Two years ago, Bukeyo Garawahle enrolled for the Tirrim Literacy Programme with the intention of learning how to read and write in the Rendille language. “I was excited to learn how to write numbers and also to write my name in my language. At the time of my enrollment, the…
One hot afternoon in Korr, Rendille, I received a call from an unknown number but the voice was familiar. After the usual Rendille greetings, I noted that I was speaking with Hafare Arabolya to whom I had given the Rendille audio Bible and showed the Jesus film at his animal’s…
Teresia Rotich is an elderly lady from the Marakwet community. She usually holds a personal worship service every Sunday outside her house. One day, Rev. Paul Kanda a BTL translator from the community decided to pay her a visit at her home. During this visit Rev. Kanda realized that it…
The month of June 2020 marked exactly one year since Bible Translation and Literacy (BTL) launched the Tharaka Bible for the Tharaka people. Onesmus Kamwara, Tharaka Project Officer and Consultant in Training reflects over the past year: “A lot has changed since the dedication of our Bible. The Tharaka people…
At the mention of the Tharaka Bible, Japhet Nthiga’s face lights up. There is a special bond between him and a special FRIEND he has found in the Bible. Japhet is blind and the only way he can hear about the good news of Jesus Christ is listening to the…
“It has always been my ambition to preach the gospel where Christ was not known so that I would not be building on someone else’s foundation, Romans 15:20. When Paul says 'where Christ has not been known,' he means places where there is no worship of Christ at all. Paul…
Why does a community need their writing system developed? To help them develop literature in and for their language.The developed literature helps them write materials for their social, intellectual, spiritual and economic needs both for personal and community’s gains. …
Translation of the Chidigo Bible has come a long way. Through tough battles, God has held the translation team together this far. 76-year- old Pastor Shedrack Mwalonya, Project Advisory committee member relates to the hurdles well. Pastor Mwalonya has been involved in Chidigo translation since its inception in the year…
by Justus Mugambi Two and half years ago, I was riding my motorcycle going round the region of Chuka inviting Christians to attend the Dedication of the Gospel of Luke in Gichuka. When I arrived at Ikuu Market, I heard a voice of a Pentecostal preacher thundering in the air,…
The joy of receiving the Bible in Kiitharaka could not be hidden on the faces of the Tharaka people. The long wait of 30 years was finally over. They had been patient and weathered through orthography issues, harsh weather, limited access to holistic understanding of the scriptures but on 13th…
Ani Marmar aku Kholbokha a Galdelain Korr Kitimi. (I am Marmar of Kholbokha family, the clan of Galdelan from Korr). This is how Pastor John Ndegwa, a Church Relations Officer at World Concern Nairobi office, introduces himself to me. He is Rendille by virtue that he served as a missionary…
Shedrack Falama is not just a translator. He wears shoes of different needs of the Pokomo community he translates the Scriptures for. In his community, he is not Shedrack Falama but BTL. At one time, he was invited to speak at a funeral in a neighboring village, “I shared of…
“If you talk to a man in a language he understands, that goes to his head. If you talk to him in his language, that goes to his heart.” This quote by Nelson Mandela speaks to the heart of the Deputy President of the Republic of Kenya, His Excellency William…
