Heart Language

By Jacob -


"Da time everyting had start, had one Guy. "God's Talk," dass who him. Dat Guy an God, dey stay togedda, an da Guy stay God fo real kine. Dass da Guy, da time everyting had start, him and God stay togedda. God wen make everyting but da way he do um, he tell dis Guy fo do um. No mo notting dis Gey neva make. He da Guy, if you like come alive fo real kine, you come by him, cuz dat kine life come from him. Wen peopo come alive lidat, jalike dey stay inside on e place dat get plenny light. Den dey can see an undastan. No matta stay dark, da dark no can pio da light. Everytime get light." Da Jesus Book (Hawaii Pidgin)

 Though a familiar passage I am sure that you had a hard time identifying where it came from in the Bible. It actually comes from the first part of the gospel of John.

 "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through him, and without him was not anything made that was made. In him was life, and the life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it." John 1:1-5 ESV

 Now my purpose in comparing these two scriptures is this. More than once I have been asked the question of why it is necessary to translate the Bible into a language when the people could learn (or already know) a second language that is common such as Spanish or English. The answer is two-fold: 

 Now, it probably became obvious while reading the Hawaii Pidgin translation that it would be very difficult to really study or even really understand the context. Unless you are a like a girl I met the other day who was born into the Hawaii Pidgin language, it did not speak to your heart. 

 A translation written in a native language speaks to the heart of the people in that language. Instead of Jesus being an American Jesus or a Spanish Jesus - he becomes a Jesus who speaks to them in the context their own language and their own culture. they do not need to step out of their culture and/or language to know who God is. He is a Jesus who cares about the little guys. It reflects God's heart when the insignificant and poor people in this world are thought of to be significant enough in God's eyes to be spoken to in their own language.

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