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The Kunama people of Eritrea and Ethiopia have been
waiting so long for a complete translation of their Bible.
Thanks to generous friends like you, the Kunama
translation team is now empowered to complete the last
remaining books of the Bible in their language! With your
help, over $210,000 has been raised for the Kunama
translation project through the 2023 year-end campaign.
Despite the fact that the Kunama have been torn apart by
years of civil unrest and many live in refugee camps, they
are hungry for God’s Word in their language. They are
constantly asking the translation team to finish the work
so they can be comforted and encouraged by Scripture
they clearly understand.
The translation team is made up of two groups of dedicated
Kunama refugees — one in the U.S and Canada and the
other in Ethiopia — and they have been working tirelessly to
complete the remaining books. Many members of the team
have full-time jobs and spend their evenings and weekends
working on the translation because they are deeply
passionate about their people experiencing God’s love,
comfort and transformation in the midst of challenges.
The Scripture they have translated so far has made a
deep impact not only for the Kunama people but on the
translators themselves. As translator Johannes Joseph
Matthews said, “When I do the Kunama translation, it is
like a daily devotion to God. It also strengthens my
personal relationship with God. When I do my drafting,
I’m not just translating for someone else — my life is
being renewed, touched and changed day by day. With
work and the life that goes on, without regularly being
exposed to God’s Word, my spiritual growth wouldn’t be
[what it is] right now. My connection with God impacts
the way I father my kids [and] the way I am a husband to
my wife. All of this strengthens my relationship with God
because I am constantly connected to God through
reading His Word and researching His Word.”
Thank you for helping the Kunama translation team move
closer to finishing the job so their community can continue
to be encouraged by and transformed through God’s Word
in a language they clearly understand. We are so grateful
for your partnership.
ABOVE: Bwitengi villagers celebrating
WATCH A VIDEO OF THE KUNAMA TRANSLATION TEAM AT wycliffe.org/frontlines the completed Ikoma New Testament. .
winter
2024
A Beautiful Display of Support
for the Kunama People
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What does it look like for a people group in Tanzania to
dedicate their New Testament after waiting nearly 20 years?
From the first moment, the dedication of the Nyiha New
Testament was loud and joyous. Hundreds of people
arrived in a singing march. At the dedication, choirs took
turns presenting songs — several of the songs were in
Nyiha and newly crafted for the occasion — and the choirs
found themselves surrounded by dozens of people from
the crowd who ran over to dance.
The crowd celebrated the arrival of Wilhelm Mwakavanga
and Kassim Mwashilindi, Nyiha Bible translators, with
cheers and greetings. During one song, the two Nyiha
translators led a dance procession to carry a large gift- wrapped box through the crowd.
Most of those in attendance joined them and they brought
the box that was filled with Nyiha New Testaments to
a table in front of the guests of honor. A group of local
pastors prayed over the books before they were distributed.
Translation work for the Nyiha began in 2007 as part of
the Mbeya Cluster project which covers translation work
for over a dozen language development and translation
teams. There are about 276,000 Nyiha people in Tanzania
alone, with tens of thousands more in Malawi and possibly
hundreds of thousands of Nyiha diaspora elsewhere.
Richard Yalonde, a Nyiha speaker and Mbeya Cluster
project leader, said: “I have seen God working through
the Nyiha translation project as I see the different church
denominations working together. I see church and
government leaders working together. God’s Word teaches
us we should love each other. That’s how this is happening.”
In addition to the New Testament in print and audio
formats, the project team has also published a songbook
and a translated version of the “Jesus Messiah” comic book
for children.
“Before this translation work,” said Wilhelm, “even in Bible
school I thought God only really speaks the ‘big’ languages
like Swahili or English. But now I am happy to know that
God speaks to all people in their own language. He speaks
to all [of] our languages!”
The Nyiha New Testament Was Greeted With Joy
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God’s Word in Chatino
Is Touching Hearts
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Jesus through His Word. Join a community of thousands of donors like you who are on
a mission to share God’s love through translated Scripture: wycliffe.org/wordgivers.
God is working in the lives of the Chatino community in
Mexico as they press forward translating Old Testament
books. Jaime’s story is one example of how God is at work.
Jaime is a Chatino pastor and church planter, but until
recently he didn’t use his language much in ministry.
He hadn’t learned to read Chatino well, so he grew
accustomed to using Spanish instead. But things changed
when he acquired an audio device preloaded with Chatino
Scripture.
Hearing the Word in his language was compelling to Jaime,
and he couldn’t get enough. He listened while working in
the fields. He listened every night when he got home. He
listened as he traveled to speak at churches. He even used
the audio device to share the gospel with others.
God’s Word in Chatino touched Jaime in a way that
Spanish could not. He reflected: “I am understanding the
Bible better now with the translation. I am listening and
paying attention to every detail of the narration. Every day
I fall more in love with the One who saved me.” Praise God!
Chatino Christians are eager for God’s Word! They have
been generous and collaborated to support the translation
work. From lending their voices for Scripture recordings to
providing homemade meals, there’s little they won’t do to
aid the translation team.
A project adviser reported: “Every day that passes, we
are more convinced of the work that is being done in
translation because the translated Word really transforms
hearts.” As the project continues, Chatino churches are
thrilled they will eventually be able to use translated
Scripture in their ministries — including worship services
and literacy classes — and eagerly await the day when this
will become reality.
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Leave a Legacy That Shares God’s Word
Do you hope to leave a legacy of faith that influences your family for generations
to come? Wycliffe Foundation can help you create a biblical will and estate plan
that provides for your family, shares God’s Word and invests in ministries you
care about.
For more information on these complimentary services available
to Wycliffe donors, please call our team at 877-493-3600.
Brittany Fancher is a nurse and business owner who is
passionate about Jesus and Bible translation. But in 2019,
her life took an unexpected turn: Brittany was diagnosed
with breast cancer and went through two grueling years of
treatments. Thankfully she is in remission today!
Brittany told the Lord: “God, if you’re going to leave me
here, use me.” Soon after, Brittany had the idea to start
a candle company. Brittany began testing candles and,
in November 2021, she opened Golden Belle Candle
Company with a heart to raise awareness about harmful
chemicals found in many home products.
When the company started it was, as Brittany put it, “an
expensive hobby.” Then she dedicated her business to
God, and sales took off. “God is the CEO of my company,”
Brittany shared. “If whatever I do glorifies Him alone, that’s
the best outcome.”
Around this time Brittany learned about Bible translation
at her church. When she heard about it two more times
Shining God’s Light Around the World
in different contexts, she realized God was speaking and
responded, “Okay Lord, I hear You.”
After Brittany conducted research and spoke with her
pastor, she chose to financially partner with Wycliffe.
One of her deciding factors was Wycliffe’s financial
accountability and transparency.
As Brittany sells candles at local markets, she displays
a sign that says 10% of her profits are given to Bible
translation. This provides opportunities to share about
the 1,255 languages that still need Bible translation work
started for the first time, impacting 99.8 million people.
“I’m so thankful for what Wycliffe does. Bible translation
is so important,” Brittany said. “As you give Jesus to
people, it brings even more people into the Kingdom
who want to shine His light. Giving to Wycliffe has been
such a sweet experience.”
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In 1999, Wycliffe USA made a bold decision to adopt a God- sized vision: to have a translation program in progress in
every language still needing one by the year 2025. We knew
this wasn’t possible by human standards. It would require
bold faith, working in partnership and collaboration and an
unwavering trust that God would show up — and He is.
All around the world, countries are achieving Vision 2025.
Kenya is one of them!
To help meet Kenya’s remaining Bible translation needs,
experienced staff are coming alongside 12 people groups
in a new three-year initiative. This cluster project is
called Mkondo wa Mwisho, a Kiswahili phrase meaning
“the final leg.”
“Finally, God has remembered us,” one elder said. “I will not
need to worship in another man’s language.”
As the project gets underway, representatives from 11 of the
people groups will receive training that will equip them to
produce the first Scripture in their languages and prepare
them to carry out future efforts. The remaining group, the
Waata, previously drafted the New Testament. Now they
intend to proofread and publish it. The Waata also plan to
complete portions of the Old Testament.
Whether their translation work is reaching a milestone or
just beginning, all of these people groups are united by their
passion for God’s Word and their deep desire to have it in a
language and format they truly understand.
Pray for unity and perseverance for the Mkondo
wa Mwisho Cluster as they work together to
translate God’s Word.
Vision 2025 Update From Kenya
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How to Pray With the People
Groups Represented in This Issue
PRAYER POINTS
Kunama in Ethiopia
and North America
Praise: For the two
teams the Lord has
brought together to
carry out this project —
the Ethiopian team as
well as the team in the
U.S. and Canada.
Pray: That the Lord will
meet every need for the
translators and their
families. Also pray for wisdom and endurance as they press
on in their work.
Nyiha in Tanzania
Praise: The Nyiha New Testament has been published and
dedicated!
Pray: That God would change lives in the Nyiha
community through His translated Word.
Chatino in Mexico
Praise: The project staff and Chatino community
completed the dubbing of a film based on the Gospel of
John! One team member said: “The local church gave
themselves in the activities, both in participation in the
dubbing as well as in the preparations for the meal. God is
kind to us.”
Pray: That the Lord would provide the team with wisdom,
encouragement and endurance as they translate 1-2
Chronicles.
Mkondo wa Mwisho Cluster in Kenya
Praise: New staff members were recently hired!
Pray: For God to impart His wisdom onto the Mkondo wa
Mwisho team as they select their translators.
WordSearch: Rangi-Burunge Cluster in Tanzania
Praise: The Rangi team has finalized the translation of the
New Testament!
Pray: That the publication process of the Rangi New
Testament will go smoothly with no delays.
Thanks to a long and careful process of translation and checking, the Rangi language
community in central Tanzania will soon have their New Testament! But as
translators approached the end of the project, there were some challenges.
Emilia, a literacy and Scripture engagement worker on the team, was completing
back translation using Paratext, a computer software that enables consistent and
accurate translation of the Bible into any written language. Once the back translation
was completed, final checks could be made so the team could send the text to the
typesetters. But after the final read through of the New Testament, the team found
errors — one of which was significant.
As Emilia was reading through the Rangi translation of the Gospel of John, she
realized that in the phrase “Son of Man,” the spelling of the word for “man” in Rangi
was actually the word for a type of pumpkin! Because the spelling of the words were
very similar, this error had been missed through several careful checks — even by
the translators themselves.
Thanks to Emilia’s work and God’s faithfulness, this very important word is now the
right one in the Rangi translation. Thank you for praying for the team. They have
completed the remaining checks and are now moving forward through the process
of publication, printing and distributing the New Testament to the Rangi people.
Jesus Is the Son of Man, WORD Not the Son of a Pumpkin! SEARCH
Wycliffe Bible Translators
PO Box 628200
ADV6038 Orlando, FL 32862-8200