GIALens Volume 12 Number 1 – April 2018

In this article I argue that the process of translating all or parts of the Bible is fundamentally different than translating (and then telling) Bible stories that are based on all or parts of the Bible. I discuss this in some detail because many missionaries and theologians often consider the two as similar in a number of respects, particularly concerning recitation, source texts, views on inspiration, chronological accuracy, audience, methods of checking, and the training needed to accomplish the respective tasks. Another difference, which is more subjective and therefore difficult to examine—although equally important—is the claim that there is something “beyond” the Biblical text or the story, something that has more “reality” than the way the story is told or translated. How would this be determined?

Over the past forty years there has been an increasing interest in oral approaches for sharing the gospel. This interest has paralleled the increasing capacity that technology has given to produce and distribute the gospel message. It has also paralleled a growing awareness that written media wasn’t always as effective as hoped; at times, what was being communicated was that to be Christian, a person or community had to be literate. This paper takes an initial look at the place of oral approaches to Bible translation. It gives readers questions to ask, along with some information to consider, as they look to determine what, if any, role oral approaches might have in their context. This paper is not trying to assert the superiority of an oral process over a written process, or vice versa. Written translation done well produces good translations. Oral translation done poorly produces poor translations. Likewise, each can capture and express “oral” and “written” features of a language. The goal of this paper is to give the team organizing a translation project a starting point from which to decide which environment(s) will best facilitate the translation process.

Biblical Performance Criticism is a bridge between the origins of the biblical text and the contemporary audience for whom the performer performs. A performance involves memorizing or internalizing a portion of Scripture, then acting it out with gestures and emotion in front of an audience of any size. Following the performance, the performer and audience discuss various aspects of the performance: what the text means, how well the text was understood, how the performance can be improved, what insights were gained from the performance, etc. Biblical Performance Criticism can aid the translation process by helping to discover key terms, checking the translation, educating participants about the text, and by helping the translator better understand how the text was received by the participants.

This article introduces the findings of how family elders in rural communities in Kalimantan, Indonesia, teach their spiritual beliefs to successive generations from a study by Wood (2017). This study was motivated by a desire to identify more effective methods for teaching Christian beliefs within the context of the local church in rural Kalimantan. Although my study focused on only one community, I believe that the lessons I learned can benefit both rural and urban ministries around the world. I also believe that these lessons can inform the ways we design Scripture-engagement activities.

This article describes my recommendations at the end of a study of how family elders in rural communities in Kalimantan, Indonesia, teach their spiritual beliefs to successive generations. During my study, I discovered that children learn and family elders prefer to teach using six very interrelated and overlapping methods. These six methods were prescribed by Moses in Deuteronomy 6. My recommendations are based on the findings of my study as well as the educational and missiological literature that I reviewed. These recommendations will necessarily involve some kind of quantifiable baseline study, and periodic evaluations. Because content is as important as methods, I also recommend certain content oriented themes.