Bible Translator Foibles

Looking Out

In the early 1980s, I got my first look at the process of completing a translation of the New Testament. The translation was completed but needed to get the manuscript ready for printing.  As this was in the days before computers, the whole manuscript of the New Testament was typed on paper with handwritten corrections.  The final manuscript which would go to the printer was going to be produced on a typewriter.

The missionary translator found a copy typist from his country who came to Africa to assist. She worked from the existing manuscript and typed up a clean copy double spaced.  The missionary translator then went over the new, clean copy to check for errors.  Remember that the copy typist was typing in a language she did not know, which is must more difficult.

This was a tedious process
which took at least six months

When the missionary translator found an error in the new copy, he would note the correction in blue pencil.  The copy typist would then retype the entire line with the error, cut that out, and then paste it over the original line.  The missionary translator would then go over the pasted lines.  Some errors were found in them which were dealt with in the same way.  This process continued until the missionary translator believed that the typed manuscript was error-free.

This manuscript was then photocopied as a backup and the original sent to the printer. The printer produced galley proofs using hand-set type or some similar manual process. That process introduced errors.  So the galley proofs were sent to The missionary translator who worked with the copy typist to find the errors and correct them. This was a tedious process which took at least six months.  I cannot remember the exact amount of time.

Today, of course, the text of the translation is keyboarded early in the translation process.  Corrections are made on the computer as needed.  When the New Testament is finished, a typesetting consultant works with the text and the translators to decide formatting questions. Then the text is sent to the printer over the internet.  At the printer it goes directly into a computer and from there to the printer.  The text is not manipulated by anyone in this process, so no errors can be introduced.  This shaves months off of the process, perhaps as much as an entire year.

Is this affirmation manifested in their actions?

Furthermore, the steps which the computer allows us to skip are not creative steps.  Rather they are tedious steps of checking for errors.  This frees up the translators to concentrate on the creative process of producing a quality translation. Computers bring a lot to the translation process.  Even if computers only helped with the final typesetting process, the investment would be worth it.

Over 15 years later I was working in an Africa-wide role and had occasion to travel back to this country.  While there I asked the leadership about this New Testament.  Was it being used?  Was it having an impact?  Was it still available and for sale in the part of the country where the language was spoken?

The answer to all of these questions was “We don’t know”.  That answer was surprising enough, but I was really shocked that the questions did not seem to evoke any sense that not knowing was a problem. The questions did not create any desire to find out. It appeared to me that it was okay with the missionary translators if the completed New Testament in that language was no longer available to the people for whom it was translated.

This shaves months off of the process,
perhaps as much as an entire year

This experience caused me to ask about the use and availability of completed translations wherever I went. I often found the same lack of interest. It was as if once a language has a translation it gets checked off a list and then ceases to get any attention, not even to make sure that it remains available for sale.

Years later, my organization did start requiring the missionary translators in each country to show whether their translations were available and in use. For a while I was in a position to put resources into that. I found that many of the missionary translators in my group wanted the money spent otherwise. That too suggested to me that the impact and use of the translations was lower in their actual priorities than in their spoken priorities. The edict from the top is not yet matched in all the hearts.

Looking In

I subscribe to the idea that one learns about another person’s values and goals more by what they do than by what they say. Our hearts are crooked with sin and so it is easy for us to say one thing, but they not act accordingly. Of course, missionary translators say that they are doing Bible translation for the blessing it will be to people. Is this affirmation manifested in their actions? Unfortunately, not always. A failure here and there would be expected from fallen human beings.

I asked the leadership about this New Testament.
Was it being used?  Was it having an impact?

But I don’t see a failure here and a failure there. I see a generalized pattern of other missionary translators, neglecting the use and distribution of translations done by their colleagues after their colleagues are gone. This appears to call into question that the use and impact of the translations of others important to them, especially when one compares it to what they do pay a lot of attention to, such as the number of missionaries in the country, the level of their support and whether they have options for their children’s education.

What about me? What is my reason for being involved in Bible translation for bibleless peoples? What do my actions say about that? Do I invest in the actions that will make my work a success, or just in the ones that fit my personal vision, or the ones I like? Do I support the spending of scarce resources to accomplish that task first, or do I want facilities and programs that serve me first? I am allowed a lot of input into decisions. Do I keep my own self interest out of that? Do I even try? Do I notice when I act and decide in my own self interest? I think that I need a brutally honest but loving outside observer to keep me on track.