Wolrd Religion

http://www.wycliffeassociates.org/news/pressdetail.asp?id=588

Wycliffe Associates Providing Remote Collaboration Tools for Bible Translators in Areas that Lack Reliable Electricity or Internet Access

(Orlando, Florida, USA)—Wycliffe Associates, a global organization that involves people in the acceleration of Bible translation around the world, is working proactively to help national Bible translators in remote and dangerous locations by providing them with state-of-the-art equipment that allows real-time collaboration with translation consultants. Translators who live and work in areas without reliable electricity or even Internet access are able to communicate via satellite connection with translation consultants hundreds or even thousands of miles away.

The combination of equipment, called Bible Translation Acceleration Kits, or BTAKs, includes a small, portable netbook computer, satellite communication terminal, solar panel, battery, and power supply. So far, teams from Wycliffe Associates have distributed nearly 200 BTAKs and provided training for their use in countries such as Brazil, Cameroon, India, Indonesia, Kenya, Nigeria, Papua New Guinea, and Tanzania. The organization hopes to distribute at least 250 more kits in the near future.

“Not only does this high-tech tool make it safer for translators to carry on God’s work,” said Wycliffe Associates president and CEO Bruce Smith, “but it speeds up translation efforts by years.”

Wycliffe Associates estimates that the use of a BTAK for a Bible translation project can reduce a project’s completion date by as many as three years.

In Africa, there are currently 87 Bible translation teams using the kits. Kenyan-born Terri Collins, who helped install some of the kits, says that Bible translation is the only hope to spread the love and compassion of Christ for the men, women, and children in Kenya, who have been driven from their homes during violent clashes and raids in recent years.

“When we took Bible Translation Acceleration Kits to Kenya, [the translators] were so excited to continue the work of Bible translation,” Collins said. “When God’s Word is in their own language, the light comes on.”  A complete kit costs $3,967. Generous friends of Wycliffe Associates have put together matching challenge fund that will double every dollar given toward the kits, up to $50,000.

About Wycliffe Associates

Wycliffe Associates involves people in accelerating the work of Bible translation through their time, talents, and treasure. Because millions of people around the world are still waiting to read the Scriptures in the language of their heart, Wycliffe Associates is working as quickly as they can to translate every verse of the Bible into every tongue to change every heart. The organization partners with nationals, mother tongue translators, staff, volunteers, and supporters to direct and fund these efforts, as well as provide logistics, networking, and technical support. Through a growing global network, Wycliffe Associates is striving to overcome local limitations of time and resources to achieve the goal of beginning the translation of God’s Word in every remaining language that needs it by 2025.

Last year, the organization mobilized 3,145 volunteers and staff members to accelerate Bible translation in 71 countries. Additional information is available at the organization’s website at www.wycliffeassociates.org or by calling 1-800-THE WORD (1-800-843-9673).

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http://www.wycliffeassociates.org/prayer/prayerdetail.asp?id=3997

1/22/2014: In Midst of Civil Strife Tembo New Testament Nearing Completion

Democratic Republic of the Congo: The Tembo translation team members are displaced from their homeland because of militia activity. They are living in the city of Goma which itself came under bombardment in late August. In spite of this they continue to meet together to pray and work because they know that the Scriptures are eagerly awaited by the Tembo people. Please pray that the team's material and financial needs will be met – the three translators are currently sharing one computer which needs a constant power supply, significantly slowing their work. Pray that their goal of completing the New Testament in 2016 may be fulfilled.

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http://www.wycliffeassociates.org/news/articledetail.asp?id=582

An Ocean of Trees

The Democratic Republic of the Congo is a high strategic priority for Bible translation in Africa, with around 3.5 million people without Scripture—speaking 91 different languages.

In recent years we’ve been steadily increasing our support for Bible translation there, partnering with local Christians committed to getting God’s Word to their people. Today we have the opportunity to share in launching translations in several of these languages, and you may be the key!

We are recruiting for a Language Program Manager to coordinate the teamwork and budgets for these new translation teams. We also need an IT Specialist to manage the communications network, linking remote teams to their main office.

The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) is an Ocean of Trees – that is what impressed me the first time I visited. I had just flown a small airplane across the Atlantic, so I had a fresh impression of the ocean’s vastness.

Then I had flown across the Western Sahara desert. From horizon to horizon, an ocean of sand. As I flew into Central Africa, the contrast of emerald green trees was breathtaking. It truly is a jungle out there!

Both of these positions are located in Gemena, DRC. This is the provincial center in the northwestern region, a city of around 138,000 people. The international team there uses French as their working language; so get ready to learn conversational French!

No language experience is required for the Language Program Manager position, but we are looking for someone with solid management experience. Naturally the IT Specialist needs to have network, hardware, and software support skills.

    http://www.wycliffeassociates.org/involved/storypage.asp?id=199

Grass airstrips are crucial to accelerating translation efforts.

Who knew that lawn mowers could play such an essential role in Bible translation? But in the remote village of Musula, Papua New Guinea, where a grass-and-dirt airstrip makes it possible for Bible translators and supplies to be flown in and out, a high-powered lawn mower has saved the day when it comes to translating the Scriptures.

“One of the unique things about living in Musula village is maintaining the grass airstrip,” said Bible translator Tommy Logan. “Without the airstrip, we have no access to the Kasau people. This is a huge blessing, considering that the people used to cut the airstrip by hand.”

Keeping the Musula airstrip safe takes constant effort because of the region’s extremely wet climate. While nationals are willing to help, they are very poor, and every hour they work on the airstrip is an hour they aren’t working in their fields to feed their families. The lawn mower will greatly expedite their airstrip maintenance efforts. Thank you for helping in this very tangible way to bring the translated Scriptures to the Kasau people.

One way we are protecting Bible Translators from the chaos of political and sectarian conflicts is by giving them communication tools not controlled by governments.

http://www.wycliffeassociates.org/news/pressdetail.asp?id=585

Wycliffe Associates to Support National Bible Translators in Volatile Regions of the World

(Orlando, Florida, USA)—Wycliffe Associates, an international organization that involves people in the acceleration of Bible translation, announces that it will begin assisting Bible translators in a region of the world that can’t be identified due to credible dangers for Christians there.

“God has led us to the most difficult, most dangerous place in the world for Bible translation,” said Wycliffe Associates president and CEO Bruce Smith. “For the safety of believers there, I cannot name the specific countries. It is a new frontier for the gospel, and the persecuted believers of this region need us.”

The organization will support local, mother-tongue translators with administrative, financial, and technical support, which includes providing translators with Bible Translation Acceleration Kits. Each kit consists of a small, portable netbook computer, satellite communication terminal, solar panel, battery, and power supply. This technology makes it possible for Bible translators in remote locations to communicate through satellite connections with translation consultants at distant locations in real time, enabling valuable collaboration with other translators and reducing or eliminating the need for dangerous travel.

Wycliffe Associates also plans to support training for Christians there in Bible translation, evangelism, discipleship, and church planting.

One local translator has been arrested numerous times, beaten, and imprisoned for his faith. A former militant who once targeted Christians for arrest, torture, and imprisonment, this translator converted to Christianity and became a target himself, along with his family. He began working closely, in secret, with Bible translators in the region to help translate the Scriptures into his language.

There are currently 52 language projects in this region that Wycliffe Associates intends to support with new technologies and resources. The organization is currently seeking to raise $165,000 this year to fund those efforts.

“God is opening hearts in such miraculous ways among people who have been previously closed to the gospel,” says Smith. “We simply can’t afford not to respond.

In 2009, Wycliffe Associates launched a new project called Scriptures for New Frontiers to support Bible translators and missionaries who are putting their lives at risk to work in extremely volatile regions of the world, where an estimated 1,000 languages, representing 280 million people, are without the Scriptures. Support provided through Scriptures for New Frontiers includes training for national translators, the expansion of housing for translators, their families, and translation team members, the provision of schoolteachers to work within local cultures, and emergency funds for missionaries who are being targeted by militant groups.

Wycliffe Associates involves people in accelerating the work of Bible translation through their time, talents, and treasure. Because millions of people around the world are still waiting to read the Scriptures in the language of their heart, Wycliffe Associates is working as quickly as they can to translate every verse of the Bible into every tongue to change every heart. The organization partners with nationals, mother tongue translators, staff, volunteers, and supporters to direct and fund these efforts, as well as provide logistics, networking, and technical support. Through a growing global network, Wycliffe Associates is striving to overcome local limitations of time and resources to achieve the goal of beginning the translation of God’s Word in every remaining language that needs it by 2025.

Last year, the organization mobilized 3,145 volunteers and staff members to accelerate Bible translation in 71 countries. Additional information is available at www.wycliffeassociates.org or by calling 1-800-THE WORD (1-800-843-9673).

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http://www.wycliffeassociates.org/volunteer/volunteer-abroad.html

Peter Drucker once remarked that the second career was the most meaningful.

On average one Baby Boomer retires every seven seconds in the United States, and Wycliffe Associates is tailoring its programs with this in mind. Indeed many who will take vacations in this category will spend it doing volunteer work overseas.

Wycliffe Associates has built a new Volunteer Mobilization Center in Orlando, Florida, to recruit, train, and mobilize the service contributions of what is expected to be a continued influx of mature, skilled volunteers.

Boomers make up a quarter of the total population in the United States.

“In their teens and 20s, they redefined pop culture,” John Hall of Texas Baptist Communications has written. “In their 30s and 40s, they challenged the traditional role of women. Now in their 50s and 60s, Baby Boomers are poised to change American culture again.”

Dr. Todd Johnson, a research fellow and director of the Center for the Study of Global Christianity at Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary, confirms that Boomers are more interested in being active than just giving money. Many are starting NGOs, non-governmental organizations such as orphanages, business centers, and health clinics, that minister at a local level. “Many retirees’ post-retirement plans are being built around missions,” stated Dr. Johnson.

Although Boomers are sometimes branded as a very self-centered and individualistic generation, many are experiencing a deepening desire to give back—not only by volunteering domestically, but also by doing volunteer work abroad. They are coming to realize that significance is found in looking beyond oneself, studies show.

Christian organizations such as Wycliffe Associates believe they have a great opportunity to match mature, highly honed skills with ministry opportunities in missions that allow them to do volunteer work overseas.

It is cheaper these days to go overseas. The entire world is more accessible. Today’s 60-year-old is mature and needs far less training in living skills than his or her younger counterpart. Traditionally, mission organizations send new missionaries in their 20s and 30s through an orientation process, like a jungle camp, to learn how to survive the harsh living conditions in the field. But a person in his or her 50s and above has triumphed through their productive years and has built in strategies for success.

Wycliffe Associates has experienced this phenomenon among its own ranks.

One such boomer is Michael Willard, a retired U.S. Army Special Forces engineer, who is taking his skills to the mission field. Spending his career designing and building airstrips for C-130 and C5 Galaxy Air Force jets, Michael’s skills, abilities, and experience are highly valued in places like Papua New Guinea and Africa. Without air transportation, small villages and the missionaries who work there would be at risk of greater isolation from medical and food supplies.

Michael was part of a special unit in the Green Berets and oversaw the establishment of military airstrips in jungles and other remote places. He used these skills to do volunteer work abroad in Papua New Guinea where the local people rely heavily on small airplanes for transportation, as there is very little in the way of a highway or rail infrastructure. The jungle grows very thick and fast, and as it does, airstrips need continuous maintenance and care. Recently, dozens of airstrips were too dangerous to land a plane and had water damage beyond repair. One particular airstrip had been torn apart by a small volcano. An example of putting his professional skills to the task of missions, Michael and his teams restored 10 airstrips in Papua New Guinea.

Time magazine reported that Boomers volunteer at a rate of 33 percent, contrasted with 24 percent for those 65 and older. Last year, 65.4 million people did volunteer work but 75 million volunteers will be needed in 2010, Time reported.

The need for Boomers to do volunteer work overseas is there and Wycliffe Associates currently has over 1,600 unfulfilled international positions. Wycliffe Associates is responding quickly to inquiries and then matching volunteers with appropriate volunteer work abroad. The organization has built the Volunteer Mobilization Center in Orlando to help coordinate the volunteering.

The benefit to adults who feel God’s call to ministry in the second half of life is an enriching experience as they use the skills and knowledge gained in their younger years for eternal purposes. Free from the pressures of youth and middle age, the older adult can do exciting, meaningful things never dreamed of before.

“I think [Boomers] are attracted by seeing some things that other people are doing with their lives that is really counting,” said George Young of Trinity Baptist Church in San Antonio, as quoted by John Hall. “I think they realize they are not going to be president of that or this other, so they might as well do the best they can right now.”

As hundreds of thousands of new volunteer missionaries rise from the ranks of retiring Baby Boomers, they will challenge the status quo of missions and how organizations will respond to them. Wycliffe Associates is positioned to usher in a new era of evangelism, Christian service, and missions by involving thousands of Boomers in the acceleration of Bible translation worldwide by equipping them to volunteer abroad.