PORT MORESBY, Papua New Guinea — A community school in the Kabwum district of Morobe Province was the venue for the dedication of the Yau New Testament in June 1997. A platform was built and decorated for the visiting officials, among them Robin Thurman, Director of the Summer Institute of Linguistics (SIL), Pastor Beka of the Good News Department in Lae, Yau-speaking Pastor Yanggena, SIL translators Urs and Johanna Wegmann, and members of the Yau language translation committee. The Bible Society was represented by Mr Norbert Augustine from the distribution centre in Lae.

Pastor Beka emphasised the significance of this special day in the lives of the Yau people. “This New Testament is not just for use at church on Sundays, it is for every day. It is the book of life for today and forever.” As Pastor Beka held up a copy of the Yau New Testament, the congregation clapped their agreement and approval.

Urs Wegmann recounted the history of the Yau translation program, from the arrival of the first missionary in 1928, to the time when the family arrived in 1989, through to June 1997 when the Yau New Testament was officially dedicated. Mr Wegmann acknowledged the help of the large committee who had worked with him on the Yau translation. “It takes motivated individuals to achieve a task of this nature, the wonderful team of people involved in the project each played a different key role, from spiritual leadership to literacy work, business management and community relations.”

At the end of the dedication service, hundreds of people went forward to receive their pre-paid copies of the New Testament. In anticipation of the launch of the new Scripture in their language, many had joined literacy classes, either to learn to read or to improve their reading skills. The New Testament was the first Bible Society publication in the Yau language, although some Portions were published previously by other organisations, namely, the Gospel of Mark in 1991, Acts and Ephesians in 1992, and parts of Matthew’s Gospel in 1994.