The Gospel Coffee Crew recently returned from a trip to Oaxaca, Mexico. Back in March of 2023, Oaxaca was our first trip as Gospel Coffee! This trip was our second trip to this southern Mexican state. We went to connect with a couple working with an organization called SIL, commonly known there as El Instituto. The work that is being done there is phenomenal! This organization focuses on linguistics and Bible translation. The SIL organization in Oaxaca has many different teams of workers focusing on various regions with their unique indigenous languages. Due to the mountainous landscape of the region, there are over 50 different dialects of Zapotec alone, not to mention the plethora of other native languages spoken in Oaxaca.
Our time in Mexico was mainly focused on connecting with the couple who is undertaking the San Pedro Yaneri Bible. But thankfully, we were able to explore and connect with many others as well. We visited several towns around the area and chatted with people working on other projects, including other indigenous Bible translations. We stayed on the SIL campus and were able to help work on landscaping and cleanup projects around the campus.
On the campus, they have a storage room full of Bibles. Being in this storage room gave us a glimpse into the work and the heart of this organization. There were over 200 translated texts, whether the Old Testament or New Testament. As wonderful as having these Bibles is, SIL's goal is for the Bibles to be given to native speakers. Imagine all the people who are going to have the opportunity to have the Holy Scriptures in their heart language!
Seeing and hearing about the work taking place has given us a great appreciation and reverence for the Bible and the translation of it. As an American, I have had the Bible my whole life, easily accessible and understandable to me.
However, this is not the case worldwide.
Many people have never had or heard a Bible in their language. The work that goes into Bible translation is so detailed. We gained glimpses of this time-consuming process, while in Mexico.
Let me lay out some of the details involved in this process.
Step 1. Know or learn the national language. For Oaxaca, it's Spanish.
Step 2. Locate a people group that doesn't have the Bible in their native tongue.
Step 3. Connect with locals and see if they want to have the Bible in their language. Working with local believers is always ideal.
Step 4. Learn the indigenous language from locals.
Step 5. Work with a translation team of native speakers to translate the Bible into their language, ensuring the message is clear within their cultural context.
Step 6. Back translation. A native speaker who did not help in the translation takes the text and translates it from the indigenous language back into Spanish. This helps to catch any mistakes or confusing translations.
Step 7. Consultant Check. People outside of the translation team check the text. They check that the message is clearly understandable to the locals. After the check, the team will do revisions based on the findings of the consultant.
Step 8. Manuscript Edit and Publish. An editor makes sure everything is formatted correctly and then it is sent to publication! The scripture can be recorded, uploaded to digital formats, and also published as a traditional book.
Another crucial aspect of this process is not only working on the literal translation but the meaning of the words. A beautiful part of cultures is the way that each culture interacts with the world. The flip side is that each culture interacts differently than the others. This impacts the way they perceive and understand Scripture. All this goes into Bible translation and can take many many years.
I'm so thankful for people who are willing to spend years, decades, even their whole lives on this process!!
The couple we connected with in Oaxaca are working on the San Pedro Yaneri Bible. They are currently working on creating a digital PDF copy and typing the New Testament into a program. One thing they are attentive to is the integrity of the Bible translation. Because they did not do the original translation of the copy we gave them, they are unsure of the validity of the words. Hopefully, the original translator maintained the integrity of the Word of God, but part of their goal for this process is to uphold the truth and meaning of the words in alignment with the Bible. We are hopeful they will be able to work with the people of the village to check the integrity of the translation and that the people understand the meaning of the text.
Their next steps are to make connections to San Pedro Yaneri. Thankfully, during our trip, we were able to get the phone contacts of some of the members of the village and connect them with the couple. Our goal is that they would be able to talk with the pastor of the little church that we went to last time we were in the village. Hopefully, this meeting will lead to progress in learning the language or connecting to someone who speaks the indigenous language as well as Spanish. We are praying that there is someone in the village who is willing and can assist them in working through the current Yaneri Bible translation to make sure it's Biblically accurate.
Getting to go to Oaxaca was a beautiful experience!
Friends, we are so thankful. We are so amazed by God as a good Father. He has given us the words of Life in Jesus. We have access to the Truth of the Bible anytime and in any form we could want. All do not have this same luxury. We are filled with amazement at people's diligence to uphold the integrity of Scripture. We are blessed at the different missions God gives to each of His children's hearts. We are honored to glimpse this beautiful work. There is a deep intricacy and reverence deserved by the Bible. It is the word of God. It holds the truth for life. And the revelations of Jesus. Thank you God for giving us the Bible.
What a gift! To have and experience the Holy Bible in our own language and in our own hands. Join us in prayer! For the many people who don't have the Bible in their language. For the San Pedro Yaneri Bible. For SIL and Bible translations worldwide.
Shalom from the Gospel Coffee Crew
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