Teichert Family Update ... Bible Translation Project in Madagascar

The family of Karl and Jenny Teichert are serving the Lord as missionaries with OC Africa, in South Africa. They moved to Johannesburg in November, 1997 with their four children; Ann, Scott, Stephen and John. Karl serves as the Southern Africa Director of the Southern Africa Regional Team. Their vision is to see a healthy, Bible-based church established in every unreached village and community in South Africa, Swaziland, Zimbabwe, Zambia and beyond. Their strategy is to partner with key African church leaders to research, train, and mobilize the body of Christ to complete the Great Commission. They are striving to equip local leaders in Southern Africa to reach their nations for Christ and send missionaries into other countries as well.

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OCA Photo

Bible Translation Project in Madagascar

Dear Family and Friends,

This month we asked our ministry partner, Dinah, to write about his recent experience with Bible translaioon in the rainforest:

There are nine people groups in the eastern rainforest of Madagascar that do not have a Bible in their own language. Last December, the Madagascar rainforest church planting team was able to partner with Wycliff e Associates (WA) in an amazing Bible translation opportunity. As coordinator of the church planting movement, I recruited a team of 18 leaders from the rainforest to attend a workshop called project Mobile Assistance Supporting Translation (MAST). It is a rapid translation method developed by WA. MAST is a new program involving a single team of national translators who can draft and check an entire New Testament translation in a very short time. Indigenous translators work in parallel, translating different passages of the same book of the Bible. To improve the accuracy, translators have 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 and get community input. The overall effort is very fast by Bible translation standards. A 26-member team of national translators can produce a New Testament translation in less than a year.

The MAST program was loaded on five laptops and 15 tablets for the rainforest team to use for the Bible translation. It was slow at first, but aft er three days the translators became confident in the process. In less than three weeks, the 18 local translators with six WA facilitators were able to translate the Gospel of Mark in four different Madagascar spoken languages (Merina, Sihanaka, Betanimena, and South Betsimisaraka). The Gospel of Mark was printed in their own languages for the translators to take back to their community for the first ti me. Twenty-one Old Testament Bible Stories were translated in the Merina official language as well.

Please pray that God will use these new scriptures to mature believers and further accelerate the church planting movement. Also, pray for additional Bible translate on projects in the future.

Serving the King with you,

Karl and Jenny

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OC Africa is an interdenominational ministry committed to developing, equipping, and mobilizing church leaders to multiply healthy, Bible-based churches in every community in Southern Africa and the world. OC is a faith-based mission who depends on the Lord to provide committed, financial supporters and partners. The contributions from these individuals help generate ministry opportunities around the world, impact missionaries and their global work, and provide a means for the International Mobilization Center to function. CLICK HERE to learn how YOU can be a part of mobilizing church leaders around the world by donating to OC.