Kathy, along with her husband Mark, worked with the Luang community in Maluku, Indonesia to translate the New Testament and portions of the Old Testament. For almost 20 years, Kathy has been serving as a translation consultant who enjoys mentoring consultants-in-training. She also currently serves on the SIL Asia Bible Translation Coordination Team (ABTCT).
Consultant Checking as an Opportunity for Scripture Impact
Abstract
Bible translation consultants not only help ensure that the Scriptures they check are accurate, clear, and natural; they also have the unique opportunity of seeing the living and active Word of God speak to the hearts of those involved in the checking process. This paper demonstrates how a consultant check can be an opportunity for scripture impact where participants reflect on what they have learned and want to apply to their lives, even as it also accomplishes the technical process of checking to ensure that a translation is well done.
By having scripture impact as the end in mind, both consultants and translators can see how the hard work they have put into producing accurate, clear and natural translations leads to meaningful understanding, and that when given an opportunity for reflection, participants are personally impacted and share what God has spoken to them. This experience often creates a greater hunger for God’s Word, and a desire to share what they have learned with others in their community. This can help foster a conducive context for broader scripture engagement.
This paper shares the specific steps a consultant can take to achieve this type of scripture impact, and provides personal testimonies of how God’s Word has transformed lives as a result of participating in a consultant check that facilitates this kind of reflective process.