Bible translation and literacy
go hand-in-hand for Garo speakers

A boy in the congregation at a Garo-speaking church. The Bangladesh Bible Society launched the Garo New Testament in 2004 and is planning to complete the Garo Old Testament by 2014. Bangladesh. Photo: Bangladesh Bible Society (BAN05DJ-4.JPG)

BANGLADESH — With church-based classes improving the literacy skills of many Bangladeshi Christians (see previous article), the Bangladesh Bible Society (BBS) is also making it a priority to ensure that Christian communities have access to the Scriptures in their own language. One such community is the Garo people.

Unfamiliar

Garo is spoken in both India and Bangladesh. The Bangladeshi Garo, whose main religion is Christianity, number around 120,000 and live mainly in the flatlands of the north-east. The Bible has been available for some years in the Achick dialect used by Garo speakers in India, but research carried out by BBS showed that most Bangladeshi Garo people, who use the Abeng dialect instead, cannot understand Achick. Rather than reading the Bible in an unfamiliar dialect, they preferred to read it in Bengali, their second language.

Turning point

But last year brought a turning point for this community with the launch of the New Testament in Garo (Abeng). This is already being widely used in Garo churches, encouraging the Bible Society to turn its attention to translating the Old Testament too. Inevitably, though, producing a translation of the required high quality will be a lengthy process: even though the project uses the same translators who gained much experience through working on the New Testament, it is expected that the Garo (Abeng) Old Testament will not be completed until 2012.

In the meantime, BBS expects that the New Testament will begin to have a significant impact on the Garo community, bringing benefits to Christians and non-Christians alike. Publication of at least part of the Bible in the local language is likely to bring a time of spiritual revival, with existing churches expanding and new churches being founded. And as the first publication in Garo (Abeng), the New Testament is set to pave the way for other printed materials, thus playing a key role in boosting literacy levels within the community.

Give thanks

“Please pray for the continuation of this work,” writes the Bible Society. “Give thanks for the New Testament and pray that people will eagerly use this translation for their personal devotions and that churches will use it for their transformation in Christ.”