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A NEW METHOD OF DISSEM INATING THE OLD GOSPEL
I N 1933, thie work o f the Wycliffe Bible Translators, Inc., came into being as a result o f the vision o f L. L. Legters and W. Cameron Townsend. An unde nominational, unsectarian enterprise, it was incorporated in 1942. It is dedicated to the sole purpose of translating the Bible into new languages, many of which have to be reduced to writing for the first time. There are over one thousand such languages in the world at the pres ent time so the task is most important. This organization endeavors to serve all missionary organizations and Bible so- cities, as well as providing for transla tors when requested. Closely interwoven with the work of the Wycliffe Bible Translators are the Summer Institutes of Linguistics at Caron, Saskatchewan, Canada, and Nor man, Oklahoma, where free training is given to accepted candidates on Protes tant mission boards, and to students who have nearly completed their training. This work, first known as “ Camp Wy- cliffe,1’ was founded in 1934, at Sulphur Springs, Arkansas, on a small farm in the rustic Ozarks. It was thus named in honor o f the man who in 1382 gave Eng lish-speaking people their first Bible for which he was persecuted cruelly. It is open fo r two and a half months each summer when seminaries and Bible in stitutes are generally closed. During the first session, the men lived in an old farm house, slept on hard bunks, sat on nail kegs,'etc., and did their own cooking. Here over 1,000 missionaries have been trained for more than forty societies. It is the conviction of the Wycliffe
Bible Translators, based upon experience, that two and a half months spent at Camp Wycliffe prior to going to the field will save the pioneer missionary at least two and one-half years of trial and error struggling with an unwritten language. The courses are in “ descrip tive linguistics” which emphasize the un derlying principles of language analysis, thereby enabling the missionary to re duce an unwritten language to writing and to produce a translation more quick ly and accurately than with the usual methods. These institutes present the lin guistic problems o f the translators be fore universities and governments and furnish articles on the subject for scien tific journals. The Lord has raised up two most able linguists to teach these courses—Dr. Kenneth L. Pike and Dr. Eugene A. Nida. In 1946, 285 students attended these classes. Each year, new recruits have been added to the Wycliffe Bible Translators, Inc., until there are now nearly 162 Americans studying the languages of about 50 Indian tribes. No denomination backs them financially and it is against their policy to solicit funds, yet none of them has had to withdraw from the field for lack o f money. The government of Mexico has manifested its sincere appre ciation o f the beneficial and scientific services of these youthful translators by giving some financial assistance, but most of the support has come from friends here and there who have somehow heard o f the work and have contributed. To translate the Word, a new language must be learned and reduced to writing.
A South American Indian.
The translator makes his home with the tribe whose language he wishes to trans late, gains their confidence, and pro cures an informant. Then the words, phrases and pages o f texts are analyzed. The rough draft and revisions must be checked and re-checked; parallel pas sages having similar words in various chapters must be made to coincide; then all is typed carefully, submitted to the Bible Society, proofread four times, and printed. The Word of God in the native tongue is a necessary foundation to evan gelism and Christian growth, for it is the permanent testimony which bears fruit in Christian lives. As the Word is translated, the illiter ate must be taught to read. This is ac complished through Dr. Laubach’s meth od, which utilizes flannelgraphs, thus as sociating words with pictures. The real problem is to convince the uneducated that they really can learn to read. Another phase of the work is the pro vision of a Jungle Training Camp in the wilds of Chiapas, Southern Mexico, where recruits learn to exist and work in the jungle before they go to their respective tribes. There is much work to be done. Be sides translation work now going on amoiig 50 tribes in Mexico and Peru, there are 400 tribes in Africa, 150 in Latin America, 50 in the Philippines, 75 in Russian Asia, 50 in Southwest China, 125 in India, 100 in French Indo-China and Burma, 50 in various islands, and others in Central Asia, who need the Word of God in their languages. The work has only begun. There is an unlimited field, and millions o f souls in the darkness of heathenism are waiting for the Word of Life in their own tongue. Pray and give that our workers may complete the task ere “ the night cometh when no man can work.”
A courtyard where JVycliffe translators lived among the Tzotzils.
F E B R U A R Y , I 9 4 8
Page Nine
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