A small group of Bible translators gathers in a remote stone farmhouse, in the deep snow of an Ontario winter. They come from many Native American tribes; some from as far away as the chilly north slopes of Alaska, others from the plains of Mississippi. Bundled against the cold, they pray and continue a journey together that they have slowly and patiently walked for many years. At the end of that road is Scripture in their own languages — the languages in which they pray.
A new Bible translation is always a cause for joy. It is a door that has opened to a whole people. In Matthew 28.19, known as the Great Commission, the resurrected Jesus tells the apostles, “Go, then, to all peoples everywhere and make them my disciples” (GNT). Those words are the basis for the call to bring the gospel story to all languages, in every nation, through the ages — a goal at the very heart of the American Bible Society.
But Scripture translation has never been easy. In the best of times, it is a slow and uphill trek. Millions speak languages still untouched by Scriptures, and widespread illiteracy is also a serious obstacle. But the 21st century is bringing new avenues for reaching every heart. And the end of that journey has never seemed nearer.
Spirit of the Lakota
Rosalie Little Thunder grew up speaking Lakota in the Western plains, learning English as a second language. The Bible had always been available to her in English, and it gave her comfort. But this wasn’t true for other Lakota people she knew. Many of her tribespeople turned away from the Bible because of all the “bad associations” they had with the Europeans who brought centuries of war and double-dealing. The painful history made some of them distrustful of what the white people brought — even when that was the message of the gospel.
About 20 years ago, Little Thunder got involved with Scripture translation. Last year, she and her team produced Life in All Its Fullness, a collection of Bible verses in Lakota published alongside stories of traditional tribal practices and sayings. Her hope was that he gospel message written in the language in which her people prayed might begin to bridge a divide she had felt all of her life.
