Beacons of light

Here is another story from my sailing time to help illustrate why I think Bible translation is important.

In 2006 I joined the Sail Training International festival, which concluded in Antwerp, Belgium. I was on the Danish ketch Jens Krogh at the time. I’d had a lovely time and as they all spoke such good English, I had not bothered the learn Danish. Once or twice, this caused some challenges, as when the captain felt under pressure, he would no longer use English.

One time there was a meeting on deck. I was warned it would be in Danish, so was given the helm and left steering the ship while everyone else gathered a bit further away. When the rest of my watch (my team) returned to me, they apologised for not being able to tell me what the meeting was about, except very vaguely. The captain had been so fired up that even as native Danish speakers, they could not follow what he had said. I promptly told them what the three things were that he had said, not because I knew Danish, but because I knew ships. I had seen him pointing at the rigging and could guess the reason. There was also something that had happened earlier in the day that I expected he would have addressed. I no longer recall the other thing.

The other time was when we arrived in Antwerp. It was the early hours of the morning and I was on the helm as we navigated our way through one of the busiest ports in the world. Thankfully at that hour it is pretty quiet, as the captain once again forgot that I don’t speak Danish. The previous time I had been okay because I had spoken ship, this time I knew how to speak navigational markers. All those red and green lights in harbours have meaning, a meaning I could read and safely navigate by. Occasionally I would confirm my reading with someone who had heard the Danish instructions, but generally I could find my way and so kept us all safe. Once we got to the locks and small channels, I handed the helm over to a Danish speaker, as understanding the captain was more important at that point.

In both these scenarios, I could understand and keep safe because I had the comprehension skills for the situation. For me, Bible translation is about putting the Word that gives life into a form which people can comprehend. They can then use this to navigate through the complexities of life.

On a beach in Australia I found the remains of a boat within sight of a lighthouse. The lighthouse was there to provide safe navigation, but for whatever reason, this boat had still ended up as a wreck. Bible translation helps people to know light and through it to find safety. Having the Bible in another language of which you have a limited understanding, or having a limited understanding in your own language so easily ends up as a shipwreck in sight of safety. Giving people the navigational skills helps to bring them safely home.

(I do not have photos from sailing on Jens Krogh with me in PNG, but here  they are on the flickr page that I no longer update)