Bible translation is justice - Dr. Kenmogne

Dr. Michel Kenmogne, SIL's Executive Director since 2016, wrote an article on Bible translation as justice, in the current edition of JOT: 

Because Bible translation acknowledges and values all languages, the advent of Scriptures in minority languages goes a long way to proclaim that the speakers of these languages are equal in dignity and are worthy to connect with their Creator in non-mediated terms. Around the world, people from minority speaking communities have expressed the value of Bible translation as justice in different ways.

• “Here is a document which proves that we also are human beings—the first and only book in our language,” said an African Christian holding a translated Gospel in his hands for the first time (quoted in Sanneh 2008:177).

• “Now we see that our friends in the foreign countries regard us as people worthwhile,” said a Christian in Angola holding Scriptures in his hands for the first time (quoted in Sanneh 2008:177).

• “I know that in my body I am a very little man, but today as I see the whole Bible in my language, I feel as big as a mountain” (quoted in Sanneh 2008:177). 

• “When we go to the politicians, they don’t know us. But now God knows us. Now we are counted among the children of God,” said the Chief of Kpandai Wura as he tearfully evoked the marginalisation of the Nawuri people of Ghana (2012). This was a call for the Nawuri people to look beyond their current socio-political marginalisation and develop the confidence that comes from the knowledge of also being “children of God”.

In this regard, Bible translation and the empowerment it brings becomes a critical organising principle and a practical tool for transformation. For a vulnerable and marginalised group like the Nawuris, being “counted as children of God” is more than spiritual transformation. It is a key to transforming their perception of themselves and unleashing their potential to flourish in all regards as people created in the image of God...

Bible translation is not just a strategic tool to ensure the cross-cultural transmission of the Gospel and enable the growth of God’s Kingdom. Bible translation is justice. It sets the context for people to recover their imago dei and regain the confidence to meaningfully engage with God and with others within communities and nations.

You can read the whole article here.