Wycliffe Associates Turns to “Old” Technology to Bring the Scriptures to Isolated Language Groups

(Orlando, Florida, USA)— Wycliffe Associates, an international organization that empowers mother-tongue Bible translators and partners with local churches in the advancement of Bible translation, has begun transmitting Bible translation training and ministry support materials via radio signals.

The organization has discovered language groups in isolated places that are without the Scriptures in their language and can’t be reached by other Bible translation strategies.

“Who could have predicted that God would take us back to radio, a communication technology 70 years older than Wycliffe Associates?” says Tim Neu, Interim President and CEO. “Yet this is the only means of reaching some people, even in 2021. It takes the ‘old’ to bring in the new.”

Some of the language groups are located in geographically isolated places without infrastructure, roads, or access. Other language groups are unreachable due to repressive governments that are opposed to the Christian faith. The Internet is monitored, and it’s impossible for Christians or Americans to travel to these regions.

“In our earliest efforts, the results have been amazing,” says Neu. “In one African country, we broadcast into a majority-Muslim region. A believer immediately made his way to a telephone, found a way to speak without being overheard, and called us. In spite of the dangers, he was eager to start translating Scripture for his people.”

Wycliffe Associates plans to reach 35 new language groups by training mother-tongue translators via radio, reaching across borders to teach Bible translation methods to local believers.

“We have workers ready to begin Bible translation training and support broadcasts,” says Neu.

Wycliffe Associates currently has Bible translation projects underway in 748 languages. To date, the organization has facilitated the completion of 481 New Testaments.

Through its Church Owned Bible translation approach, Wycliffe Associates provides resources, training, tools, and support to empower national Bible translators to translate the Scriptures for themselves as they work in conjunction with their local churches.

About Wycliffe Associates

One of the world’s leading Bible translation organizations, Wycliffe Associates was organized in 1967 by friends of Bible translators to accelerate the work of Bible translation. Wycliffe Associates empowers national Bible translators to provide God’s Word in their own language, partners with the local church to direct and guard translation work, harnessing their passion and desire for God’s Word, and engages people from all around the world to provide resources, technology, training, and support for Bible translation.

Because millions of people around the world still wait to have the Scriptures in the language of their hearts, Wycliffe Associates is working as quickly as it can to see every verse of God’s Word translated into every tongue to speak to every heart. Wycliffe Associates is directly involved with speeding Bible translation by providing technology, training, resources, logistics, networking, expertise, volunteers, discipleship, church planting, and support. Wycliffe Associates staff and volunteers are currently accelerating Bible translations in 68 countries. For more information, please see www.wycliffeassociates.org.

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