UE/R: Bible translation seminar held in Bolga

A translations seminar for 2023 has been organized on the topic “Significance of Scripture Versions and Bible Helps” by the Bible Society of Ghana (BSG) in Bolgatanga in the Upper East Region.

The seminar was to discuss the Bible translation, review the key factors that influence the emergence of several scripture versions, and attempt to offer specific guidelines that audiences or readers of the scripture can draw on when selecting a Bible.

The aim was to offer some tools and helps that are provided in a mother-tongue translated Bible, to enable and equip the reader to gain understanding and access to the ancient worlds of the Bible.

Speaking in an interview with ModernGhana News in Bolgatanga, the Computer Assisted Publishing Officer for the Bible Society of Ghana, (BSG) Mathias Dery gave an insight into the seminar.

He said the Bible Society of Ghana is a non-denominational Christian Organization, established in 1965 by all the churches in Ghana, that saw the need to translate the Bible into their various mother tongue. Churches he said are not different entities when it comes to the issue of the Bible.

"The BSG is the servant of all churches irrespective of color and creed, all the churches belong to the BSG and the BSG serves them all," he stated.

Mr. explained that the BSG carries out Bible translation, distribution of the scriptures, and trauma healing. He said so far, they have translated the Bible into nine (9) Ghanaian dialects most of which are in the New Testament while work is also progressing steadily in the Old Testament, all geared toward coming out with the complete bible translated in the various Ghanaian languages in the near future.

The Translation Manager, Bible Society of Ghana Rev, Dr. Kennedy Owiredu explained the relevance of translating the Bible into local dialects saying, as Christians “we believe God speaks all languages and God’s word comes to us in a language we understand and that should be in our dialect”.

He stated that the scripture which is the word of God and very important to the life of a Christian, should be translated into various languages for every Christian, to read for a better understanding in their own language.

Rev. Owiredu said it is something extraordinary when God’s word is read "to us in our dialect. We are able to understand God meaningfully”.

He added that the mother tongue Bibles use "our own words, idioms expressions, and proverbs to translate what is written in Hebrew and Greek, thereby providing easy absorption when read."