Working for the Word - a Bible translation podcast

This episode will just be a brief announcement that I’ll be taking some time away from this podcast in order to focus on some other important things right now. I may be posting sporadically, but I’m not sure how often. There are a lot of episodes I’d like to do in the future.

MA in Bible Translation from Nida Institute: https://www.nidaschool.org/ma-bible-translation Seed Company Residency Program: https://seedcompany.com/residency/

Wycliffe's convergence program for training consultants: https://www.wycliffe.org/blog/posts/6-ways-convergence-will-prepare-you-to-become-a-translation-consultant

Word for the World's training programs: https://training.twftw.org/

Mekane Yesus Seminary: https://mekaneyesusseminary.org/

SIL Translation CiT Funding Guidelines:

• Is a current SIL staff member
• Is already an approved Translation CiT with their OU – have a mentor, a growth plan, and have begun their mentored checking training
• Is within their last two years of their Translation CiT program – ie, within two years of starting this program they will become approved as a Translation Consultant
• Have approval to enter this program from their OU Administration (supervisor) and their OU Translation Coordinator
• Upon becoming a Translation Consultant, they commit to working 0.5 FTE (50%) of their time as a Translation Consultant for at least five years

ChatGPT is considered by some to be the biggest technological revolution since the iPhone. In this episode we take it for a spin to see what it knows about Bible translation and test the limits of its expertise regarding more challenging biblical studies.

Links:

What does a sociolinguistics consultant do, and how can Bible translators continue to think carefully about language vitality? What kinds of questions should you ask to quickly assess the status of a language? For answers to all this and more, we have Scott Smith as our guest today. Get ready for a deep dive into the world of sociolinguistics.

Scott Smith and I met back in 2011 when he convinced me to join him and his team over in Equatorial Guinea in Central Africa. He and his wife Margaret have been working there on and off for decades, and they are some of the most generous people I know. Fun fact: they built their home out of shipping containers right on the beach in Equatorial Guinea, and I’ve spent a lot of time out there visiting with them over the years, drinking coconuts and enjoying the warm ocean water. Sometimes Scott and I would have meetings while floating on the waves. Scott is also known for his jokes, playing with words in multiple languages, and for enjoying being a polyglot in general. 

My grandparents ended up having four children, all of whom eventually worked in Bible translation. Their family loved to laugh and sing and tell jokes. This is the second part of their lives in BT, in which we reach the completion of the NT in Zapotec of Sierra Juarez (language code zaa). "God has helped us to translate portions of the Old Testament and the complete New Testament. We have done a literacy program, with primers, a dictionary, grammar and reading books. We have trained and discipled many Zapotecs, done medical work, taught music, helped choirs and programs, participated in community projects, sent Zapotecs to schools of higher education, done group service and public relations, and hospitality, counseling, discipleship and a few other things. We even had a part in beginning a radio program in Zapotec. Now there are many trained Pastors and leaders, churches and Christian workers." 

My grandma and grandpa Neil and Jane Nellis are no longer with us, but they did leave behind a 60,000 word book that records their story in their own words—their family histories, their conversions, their love story, and the account of their work in Mexico and Bible translation. This is the first part of an abridged version of their story. They lived through the Great Depression, played chess with Uncle Cam, and eventually ended up translating the NT into the language of the most famous president of Mexico.

Before we continue with the series on my family in Bible translation, I wanted to bring a few things to your attention, recommend some things, and share some BT general news.

Last episode we began listening to the story of my dad’s life and involvement in Bible translation. In this second and final part we’ll hear about how he broke his neck while in the village, spiritual warfare he and my mom faced, the translation work, and more. Enjoy! Another huge thank you to my dad. I hope this interview proves to be interesting, encouraging, and edifying.

In this series on people in my family who have contributed to Bible translation, the next person is my dad, Daniel Case. He’s been through a lot in his 75 years of life, from growing up in Cuba to serving in the Vietnam War to being a medical missionary and working for decades in Bible translation for the Chatino people of El Carrizal in the mountains of Oaxaca, Mexico. I really admire his wisdom, tenacity, humility, and servant heart, and I wanted to share his story with you. 

There are actually a lot of people in my family who are currently involved in Bible translation or were at some point, so I thought it would be fun and interesting to put together a series that tells their stories. Each one is unique, and my hope is that this will give you a window into some of the history of Bible translation and the different experiences and challenges that people have faced, especially here in Mexico. We’re going to start with my grandpa Edward Case, my dad’s dad, who is 101 years old and now lives in California. I got my uncle Jim who lives nearby to ask him some questions about his brief involvement in BT and subsequent missionary work in Cuba during the decade or so before Fidel Castro took over, which were some of Cuba’s golden years. Although his time working towards BT in Mexico was cut short by WWII, it’s interesting to hear the trajectory of his life and the way God used him and his family.

The advance of globalization among the minority languages of the world is rapidly changing the landscape of Bible translation. Though a complete written Bible is a worthy goal, in some cases the declining vitality of minority languages and lack of mother-tongue literacy make this approach impractical. By the time the completed Bible is published, there may be few left to read it. This is where oral Bible translation can help. In this episode we’re going to talk about the process of training for these kinds of oral projects.

A lot has been going on lately with Bible translation in my neck of the woods. In this episode I want to talk about my experience being a test pilot for some of the resources CDBR has been developing for the Psalms, and walk through a draft that I’ve been working on that's designed to guide translators step by step through the process of translating Hebrew poetry.

As part of my growth as a Bible translation worker, I want to listen to a wide variety of people and different strategies, and not just to those who are within the echo chamber of people who think like me and agree with me.  This interview with Jane Schoen of SRG raises some big questions that have been debated for years about whether BT should be done by believers or unbelievers. The method she’ll describe for us is still essentially in a proof of concept phase, and it will be interesting to see how everything plays out ten to twenty years down the road.  There’s no doubt it’s a bit controversial, but it’s worth listening to and considering.

Jane has a broad range of experience, and currently serves as the director of the unreached people groups fund for an organization called SRG, the Strategic Resource Group, which funds projects to reach unreached people groups in the Middle East and North Africa.

Does the Bible translation movement need a Dorean reformation? Do our organizations reflect a sense of urgency to eradicate Bible poverty to the point of casting off anything that hinders so that we can all run the race towards helping the Bibleless without friction or obstacles? Do they reflect the radical generosity of the heart of Jesus shown in the very Bible they are trying to get into the hands of every tribe and every nation? Or do they reflect the petty spirit of the world, grasping at pennies when they have already been generously provided for by the sacrificial offerings of God’s people? Donors give, expecting nothing in return. Shouldn’t those receiving the donations do the same at a minimum? 

As I’ve said many times before, the goal of this podcast is to become more like the man of Psalm 1. The more you immerse yourself in the scriptures, the more you want to bear fruit like a tree planted by streams of water. Part of the fruit of what I want to see come from this podcast is that of greater movement towards God's word in all of our practices within Bible translation. To see more and more people take a stand with conviction on certain issues within the Bible translation movement, and not compromise just because a lot of people are doing it or there's a lot of money involved. The more you immerse yourself in Scripture like the man of Psalm 1, the more you realize how much it has to say about money. Jesus had more to say about money than heaven and hell and love combined. So I hope you'll forgive me for doing just one more podcast along these lines, to make a call for deeper thinking in this area, greater conviction, repentance, and ethical consistency.

If you haven’t listened to the previous two episodes with Conley Owens, this episode won’t have enough context to make sense, so go ahead and make sure to listen to those episodes before you continue with this one.

As we’ve discussed multiple times in this podcast, the world of Bible translation is severely hindered by the status quo of locking up biblical resources under a "Copyright, All Rights Reserved" system. The global Church suffers tremendously because of this as well, and they only receive the crumbs that fall off the table of the rich Western Christian publishing industry. There is no longer a distinction between the world and the Church in the practice of monetizing everything–even gospel ministry and the resources needed to make Bible translation truly succeed and be sustainable. So I’m deeply thankful that someone has finally published a book that directly addresses the problem of the commercialization of Christianity. We’re going to talk to him over the next two episodes and see what we can learn.

How do you keep track of the status of over 7,000 languages in the world? Our guest today, Dr. Dave Eberhard, is going to help us with that question, which is an important one for the world of Bible translation. Because you don’t want to end up investing hundreds of thousands of dollars and twenty years of work on a language that will die before you finish, while neglecting other languages that are in full health. This is a serious issue that many fail to consider, so let’s talk about it.

Some of you may be wondering what happened to me, so here’s a brief update with a few potentially interesting tidbits.

As we wrap up this series on the Bible in Arabic, I want delve a little deeper into the issue of how BT orgs are handling the issue of Muslim Idiom Translations today. That way hopefully we can have more informed conversations about a healthy way forward and know how to pray for Bible translation in Arabic and other Muslim-dominant languages. We also want to look at how these orgs are communicating or not communicating openly about these things with financial partners, and see what we can learn.

What are the underlying assumptions that might influence our choice of how to translate the Bible into Arabic, and also in other Muslim contexts? We’re going to step back in this episode and try to understand what presuppositions might be driving certain ideas in this debate. In order to do that, Dr. Aaron Shryock has kindly agreed to contribute his perspective. This will be interesting, because I’m sure there are a lot of people who would disagree strongly with his view, but I hope that we can all learn together by listening and trying to empathize with different convictions and positions in the world of translation.

Books Aaron recommends:

We’ve heard from some significant voices on translation issues in Arabic and other Muslim contexts, but so far we haven’t been able to sit down with a native speaker of Arabic and hear their perspective. As D.A. Carson said, it’s important to listen to people from the Middle East, rather than focus our attention only on Western opinions. So that’s what we’re going to do in this episode. Georges Houssney is our guest, and he grew up in Lebanon and he’s an author. He has vast experience in missions, Bible translation, linguistics, and engaging Islam. He is also the president of Horizons International mission.

In the spring of 2012, the World Evangelical Alliance leadership agreed to facilitate an independent external review of Wycliffe and SIL International’s practice of the translation of the words for “God the Father” and “Son of God.” The review was intended to focus on SIL’s Statement of Best Practices for Bible Translation of Divine Familial Terms, to set boundaries for theologically acceptable translation methodology particularly in Muslim contexts, and to suggest how to implement the recommendations practically. We're going to work through this 30-page document together and see what we can learn.

In the last episode we saw that contemporary Bible translators in Muslim contexts face some unique challenges. We also saw how the particular challenges in evangelizing the Islamic world can lead to creative ways of contextualization that may end up being harmful, deceptive, or simply unbiblical in different ways. Now we want to set the stage for understanding the broader history of the brouhaha that erupted out of the issue of making Islamized Bible translations that are more conducive to Insider Movements missiology. We’re going to trace more of the academic debate, as well as the events surrounding the biggest recent controversy in BT.

As we continue to learn about the story of the Bible in Arabic, we need to look at what the particular contemporary challenges are to translating the Bible in Muslim contexts, as well as understand missiological trends that affect the way people might translate. These are not always easy things to grasp with nuance and wisdom, which perhaps is why some organizations have banned their members from any public discussion of the issues. So we’re going to do our best to patiently explore these things and see what we can learn–and hopefully proceed with humility and fairness by God’s grace.

Article referenced: Challenges Facing Bible Translation in the Islamic Context of the Middle East by Issa Diab published in "The Bible Translator" journal.

As we saw in the last episode, God raised up some amazing men to produce the most influential Bible translation in Arabic. I want to continue exploring a little more about this translation and see what its legacy has been over more than a century. No Bible translation is perfect, and languages undergo significant changes over the course of a hundred years, leading to a need for updated translations that contemporary readers can understand. Cultures and religions have also shifted in the Arab world, which raises new challenges for Bible translation. So let’s explore these things and more together.

In the last episode we got a brief view of what some of the Arab world was like in the 1800s, and what protestant missionaries were facing as they endeavored to produce a translation of the Bible that could become a standard text for their mission work and church-planting. In this episode we want to look at the detailed first-hand account of what went on behind the scenes of this translation, which is widely known today as the Van Dyck translation. Who were the people involved and what tools did they use for this work? You may never have heard of this translation, but it became the best-selling book in Syria and Egypt, and later attained the equivalent status of the KJV amongst Arabic-speaking Christians.

Christian history is full of unsung heroes, and the world of Bible translation is no exception. Even though books have been written to record amazing things God has done through different missionaries, we often forget about them because they were written so long ago. One such book is Fifty Three Years in Syria, a two volume work that describes much of the missionary work done in the 1800s and early 1900s in the middle east, including the most influential complete translation of the Bible into Arabic, which is still used as a standard text today. When I first set out to do this series I imagined that I would focus exclusively on BT into Arabic, but the more I read about the events, culture, and people surrounding the history of Arabic BT, the more I wanted to share it with you. It’s absolutely fascinating and many times stranger than fiction. At times it may feel like we’re jumping around a lot, but I think through these various vignettes we’ll gain a more fully-orbed idea of what the world was like in this part of the middle east during the birth of the most influential Bible in Arabic.

It’s no secret that the book of Psalms is one of the darlings of the Church, and has been throughout the centuries. The poetic artistry, the raw emotion, the complete transparency—are all elements that make The Psalms so unique and compelling. Yet most of us never have the time or the tools to dig as deeply into them as they deserve. And when it comes to translating them, we need to have a profound grasp of their design and message. Today we’re going to talk about a project whose purpose is to provide translators with detailed analysis and useful information on The Psalms in one place. A big thanks to Dr. Elizabeth Robar and Katie Frost for taking the time to share their work and vision!

Have you ever read the letters that went back and forth between St. Augustine and Jerome about Bible translation? If you haven’t, this is going to be a surprising and maybe even shocking episode for you. It turns out that the strong tendency to claim that your favorite traditional translation of the Bible isn’t new at all, and was happening all the way back in the fourth century. This was a type of KJV-onlyism at an epic scale, because it involved arguments between church fathers.

I want to share with you a wonderfully articulate and insightful book review done by my friend Mark Ward. Mark has been on this podcast before talking about the problems with KJV-onlyism, and when he released a video reviewing Robert Alter’s book The Art of Bible Translation, I couldn’t help but want to share it with all of you here on the podcast.

We take a deep dive on the state of the text of Samuel and 2 Samuel 22:26 in particular, and hopefully gain a broader, better, more nuanced understanding of what can make Bible translation a bit slow at times. 

There are still a lot of notes that we haven’t discussed from my time spent checking 2 Samuel, so we’re going to tackle a couple more in this episode. We’re going to see how maintaining important plays on words in translation might sometimes seem impossible, but with some creativity there may be some workable solutions. We’re also going to see how important it is to understand the interplay between all the languages involved in checking a translation of Scripture.