50 Years of Bible Translation (Part 1)
1975-1985: The Seeds of WSA
The Wycliffe office in South Africa, 1974
“But how can they call on Him to save them unless they believe in Him? And how can they believe in Him if they have never heard about Him? And how can they hear about Him unless someone tells them? And how will anyone go and tell them without being sent? That is what the Scriptures mean when they say, "How beautiful are the feet of those who bring Good News!" Romans 10:14-15
It was in the 1930s that Wycliffe Bible Translators came into being in the US, and in the following decades began to gain traction internationally, with new divisions springing up in Canada, Australia, the UK, and other Western countries.
Wycliffe comes to South Africa
1973
In 1973 Tony and Mary Williams came to South Africa from Wycliffe Australia to spread the word about Bible translation. They believed that South Africans would surely become involved if only they knew! The Williams' contacted church leaders, and shared the need for Bible translation and prayer support. They built positive relationships with churches, and slowly Wycliffe’s work becomes known in churches in Johannesburg, Pretoria and Cape Town.
1973
1975
By 1975 there was a recognised Wycliffe presence in South Africa.
By this time John Bendor-Samuel of Wycliffe UK had also initiated a course in South Africa. Interested candidates could taste the technical side of Bible translation through a two week course in basic phonetics and language learning principles. This became an annual two week course, held at Rosebank Bible College.
In 1975 Derek Fivaz, Professor in Bantu Linguistics, took over from John Bendor-Samuel in directing the annual Rosebank course. Len and Gill Allwright served on staff, and Charlotte Corden and Karen Floor were among the first students to confirm their sense of calling to Bible translation through attending the course.
1981
By the time Tony and Mary Williams returned to Australia in 1981, 14 individuals had signed up with Wycliffe to work in Bible translation assignments.
1981
1983
The gap left by the departure of the Williams’s was filled by David and Margaret Abernethy from Northern Ireland, who served for three years from 1983-1986. They continued to make Wycliffe’s work known in churches, establishing prayer groups and providing guidance to South Africans who responded to the call.
Others who were involved at this early stage included:
Joy Boyle | Roy and Rose Tibbit | Tim and Audrey Anstice | Stan and Cherry Graumann | Linda Poulton | Frans and Iris Haenen | Carol Waddell | Nick & Lynne Swanepoel | Steve and Johanna Pillinger | Keith Forster and Yvonne Stofberg | Arnd and Dindi Strube | Anton and Joy Vermaak | Charlotte and Michael Cordon | Karen & Sebastian Floor
