# Worshipping With Language Barriers



## KMK (Nov 17, 2008)

How many of you have Spanish-only (or any foreign language) speakers at your churches and how are they accomodated?

I have heard of different services for different languages and I have also heard of integrated services where the Word is preached in both languages, the preacher interpreting as he preaches. Any other options or nuances that work?


----------



## Notthemama1984 (Nov 17, 2008)

Something that we did when I was growing up (not necessarily advocating the act, just giving another option) was basically "adopt" a Spanish speaking church and allow them to use our facilities free of charge. We basically viewed the small church as a mission and did whatever we could to help them out.

If organized well between the pastors of both churches, it can work well but if the pastors are seeing things differently it can get ugly.


----------



## KMK (Nov 17, 2008)

Chaplainintraining said:


> Something that we did when I was growing up (not necessarily advocating the act, just giving another option) was basically "adopt" a Spanish speaking church and allow them to use our facilities free of charge. We basically viewed the small church as a mission and did whatever we could to help them out.
> 
> If organized well between the pastors of both churches, it can work well but if the pastors are seeing things differently it can get ugly.



And were there two different worship times, or did everyone meet together at the same time?


----------



## Notthemama1984 (Nov 17, 2008)

Two separate times.

At one time it was 11 o'clock for English and 2 for Spanish with the traditional Sunday night service back in English.

At another time we had morning service in English and night in Spanish.


----------



## Notthemama1984 (Nov 17, 2008)

Oh something else that I have seen that helps integrate the two churches is to have someone from the Spanish church teach spanish to the English church and vice versa. It helped create bonds between the two congregations.


----------



## Kim G (Nov 17, 2008)

I visited a Korean presbyterian church here in Greenville once. Their entire service was in Korean. They had little ear-pieces for everyone who spoke English, and a man in a back room would speak into the ear-pieces, translating everything, even the hymn numbers, prayers, and testimonies, into English. When I went to South Korea, one of the larger churches had a separate room in the back of the auditorium for English-speaking members. A large glass window allowed you to see the service, but everything was translated into English.


----------



## KMK (Nov 17, 2008)

Kim G said:


> I visited a Korean presbyterian church here in Greenville once. Their entire service was in Korean. They had little ear-pieces for everyone who spoke English, and a man in a back room would speak into the ear-pieces, translating everything, even the hymn numbers, prayers, and testimonies, into English.



That is quite a bit of technology. Was this a large church, and if so, praise God that so many Koreans are going to church.


----------



## Kim G (Nov 17, 2008)

KMK said:


> Kim G said:
> 
> 
> > I visited a Korean presbyterian church here in Greenville once. Their entire service was in Korean. They had little ear-pieces for everyone who spoke English, and a man in a back room would speak into the ear-pieces, translating everything, even the hymn numbers, prayers, and testimonies, into English.
> ...



The Korean church in Greenville has, I don't know, 150 people or so. I attached a photo of their main room below. It's not a fancy place, but they did have plenty of technology. They even had mounted video cameras for recording events (I know because I was married at that church and recorded the wedding with the cameras.)


----------



## Kevin (Nov 17, 2008)

We have a number of Francophones meet with us & one family of Koreans.

On some occasions we have readings & or prayers in English & French, as well we print scripture readings (when we print them) in English, French & Korean.

We do this to make everyone feel welcome, the language of teaching, singing, etc. is English.


----------



## smhbbag (Nov 17, 2008)

We have 5-10 members who speak only Spanish out of around 200 in attendance on Sunday. They all sit together in the balcony, with a Spanish-speaking deacon translating the sermon and hymns for them on the fly.


----------



## Kim G (Nov 17, 2008)

One thing I loved about the Korean churches was the hymn-singing. Their hymnbooks included both English and Korean lyrics, and everyone just sang whichever language was the easiest for them. It didn't seem to clash to have more than one language singing at the same time. (Sometimes I'd try to sing the Korean lyrics because I had learned to read the language, but I didn't feel like I was worshipping since I didn't know what I was saying, so I'd switch back to English.) It didn't seem to bother anyone.


----------



## Pergamum (Nov 18, 2008)

I just spoke (translated actually) 2 hours ago in a church of about 12 languages. A few months ago I preached to a group of 100 and 14 languages were represented.

Translators and use of dual language really impairs things. But having two or three...or more services for each language group also breaks the sense of unity. Or if a trade language is used, rarely is this trade pidgeon language the heart language of the people and so that Gospel does not enter deeply into their hearts.



Ha, I heard about one missionary who preached through a translator and he begin his introduction with the phrase, "It tickles me to death to be here....

The translation by the interpretor............"scratch me till I die!"


----------



## KMK (Nov 18, 2008)

Pergamum said:


> I just spoke (translated actually) 2 hours ago in a church of about 12 languages. A few months ago I preached to a group of 100 and 14 languages were represented.
> 
> Translators and use of dual language really impairs things. But having two or three...or more services for each language group also breaks the sense of unity. Or if a trade language is used, rarely is this trade pidgeon language the heart language of the people and so that Gospel does not enter deeply into their hearts.
> 
> ...



HA!

You bring up the conundrum we are facing here in SoCal. If the Gospel of Christ is going anywhere in this area, it is going to have to include Spanish. But how does a church worship together in different languages?

I am goiing to start by having my Spanish speaking wife translate my sermon outline and Scripture verses into Spanish and put them in the bulletin.

I am looking into software that can translate my entire sermon into Spanish. My wife can teach me how to speak it correctly and then I could preach in Spanish. But do you really want to have two different services? Is there any other way?

How is it done in the 'field', Pergy?


----------



## Tim (Nov 19, 2008)

KMK said:


> If the Gospel of Christ is going anywhere in this area, it is going to have to include Spanish. But how does a church worship together in different languages?



Yes, I have thought about this problem. How can there be unity if you can't even communicate well with someone else in your congregation? 

I am not sure if the instruction regarding different languages/tongues in Acts has any relevance here. For example, would this mandate translation of anything that was made in a language that was not known to everybody?


----------



## Leslie (Nov 19, 2008)

In Bangkok our pastor spoke both Thai and English. One Sunday he preached in Thai and it was translated into English; the next he preached in English and it was translated into Thai (by someone else so he wouldn't lose the flow). He would on occasion correct the translation. There was a separate Chinese service. This was for one of their five services. The other four services were in Thai only.


----------



## Pergamum (Nov 19, 2008)

KMK said:


> Pergamum said:
> 
> 
> > I just spoke (translated actually) 2 hours ago in a church of about 12 languages. A few months ago I preached to a group of 100 and 14 languages were represented.
> ...



We use a language of wider communication and also a translator and we usually preach on narrative verses and tailor the message to the understanding of the people. We also use pictures when able.

A large percentage of people will also be illiterate so it will be like last week when my evangelist spent the first 10 minutes reciting the memory text over and over again about 40 times until the oldest to the youngest could recite it by heart (I could recite it too even if it was in a different language).

We have "home fellowships" that are small and language specific and geared towards questions and answers but we are limited by time and energy. I preach at place X where 14 languages are present but cannot meet separately with all 14, so I concentrate on 1 tribe on the coast here and mostly do that through closer mentoring of the couple leaders that then lead the people.


Dual-language services are not ideal. 

Better to have separate services in 2 languages I believe by separate elders (one in Language A and the other in lanuage b) and maybe transpose the Sunday School and preaching times to that while one group is in the sanctuary the other is attending Sunday and then switch.... then maybe everyone come together for announcements and the Lord's supper to preserve the sense of unity.


----------



## KMK (Nov 19, 2008)

Pergamum said:


> KMK said:
> 
> 
> > Pergamum said:
> ...




That idea has crossed my mind. Two services with some singing and fellowshipping inbetween. Maybe a verse of "Holy, Holy, Holy" followed by a verse of "Santo, Santo, Santo".


----------



## Pergamum (Nov 19, 2008)

I think it is good to recognize that things are not ideal but that out of love we work together for a mutually beneficial solution. We often think things are too much trouble, but valuing one another even if extra accomodations must be made is a visible witness to the world that we desire unity and we are one global body.


----------



## Hippo (Nov 19, 2008)

My Church planted a new congregation in a new location that preached in Afrikaans on Sunday evening while we retained a joint Sunday morning service in English.

This Afrikaans congregation is now seeking to establish it own English speaking Sunday morning service in its own locality to reach the English speaking population of the area, having now appointed its own Elders.

I think that the whole process is very encouraging, London is such a patchwork of nationalities it not only makes for an excellent place to eat out it also offers great culteral challanges.


----------

