# Translation and Systematic Theology in the context of Mother Tongue Translators



## Pergamum (Aug 14, 2008)

http://www.gial.edu/GIALens/vol2-1/Gravelle-Theological-Training-and-MTT.pdf


Interesting aticle about Bible translation.


A quote to consider:




_In the West, theology is normally part of seminary curriculum; it’s associated with training pastors and not with training translators. After all, translators are not typically asked to make theological sense of the message being translated. It‘s not their job to figure out how to communicate biblical doctrine within specific cultural contexts. Their job is to transfer the biblical text as faithfully as possible into the receiving language so that people are able to understand it better and hence they can know Christ better. 

Moreover, and in retrospect, it’s probably just as well that Western translators didn’t concern themselves too much with Western theology as a tool for translation, considering its theoretical orientation and Enlightenment framework. Perhaps Tiénou and Hiebert were correct in saying, “exegesis was enclosed within the frontiers fixed by systematic theology” (2005, 4). That framework would not have assisted them in dealing with the realities of demon possession, vendetta killing, ancestral worship, spirit placation, and the political and socio-economic situation in their translations. Additionally, as linguist/translators, they were not supposed to become too involved in local church affairs, and especially in its duties to teach, baptize, and theologize. Those tasks were the work of pastors and church-planting missionaries. Translation was scientific and academic for the most part. Therefore keeping the line between translation and theology seemed appropriate.

However times do change. Mother-tongue speakers doing Bible translation is certainly not new, but the number of mother-tongue translation projects is exploding. And in many cases the translators have had some theological education. Today, pastors are more likely to be seminary-trained. And we see
moderately-educated local people being trained by national and foreign experts. Therefore what once was considered the job of foreign experts is fast becoming the job of the local church and its own mother tongue translators.

Still the question persists; What’s the role of Biblical and Systematic theology? Should it not help translators figure out how they will understand the concept of redemption within their Taoist worldview?_


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## py3ak (Aug 14, 2008)

How about overturning their Taoist worldview and replacing it with a Biblical cosmogony?


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## Pergamum (Aug 15, 2008)

Yes, I agree.

I think perhaps he said that to illustrate points of contact between the host culture and Scripture. But it does give me the willies too if taken too far.


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## py3ak (Aug 15, 2008)

Mind you, the Gospel has some overturning to do in Western areas as well.


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## Pergamum (Aug 16, 2008)

How does Western Systematic Theologiy deal with demon possession, vendetta killing, ancestral worship, spirit placation, and the political and socio-economic situation in their translations. Part of the author's point is that most systematic theology is Western and completely ignores the concerns of the Two-Thirds world.


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