the Kadazan Bible Society: Christianity

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Saturday, October 9, 2010

Kadazan Grassroots Bible Translation Project - Gospel of St.John

Image by Isolino via Flickr

After waiting for almost about 3 centuries for the 'Church' to come up with a complete Kadazan (tangaa) Bible translation from the Book of Genesis to Revelation, a group of 'born-again Christians/Catholics' have taken the initiative of organizing a faith based initiative, which prayerfully provokes positive response from the concerned individuals, and undertake a project which we have named as the KADAZAN GRASSROOTS BIBLE TRANSLATION PROJECT. The idea is to pass around portion of the scriptures to all relevant 'educated' Kadazan and, during their quite time, commit themselves to learning, meditating and translating what they have learn into Kadazan (Tangaa or the dialects of their choices, e.g. Tatana, Bonggi, etc)

We set ourselves a timetable of say one chapter a week and see how it goes.

The following is my first attempt to translate the first fe verses of the Gospel of St. John, which I am passing around for comments, correction, amendments, textual criticism and, where possible, re-translation. The version I have used is KJV (both old and new). It would be much better if the translation is done in the original Hebrew and Greek but even the UMS Head of the Kadazan Department, which is especially set up through the request of some of our political Christian leaders, does not know Hebrew or Greek and neither any of our scholars, to my knowledge, who carry PHDs of all sorts.

We hope to compile these and eventually agree on a common translation that is easily understood by our Kadazan readers and yet faithful to the original text as the inspired word of God. Please pray for God's anointing as we embark upon this important and souls saving exercise which is the heart beat of His Kingdom on Earth, even as we prepare ourselves for the second coming of the reigning King of kings and Lord of lords. Maranatha.

Injil tumanud di John
^{Boogizan Koiso}
¹Ih nopo haid di timpuun ih, nga ih no ih Boos, om Boos nopo dii nga miampai do Kinoingan, om Boos nopo di nga Kinoingan.²Miampai no haid Isido do Kinoingan di timpuun ih.³Savi-avi nopo nga vinangun Disido; om aiso ih di navangun nung okon ko doiho Isido.
⁴ Id Disido nopo nga koposizon; om koposizon nopo dii nga ninavau do tuhun. ⁵Babang nopo dii nga tuminitiu doid kotuvangan; om au ih nakabaga oh kotuvangan dii. ⁶Kiva songuhun nosuu mantad Kinoingan, ngaan nopo disido nga ih John. ⁷Isido nopo nga saksi, minanaak do kosoksian kuma di Babang dii, do mooi dii do aavi tuhun maza disido nga ongotumbazan. ⁸Isido nopo nga okon ko Babang dii, nga nosuu do manaak kosoksian kuma doid Babang dii. ⁹Ih nopo ih Babang tototopot, nga iino minanaak do kanavaan kumaa toiso-iso id pomogunan.
¹⁰Nokotombuhui haid Isido id pomogunan, om pomogunan nopo nga vinangun Disido, om au ih nokotutun oh pomogunan Disido. ¹¹Minikot Isido doid dau do tinau, om au Isido tinoimo. ¹²Nga sontob di minonoimo Disido, nadadi Disido do sakag do Kinoingan, om nogi sontob di nongotumbazaan doid ngaan Disido. ¹³Miaga di nosusu, okon ko maza do paganakan om kaandak do tuhun, nga doun Kinoingan.
¹⁴Om boos dii nadadi do Kadazan(tuhun), om minizon id tanga dagai,(om nokito za oh kaazaan Dau, ih kaazaan doTanak Kinoingan Tama di Iiso-noh) noponu do grasia om katapatan. ¹⁴Om kadadi no do Kadazan (tonsi) oh Boos dii om izon no doid tanga dagai do pipio hinaid; om nokito dagai ih kaazan Disido – kaazan di naambit di Tanak di I’iso no mantad di Ama Dau -- noponu do grasia om katapatan.
¹⁵Suminaksi ih John montok Disido, om ha’ad no, mooboos, ‘ Isiaha no ih komozon ku, ih minikot sumusuut dogo nga hobi tinuo mantad dogo; sabap doiho no haid Isido pogulu ih do nosusu zou. ¹⁶Om mantad kinoponuan Disido, nokotoimo izikoi do grasia, om grasia ih savat do grasia. ¹⁷Sabap notoimo di Moses ih taurat (undang-undang), tapi grasia om katapatan nopo nga minikot maza di Yeshua Mononobus. ¹⁸Aiso ih do tuhun nokoimato do Kinoingan do gigisom; ih Tanak di I’iso noh, ih poingkibit do Kinoingan Tama, pinopointahang Disido.
¹⁹Om iti no oh susuzan kokomoi di John, songian oh Johudi minonuu do imam om mononopuan ngaavi do panambazangan dioho id Jerusalem minuot disido, “Isai ko kopizo?” ²⁰Om pangakun no isido, om au minogohim; tapi pangakun no, okon ko izou ih Kristus. ²¹Om uoto no dioho isido, “Isai di? Elias ko toi?” Om boos ka disido, “Okon”. “Iziau naku ih Mogogohungung?” Om boos kavagu disido, “Okon”

²²Dadi poboos no izioho doid Disido, “Isai ko? Do moi do kaanu zikoi manaak do sisimba kuma di minonuu dagai. Nunu oh pobooson nu kokomoi diau sondii?” ²³Ka disido, “ Izou nopo nga ih ohou di madhaad id kotogisan, potuhido oh lahan montok do Tuhan, miaga di noboos di prophet Elias. ²⁴Om izioho nopo di nongosuu nga Farisee ngaavi. ²⁵Om uot izioho disido, om poboos no doid disido, “Nokuo dii tu mambaptis ko nung okon ko ih Kristus ko, toi ko ih Elias, toi ko ih prophet dii? ²⁶Simba no ih John, poboos no do mambaptis zou miampai do vaig; nga kiva do poingkakat id tanga diozu, ih au diozu notutunan; ²⁷Isido no, ih mikot-ikot sumusut dogo nga hobi mantad dogo, kagos po do kasut Disido nga au zou kapadan do mongidu. ²⁸Nadadi ngaavi iti id Betania id suok do Jordan, id nombo ih John mamaso mambaptis. ²⁹Tadau suvab dii, kokito no di John ih Yeshua mikot-ikot doid disido, om poboos no, Intangai no oh Doumba do Kinoingan, ih mongidu do douso do pomogunan. ³⁰Isido no ih komozon ku, Sumusut dogo songuhun ih hobi mantad dogo: sabap mimang do id pogulu no haid Isido dogo. ³¹Om au zou nokoiho Disido: nga do mongoi do kointahang Isido doid Israel, dadi minikot zou do mambaptis miampai do vaig.

³²Om saksi no ih John, minoboos, Nokito ku ih Sunduvan do Kinoingan do minindau mantad davan miaga do tombohog punai, om tuun no ih om tood no id savat Disido.
³³Om au zou nokoiho Disido: nga Isido ih minonuu dogo do mambaptis miampai vaig, Isido nogi minoboos dogo, Id savat di isai okito nu ih Sunduvan do humintuun, om tumood doid savat Disido, Isido no ih mambaptis miampai do Sunduvan Tohidang. ³⁴Om nokito ku, om sumaksi zou do iti no ih Tanak do Kinoingan. ³⁵Om vagu di tadau suvab dii poingkakat ih John, miampai di duvo di tutumanud disido; ³⁶Om miintong isido di Yeshua do maapanau isido, poboos no isido, Intangai oh Doumba do Kinoingan!
³⁷Om nokongou ih duvo tutumanud do minoboos isido, om tanud no izioho di Yeshua.

Wednesday, October 6, 2010

The Power of Love for God is Love.

To them that love God. These are those who enjoy the blessed assurance just given. Notice the order in the Revised Version, which is the order of the Greek, to them that love God all things work together for good. The love of God is the very foundation of the Christian life. See Lu 10:28 and Joh 14:23. The expression, them that love God, is synonymous with Followers of Christ. See 1Co 2:9 Eph 6:24 2Ti 4:8 Jas 2:5. The two expressions them that love God and the called are are different ways of describing the same class.

To them who are the called. These have been called by the gospel and have accepted the call. Many others are called Jews and Gentiles, but only those who hear and obey are chosen (Mt 20:16 20:14). Paul uses the term of the latter class; those who hear and obey. The evidence that we are the called is that we love God.

According to his purpose. This call was purposed from the time that God promised a Deliverer of the fallen race (Ge 3:15).

Wednesday, September 29, 2010

KADAZAN - a Nation of Royal Priesthood - 1 Peter 2:9-10

Behold, children are a gift of the LORD, The fruit of the womb is a reward. Like arrows in the hand of a warrior, so are the children of one's youth. How blessed is the man whose quiver is full of them; They will not be ashamed when they speak with their enemies in the gate. Ps 127:3-5 (NAS) (dedicated to my friend Ps Joseph Samuel who is celebrating his birthday today and his lovely family - May Abba Father multiply your blessings and draw you closer to continuous intimacy with Him for He knows your faithfulness and the "cross" you carry for your community but be strengthen that He is true and faithful to His promises. Amen)

The duties of Christian parenthood flow from the nature of their God. Just as God is love, the first duty of parents is to love their children (I John 4:8). Because all children are wanted by God and are important to God, Christian parents seek to bring their children into God's presence, and God's presence into their children's lives through prayer (Luke 18:15-16). Because God is holy, Christian parents model righteousness to their children (Matthew 18:6). Because they are the objects of God's grace through Christ, they model humility and gratefulness to God (Ephesians 2:8-9) and show their gratitude by serving God (Ephesians 2:10, II Corinthians 5:14-15). Since God makes us accountable, they not only teach their children their faith, they call upon their children to live by it, and lovingly provide guidance through careful, prayerful use of correction, approval, and rewards (Ephesians 6:4). As God seeks out the fellowship of people, Christian parents bring their children to the house of the Lord to seek fellowship with other Christian children (Hebrews 10:25, I Corinthians 15:33). Just as God finally gives us free will, Christian parents have as their goal the maturing of their children so that they, in turn, can be effective Christian parents to grandchildren (Matthew 19:4-5, Luke 15:11-12).

Monday, September 27, 2010

Bible translators hope to have every language covered in 15 years

Image by myzulkefli via Flickr

"And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come" (Matthew 24:14).

A Christian endeavor of almost 2,000 years could be substantially completed by 2025.

Protestant translators expect to have the Bible — or at least some of it — written in every one of the world's 6,909 spoken languages.

"We're in the greatest period of acceleration in 20 centuries of Bible translation," said Morrison resident Paul Edwards, who heads up Wycliffe Bible Translators' $1 billion Last Languages Campaign.

Portable computers and satellites get the credit for speeding things up by about 125 years.

Previously, a Wycliffe missionary family or team would spend decades learning and transcribing one language in a remote corner of the Earth.

Wycliffe's missionaries had the credo, "one team, one language, one lifetime," Edwards said.

At that pace, the target date had been 2150, Edwards said.

Help from technology

Contemporary missionaries, armed with technology and making greater use of apprentice native translators, might now be able to oversee transcriptions of several languages in their lifetimes, Edwards said.

"Wycliffe missionaries don't evangelize, teach theology, hold Bible study or start churches. They give (preliterate people) a written language," Edwards said. "They teach them to read and write in their mother tongue."

The missionaries develop alphabets. They create reading primers. They translate the Bible.

About 2,200 languages remain without a Bible. About 350 million people, mostly in India, China, sub-Saharan Africa and Papua New Guinea, speak only these languages.

Working on this "to-do" list are about 6,600 career and short-term missionaries with training in the Bible and linguistics.

They are following the New Testament directive of Jesus in the Book of Matthew: "Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded of you."

The missionaries have to come up with their own means of support, often a church sponsorship, in the field.

Katie Zartman, a 27-year-old Loveland native and Colorado State University graduate, is a senior graphic designer with Wycliffe at its Orlando, Fla.-headquarters.

She recently returned from a two-week mission to Senegal in French-speaking West Africa, where she taught a workshop on layout and design to Saafis, a small Senegalese minority for which Wycliffe is not only translating the Bible but also helping to create a small body of native literature.

"Half weren't confident in their basic computer skills when they began, but they were book publishers by the end of two weeks," Zartman said.

A people's first books

Twelve participants using open-source software (downloaded for free) completed a dozen rough drafts of 24-page booklets in the Saafi mother tongue. Most were children's stories.

"Once they have the Bible in their heart language, then it's almost like a dictionary for them to write about their oral traditions and culture," Zartman said. "The Saafis see the danger of being swallowed up by the cultures around them. Now they can create their own books."

The modern era of Bible translation began with William Cameron Townsend in 1942. He founded Wycliffe, named for the Oxford don John Wycliffe, who first translated the Bible into English in the late 1300s. Previously, English- speakers read the Bible in Latin.

So far, Wycliffe and its related organization, the Summer Institute of Language (now known as SIL International), have participated in more than 700 Scripture translations.

SIL has formal consultative status with the United Nations Economic and Social Council and the United Nations Education, Scientific and Cultural Organization.

Edwards, a former fundraiser for Stanford University and promoter of the Colorado- grown evangelical men's ministry Promise Keepers, has raised more than $170 million in less than two years for this final big push, the Last Languages Campaign.

Edwards said that Wycliffe is helping preserve indigenous peoples' languages and cultures.

"Five hundred years ago, there were twice the number of languages we have now," Edwards said.

Many more languages are close to extinction — spoken by only a few elderly people and no children. Yet once a language is written, it can't be lost completely.

Anthropologists have been more skeptical about the effect of missionaries on indigenous cultures.

"These folks, whatever good they might do, are not disinterested parties," said University of Colorado anthropology professor Paul Shankman. "They have their own goals."

Bringing foreign ideas

Associate professor David Stoll of Middlebury College in Vermont, who has studied Wycliffe, has written that Wycliffe missionaries' activities, like those of all missionaries, become bound up not only with religious traditions but also with the expansion of English-speaking culture, economics, technology, medicine and political aims. They bring all these things with them.

"If you are not able to satisfy the leadership of the village that you are doing good and are a helpful addition, there is no reason for them to presume that what you are asking to bring to them — a written language — is particularly valuable," Edwards said. "Helping improve a village water system or bringing in the harvest with them might get you a pass to work on your project."

The Bible itself is no small influence on culture.

Yet the translators believe they bring only gifts.

"I am excited to put God's word in all people's heart language," Zartman said. "Until people can read the Bible in their own language, God is a foreign concept."

source: The Denver Post http://www.denverpost.com/headlines/ci_15346948#ixzz10k1PissT

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