Summer 2014 Update from Steve Whitmer with Pioneer Bible Translators

 
Pioneer Mission Institute- From June 6, 2014— Linda and I are currently working in Dallas, Texas this week.  Translators, development team members, literacy workers and Scripture use specialists (church planters/evangelists) are gathered from all over the world.  At last count, there are representatives from 14 different countries where we have current projects.  We are involved in continuing education for these missionaries with topics such as “Orality in Translation” and I am slated to teach “Cultural Change Theory,” for the Christian missionary. 
 
This Dallas gathering has been a central point where I could continue working with the training program for mother tongue translators in Indonesia.  ALBATA, an indigenous translation organization located in Jakarta, Indonesia, is beginning to gather students to train to meet the translation needs in that area.  If you remember, there have been over 800 language groups that have been identified for translations by ALBATA.  Last October, I was in Jakarta and Jogjakarta (central Island of Java) with Phil Fields surveying seminaries and contacting graduates interested doing the work.  Phil and I are developing and building training materials (in Indonesian) to mentor these workers so they can begin versions of the parables and the Gospel of Mark.  This has been a useful time for us to be together away from in-country things so that we could work on this.  We are still expecting that between the two levels of  “Mother Tongue Translators” and “Translation Specialists” we will have nearly 100 men and women to be trained in Indonesia.
 
As we continue with Indonesia, we begin working on another front.  Rondal Smith, PBTI Area Director, has been organizing to bring us translation specialists to train from that area.  For security reasons, we are not announcing where these students are coming from, but let me assure you that it is very encouraging.  We are now working with Tavriski Christian Institute on behalf of PBTI to equip translator family members and additional team members for work.  This expansion of our mission effort will allow teams to be made up of nationals who know and can work in Eastern Europe in the near future.
 
Johnson University, Knoxville
 
Rohingya- July 2014 — In correlation with PBTI Southeast Asia director, I am investigating the possibility for starting a translation project based here in Knoxville, TN.  The Rohingya, a gypsy type group from Arakan (formerly called Rohang) region of northwest Burma, are living as refugees here within a 20 mile radius.  As an internship project involving on-campus students here at Johnson, we can and intend to serve the larger people group (2 Million inside Burma, 600 Thousand in Bangladesh, 350 Thousand in Pakistan, 400 Thousand in Saudi Arabia) by engaging the refugee group here.  New Testament work is already underway by teams outside PBTI.  However, we can engage the refuge group here and begin the project for producing the Old Testament in their language while bringing Christ to them here in Knoxville.  We have begun to set up the infrastructure to accomplish this as soon as we clear it with the New Testament team.  I am very excited because this can be a great learning experience for our local students as well as serving the Kingdom.  As someone said yesterday, “These Muslim people are being persecuted and God brought a remnant here… here to Knoxville of all places….so that they can hear the Gospel!”
 
Translation Program- March through July, 2014– Program instructional design for degree seeking students is long and drawn out.  Like performing a major academic research project, several steps are involved to bring it to fruition and establish accreditation for the program.  1) We list out what each student needs to know in what we call learning objectives (this includes linguistics theory of language, translation theory, cultural theory, Biblical studies for translation, language learning, etc.).  2) We design how we will instruct the students by planning courses that train the students with what they need in the order they need to study the theory and practice of their discipline. 3) We bring experts together to write the courses for the program and make the courses available online through delivery software (upload multimedia materials to internet servers).  4) We organize the students into world groups to begin the process of education.
 
Faculty Team for Developing Translator Specialists— Faculty for the new translation program is coming from among those who 1) have completed a needed translation and published the resulting Bible, and 2) hold a Ph.D. in linguistics and/or translation.  I continue to coordinate the input from these field workers and directors of translation projects from around the world. 
 
Students–  Students are gathering from several different resources for this translation training.  Johnson undergraduate students are moving directly into the MA-ICS Translation concentration.  Mission organizations like CMF and Team Expansion are recommending their recruits (especially for key areas) go through our programs.  We are seeing word of mouth bringing other evangelicals to apply for the training.  And, lastly, PBTI is requesting their mission recruits to enter the programs as well. 
 
Current Projects- August 1^st —  Today starts a new area of our work.  We begin the program design and collection of professors to teach translation and intercultural studies in Russian.  Everything is coming together for us to coordinate a partnership with Tavriski Christian Institute and Johnson for training PBTI recruits in Ukraine and Russia, among other places.  Several key people will be in Dallas for us to work out the details and begin translation of the components into that major language.
 
We have our first PBTI recruits to train in India.  The new students are approved and will begin their translation training this fall.  Linda and I will be traveling to various places for coordinating the professors and students into cohorts for training. 
 

1.  We have a continued need for travel funds.  Most of this mission work must be accomplished through face to face meetings and arrangements.  A typical need would be $1,200 per trip to the area where the students are located.  Our annual need is typically $3,600 for this mission expense.  Please pray for supporters who can help with the need.  Consider sponsoring one trip.
2. Many areas we work in are currently volatile and under great political pressure.  Please pray for peace and justice in these areas:  Ukraine, Russia, Egypt, Brazil, Zimbabwe, and India.  Pray for the areas of the world that we work in that are so delicate that we cannot even post the country here for fear of repercussions.
3. Steve and Linda’s health to be sustained in the long hours put in to accomplish the arrangements for training points and starting of translation and church planting projects.
4. Proper personnel to team with Steve and Linda to oversee and facilitate each project in each place. 
5. The church in Ukraine, Russia, Egypt, Brazil, Zimbabwe, and India (and other unnamed areas) to realize the mission of God and send the recruits to get the outreach accomplished.

 
We are so blessed to be able to be a part of this exciting mission work!  Linda and I were just talking the other day about how God is doing an amazing work among the people of the world and he is letting us be a part of that wonder ministry.   This dream is over 24 years old with me and now God is fulfilling the desire of my heart to see Bibles and churches in places in the world where He is not known.  The multiplication of this mission outreach is exponential through the translators, development workers, Scripture impact people, and cultural change experts that we are putting in place.  Please continue to support this effort with your prayers, volunteer service, and financial support.  We cannot continue without it.
 
In Him,
Steve Whitmer