The
Bible Society in New Zealand has been presented
with a special Bible which made friends of two enemies|
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Returning East
Timorese Greeted with New Scripture
Tale of Enemies Reconciled through the Word (New
Zealand)
Bible Overcomes Divisions in the Philippines
THAILAND FOCUS:
A Gift from the Heart
Rising to the Challenge: Tales of Bible Translators
Chiang Mai's 'Bible Factory'
Living a New Life
Night of Fear Ended in Dream of Christ
'A Miracle Happened to Me'
First Pwo Karen Scripture to be Launched Soon
Insomniac Businessman Healed by Bible
DILI, East Timor; January 2000 — Refugees returning to East Timor after fleeing the September violence were surprised to receive a unique present. In January, chaplains serving with the Australian UN peacekeeping forces in East Timor were supplied with 10,000 copies of a new translation of the Scriptures: the Gospel according to Luke in the local language Tetum Prasa.
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The translation work was kept secret because of the policy of the Indonesian authorities in discouraging the use of local languages and forcing people to use Indonesian. Translators prepared a draft of the Gospel in East Timor, which was then taken to Australia for printing with the recommendation of Bishop Carlos Belo.
Dr Geoffrey Hull, from the University of Western Sydney, worked on the text, checking for consistencies and generally preparing it for publication. It was around this time that the Bible Society in Australia (BSA) agreed to finance and print the edition as a gift to the people of East Timor. The costs have been met by BSA supporters.“We were aiming to give the people of East Timor a Christmas present to remember as a token of friendship after all they had suffered,” said Mark Francis, the General Secretary of the BSA.
“Sadly, we missed Christmas, but were able to get the Portions freighted over there in the first week of the New Year. They were dispersed among the Australian Army chaplains who made sure they reached the church leaders for distribution. In the weeks that followed, many people were overjoyed to receive these Gospels in their own language.”
Roman Catholic and Protestant churches benefited from this distribution in a translation that “honours both their faith and their culture,” according to Dr John Harris, Director of Text and Translation for the BSA. Bishop Belo was delighted with the Gospel and thanked all those involved in making the Word of God available to the East Timorese people.
Tetum Prasa is a form of lingua franca particularly spoken in the region of Dili and close to Tetun, which is more widely spoken across East Timor and in some parts of West Timor.
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East Timor is a former Portuguese colony. Despite the dominance of Portuguese as the official language in schools and in church, and more recently the enforced use of Indonesian, the people still have some literacy in Tetum Prasa.
This Portion will be of great blessing to the Christians, especially as they face the long struggle of rebuilding their country following the violent and destructive events surrounding the achievement of independence for East Timor.
It is estimated that 250,000 East Timorese fled to West Timor when threatened
with violence after the independence vote last September (please
see World Report, February 2000, 348/17). Official figures suggest
that 161,000 have now returned.
(WR 352/16 - 7/8.00) [PHOTOS]
The
Bible Society in New Zealand has been presented
with a special Bible which made friends of two enemies
WELLINGTON, New Zealand — In 1941 during World War II, Eric Cordery was retreating from Greece with the allied forces. He was travelling in a lorry late at night on a dangerous road in the vicinity of Mount Olympus. Suddenly, the lorry missed a bend and left the road.
“The truck skidded and went over a bank. I thought all six of us on board would be killed,” Mr Cordery said. “We managed to escape the wreck however, and clambered up the bank. Eventually we got a ride and were able to rejoin our unit. But everything we had was left behind in the wreckage, including my Bible.”
Mr Cordery’s Bible was found by Dr Karl Bringmann, a photojournalist travelling with the German Army Medical Corps. Being a devout Roman Catholic, Mr Bringmann sent the Bible back to his wife in Dusseldorf, Germany, hoping to locate the book’s owner after the war.
Inside the front cover there was an inscription noting that it had been given to Eric Cordery as a prize when he was a 15-year-old student at St Mark’s School in Wellington, New Zealand.
In 1947 Dr Bringmann wrote to the school and his letter was forwarded on to Mr Cordery. Correspondence between the two men began and culminated in 1950 when the Corderys went to Germany to meet the Bringmanns. From this encounter a firm friendship developed which lasted 40 years.
Now the only survivor of the two couples, Mr Cordery talks warmly of this Bible-based friendship. Even though they had been enemies during the war, because of the lost Bible their new friendship spanned not only distance but overcame all former animosity. Mr Cordery found that he and Dr Bringmann shared the same beliefs for their fellow men as well as their Christian faith. They even shared the same birthday – Boxing Day.
Eighty-nine-year-old Mr Cordery has decided that the best resting-place for his Bible is with the Bible Society of New Zealand. He hopes that the story of this unique Bible can be the inspiration to others who have experienced similar hostility and separation. (WR 352/17 - 7/8.00) [PHOTOS]
MANILA, Philippines — “Isn’t it amazing that the Bible has removed the divisions, the barriers of relationships among us and drawn us together as children of God!”
The speaker of these words was the bishop of the United Methodist Church – Baguio Episcopal Area, and former president and chairman of the Philippine Bible Society (PBS), the Rt Rev Dr Daniel Arichea. The occasion was the PBS celebration event of the year for exactly 100 years of Bible work in the Philippines.
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One of the highlights of the year-long celebrations was a dinner on November 26 last year which drew together Roman Catholics, Methodists, Presbyterians, Baptists and Pentecostals, an event rare enough in itself. According to Dr Arichea, who had worked for the UBS as a translation consultant and Regional Translation Coordinator, the power of the Bible to draw people together became apparent to him when he started work on the first interconfessional Bible translations in 1968.
“Our translation teams were a miracle themselves,” he recalled. “In those days the coming together of people from different denominations was a rarity. But as a result, today there are interconfessional translations of the Bible in eight major languages spoken in the Philippines. This represents more than 95 per cent of the population.
“Today, thanks to the work of the PBS, Catholics and Protestants read the same translation of the Bible. That is one of the main reasons we are able to gather together leaders from all churches and movements throughout the Philippines for this celebration,” he added.
A unique display featuring Bibles from different countries and Scriptures in different languages as well as early editions showing the history of the Bible in the Philippines attracted much attention at the dinner. This display has now been set up in the hall of the new PBS facility in Santa Mesa.
The dinner was only one of the many events during the year-long celebrations. On August 23 last year the PBS opened a new bookstore located on the ground floor of the Santa Mesa facility which they first occupied last July. The new shop will complement the old bookshop at United Nations Avenue.
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On November 25, a new Bible warehouse was dedicated in the Pandacan area of the capital. Following the ceremony, attended by officials and leaders from the locality, copies of the centennial edition of the Bible were given to needy families living in the surrounding area. The warehouse will carry the bulk of the PBS stock while the United Nations Avenue warehousing and offices are redeveloped.
The Centennial Bible edition is a specially-printed quality low-cost Bible, the major thrust of the PBS centennial celebrations. Originally called Bibles for the Poorest Among the Poor, the project received 60 per cent support from local donors which has kept the cost of each item at 50 pesos (a little over $1).
The Bibles, which are available in five major languages spoken throughout the Philippines – Cebuano, English, Hiligaynon, Ilokano and Tagalog – cannot be bought in bookshops.
They are only available through churches, encouraging churches to become involved in Bible distribution throughout their communities. So far, more than 100,000 of these have been distributed. A total of 200,000 have now been printed and the rest will be distributed before the end of 2000.
The Philippine Post Office has issued a low denomination, 5-pesos postage stamp to commemorate the PBS centennial. The stamp, designed in conjunction with the PBS, features the words, “God’s Word, Hope for Justice and Peace” above an open book and in front of this is a plate of five loaves of bread and two fishes. Underneath are the words, ‘100 years Philippine Bible Society’.
“It is rare to have a commemorative stamp with such a common value,” said Dr Medarlo Rivera, PBS General Secretary. “This will go a long way to getting the PBS better known throughout the country.” (WR 352/18 - 7/8.00) [PHOTOS]
| THAILAND FOCUS |
The following stories were gathered by John Dean, UBS Europe-Middle East Program Consultant, on a recent visit to Thailand
A
few months ago a volunteer gave her house to the Bible Society of Thailand.
When I heard this story I immediately wanted to meet her to find out what had
motivated this generous gift.
CHIANG MAI, Thailand — Phangehantara Somwang welcomed me with a warm smile into her temporary quarters in the McCormick hospital. Her house, which will soon be used by the Bible Society, is currently being rebuilt as office accommodation. It is conveniently situated, close to the city centre and two major churches. Mrs Somwang was happy to talk about her faith and her decision to give her home away:
“The present office of the Bible Society here in Chiang Mai is very small, and the staff have hardly any space to work. As a volunteer I was part of a group which was praying that God would lead them to better accommodation. Their situation really touched my heart and I began thinking.
“I was living all by myself in a big house, and so I said to them: ‘If you have still not found anywhere to go, come and live with me.’ To my joy the Bible Society accepted my offer. We agreed that we would have to rebuild the accommodation to provide offices for the Society and an apartment for me in the building. The work should be finished by the end of this year.
“Why did I make this gift? The Bible is very important to me and it teaches about giving and sharing. Acts 20:35 tells us that it is more blessed to give than to receive, and I have found this to be true.” (WR 352/19 - 7/8.00) [PHOTOS]
CHIANG MAI, Thailand — “Bible translation is difficult work but I am very happy to be doing it,” says Noel Kya Heh, translator of the Akha Bible. “The Bible is very rich literature, and putting it into Akha is a real challenge.”
Mr Kya Heh is one of a number of Bible translators based in Chiang Mai who works under the guidance of Dr Gam Seng Shae, UBS Translation Consultant. Born in Myanmar, Mr Kya Heh became involved in the Akha translation project when his brother Moses died of malaria.
“My brother started the project and translated the New Testament,” explained Mr Kya Heh. “When he died my father wanted me to carry on his work, but at first I refused. Then Dr Ted Hope, UBS Translation Consultant, came to see me and persuaded me of the importance of the task, and so here I am!”
Mr Kya Heh’s positive approach belies the many problems and setbacks that the project has encountered. Some of the difficulties arose from the fact that Akha has only recently been developed into a written language, which meant that the orthography was not clear.
“In addition to the challenges of the orthography, the semantic domains of our language are very different from Hebrew and Greek,” said Mr Kya Heh. “You can prepare drafts but that does not mean that you are satisfied with them.”
Despite the frustrations and challenges, good progress has been made, and the Bible should be ready to go to press by 2001, according to Mr Kya Heh. In the meantime, he continues with his painstaking work which will allow his people to read the Word of God in their mother tongue.
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Akha has only recently been developed into a
written language, which meant that the orthography was not clear
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“The whole Bible is important to me, but I get very emotional every time I read the story about Joseph and his brothers. It is a great joy to translate such stories. Inch by inch you are reconstructing them in your own language, and not just writing any old thing.”
Daniel Gam Win, translator of the Hawa Naga Bible, also feels privileged to be involved in bringing the Word of God to his people. Born to a Christian family in a remote area of Myanmar, Mr Gam Win estimates that there are about 50,000 Hawa Naga believers. He remembers church services he used to attend in his home village:
“Because we had no Scriptures in our language we had to use other languages in church services, such as Lisu and Rawang. When a person became a Christian they had to be taught Lisu. Everyone sang Lisu songs that they knew by heart, but without understanding the words. We needed the Word of God in our own language.”
When his church asked him to get involved in translating the Bible into Hawa Naga, Mr Gam Win immediately agreed. However, the path for him was not smooth:
“I was considered to be the most suitable person to work with the church because of my gentle spirit, but I almost lost that opportunity because of political unrest in my part of the country,” he explained. “The church people rescued me from the predicament I found myself in, and I was eventually free to work for them.”
When he first began translating the Bible, Mr Gam Win worked with two other people. “In the beginning I had no idea how to translate. I worked with my colleagues who produced the orthography and I learnt from them,” he explained. “Since 1995 I have been working on my own, publishing a trial edition of Matthew in 1997. My people were so happy to receive it!”
Originally from a Buddhist background, Wannapa Reongjareonsook is one of the translators working on the revision of the Thai Old Testament. She finds her work difficult but rewarding. “The Word comes alive in your life as you study it in depth,” she said.
Mrs Reongjareonsook first heard about Christ when she read the Book of Revelation, but she found it difficult to accept the Christian faith because she thought there was no forgiveness in the Bible. It was only when she read a Gideon’s Bible and learnt about the plan of salvation that she understood and accepted Christ.
Now she spends her time trying to bring the Bible’s message closer to the hearts of other Thai speakers.
“I am thankful that God put me to the task of studying the biblical languages. The most enjoyable and also the most difficult part of my work is putting the original Hebrew and Greek into the best Thai so that modern readers and children will fully understand God’s Word.” (WR 352/20 - 7/8.00) [PHOTOS]
CHIANG
MAI, Thailand — “This place is a factory!”
said Suchart Ruenkham, surrounded by the computer stations, files and papers
which fill the offices of the UBS Computer Assisted Publishing (CAP) center.
“We originally set up the center to prepare the Shan Bible, but the work
grew and grew.”
Mr Ruenkham is one of a number of people working at the CAP center, located in two small offices on an upper floor of the Chiang Mai Christian Clinic. Opened in 1985, the center is now a powerhouse where camera-ready copies of the Scriptures in languages of Thailand and Myanmar are prepared.
Mr Ruenkham and his wife, Malinee Ruenkham, are originally from Shan State in Myanmar. They moved to Thailand where they were both recruited to work at the CAP center to help prepare the Shan Bible.
“I started as a volunteer for the Bible Society, helping to create the font for the Shan Bible, which I then keyed into the computer,” said Mrs Ruenkham, proudly reflecting on her work. She is pleased that she was able to be part of the process to bring the Word of God to her people.
The Shan New Testament with Psalms and Proverbs was published in 1994, and the Old Testament is scheduled for printing in 2001. Like his wife, Mr Ruenkham hopes that their work will help to bring his people closer to God.
“There are about three million Shan people, but they are hard to evangelise,” Mr Ruenkham explained. “Those who are Christians number around 15,000 and they suffer persecution.”
The Burmese Good News common language Bible is another project that the Ruenkhams are currently involved in. Mrs Ruenkham finds it particularly challenging:
“Keying in the Burmese script is a complex process,” she explained. “Vowels occur in different places, which means that you need three or four key-strokes to complete every character. Tone marks also appear in different positions. All the same, I love my work!”
Jongluck Yingcharoen is another employee at the center. Born into a Christian family in a village in northern Thailand, Mrs Yingcharoen was responsible for keying in the 1971 edition of the Thai Bible, which took nearly three years. She too has been at the center since it opened and is currently involved in a number of projects: “First of all there is the Lawa Old Testament which we hope to have completed by the end of 2000,” she explained.
The Lawa people of Thailand first received a New Testament in their language in 1972, which was revised in 1993. There are 15,000 speakers of whom around 1,000 are Christian.
“Another project is the Pwo Karen New Testament in Thai script,” continued Mrs Yingcharoen. “We recently finished preparing the camera-ready copy to send to the printers in Korea. A lot of literacy work is going on among the Pwo Karen people, and we hope that this New Testament will help them with their reading as well as bring them closer to God.” (See Pwo Karen item in this issue)
Other Scriptures that are currently being prepared at the center are the Mien Old Testament (which, due to the complication of three different scripts, is experiencing some difficulties), the North Khmer Old Testament in Thai script, and the Thai Study Bible, which is eagerly awaited by the churches. There are also 17 projects for Myanmar in the pipeline. (WR 352/21 - 7/8.00) [PHOTOS]
Living a New LifeTestimony of Shani Phanchupaan who is responsible for promotion and distribution in the Chiang Mai region CHIANG MAI, Thailand — “When I was a young man of 21 I was struck down with paralysis. My parents took me to hospital but the doctors did not know what to do and sent me home to die. At this point my mother asked some church elders to pray for me every night. This went on for a month with no improvement, but one Sunday I suddenly felt that God had touched me. My mother said that this was a sign that I should live a new life. From that moment I gave myself fully to God. For 32 years I dedicated myself to working as a hospital chaplain, visiting patients and sharing the Word of God with them. When they were discharged I would follow up by visiting them at home. I set up 37 cell groups in the hospitals in Chiang Mai to pray for the ministry among the patients. When I retired I joined the Bible Society on a part-time basis to take charge of distribution and promotion in Chiang Mai. I am glad to be involved in this work because the Bible is the most important thing in my life – that book is targeted at me! Every time I read the Bible I am inspired to share it with others, not just in words but through the example of my life. My children feel the same way and all four of them are leaders of Christian institutions.” (WR 352/22 - 7/8.00) [PHOTOS] |
BANGKOK, Thailand — While Vichai Trangkhasombat is a senior executive with Coca Cola, because of his love of the Scriptures, he now serves as Chairman of the Board of the Thailand Bible Society. Mr Trangkhasombat is dedicated to the Bible cause, firmly believing that Christians need to be equipped with the Scriptures in order to grow in their faith.
But Mr Trangkhasombat was not always a believer, and he travelled a long and difficult road before discovering the peace to be found in the Word of God:
“More than 30 years ago I was experiencing financial difficulty, and I found that my traditional Thai beliefs did not help me to deal with my problems. My wife was a Christian and would encourage me to go to church with her, but I felt a bit ashamed of her faith.
“As my distress grew, however, I began to think about what my wife had told me – that God can help where nobody else can.
“One day I reluctantly went with my wife to church and the preacher spoke about peace. I realised that I desperately needed peace in my life. I started attending church regularly, and after the services I always felt more at peace. But I was still not ready to become a Christian.
“It was at this point that I went to work for Coca Cola in Cambodia. One night I looked out of my motel window in Danang, Vietnam, and noticed that the usually crowded street was completely empty. The next day I went to the Coca Cola plant where I was told that the Viet Cong had surrounded the city and were moving in for the attack.
“I
somehow managed to get a flight to Saigon in a small aircraft, but when I arrived
I found that people were fleeing from there too. The war was ending. I tried
in vain to get a flight out, but I could not because the Viet Cong were bombing
the city. I thought that my life was about to end.
“During one of those terrible nights in Saigon I dreamt that I saw Jesus walking towards me, saying: ‘Don’t be afraid; I will be with you.’ I eventually managed to get back to Bangkok, but I did not tell anybody about my dream. I was confused that I had seen Jesus and not Buddha in my dream.
“But my life was never the same after that night in Saigon. My family noticed the change in me, and kept asking me what had happened. It was only later that I came to have enough peace and confidence in my new-found faith to be able to share it with other people.
“Before I knew the Bible, however, I found it difficult to explain my faith to people and to persuade them to give their lives to Jesus. Reading the Bible became an essential part of my growth, and I believe that all Christians need to have access to the Scriptures.” (WR 352/23 - 7/8.00) [PHOTOS]
By
Thongchai Pradubchananurat, director of the Baptist Student Centre and member
of the board of the Thailand Bible Society
BANGKOK, Thailand — “I do not like to talk about miracles, but one happened to me. I come from a Buddhist background, but when I was young I began to attend church in order to learn English. One day at the age of 18, I was sitting alone in the church when I had a vision.
I saw myself as a baby, a child and a man, and all the bad things that I had done up until that moment were revealed to me. Before I had this vision I used to challenge God by saying: ‘Let me see you.’ But after the vision I asked God for one thing only: ‘Change my life.’ I was full of self-pity and wanted to die. I used to curse and hurt other people. After I had the vision, God gave me new life. However, it is very hard to change overnight and suddenly become a good Christian.
A year later God confirmed his calling on my life. In October 1973 there was an anti-government demonstration in Bangkok. I was a student leader at the head of a group of about 300 people. Before heading out to the demonstration we armed ourselves with bombs and weapons to kill soldiers. But I suddenly had a strange feeling. I realised that I had forgotten about God. I knelt in a dark corner and prayed for forgiveness: ‘Dear Lord, I would like you to lead, not me.’
I could hear the sound of gunfire and screaming outside, so I stood up and told the students that we would go out calmly together.
‘No running,’ I said to them. Carrying a flag, I led them out into the street. Outside it was suddenly quiet – the shooting had stopped. I saw a small lane and not knowing where it led, I started walking along it, saying to God: ‘Lord, if I lead them all to a dead end, I shall be ashamed.’
This narrow lane took us directly to the democracy monument where thousands of students were already gathered. The leader who was addressing the crowd saw us approach and shouted out in welcome. There was rapturous applause as we joined the group, but I suddenly realised that I no longer wanted to seek fame.
I put my flag down and sat amongst the crowd. That night I confessed again that I had forgotten about God, and I promised that I would serve him.
Today I am still representing young people, but this time on the board of the Bible Society. The Bible has played an important part in my life. When I first became a Christian, I met a good Bible expositor who helped me to love the Word of God and hunger for the truth contained in it.
At the Baptist Student Centre, we reach out to people by offering English language courses. In our Thai culture, it is important for us as Christians to find appropriate ways of influencing the people around us. Through our courses we have been able to share the Gospel with 10,000 people so far. The common language Thai Bible provides us with a good tool for teaching English because it is a clear translation." (WR 352/24 - 7/8.00) [PHOTOS]
CHIANG
MAI, Thailand — The Pwo Karen people of Thailand
are to receive the first Scripture in their language as 14 years of intense
translation and production work draw to a close.
The Pwo Karen New Testament in Thai script is currently being printed in South Korea, and is expected to arrive in Thailand for launching and distribution on July 30.
The fruit of a partnership between the Thailand Bible Society, the UBS and the Overseas Missionary Fellowship, the New Testament will mark a major step forward in the development of Pwo Karen literature.
According to Dr Bob Batzinger, UBS Regional CAP Consultant, the New Testament will give credibility to the Thai- script version of Pwo Karen and will pave the way for more publications in this language. However, many Pwo Karen are illiterate.
That is why the Pwo Karen Literacy Center was set up. Located in Chiang Mai, the centre works in co-operation with the Thailand Bible Society and is supported by the Bible Societies in Finland and Australia. Dikein Pulyo, who works at the centre, says that there is a desperate need for literature in Pwo Karen for the students to learn to read:
“At the moment we are teaching people how to read, but without having any reading material to use,” he said. “I am preparing special primers for the Pwo Karen people, but we would like the Bible Society to produce some of their New Reader Scriptures to go along with this project.”
It is hoped that the Pwo Karen New Testament will serve as a useful literacy tool for the centre. Mr Pulyo claims that Christians who participate in the literacy project fare much better than non-Christians.
“Christians have more incentive to learn to read,” he explained. “They want to read the Bible and sing hymns. Soon there will be new Scriptures available and it is vitally important that the people they are intended for have the opportunity of learning to read.” (WR 352/25 - 7/8.00) [PHOTOS]
BANGKOK,
Thailand — For 32 years Somphop Trisiripisal could not sleep. The owner
of a local hotel and a department store, Mr Trisiripisal’s insomnia left
him unable to function properly or even walk a short distance. His digestive
system suffered, and he had severe memory problems.
Mr Trisiripisal had heard about God before, but he did not believe. But in 1993 he agreed to go to church with a friend so as not to offend him. After the sermon the pastor asked if anyone would like to accept Christ. Desperate to try anything that might heal him of his insomnia, Mr Trisiripisal went forward and made a commitment to Christ.
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“When I look back, I know that day came from God himself, although I did not realise it at the time,” said Mr Trisiripisal. “That night I prayed that God would help me to sleep, and I felt some healing power come into me. I recorded the event in my diary.”
But the real breakthrough came when Mr Trisiripisal started to read the Bible. Although his healing was not instantaneous, he found that reading the Scriptures and praying every night gave him a sense of calm which allowed him to sleep. Today the healing process is still going on and Mr Trisiripisal finds that he cannot sleep if he does not read the Bible.
“The Bible is like a medicine for me. As each month goes by my health gets better,” he said. “Before I was so easily stressed, but now I am calm and self-controlled. The Bible gives me wisdom – when I cannot sleep I cannot think. Now, through reading the Scriptures I have a clear mind.
“My wife has also become a believer as well as some of my staff. One man I employ also has insomnia and I advised him to start reading the Bible before bed. I am praying for him.”
In fact, Mr Trisiripisal has shared his story with many of his staff members. Forty of them are now believers and there are plans to start a church. (WR 352/26 - 7/8.00) [PHOTOS]