At the Asia Pacific Sign Language Multi-Agency Meeting, top level leaders from both the Bible Societies and Wycliffe, as well as representatives from several translation projects in different stages of progress came together to make this a groundbreaking meeting.

Having ViBi set the agenda and Mr. Tanada, our project leader, run the meetings was a huge plus. He felt it was a challenge leading a discussion with both Deaf and hearing, and at least four, sometimes up to five different languages at once, but by all accounts, he did a great job.  With Deaf leadership of translation projects a recurring theme throughout the meetings, his work was particularly significant.

The meetings were a boost to our team. Realizing that we are not alone, that the struggles which seem so insurmountable at times are common not just to us, not just to sign language translations, but to many spoken language translations as well was encouraging. Knowing that as projects start up throughout Asia, we can be a resource to them gave a new sense of responsibility and ownership. Hearing stories from other projects of the sacrifices Deaf people are willing to make to see people reached with the Word in their own language gave our group a new sense of commitment. Please pray for all of the participants in the next few days and weeks as we process the experience, especially for the commitments and decisions that will be made as a result.

ViBi and Wycliffe are partnering to hold the first Asia Pacific Sign Language Multi-Agency Meeting in Bangkok, Thailand Nov. 20-22. We thank God for the many groups in various countries who have started or are interested in Sign Language Bible translation projects, and trust that you will be praying for us during this potentially pivotal time.

Last week we attended a 4 day Church Planters Institute conference near Mt. Fuji.  Mary Esther made some contacts for the wheelchair project, but her main reason to attend was her role as part of the JEMA (Japan Evangelical Missionary Association) Member-Care Committee which set up a Consultation Center where 12 professionals came and gave their time and expertise to the 380 missionaries and Japanese pastors attending the conference.  Their expertise ranged from webpage design and computer repair to psychiatry/counseling and Japanese language acquisition.  It was a wonderful four days. 

Tomorrow the wheelchair project will again go to the prefectural office to submit our application for NPO status.  This is our 5th attempt, and the last opportunity we have to apply this fiscal year.  If the application is rejected tomorrow, we will not be able to begin the process until next April and will need to re-file all financial reports along with various other documents.  Two of the board members along with a Japanese believer whose job used to be helping process NPOs have been working on this.  Please pray!

We're also cleaning wheelchairs on Friday.  One of the board members is bringing her friend who doesn’t know Jesus yet.  The wheelchairs we are cleaning will go to the Thai-Burma border next Monday.  This will be the first time Mary Esther has gone with the chairs being delivered.  With five people from ViBi (see below) and Mary Esther going, we'll be taking six chairs. Mary Esther goes straight from the airport to the border with the chairs, while the group from ViBi goes to the conference in Bangkok. Pray for safety, stamina, and wisdom to deal with whatever she encounters there.

Response: 

Hi Mark,

Perhaps this is heretical, so if it is, forgive me.

It seems to me that you are at a place where you need to step back and take a hard look at what the Lord has been doing in your life over the past few years, and at the heart of the Japanese deaf and determine whether the Lord has been preparing you and them, for something different.  If they are hungry and thirsty for the Word, the Lord will make it available to them, if it is secondary, He will offer it to others who crave it.  Where is the craving, do you have a sense for that?   Is it in China, Africa?  What has the Lord been speaking to your heart about?  Don’t just say to yourself: “I’m discouraged, so I am imagining other possibilities”, of course that could be true, but you have been faithful through many discouragements, you are not a person who gives up.  Maybe you have been prepared for a transition to something new, where you will be more effective and strategic.  Sometimes when a key person leaves, those who have depended on him to carry the load begin to realize that this is their baby and they need to nurture and grow it or it will die.  As long as it is your passion, it may not really become theirs.

.  .  . 

RESTING in His wisdom and power,

Person A

My reply:

I’m all for heresy!! (At least this kind.) And I’ve been giving serious thought to your post. The parable of the fig tree came to mind—the one about giving it another three years (it is one year, actually, in Luke 13, but three is what came to mind . . .) and digging around the roots to see what can happen before cutting it down. Of course, I wouldn’t be cutting anything down, but . . .

On the other hand, I’m working on a United Bible Societies task force for SL (sign language) Bible translation, and just finished up my task of summarizing all the SL Bible translations in progress around the world.  I see places like Finland and Denmark starting translation work with core Deaf (signing) populations of 4,000, and then I see Japan, where the absolutely smallest figure I’ve ever heard for the signing community is 100,000 (usually you hear between 180,000 and 315,000), and I see the outreach possibilities if the community here were to come to Christ and be mobilized to reach the Deaf of Asia, and I see the quality of the work that we are doing now after 13 years and the resource it could be to other sign language projects throughout the world—especially the kind of signing that Toyoshima was starting to do—and it just seems like a huge blow. The sign language translation world needs to see a model of what can be done if we want people to be willing to fund SLBT projects, and I think we’re as close to that here as anywhere.

The timing is so ironic, because I just made a request to add a $3,000,000 project for ViBi as one of WorldVenture’s strategic initiative fundraising ventures. Our Asia Director asked what it would cost to finish the whole Bible, I said "give me $3M and we can finish in 10 years," and he basically said “ask for it.” (Not that anyone has it sitting somewhere to give, its basically permission to find it.) Ironic, yet on the other hand, if we had the $3M in hand right now, this whole thing would be playing out quite differently. If we could hire an assistant to work with him, I think Toyoshima would take the job.

So, Japan has the Deaf linguistic and cultural resources, and the possibilities, but the churches are entrenched and for the most part not open to new ways of doing things, even if it’s a full, somewhat traditional translation (as opposed to chronological Bible storying). Other places are hungry, and open, and looking for new ways, but the new ways, as I see them playing out, don’t include giving the Deaf community a full Bible in their language, but just enough to do some basic evangelism and discipleship, with no plan to go beyond that. The idea of Deaf theologians being a vital part of the Deaf church, not just learning simple standard theology, but thinking Biblically vis-à-vis the Deaf community is not even on the horizon. 

Anyway . . . this is why I think Bible translation is important, and why I want so badly to show that it CAN be done, if people want to badly enough and the funding can be found.

This has become a longish post—I really only set out to say I got your post and appreciated it, and was thinking through the important questions you asked. So I started thinking, and writing, and this is where it led me. So far. Still thinking.

Thank you

Mark