Youth trip to CRU and Wycliffe Bible Translators

We had 9 folks (3 adults & 6 kids) venture off to CRU(formerly Campus Crusade for Christ) and Wycliffe Bible Translators in Orlando.  We went to CRU first to learn more about the Jesus Film, which was initially created 1979.  This film which is a telling of the Gospel of Luke is used for the express purpose of helping people all over the world learn about Jesus.  To do this it is translated in to other languages from the original English. To date it has been translated in to 1600 languages…..becoming the most translated film in history.

To help us understand just what it takes to make a very nice presentation, Sophia was chosen from the crowd to give us the chance to see how the work of dubbing the film might look.  She read the lines of Mary Magdalene after she greets Jesus at the tomb on Easter morning.  We learned about some of the ways this film is used, including some of the covert ways missionaries are able to use it in countries where the gospel is restricted.  We also had the opportunity to watch the profound impact of the film on people as they had the chance to not only become acquainted with the story of Jesus, but to encounter it for the first time and in their own language.

Then it was off to Wycliffe where we very much enjoyed the Discovery Center  We especially enjoyed a computer program that gave us the ability to see what our names would look like in several different languages.  We also learned that by 2025, Wycliffe hopes to have started a translation of the Bible of every remaining language left that has not yet  translated…..which is more than 1,000….perhaps 1,800.  I cannot quite recall.

One thing that was striking to a few of our group was the number of people whose identities were  concealed because they are working in places where doing the work of translating the Bible is dangerous for them personally, including being considered an enemy of the state.  Also learning that there are people whose work in this field caused them, and sometimes, their family members to be killed.  This caused some of us to reflect on what an incredible thing the Bible really is.

Now, we did enjoy a rather nice picnic lunch on the grounds of Wycliffe.  They have a stunningly beautiful facility.  I personally had to get a little giddy, just because of the number of times I have see that facility featured on CBN news