Consultant Checking 61% Complete

Yesterday we completed a two-week-long consultant check of the books of Acts and 1-3 John. To refresh your memory, a consultant check involves translating our Enga translation back into English and submitting it to an experienced translator who is well-versed in Greek, who then checks the translation for accuracy. The consultant not only reviews the back-translation into English, but also asks two checkers from the language group questions about each verse of the translation to make sure that the translation is communicating clearly and accurately. We were blessed to have with us Pastor Joe Perai and Pastor Timoti Pesone from the Christian Life Church in Enga as our checkers. Now that we have completed the book of Acts and 1-3 John, we have sixty-one percent of the Enga New Testament consultant checked!

Checking the books of Acts and 1-3 John

Pastor Joe
One of the things I enjoy about consultant checks is the opportunity to get to know Engan Christians who are not a part of the translation team. It was a delight to spend time with both Pastor Timoti and Pastor Joe. I was particularly impressed by Pastor Joe's life story. He grew up at a time when Enga still had very little influence from the outside world, and he told me that he only began wearing western clothes in 1980. He has no formal education, but he taught himself how to read, starting with the Enga language, and then moving to Tok Pisin, and finally learning how to read in English. As he read the Enga translation during the check, I quickly realized that he was one of the best Enga readers I have ever heard. During our time together, Pastor Timoti kept referring to Pastor Joe as a human Bible concordance, and the consultant was impressed by his Bible knowledge. At one point the consultant tried to keep asking Pastor Joe more and more difficult questions, just to see if he could stump him, but Pastor Joe knew the answers to all his questions. Now, a consultant check is not really about testing the biblical knowledge of men like Joe, but about checking the accuracy of the translation. Nevertheless, it was encouraging to see an Engan Christian who had such a deep desire to immerse himself in the Scriptures. Please pray with me that the Enga translation we are working on will have a role in producing many more people like Pastor Joe who thirst after the things of God. And please join with us in praising the Lord that we now have more than half of the New Testament consultant checked.

Pastor Joe Perai