But generally, that’s the way my mom taught. You know, when she cooks, I just stand and watch. I help her. And I think that’s how most oral cultures would actually teach people how to do things. Another example would be: My husband used to help out in indigenous churches up and down the mountain. So there’s this particular church, a very small church. And when he preaches, there will be comments, questions and bird calls. So, he has to stop. When people comment, he has to respond. If they ask questions, he will answer the questions. If the bird calls, everybody will stand up to look at the bird and then he has to wait until everyone calms down. And after that, they continue with the sermon. And then we realise that’s how sermons were many, many years ago, or maybe even in Jesus’ time… it was a back-and-forth thing. And that’s how people process information and learn new things. I think, basically, a lot of the people in Malaysia are still like that. So orality is a more natural way of learning and to listen, and reading and writing is a skill set you have to learn. Orality is something there when you are born. Yes, we pass down our tacit knowledge by observing, watching and listening. During Global Connect, you joked that OBT just borrows or steals the consultants from written translation. What are the challenges for training consultants for OBT? What is the difference in the skill set required? I’m also a borrowed consultant from a written translation background! I think, basically if you’ve been a written translation consultant, you would know how to check an OBT because you have to make sure that the exegesis is correct. A lot of the skills are the same except that it’s not written down. When you check oral translations you have another layer to check, the extra bits of speech. Like when we speak, our intonation has meaning, even pauses — how long you pause tends to give added meaning, and the volume of your words — whether you speak very loudly, softly, whether you whisper… that gives extra. So you have to listen for those things. Also, spoken discourse and written discourse are very different. In written form, if you repeat the same thing again and again, people get tired. It’s like us reading Hebrew poetry. OK, you said it already, why are you saying it again? It depends on the language we speak, too. In spoken discourse, repetition is OK. In fact, we need to repeat because in written form your eyes can just look up. You think, OK, that’s the information above, so I connect it to the bottom. But with your ears, we forget once it goes through. So repeating is not a problem at all and repeating sometimes gives emphasis. So you have to consider things like that. And then in spoken language, spoken form, we tend to use certain forms that we wouldn’t use in written form. Again, the Chinese languages have a lot of [filler words] like ho, ma, le, law, la. We might not put them down in writing. But when we’re speaking, if we don’t have them, it sounds like something is missing. So you would have to listen for things like that. Also, we do emotional exegesis. In written form, you will have “Jesus rebuked Peter”. But when it’s oral, you would have to ask: How did he rebuke? Did he rebuke sternly? Did he raise his voice? How is this rebuking different from “rebuke the wind”? And how would he say it differently? Also, do I have to raise my voice? If he’s rebuking the wind, the wind is very loud. Does he have to shout at the wind? Or not? So these are the little things that you have to consider. With emotional exegesis, the sign language people are way ahead. We could actually use the sign language translation as a resource for emotional exegesis. I think I was pretty blessed because one time a translation colleague — she does sign language — was in Kota Kinabalu, and she invited us to observe her while she was community checking with the team. That was eye-opening. There are other things that will affect the meaning of translation. With sign language, it’s the height of the hand, it’s your facial expression. So when I did oral translation, those things came back to me. Does this mean that experience in written translation is not necessarily a requirement to be a consultant for OBT? If someone has experience with Deaf people, for instance, maybe that’s even better if they jump into OBT? The Asia-Pacific Area Consultant Taskforce (ACT) is actually working toward getting people from OneStory or Oral Bible Storying, people who already have experience in orality on a pathway towards becoming consultants for OBT. I think for all translations, whether it’s written, oral or sign, the basic things are all the same. That is to make sure the meaning is correct, to make sure it’s clear and natural, and to make sure it’s acceptable. But then there are also extras that you have to listen for or watch for. When a consultant who was doing written translation now changes to OBT, what are some of the challenges to them and to the translation teams? With the Penang Hokkien, because I’m the consultant, and I’m the most experienced in the team, I could actually make some of the decisions. I told them I wanted a written back translation, because I was worried that it would be too big a jump for me to have an oral back translation. A back translation is the translation that is translated back into a language that I know, but it’s done in a very literal form. But at the same time, because I understand enough Hokkien, I would listen to the Hokkien, and I basically knew which verse was saying what. And I could hear the intonation, loud or soft and the emotional part of the recording when they sent it to me, while my eyes looked at the written back translation. So that was my comfort zone. The team found a back translator, who was happy to do written back translation. She found it a challenge to do spoken back translation, which took her more time. …If I didn’t understand Hokkien at all, then the spoken back translation would actually be better. But then my challenge would be to be able to process all that information, especially when I’m checking for accuracy. I remember Swapna (Alexander, of FCBH) saying that she had to listen about 20 to 30 times to something because she wasn’t sure. You know, she was just trying to catch it. So it’s a different skill that you would have to learn. Some people will be better at it, because some people are more oral than other people, and more visual. The ACT just started a new initiative on OBT. It’s still in a very early stage, but would you tell us about it? What is this initiative trying to achieve? We realised that instead of relying on consultants from written translation to do checking, we also think that there will be more people doing OBT [only]. So we will need more consultants. We have this big group of people who have been involved in orality, either OneStory or OBS. They already have the orality background. When you do OneStory or OBS or any type of orality, you already have the skills to make sure that it’s accurate. And so we thought, OK, let’s provide a pathway where we can get them recognised as consultants. We are almost ready to tell Alliance organisations and partners about this. And we might get started next year. Do you think OBT is now being prioritised over written translation, or is that a misconception? I still think written translation is the king in the translation world. But, oral drafting has been around for a long time. A lot of people still draft orally. Then they write it down and record it. It is a better translation and more natural translation. And that’s why they continue to do that. So I think oral translation is not new. It is getting much attention mostly because of technology. Now you have Render and SIL Transcriber. OBT is actually going back to something people wanted to do a long time ago. The technology just was not there yet. Do OBT projects eventually develop into written translation projects? Or is OBT the final destination for some languages? Yes, for some languages, it is the final. It really depends on what the people want. If the people want to have a written translation, then you could take the oral translation and adapt it to a written form. But for some translations, people say, “This is it. We don’t think we want a written translation.” I think traditionally, in church traditions, having the written form is the Bible. In some places, they don’t even want you to open your phone or your tablet. “That’s not the Bible. The Bible has to be paper!” So it has a lot to do with the people, the tradition and the needs. With Penang Hokkien, I don’t think [we want a written form]. I say, “Well, if you want to, you can. If everyone agrees, if the church agrees, yeah.” But when we go into the written form, somehow the scrutiny from the pastors would be a little different. They would want it to look more like the Chinese Bible or NRSV or NIV or ESV. How do you distribute oral Scripture? You also mentioned that it’s not only audio, but also with video? That was a request from one of the pastors whose church we use for community checking. He said older people actually prefer video. So that’s what we’ve been doing. We put it on YouTube, and then we can send the link. The pastor likes it, especially because of COVID and the older folks are not allowed to gather in church. So they send out the video links or the videos through WhatsApp. Because we live in a city, nearly everybody has a handphone (cellphone). And older people have their own handphones or tablets. We have done one book, and FCBH will check the recording to make it as good as possible. Then we can actually share that – on CDs, if anybody uses those anymore, or SD cards. With the Kahak group, people are supporting them by giving them funds for buying SD cards and MP3 players, and they distribute them. Every few months, they update the playlist as they do more recordings. Those who received the MP3 players will go back and exchange SD cards, so that they will be able to get the newest recordings. And by doing that, the relationship is there because you keep going back to those people. People like it. Some of the MP3 players are quite big and some are smaller. I’ve seen the bigger ones. One lady says, “I love this, you know, I just put it in my shop and I played loudly. And I pray that my husband will listen to it and come to know the Lord.” I know you have some great news from people engaging with the videos and audio, right? This is a little story of the general secretary of the Bible Society of Malaysia. He was excited because he said that someone told him that he had given a video to his grandmother, you know, to watch Penang Hokkien. After watching that video, I think maybe the pastor was involved also, maybe he was sharing with his grandmother, and then she accepted the Lord. And another time, when the translator was checking her translation, she came to the part where Jesus was feeding the four thousand and the five thousand. Jesus looked at the people and he felt compassion for them because they were like sheep without a shepherd. The translator felt moved to ask the person who was helping to check, “Do you want to accept the Lord? Do you want Jesus in your life?” And the person said yes. And after they led him through prayer, they asked him, “What was it that moved your heart?” And he said, “When I realized that Jesus looked at me and he had compassion for people, I feel like I’m one of those sheep that is lost.” So because it’s in Penang Hokkien, people are more open to listening to it. Even my brother-in-law, who didn’t really want to have anything to do with Christians, was willing to listen to the translation just because it’s his language. Reproduced with permission from Wycliffe Global Alliance

In an article in the Straits Times on 27 Mar 2022, More learning Chinese dialects to connect with seniors or embrace cultural identity, it was reported that a growing number of Singaporeans are learning to speak Chinese dialects. One of the major dialects spoken in Singapore is Teochew. In early 2021, Wycliffe Singapore launched a Teochew storying project to retell Bible stories in colloquial Teochew. It is hoped that this will improve access to Bible stories to Teochew speakers, especially those who cannot read or understand the Bible in Mandarin well. The project team has met about once a month over the past year or so, crafting, testing and revising selected Bible stories. The aim is to use these stories in Story Fellowship Groups, where Bible stories are shared and discussed, and listeners can learn to retell the stories to others. This is a great way to share Bible stories with pre-believing friends and relatives, and introduce Jesus to them in a non-threatening way. Listen to 3 of the Teochew Bible Stories that have been crafted and recorded: 1. Healing a blind man at Jericho (Luke 18:35-43) 2. The birth of Jesus foretold to Mary (Luke 1:26-38) 3. Joseph accepts Jesus as his son (Matthew 1:18-25) If you or someone you know is interested in participating in this ministry, or finding out more about oral Bible storying, contact us . Read more about oral storying: Telling Bible Stories in Chinese Dialects – Taster Workshop Sharing Stories in Story Fellowship Groups Crafting Stories – Reflect, Internalise, Tell

After three years of hard work, not made any easier by the Covid pandemic, the seven language groups of the Simar Cluster Project were able to dedicate the translated Gospel of Luke and the Jesus film in each of their languages in August 2022. This project could not have been completed without local churches and translation organisations working together, with financial and other support from donors. The local churches and denominations contributed translators, workshop facilities and food; translation organisations contributed expertise to train the translators and to check the quality of Scriptures produced. The teams met four times a year for three-week workshops, and returned to their home regions between workshops to test the translations and promote the use of the translated Scripture, while preparing for the next workshop. During the pandemic, when movements and meetings were restricted, the teams continued to work on Zoom, despite poor internet access and other IT issues. It is a great testament to God’s grace and their hard work that they were able to complete the project! For the teams, the completion of the Gospel of Luke and Jesus Film is just the beginning. A website has been set up for each language to make the materials available more easily. Over the next year, they plan to help the local churches put these materials to good use. They will also make plans to begin translating the rest of the New Testament. Some of the mother tongue translators, having received training and experience, may even facilitate translations for other groups who also need the Scriptures in their own languages. Here are a few photos and a video from the dedication ceremonies in some of the local churches. During the Mabete* dedication, a line of dancers welcomes the translation team at the gates of the church, rice baskets slung across their shoulders. It is a harvest dance, depicting the seasons of sowing, reaping, and threshing grain. At the end of the line is a young boy who gathers the harvest into his basket—symbolic of how the Mabete* people are reaping the fruit of the translation project. And just as rice is harvested to feed the community, the Word of God will be distributed to feed the church. * Not the real names Wycliffe Singapore’s R200 Programme has raised support for the Simar Cluster Project since it began. If you would like to contribute towards a project, or would like to find out more about R200 Programme, please contact us . Related articles: Working from Afar (COVID-19) Robeno* Bible Festival

From Wycliffe Australia "When people read the Bible in Ambonese Malay it’s like God is speaking directly to their heart with the language they understand the best." — Olce Saleky, Ambonese Malay Scripture Engagement Team Ambon city in eastern Indonesia is no stranger to grand openings and official launches. During our time here as translation facilitators, we’ve seen pomp and ceremony for new bridges, hotels, shopping centres, supermarkets, restaurants and more. In September 2022, a different, more significant kind of launch occurred. A young boy sounded a conch shell, announcing to all that something special was about to happen. A traditional band stopped traffic as they marched down a main street to the church. Joining the procession were the eight members of the Ambonese Malay New Testament translation team, each carrying a copy of a book that was twenty years in the making. The newly-published Ambonese Malay New Testament was handed over to the church and officially endorsed by Ambon’s most influential Christian leader. The ceremony was culturally and strategically important. Ambonese people value the symbolism of an official event and the church’s endorsement of the translation is crucial for its acceptance and ongoing use. We feel incredibly blessed to have been part of this once-in-a-lifetime event. It is significant for us because we have both had the pleasure of being part of the team working on this translation. We have ridden the highs and lows and seen glimpses of the impact of the Scriptures translated into Ambonese along the way. But it is so much more significant for the people of Ambon who now have the New Testament in their own language. Christianity came to Ambon and the surrounding Spice Islands in the 16th century and the church is well established in this region. Churches generally use the national language of Indonesian for the Bible and all aspects of ministry, which means that many Ambonese are left practising their faith in a second, third or even fourth language. As a result, language can be a significant obstacle to understanding the gospel. Twenty-five years ago, before we joined the project, no one thought that an Ambonese Bible translation project would get off the ground. Yet God made a way for it to happen. Over the years, the project faced numerous obstacles and setbacks. We were rocked by an earthquake and flooded twice. Translation staff came and left. COVID pushed publication plans back by two years. Travel restrictions meant we didn’t even know if we could attend the official launch. Yet again, God made a way. The story about the Ambonese Bible dedication has been taken from Wycliffe Australia's publication, Wycliffe Today . The video of the dedication was produced by Wycliffe Australia. Reproduced with permission from Wycliffe Global Alliance