Wycliffe Bible Translators
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Wycliffe Bible Translators is a nonprofit organization with its international headquarters in Dallas, Texas, USA. It is dedicated to making a translation of the Bible in every living language in the world, especially for cultures with little existing Christian influence. Wycliffe was founded in 1942 by William Cameron Townsend. There are currently branches in over 50 countries (see Wycliffe International website for a list). The organization is named after John Wycliffe, the first person to compile a translation of the Bible into Middle English.
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[edit] Philosophy and methods
Wycliffe bases its philosophy on Townsend's Protestantism which regards the intercultural and multilinguistic spread of Christianity as a divine command. This type of Protestantism adheres to the principle of sola scriptura and regards Biblical texts as the authoritative and infallible word of God.
In a Wycliffe mission, Wycliffe senior workers first request permission to operate from the government in charge of a region. After the organization receives permission to operate, several small teams research a region's linguistic populations. Based on this data, teams are sent to each linguistic group.
The team introduces itself to a group, usually with the aid of bilingual helpers such as traders or guides. The team lives on site, and attempts to speak the language. Formal recordings, word lists and grammars are kept, usually on computers, backed up periodically to the national mission.
When the phonology is understood, the team selects a writing system similar to those in use by nearby trading languages. At some point, the team begins to translate short portions of the Bible into the native language. The translation is tested and corrected with native speakers, as well as the existing lexicographies and grammars. Once the Bible is translated, printings are arranged, often through one of the United Bible Societies. The length of the entire process varies depending on the portion of the Bible being translated; it can take as long as 20+ years.
[edit] Organization
SIL International, originally the Summer Institute of Linguistics, began as a small summer training session for missionaries in Arkansas in 1934. They are a partner organization of Wycliffe Bible Translators.
Another partner organization and subsidiary of SIL International, JAARS, originally the Jungle Aviation And Radio Service, provides transportation and technical services for missionaries and associated development workers.
Wycliffe Associates is a volunteer organization that exists to support Wycliffe Bible Translators. Wycliffe Associates' relationship to the main Wycliffe organization varies in the different countries in which it operates. Wycliffe Associates USA and Wycliffe Associates UK are separate organizations to Wycliffe USA in Orlando, Florida and Wycliffe UK in High Wycombe.
The Seed Company is a subsidiary of Wycliffe USA that provides support to local translators.
[edit] Controversy and criticism
Wycliffe Bible Translators has come under criticism from anthropologists and Third World Nationalists. American ethnologist William Vickers comments,
The conspiracy theorists who believe that [Wycliffe] is a simple front for the CIA will find little support for their views [...] It is true, however, that [Wycliffe] has influential ties to capitalist enterprise, politicians, and military figures in the United States and in the developing countries in which it works. [Wycliffe] is not an "empire" per se, but foreign missions such as [Wycliffe] are part of the larger political process in which powerful nations export political, economic, social, and ideological patterns to the relatively weaker and poorer regions of the world. Today, people in many developing countries are debating whether some aspects of this process should be limited or controlled. (Vickers, 1984:201)
[edit] References
Colby, Gerard with Dennett, Charlotte. (1995). "Thy Will Be Done. The Conquest of the Amazon: Nelson Rockefeller and Evangelism in the age of Oil" Harper Collins, New York, NY.
Vickers, William. (1984). "Review: Fishers of Men or Founders of an Empire? The Wycliffe Bible Translators in Latin America by David Stoll." American Ethnologist, 11.1, 200-201.JSTOR
