Overcoming Obstacles

Before projects can begin, translators need to be trained in Wycliffe Associates’ MAST program (Mobilized Assistance Supporting Translation), a collaborative, eight-step method that helps produce accurate translations more quickly.

Paula Oestreich of Wycliffe Associates says these training workshops typically happen in person. However, with travel restrictions from the pandemic, that clearly isn’t an option. Instead, Wycliffe Associates has shifted to virtual workshops, which Oestreich says come with their own obstacles.

“The biggest challenge by far would be the internet connection and adequate technology,” she says. “Can they stay on a website for the entire meeting and be able to have a functioning computer? Those are the two biggest issues that we have.”

(Photo courtesy of Aleks Marinkovic via Unsplash)

Wycliffe Associates provides laptops and pays internet fees for translators that need access, and Oestreich says Wycliffe Associates has increased their use of virtual MAST, or V-MAST, which allows translation teams to collaborate even if they can’t work in person.

“It is basically like working on a website for the translators,” Oestreich explains. “It is a collaboration tool. Whether they’re in the same room, or in different rooms, different cities, even different countries, they can translate the Bible together, working through the four drafting steps, and then working through the four checking steps together, no matter where they are in the world.”

Finding Courage and Success

V-MAST has encryption in place to try to protect individuals who could face persecution, though it’s still far from ideal for dangerous areas. However, for some translators, it’s worth the risk.

“I was talking to someone in the Middle East, and they want to start [using] V-MAST,” Oestreich says. “They said, ‘well, it’s not a country where it’s illegal to be a Christian,’ but they could face persecution. They said, ‘we want the Bible in our language, so this is what we want to do anyway.’ Who are we to say that they can’t do that?”

Oestreich says a translation group in Russia has found particular success with V-MAST. Though many people might not think of Russia as a nation with a variety of languages, several groups in the country don’t have the Bible in their mother tongue. However, with the help of V-MAST, that will hopefully change soon.

(Photo courtesy of Kelly Sikkema via Unsplash)

“Our Udmurt group in Russia [has] a group of 32 translators. Half of them are working on paper and pen. They use the input feature in V-MAST so [their work] can be online. The other half of the group is working through the eight steps online using V-MAST, so all of their content ends up in the same place. They’ve gotten nine books done [during] COVID, and they’re currently working on six more as a group,” Oestreich says.

This translation group hopes to finish their project by the end of the year, which would mean translating the New Testament in nine months or less. Fortunately, this group is incredibility motivated to provide their people with Scripture in their mother tongue.

Support Bible Translators Worldwide

As the Udmurt and many other groups continue their work, Oestreich describes a few ways you can help.

“It would help to get the word out that V-MAST actually exists as a tool and that people could use it,” she says.

You can help Bible translators get access to the resources they need by donating here. Translators around the world also need your prayer support, as many face unrest, persecution, and more while they translate God’s Word for their people. Visit Wycliffe Associates’ site here to learn more about how you can pray for these brave men and women.

Header image courtesy of  Aaron Burden via Unsplash

He goes on to explain that with the acceleration of cluster languages, translation in parallel and the advance of the missions movement, in general, local language groups can take ownership of their own Bible translation.

“The growth of the Church among bible-less language groups has come to the place now, where they are technically able to do this work themselves. Our role is to simply provide training, tools and resources for them so that they can do Bible translation on their own.”

Church Growth: Bible Plea

(Photo courtesy Wycliffe Associates)

This is happening in places like the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Indonesia, Papua New Guinea, and Nigeria. Previously, these bible-less people groups were in areas where the church was very young or non-existent, he notes.

Today, “Most of these language groups now have pastors and church leaders with many years of experience, and in a lot of cases, theological higher-level education as well. They are the best source of testing and assuring accuracy of the Scriptures.”

“When they hear that the entire New Testament can now be translated in just months, they’re astonished, and they plead for a chance,” said Bruce Smith, President and CEO of Wycliffe Associates. That’s led to a flood of requests, says Ropp, which keeps them on track to meet their goal in six years.

“The 619 that we’ve identified so far, these are all language communities that have come to us and asked us for help. They’ve been identified. We have then vetted them.” Given the recent push toward identifying and adopting Unreached People Groups, how do they know they’re not duplicating their efforts?

“The vast majority of these language groups have never had a Bible translation project,” he says. “We have had, on occasion, discovered that, many years ago (in many cases, decades ago), a Bible translation project was started, but for whatever reason, was never finished.”

Acceleration Strategies

By what process has the Bible translation effort accelerated? In 2014, Wycliffe Associates piloted a new, collaborative Bible translation method known as Mobilized Assistance Supporting Translation, or MAST, which has teams working in parallel, working on several books at once, rather than sequential, or one at a time.

(Photo courtesy Wycliffe Associates)

Since the first MAST workshop in South Asia, more than 1,250 Bible translation projects have started using MAST. Along with the training that mother-tongue translators receive in a MAST workshop, Wycliffe Associates also provides Print-On-Demand equipment as well as computer tablets loaded with translation software. In addition to helping translators work efficiently and safeguard their work, the tablets also help ensure the safety of translators who need to work discreetly.

(Photo courtesy Wycliffe Associates/Bruce Smith)

The acceleration also brought costs down into more manageable numbers, says Ropp. “In the past, back when translations took decades to do, the cost of a New Testament was well over two million dollars, per language. Now we’re seeing thousands of language communities coming, and we’re looking at an average cost for each one of these projects of $19,500.”

What Can You Do?

Fundraising is a part of the process, but so is prayer.  “The spiritual warfare that goes on during the time a Bible translation workshop or training event has been taking place, has just been unbelievable.  We’re facing challenges, literally, at every turn that we come to, with regard to this project.”

“For generations, Bible translation was a difficult and slow process, shackled by what ‘couldn’t’ be done, where we ‘couldn’t’ go,” Smith says, concluding with this thought, “Today, by God’s grace, we’re leaving ‘can’t’ behind. In places we could never work in before due to violence and persecution, God has opened doors.”

Headline photo courtesy Wycliffe Associates/Bruce Smith.

“MAST has basically brought into the sphere of possibility for local teams to accelerate the Bible translation efforts by engaging with people that we’ve known for years when it comes to actually doing Bible translation, but also, leveraging things we’ve learned from the education field and just using language to the way we actually use language to Bible translation,” Wycliffe Associates’ Vice President of Finance, Tim Neu says.

Neu says there’s a great hunger for people to have the Word of God in their heart languages.

The MAST system is a revolutionary approach that helps to bring the translation faster, but it also incorporates quality checking as scriptures are being translated. Team members work together to verify the accuracy of the text in both languages.

Currently, there are 816 Bible translation projects in progress using the MAST system.

Print On Demand

In order to see the impact of these translations last, Wycliffe Associates has started Print On Demand systems, which print the Bibles into native languages.

Neu says the goal is, “making it possible for these local teams not only to do Bible translation, but to actually have it available right away, readily, so that the local believers can start consuming it immediately and in seeing lives changed.”

The Print On Demand units include printers, cutters, and binder equipment to fully manufacture and print the Bible in heart languages.

There are various options for the printing systems and units. Some must be very mobile in order to bring them into hard-to-reach locations and be ready to be packed up and relocated quickly. Other Print On Demand systems do not need to be as mobile and may have larger equipment.

Neu says Wycliffe Associates’ staff and volunteers have conducted research on which units are the better options for the different situations and locations.

For units that are easier to move, the package costs several thousand dollars. For printers that will stay for periods of time, they cost about $25,000.

Tools for Disciples

These units are giving local believers access to the Word of God and the tools they need to gain experience in being disciples in their communities.

(Photo courtesy of Wycliffe Associates via Facebook)

“There are places that we can go, but there are places that we can’t go. There are places that we can go, but we can’t stay. Well, how is God’s Word going to stay fresh and alive?” Neu asks. “Well, it’s going to come through the work of His body in these local communities where they’re being taught, trained, and raised up to impact not just this generation, but future generations with His Word.”

With the Bible present in these communities, the Gospel will continue to spread and grow deep roots in the next generations’ lives.

Neu says as he’s gone to different locations, locals have said that the Bible is making a difference and entire communities are engaging in the Word and coming to life.

Eighty-three Print On Demand systems have been deployed in 26 countries.

Wycliffe Associates’ President and CEO, Bruce Smith said in a press release that, “printing Bibles is the final link in the chain of love.”

Help be that chain of love by supporting Wycliffe Associates’ Print On Demand system. Pray for their work and become a financial partner.

“We have helped to launch 383 new Bible translations over the past 12 months. So that’s an unprecedented pace of new Bible translation starts.

“The interesting thing is what it has actually done is actually increase the demand of support from language groups that are still without Scripture who are looking for help starting their translations. We’re currently facing a backlog of about 600 languages now that are asking for assistance to train them with our MAST methodology and provide technical resources to help them get started.”

(Photo courtesy of Wycliffe Associates)

The uptick in requests has called for Wycliffe Associates to pick up the pace and shift into a new gear. They’ve established an astonishing goal to launch hundreds of new translation projects in less than 90 days from now.

MAST, or Mobilized Assistance Supporting Translation, is Wycliffe Associate’s translation support methodology. Through collaboration with mother-tongue translators in the field, this method is dramatically reducing the translation process from several years to months.

Teams trained in the MAST methodology are positioned around the world. They are ready and scheduled to work with different translations groups. This involves on-site training and support to make sure translation teams have what they need for high-quality translations.

“We have partners that are ready, willing, and able to begin these translation projects. What they need is training and some technical resources to get them out of the gate,” Smith says.

Because the training quickly multiplies the number of people equipped to work in the translation, more projects can be started and finished, all while ensuring there is the proper focus on each individual project.

To see hundreds of projects started within the next 90 days is an incredible and, as Smith puts it, unprecedented goal. But the urgency is justified with the number of people who still have not heard God’s Word in a way they can understand in their hearts.

(Photo courtesy of Wycliffe Associates)

“The concentration of these groups are in Asia and in Africa. Those are the two regions of the world that have the greatest number of Bibleless people remaining in the world. They’re really spread throughout a whole host of countries.”

More specifically, the focus in on Southeast Asia and in the Pacific as well as Central Africa.

Along with the training and the support teams, this kind of project requires technology. One of the tools Wycliffe Associates is utilizing is a tool that is being integrated into many fields: the tablet. Wycliffe Associates calls the program “Tablets for National Translators”.

“These tablets are about $300 apiece. We look forward to engaging between 1,000 and 1,500 translators in these languages in the coming weeks with multiple translators working on each language.”

The cost of this project adds up quickly. The total funding Wycliffe Associates is raising for the launch is around two million dollars. But compared to the costs of translation launches in the past, $20,000 per language is a very low cost.

And the impact of these projects is priceless.

Smith says recently, he received word from a group of Deaf Christians in central India who, until recently, had no contact with Scripture. They were not bilingual, and their sign language was limited to their area.

Smith shares, “In a workshop that we did this past summer, they began translating Scripture into their sign language for the very first time. The message I received is that they’ve now got a church planted entirely of Deaf believers–about 45 Deaf believers there. And they’re reaching out into their community of Deaf for the first time ever.”

Through Bible translation, this sort of thing is happening in hearing and Deaf communities all around the world.

“We’re excited that God has opened these doors and we see God’s provision increasing every day. This is a great season for people to become involved in Bible translation and come alongside of us.”

If you would like to join Wycliffe Associates in this audacious goal, visit their website here. You’ll find opportunities to pray, give, and volunteer.

You can also call 1-800-THE-WORD for more information.

“The challenges physically are huge; the challenges spiritually, the challenges culturally are huge. So there’s just a lot of work to be done there,” says Bruce Smith of Wycliffe Associates.

Yet one of the biggest challenges is the language barriers; all 800 of them.

“About 500 of those 800 languages are still needing God’s Word to start translation, so just a huge task ahead from the vantage point of Bible translation,” explains Smith.

(Photo courtesy of Wycliffe Associates)

What the country is not lacking is passion from local believers. They want to get involved directly and work as much as possible to reach their neighbors with the message of Christ’s love.

“The vision of the local community is to engage in Bible translation directly themselves without waiting on foreign missionaries to show up and do the work for them.”

“Their sense of urgency is often quite different than our own. They’re the ones who are watching their neighbors and their countrymen live without hope and die without hope, and they’re saying, ‘This is unacceptable,’” Smith says.

Usually, Bible translation relies on scholars and linguists from overseas, missionaries who have to learn the language before they can even begin translation. The only problem with this process is it takes a long time, and God’s Word can’t get to the people who are most desperate for it on time.

That’s where Mobilized Assistance Supporting Translations comes in, or MAST.

“It’s basically a workshop where the local church is invited to bring as many bilingual speakers of their language as they can get together and participate in a process where they translate Scripture in parallel, and work together to check the quality of that translation work.”

(Photo courtesy of Wycliffe Associates)

From software to training, Wycliffe Associates tries to provide every necessary resource to help people get the Scriptures in their own language. So far, the effects are dramatic. It’s faster, more efficient, and a lot cheaper than traditional translation methods, even as it retains the accuracy and truth of the Bible.

“We see the hurdle for entry and participation dropping dramatically. When you compare this to the cost of supporting a missionary for decades in an overseas environment, the cost is becoming really much more economical. It’s putting Scripture within reach much sooner than it has in the past.”

News of the new program is traveling around the world, meaning churches internationally can participate in the new method.

“This new process of MAST that’s emerging around the world, it’s really spreading quite virally among the church so that globally this last month we’ve seen 225 languages begin Bible translation for the first time.”

No matter how the Gospel is spread or translated, Smith encourages us that prayer is the most potent tool we can use.

“Pray that as God is working in the communities, in the churches, in the leadership, within the missions community, that together all of us continue to strive towards the goal of getting His Word to the nations, and doing it in a way that honors and glorifies Him so that His name is exalted and glorified among the nations.”

If you want to give or find other ways to get involved, we’ll connect you right here.

(Photo courtesy of Wycliffe Associates)

International (MNN) — In South Asia, there is a community desperately in want for translations of the Bible. Luckily, Wycliffe Associations came to their rescue with a new test program to translate the Bible faster then ever.

Through the recently developed program referred to as MAST (Mobilized Assistance Supporting Translation), Wycliffe Associates has been able to help meet the needs of Christians where translations of the Bible are lacking.

MAST took form by using a different type of training approach to Bible translations combined with crowd sourcing. This method brought together the village’s local Christians to bring about a translation of the New Testament in their native language. The translation portion took two weeks!

After word got out about the speedy translation, MAST took off like wildfire. Now, over 200 language communities are seeking Wycliffe Associates assistance in translating the New Testament. This wildfire, however, is not in danger of being extinguished as more and more communities find out about MAST.

“We’re looking toward next year to seeing at least 300 new translations started. I mean, if that number itself doesn’t sound crazy enough, the high side could be as many as 500 new translation starts next year,” says president and CEO of Wycliffe Associates, Bruce Smith.

(Photo courtesy of Wycliffe Associates)

However, many outside the MAST program have expressed concern about the accuracy of these translations. Fortunately, the Bible translations’ quality matters greatly to all involved.

“The great thing is that these Christian communities care as much about the quality of Bible translation as much as we do. So they’re engaging their pastors, they’re engaging their denominational leaders, they’re engaging their church networks, they’re engaging professors from seminaries, they’re engaging mature Christians from their communities as well as new Christians and merchants and people that represent the cross section of their community that will be receiving God’s Word for the first time.”

Not only has MAST accelerated the Bible translating process, it has created a community to check the translations. “On a given day, any number of translators, their individual goal would be to translate about 35 verses each in a single day. And then the community itself engages in the checking process right after the drafting occurs. So again, there [are] no delays in the process like we were describing earlier, and this is part of what has gotten Scripture to these communities at a much faster pace than previously.”

(Photo courtesy of Wycliffe Associates)

Through this process, Smith feels assured the translations coming out of MAST are of good quality. “This has always been the way quality been assured by engaging a broad number of people with a range of experience in knowing what Scripture says and how to use Scripture. And so we’re really duplicating that same process but in a much shorter period of time by getting people focused on working together during a workshop setting during a couple weeks, or during a couple months, during a year.” Furthermore, Smith says the translations go through a final translation check by experienced Bible translation consultants.

Wycliffe Associations looks ahead to a busy next 12 months. As they connect more with these communities who lack Bible translations, Wycliffe Associations plans to continue their work using the MAST program. It has especially proven to be an encouragement and help to others who have lost their momentum in the translation process.

For those looking to get involved, please consider praying for those who are part of the Bible translation process, especially when learning of disheartening news stories. “Bible translations are often behind the scenes…to bring God’s Word to those circumstances.”

To Learn more about MAST click here.

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SE Asia (MNN) — SE Asia isn’t exactly known as a welcoming environment for Christ-followers.

“Officially, Christianity is at less than 2% in the entire area,” shares Wycliffe Associates’ Vice President, Brent Ropp.

“But we would venture to say that that number is actually growing quite rapidly, and it’s probably in the 8-10 percentile range, at this point.”

The Risk

Buddhism in the Himalayas.
(Wikimedia Commons)

Three of the five countries where Wycliffe Associates is assisting translators are on the Open Doors 2015 World Watch List – a ranking of 50 countries where persecution is most severe. A fourth nation, ranked at #51, just missed the designation.

“Buddhism is the primary religion in all of the countries,” Ropp shares.

Persecution ranges in severity, from severe restrictions on Christian materials to physical abuse.

Despite potential risks, a group of local Christians has joined efforts to begin translating the Bible into their own language, even with minimal resources to carry the work forward.

The Reality

New believers are hungry for God’s Word, and they’re teaming up with translators to get Bibles in their heart language.

Wycliffe Associates provides the tools and training they need to get the job done.

“We’re using some new translation methodologies, but we’re also using technology,” says Ropp.

MAST training session
(Photo courtesy Wycliffe Associates via Facebook)

“Groups of people from one or more churches, from the same language community–working together with their pastors and church leaders–are able to work through passages of Scripture at surprisingly fast pace.”

The technique is called MAST — Mobilized Assistance Supporting Translation.

Bilingual members of a minority language community team up with translators, using a majority language and tools provided by Wycliffe Associates, to get God’s Word into their native tongue.

In recent weeks, 13 believers from a minority language community in the Himalayas gathered with translators and Wycliffe Associates facilitators to try out the MAST process.

“In just two weeks, those 13 people were able to translate half of the New Testament,” Ropp shares.

How you can help

(Photo courtesy Wycliffe Associates)

Because millions of people are still waiting to read Scripture in their heart language, Wycliffe Associates is working as quickly as it can to get every verse of God’s Word translated into every tongue to speak to every heart.

Organized in 1967 by friends of Bible translators, Wycliffe Associates empowers national Bible translators to provide God’s Word in their own language.

Last year, 2,544 Wycliffe Associates team members helped speed Bible translations in 73 countries–including those in Southeast Asia.

“We’re being inundated with requests for help with new translation projects all the time,” Ropp says.

You can help Wycliffe Associates meet the demand by praying, giving, or going.

Pray

(Graphic courtesy Wycliffe Associates)

The success of thousands of Bible translators and volunteers–at home and overseas–depends on the faithful prayers of God’s people everywhere.

Right now, thousands of dedicated Wycliffe Associates volunteers support the worldwide work of Bible translation in prayer every day.

Become a Wycliffe Associates Prayer Watch Partner.

Give

(Photo courtesy Wycliffe Associates via Facebook)

As explained on Wycliffe Associates’ Web site, your gifts impact eternity as you:

• Provide ministry support for missionaries and their families involved in Bible translation.
• Construct airstrips, offices, translation centers, training centers, homes, schools, and meeting facilities at Bible translation sites all over the world.
• Provide necessary equipment and tools for the work of Bible translation.
• Respond practically to crises caused by unrest, disaster, or hostility that endanger missionaries and their families.
• Recruit and provide skilled and trained volunteers to assist missionaries and translators.
• Help others find God.

Help accelerate global Bible translation.

Go

Wycliffe Associates has short-term missions opportunities available nearly every month from now through December.

Learn more and sign up here.

(Photo courtesy Wycliffe Associates)

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“We’re going to see more than double the number of new Translation Starts around the world. We’re anticipating more than 500 new Bible translations to begin during the coming year,” said Wycliffe Associates President and CEO Bruce Smith.

This expectation comes despite opposition in many of the countries where Wycliffe Associates is working. Smith says the rate of translation is increasing considerably, primarily due to a new translation method and “out-of-the-box” tools.

MAST makes for quick work

Mobile Assistance Supporting Translation (MAST) is a new program revolving around a single team of national translators who can draft and check an entire New Testament translation in record time, Smith said. Indigenous translators work in parallel, translating different passages of the same book of the Bible. When a translator hits a bump, he has the benefit of seeing the work done by a peer on a similar section of Scripture.

“The workers help each other, check each other’s work, get community input—and the overall effort is lightning fast by Bible translation standards,” Smith said. He estimates that a 26-member team of national translators can produce a New Testament translation in less than a year.

Using MAST, Wycliffe Associates will begin 500 new translation projects in 2016.
Wycliffe began using MAST in 2014, with 235 groups employing it around the world.

BTAK: a Bible-translation-kit in a box

The new kit used by Wycliffe Associates is a backpack with translation tools. It is designed to make a once-stationary chore — mobile. Bible Translation Acceleration Kits (BTAKs) are currently being used in 516 languages. Introduced in 2014, the BTAKs are utilized in 41 different countries.

Each kit contains a small netbook computer, a satellite communication terminal, a solar battery charger and battery, and a secondary power supply. The BTAKs are kept portable because translators – especially Christian nationals – are often in danger of assault, arrest, or theft of their equipment and seizure of their work. With the BTAKs, translators can pick up and move at a moment’s notice.

In India and the Middle East, where translators have been murdered for spreading the Gospel, such mobility could save lives.

A Bible, free to all

(Screenshot)

Not all barriers to translation are as severe as persecution and murder, but they are barriers just the same. Wycliffe Associates and unfoldingWord Project just launched a copyright-free Bible translation, and it’s expected to help speed the work of translation.

The Unlocked Literal Bible contains both Old and New Testaments. It was finished in October by the unfoldingWord editorial board, according to Smith. With it, churches will gain access to the Bible in members’ mother tongue. Churches actually become active in the translation process through the MAST process, Smith said.

Despite ground-breaking technology, all the work, and hours of prayer, Smith says a lot of :unknowns” remain when translators are sent into remote areas to develop a Bible in a new language.

Funding is needed. People are needed. Most importantly, prayer for God’s guidance is needed.

(Photo courtesy Wycliffe Associates)

Cameroon (WAS/MNN) — Boko Haram isn’t just in Nigeria, anymore. The terror group has been crossing country borders, wreaking mayhem in Cameroon, Chad, and Niger. Like Islamic State, it wants to establish a Sharia state.

Wycliffe Associates is supporting indigenous Bible translators who live and work in those areas in a climate of fear and violence.

Because of danger and instability in one area of the region, the work of Bible translation was slowed down. The government had closed roads in the area, and as a result, some translators had to pass through as many as seven checkpoints to reach the language groups with which they work.

Yet, despite the obstacles, Wycliffe Associates is continuing to support Bible translation efforts in northern Cameroon for more than 3 million people who speak more than 100 languages.

“Cameroon is on the front lines in the mission to advance the gospel in Africa, and the dangers are real,” says Bruce Smith, president and CEO of Wycliffe Associates. “Extremists threaten to sweep in from the north at any time. Christian communities face challenges to their faith without the Scriptures in their heart language.”

(Photo courtesy Wycliffe Associates)

Wycliffe Associates is providing assistance by forming relationships with communities in spiritual need, helping to direct translation efforts, and training local translators to use MAST (Mobilized Assistance Supporting Translation). This method brings groups of national translators together to work in parallel–accomplishing Bible translation faster than ever before and translating God’s Word in areas where extreme persecution of Christians is taking place.

(Photo courtesy Wycliffe Associates)

Additionally, Wycliffe Associates has installed Bible Translation Acceleration Kits for a number of translators. The kits include a laptop computer, satellite communication terminal, solar panel, battery, and power supply, so that Bible translators can work safely, remotely, and communicate with translation consultants thousands of miles away.

Wycliffe Associates is currently raising $100,000 for a regional translation and training center in Northern Cameroon, where translators are at the greatest risk of violence from extremists.

“In a climate of great fear and violence, translators are risking their lives to share God’s Word,” says Smith. “The need is pressing…as our window of opportunity for this work may close at any time.”

In the coming year, Wycliffe Associates wants to begin 500 new language projects using MAST.

“This is a breathtaking moment in the history of the church,” said Bruce Smith, President and CEO of Wycliffe Associates. “Christ’s Great Commission is doable. We can share God’s Word with every language group on Earth–in our lifetime.”

In 2014, the organization launched its first MAST workshop in South Asia, where 13 national translators drafted half of the New Testament in two weeks. The fastest a New Testament translation has been completed using traditional methods is 6 years, and many New Testament translations have taken 25 to 30 years to complete.

News of the MAST team’s success raised questions about the quality of the translation. But translation experts who checked the MAST translators’ work at the request of Wycliffe Associates confirmed the accuracy of the team’s translation.

“When we first saw this astonishing strategy in action, it seemed too good to be true,” said Smith. “But since then, we’ve had these new translations checked by some of the leading Bible translation scholars of the world–and they’re as astonished as we are.”

Dr. John Luton, who has participated in checking the work of 52 translation projects around the world in the past 6-7 years, said, “The work produced through the MAST methodology is excellent. It compares very favorably with texts produced through other methods.”

Dr. Luton described one South Asian MAST translation he checked as “very high quality and among the best I had ever seen.”

Each new MAST project begins with a workshop where deeply devoted national translators start translating on day one. They work in parallel on different passages of the same book of the Bible. When an individual solves a translation problem in one passage, he or she applies it to similar passages. The workers help each other, check each other’s work, get community input–and the overall effort is lightning fast by Bible translation standards!

The cost of each workshop is approximately $19,500, and Smith says the cost of each MAST translation effort is expected to shrink as technology continues to improve.

Since the first MAST workshop last year, there are already 235 groups at work using MAST to translate the Old or New Testament or Open Bible Stories (a set of 50 fully-illustrated Bible stories). Wycliffe Associates has received additional requests for MAST training from more than 120 language communities. The organization estimates that a 26-member team of national translators can produce a New Testament translation in less than a year.

Of the more than 6,900 languages spoken around the world today, only 531 have a full translation of the Bible, and another 1,329 languages have an adequate New Testament translation.

Organized in 1967 by friends of Bible translators, Wycliffe Associates empowers national Bible translators to provide God’s Word in their own language, partners with the local church to direct and guard translation work, harnessing their passion and desire for God’s Word, and engages people from all around the world to provide resources, technology, training, and support for Bible translation.

Because millions of people around the world still wait to read the Scriptures in the language of their heart, Wycliffe Associates is working as quickly as it can to see every verse of God’s Word translated into every tongue to speak to every heart. Last year, 2,544 Wycliffe Associates team members worked to speed Bible translations in 73 countries.