Dedication of the Sougb New Testament
by Dr Daud Soesilo, UBS Translation Consultant, Indonesia
MANOKWARI, Irian Jaya, Indonesia — While undertaking trekking
surveys of the interior area, south of Manokwari, called the 'Bird's Head',
missionaries made initial contact with the then still very primitive indigenous
people of former Dutch New Guinea living in the Sougb villages around two
mountain lakes.
'Dirty ones'
Outsiders often referred to the Sougb as the Manikion tribe, or 'dirty
ones' (a term used for the dredges left from refining coconut oil) among
whom fighting, head-hunting, animism and spiritism had featured strongly
for generations. In 1955 Henry Bock of The
Evangelical Alliance Mission (TEAM) opened a station in Anggi, where
he worked for 14 years until he was forced to leave because his wife was
taken ill. In that time, there were nine churches of some 700 members,
with 17 church leaders or elders. Because there were no roads into the
interior, the Mission Aviation
Fellowship (MAF) used a float plane to help the missionaries begin
their work, later building a grass airstrip at Anggi, near one of the lakes,
and to this day, MAF continues to serve this area, where the only real
travel options are by air, or by foot.
'Voice of God'
In 1969 another TEAM missionary, German-born, Wolfgang 'Dan' Lunow and
his American wife, Barbara, continued the work in Anggi, and in 1974 started
to translate the New Testament into Sougb. Dan was assisted by several
Sougb speakers, while Barbara did the typing, and later keying-in. They
saw the New Testament progress from handwritten form, to typed manuscript,
and finally onto computer, when the manuscript was completed in November
1995, after which time the IBS duly printed 5,000 copies entitled Allah
Men Gos Doumenau (literally 'Voice of God').
Rousing welcome
The day of the New Testament dedication began early with the indigenous
fife and drum band awakening the guests at 4.00am while it was still dark.
By 5.30 the Lunows were on the radio relaying the weather report to the
MAF pilots bringing the guests to the celebration. For three weeks before,
no aircraft had been able to land because of high winds, but today the
winds at the airstrip had stayed calm, and arriving dignitaries were given
a rousing welcome by dancers who escorted them to the church – some of
them fully attired as warriors.
Symbolic
Dr Soesilo and the highest-ranking government official were presented with
a Sougb necklace of colourful dowry beads – an important symbol depicting
the state of the Sougb before and after the Gospel came to them. Before,
the Sougb were like scattered beads, with nothing to hold them together,
but after the Gospel came, Jesus became the string for all the beads to
hang on, and the Holy Spirit tied them all together. The dark-skinned Sougb
were now represented on the string, along with the white, red and yellow
beads, showing the worldwide impact of the Gospel.
Such was the importance of the occasion that some Sougb people had walked
a four-day journey to attend. Everywhere the church was filled to overflowing
as the Lunows were honoured with a certificate of appreciation from the
churches, and thanks were expressed to all those who had a part in bringing
the New Testament to the Sougb people.
Then, after copies were presented to government officials and church
leaders, everyone was invited to feast on the huge spread of food that
had been prepared over wooden fires most of the previous day and night
– a feast which included two cows, four pigs, and eight goats, and no less
than 88 25kg sacks of rice.
Later that evening, the MAF aircraft were able to make four departure
flights, flying much later in the day than is normal, although the celebrations
continued into the next day with the people in their traditional costumes
presenting a drama right on the airstrip – re-enacting how they had been
turned from the way of darkness to the light of the Gospel.
Bible School
Some distance away, another thanksgiving service was also conducted in
the neighbouring village of Nenei, where the Sougb Bible School is situated,
and where it was reported that at least 2,000 copies of the new New Testaments
have already been sold.
Background:
Sougb is also known as Manikion, Mantion or Sogh;
UBS Translation Consultant: Dr Daud Soesilo (IBS);
Estimated number of speakers: 12,000 in East Bird's Head
area of northwest Irian Jaya.
Since the early 1960s, no less than 10,000 of the local
people that have been baptised, and on a on a typical Sunday morning there
are regularly some 5,700 people worshipping in 66 churches led by 346 pastors.
Literacy is about 40%.
This page was last updated on Thursday, 22nd May
1997.