Qualifications for Translation Consultants. "WHY ARE YOU CORRECTING GOD'S WORD???"

[Alan Gross]

Qualifications for Translation Consultants.
A Statement from The Forum of Bible Translation Agencies.

I was given my own class in Theology and Multi-media to teach
as a Freshman in Bible College, under the auspices of the Academic Deen.

So, I had plenty to learn. One of the first things that struck me
that I'll never forget
was the shock on a Foreign Exchange student's face when he asked me,
"WHY ARE YOU CORRECTING GOD'S WORD?"

His culture obviously had a more Humble Respect
and Veneration for "THE HOLY BIBLE"
then for him to just "treat it like it was any other book."

It wasn't just me, of course. Somehow, our Baptist Mission Statement
had migrated into having every 18-year-old kid,
or special church lady with a Concordance,
going about "CORRECTING GOD'S WORD", like it was The Latest Craze.

That gave me pause, at the time, and I thought to myself like,
"WHICH ONE OF US?
COULD EVEN COME UP WITH THE SIMPLEST QUALIFICATIONS
FOR BEING A BIBLE TRANSLATOR or A TRANSLATION "CONSULTANT", etc.?"

Much less, to take it upon ourselves to always be saying,
"The BIBLE is WRONG THERE!! ..TRUST MEEEEE!!!"

REALLY?

We can't even always find Bible Translators these days
with solid (or any?) testimonies of Salvation.

So, I came across this page that might help us along,
with a little hint, or two.

(PRAISE GOD! Neither of my Pastors were
the "What The Bible Should Have Said there was..." - types!)

Introduction,
Interpersonal Skills,
Academic Qualifications,
Translation Skills and Experience,
Language and Cross-cultural Skills,
Skills in Organization and Planning,
Consultancy Skills,
Professional Standards,
Processes of Consultant Development,
Formal Recognition of Consultants,
Subscribing Organizations,

Introduction.
"One of the ways in which the member organizations
of the Forum of Bible Translation Agencies can cooperate
is by sharing our translation consultant resources
(as local situations and availability permit).

"While it is recognized that member organizations appoint their consultants
and may have their own internal required qualifications,
in order to facilitate cooperation in the sharing of consultant resources,
it was agreed to adopt a joint statement on minimum standards
for qualifications for translation consultants.
This aims to ensure a standard of qualifications,
skills, and experience that is acceptable to all organizations involved.

"The statement focuses on professional qualifications. It is understood
that all cooperating organizations, as members of The Forum,
have identified themselves
as being within the mainstream of historical Christianity.

"This statement has been discussed over a period of three years,
has been circulated widely in each member organization,
and has been formally agreed upon
by The Forum of Bible Translation Agencies,

Interpersonal Skills.
"Some of the most important qualifications for a translation consultant
are in the field of interpersonal relations. Consultants must have the ability
to relate well with others of different cultural backgrounds.
Consultants must be sensitive to different situations,
tolerant of different viewpoints,
able to listen and learn, and also able to give an appropriate lead when needed.
They must be good teachers and able to communicate effectively,
both in writing and in speaking.

Academic Qualifications.

Linguistics:
"A minimum of one academic year of training in descriptive linguistics.
Areas to be covered include sociolinguistics, phonology, grammar,
discourse studies, cognitive linguistics, pragmatics, semantics,
and language typology.

Cross-cultural studies:
"At least one graduate (or upper undergraduate) level course in anthropology
or cross-cultural studies.

Biblical languages:
"A good knowledge of New Testament Greek
and/or Biblical Hebrew (preferably both).
More precisely, the minimum standard expected
is a basic knowledge of the morphology, syntax,
and discourse structure of the language, the ability to make use of lexicons
and other reference materials on the language, also of commentaries
that refer directly to the original text, the ability to read the original text
with understanding (with the help of reference tools),
and a commitment to use and develop this knowledge.

Biblical studies:
"A minimum of one academic year of concentrated study
at the graduate (or upper undergraduate) level
in the Old Testament and New Testament. Areas to be covered include
Biblical languages (see above), principles and practice of Biblical exegesis,
and the historical and cultural background of the Bible.
"Translation consultants should normally have an M.A. or a Ph.D.
or the equivalent in one of the above areas (or a related discipline),
and the minimum described above in the others. Formal qualifications may,
however,
occasionally be waived where the person concerned has other special strengths
and/or has demonstrated his or her competence through long-service
and/or through the publications he or she has authored.

Translation Skills and Experience.
"A consultant should:

• "Have received training in translation principles (either through participating in a formal course or through personal tutoring from an experienced consultant) and have participated in translation workshops and training programs on the field;
• "Have had in-depth experience working on a translation project in one language over a prolonged period of time;
• "Be committed to the principles of functional equivalence/meaning-based translation while also showing sensitivity to local attitudes and situations regarding specific translation styles.

Language and Cross-cultural Skills.
"A consultant should have an understanding
of the characteristics of the languages
in the area of expected service. Usually, a consultant
should also understand
and be able to speak fluently at least one language of the area,
including any major language spoken in the area which is likely
to be a medium of interaction with translation teams and church leaders.
(Language learning may often be combined with the experience
of working with one translation project in depth over a period of time.
This could in some cases be a major language of the area.)

"A consultant should have had experience of living
for an extended period of time
in a culture different from his or her own.

Skills in Organization and Planning.
"A consultant should have demonstrated the ability
to organize personal study projects
and have had personal experience cooperating in the planning
and organization of a translation project.

Consultancy Skills.
"A consultant should have received training in consultant techniques
and orientation to the role and responsibilities of a translation consultant.
This will usually be through participating in a consultant training seminar
and also through a close association with a senior consultant
over a period of time in an apprenticeship or mentoring relationship.

Professional Standards.
"Translation consultants must have a high standard of professional integrity
and an ongoing commitment to increase their knowledge
and develop their skills
in ways that will help them to become increasingly effective in their service as consultants.

Processes of Consultant Development.
"The processes that contribute to consultant development will usually include:

• "Formal training, as described above
• "Personal reading and study
• "Apprenticeship/mentoring relationship with an experienced consultant
• "Experience in translation and consulting
• "Participation in a translation consultant training seminar,

con't

 

[Alan Gross]

Formal Recognition of Consultants.
"For consultants who are to be mutually recognized by all cooperating Bible Translation Organizations, the qualifications listed in the above statement are standard.

"In order for a consultant to be formally recognized, their qualifications
will be reviewed by the Regional or Area translation coordinator
or equivalent officers for UBS and SIL, and the equivalent officers
for whatever other Bible Translation Organizations are active
in the area or region concerned. This action is initiated on the recommendation
of the local administration of the organization
with whom the person concerned is working,
and in consultation with that local administration.


Subscribing Organizations.

• Evangel Bible Translators
• Institute for Bible Translation
• International Bible Society
• Lutheran Bible Translators
• Pioneer Bible Translators
• United Bible Societies
• SIL International
• Wycliffe Bible Translators

 

[Logos1560]

"WHY ARE YOU CORRECTING GOD'S WORD?"

Why are the Church of England makers of the KJV permitted to correct and change the preserved Scriptures in the original languages and permitted to change, revise, and correct the pre-1611 word of God in English?

KJV-only defenders fail to apply the same exact standards/measures consistently and justly.

 

[Alan Gross]

KJV-only defenders fail to apply the same exact standards/measures consistently and justly.

WOW!

Oh mon dieu, you woulda sure gottem, if they were here, today!

Strong Work!

 

[John of Japan]

for

WOW!

Oh mon dieu, you woulda sure gottem, if they were here, today!

Strong Work!

Why did you take God's name in vain in French?

 

[John of Japan]

This thread is a great idea. For anyone interested, I'm going to share my lecture notes on the qualifications for a translator (and therefore obviously for a consultant.)

Qualifications for a Bible Translator
Neh. 8:8

INTRODUCTION: A “wannabe” is someone who wants to be important but does not have the right skills, training or talent. One such “wannabe” wrote the United Bible Societies: “I would be so glad to help in the translating of the Bible, and so if you would send me a dictionary and grammar of some of these primitive languages, I would be happy to dedicate my spare time to the translation of the New Testament.” (Eugene Nida, God’s Word in Man’s Language. 1952, p. 56.) As Bible translators we must not be “wannabes,” but should be people who are gifted by God, well trained, and totally committed to the task.

So, there are certain qualifications which a translator should have. Not every translator may have all of these qualifications. Some are more important than others. But we should think carefully about who should be a translator of the precious Word of God.

I. Spiritual Qualifications (Acts 6:1-3)
A. The translator is a helper to the church, and so is similar to the deacon. Therefore, these qualifications should apply.
B. Every member of a translation team should be a saved person, or the Holy Spirit will not guide him or her. That said, it is not unusual to use secular sources or unsaved people for guidance on particular semantic or syntactical difficulties.
C. The translator should be a spiritual person who deeply loves the Word of God and has daily devotions in it, and takes time to study it deeply, knowing that God gave the Bible by inspiration (2 Tim. 3:16-17). It is not a normal book.
D. The translator should know how to be led by the Holy Spirit, the translator’s Helper (John 16:13).
E. The translator should be called by God to the work.
F. There are no Scriptural prohibitions for a woman being a translator. The obvious caveat here is that if a translation team is also planting a church, the woman should not lead in that effort. A woman missionary translator has written:
"Then one day I was checking 1 Timothy with Ama [her male translation partner]. We came to 1 Timothy 2:12 where Paul says to Timothy, “I do not permit a woman to teach…a man.” Ama never said a word; we just went on checking. But late that afternoon, when we were finished for the day, he asked me what we were going to study on Sunday. Assuming he was just curious, I was delighted to tell him. Then on Sunday morning, after the singing finished and before I could stand up, Ama rose and, nodding toward me, said, “My daughter here knows more about this than I do, but we found in the Bible where it says that women aren’t supposed to teach men, so I guess I have to be the one.”

"My Balangao teaching career was over. Ama led the Balangao’s (sic) into church leadership." (Joanne Shetler with Patricia Purvis, And the Word Came with Power. 1992, p. 87.)
G. The translator must be a prayer warrior.
H. The translator must have a godly humility and willingness to listen to others.

 

[John of Japan]

II. Character Qualifications
A. A translator without good character will soon bog down and not be able to finish the task. Translating the Bible is hard work and can take many years to finish, and thus requires a deep level of commitment (Prov. 12:27).
B. Thus, perhaps the most important character qualification is a good work ethic. By the time the translator is finished with the New Testament, not to mention the Old Testament, he will have spent literally thousands of hours doing the work. A lazy person cannot accomplish this.
C. The translator should also be scrupulously honest. An honest translator refrains from interpreting the text if at all possible, but simply translates. However, there are times when interpretation is unavoidable.
1. The translator must never substitute his own ideas for what God has said. Therefore, paraphrasing a translation of God’s Word is wrong.
2. The translator should seek to retain the ambiguity of the original language. If the writer of Scripture was ambiguous in a passage, it was for an important purpose. God’s Word often makes us think deeply.
D. Again, the translator must be honest in his approach to other translations, if there are already Bible translations in the target language. Plagiarism is the sin of stealing, so the translator must be sure his work is his own, and must never copy verbatim other translations. The exception to this rule is when the source text demands a certain rendering, and thus there may be only one way to translate a sentence.
E. The Bible translator must never be a quitter. He or she must be totally committed to carrying the work through to the end. If God has called him or her to the task, the translator must finish the task with God’s help (Prov. 22:29, 1 Thess. 5:24).

 

[John of Japan]

III. Linguistic Qualifications
A. A gift for languages, if not formal training, is necessary (1 Cor. 12:28).
B. Sometimes a very hard worker with meager talents can become quite fluent in a foreign language. However, usually the best linguists are those with God-given talents in language.
C. Beyond normal language study, the Bible translator should do his or her own study of linguistics and translation theory.

IV. Scholarly Qualifications
A. A trained translator is the best translator. At a minimum, the translator should be highly trained in the target language if he is not a native speaker. (A native speaker is definitely the best translator.)
B. For example, it is virtually impossible for someone untrained in an Asian language to translate into an Asian language, even with a helper. At best, a linguist without training in the target language can only give advice concerning the original language, making him or her a translation consultant and not actually one of the translators.
C. Furthermore, the translator ought to be well-trained in the original language, Koine Greek for the New Testament and Hebrew for the Old Testament. Even if the translator is translating from the English Bible, as is sometimes necessary, they should be well-trained in the English language. Remember the famous book by two Portuguese men, José da Fonseca and Pedro Carolino, English As She Is Spoke.
D. The translator ought to get some training in how to translate.

 

[John of Japan]

V. Cultural and Sociological Qualifications
A. The cultural aspect is very important in translating. The translator must know intimately the culture of the target language to avoid misunderstandings, because language and culture are greatly intertwined. “One translator found that what she had thought meant ‘sinners’ actually meant ‘fat people,’ for the tones of the language were almost the exact opposite of the tune.” (Eugene Nida, Bible Translating, rev. 1961, p. 17.)
B. The translator should be well acquainted with the culture of the target language in order to understand the differences: the language, the customs, the social structure, the religions. Therefore, the best translator is the native speaker. “A missionary among the Tarahumaras was trying to obtain the word ‘jump.’ He acted it out by jumping around the room. The people responded with an expression; so he quickly wrote it down, only to find out later that it meant, ‘What is wrong with you?’” (Nida, p. 4.)
C. One trap is what is called “taboo words.” A taboo word is “a word known to speakers but avoided in some, most, or all forms or contexts of speech, for reasons of religion, decorum, politeness, etc. Thus in some societies the word for ‘death’ is taboo, and is accordingly replaced in most forms of speech by a metaphor, euphemism, or some other figurative or roundabout expression.” (P. H. Matthews, The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Linguistics. 1997, 2007, p. 400.)

VI. The Authority of the Translator
A. The authority for translating the Bible comes from the fact that the translator is a priest.
B. Since in the church age we believers are priests (1 Peter 2:5, 9, Rev. 1:6, 5:10, 20:6), we each have a responsibility from God to preserve His Word by: having our own copy (like the kings of Israel were supposed to in Deut. 17:18), hiding it in our hearts (Ps. 119:11), sharing it with others, and translating it.

CONCLUSION: Not all Christians—in fact, very few—can be Bible translators. Only those who have the right qualifications can do so, and only those who have been called of God to this precious task should do so. Those who accept the challenge will be given divine help, and will rejoice in how God has blessed their efforts.

 

[Alan Gross]

Why did you take God's name in vain in French?

Dear Mr. Linguistics aficionado, (and, Bible too, no doubt),

God has a Name in French.


Ils croient en de nombreux faits sur le Très-Haut.

...

Ref. notes from the Peanut Gallery:


Joe Devney
Linguist and Writer

"If you believe that saying “oh, my God” is a sin, then saying “oh, my gosh” is a way of avoiding that sin. You are deliberately not taking the Lord’s name in vain.

The word gosh is one of many words like that: dang, heck, jeez."

That was a real nice try, but I believe his last three words give him away.


Toby Dillon
Lifelong follower of Christ.

"When you say OMG are you saying "oh my gosh"
or are you saying God's name in vain; "oh my God"?"

"There is, in the end, no difference. We tend to try to rationalize it by saying “That word doesn’t mean that thing!” but the reality is that without “Oh my god,” “Omigosh” would never be."

Jody Gattey
A student and teacher of the Bible for 45 years.
Is saying "Oh my God" using the Lord's name in vain?
"Yes, it is, unless your communication is to Him. For example, if I saw a terrible accident and had no words to instantly make a sensible prayer, but said “Oh my God”, I am calling on God to help in that situation. If it is only a common expression, then it is using the Lord's name in vain. ‘In vain’ means for no reason, or for nothing, or using any of His names like its just another ordinary word with no reverence.

"The fad used to be “oh God”, or just “God!” or “Jesus”, and currently the fad is “OMG”…. People don’t realize what they are saying because it has become very common these days. It is another ‘sign of the times’, meaning the End Times or Last Days when the world becomes increasingly evil.

"We should not misuse God’s name, but always honor Him and talk about Him with reverance. In the Bible times, and still some Jews today, do not feel worthy to say or write His complete name. They write G_d, simply because they understand He is so far above us and so great. “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.” (in Proverbs and Psalms). ‘Fear’ here means reverence, but it also means a healthy fear too, knowing He hears and sees all things and we will be held accountable to Him one day.

"Jesus said: “I say unto you that all will give account on the day of judgement for every careless word they have spoken. For by your words you will be acquitted, and by your words you will be condemned.” (Matthew 12:36–37)

"The words that we speak are important and tell a lot about us.

"EDIT: Three years after writing this answer I want to add one more interpretation of using the Lord’s name in vain. I heard a missionary friend say this in his sermon and after thinking about it, I felt it was insightful. He said we take the Lord’s name when we say we are a CHRISTian, and if we are not living the Christian life, then we are taking His name in vain."
...

I plead, "lost in translation" (cap, or not);

I had small 'd', 'dieu".

My goodness! interjection

Oh mon Dieu!

 

[Logos1560]

Are those readers of the KJV who consider the KJV to be perfect or inerrant correcting God's word since they are accepting its additions of many words in English for which there were no original-language words of Scripture, since they are accepting its subtractions or omissions where the KJV gives no English word/rendering for many original-language words of Scripture, and since they are accepting the interpretations/translation decisions of one group of Church of England men as in effect being superior to the preserved Scriptures in the original languages?