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The New Testament in North-Karelian Published
The completion of the North-Karelian New Testament was celebrated in Vuokkiniemi, a village in Russian Karelia, on July 30, 2011. The presentation, held in the village community hall, was organized by the National Political and Religious Committee of Karelia together with Institute for Bible Translation's Helsinki office and local Vuokkiniemi village leaders. The event generated great interest among the villagers in spite of the onset of this year's berry-picking season, which at this time of year is an important income producing activity in the region.
The Bible translation team, spearheaded by Sinikka Saari, the exegetical checker, informed the audience of the many steps involved in producing a faithful translation of the New Testament in North Karelian, a process which required many, many years before reaching completion. Unfortunately, the translator, Raisa Remsujeva, was ill and therefore unable to participate, but she sent a written greeting. In her greeting, she stated that the availability of the Bible in any language is an important spiritual resource, and therefore the Word of God must also be available in the North Karelian language. It is even a great asset in the development of culture and language. Raisa is herself a native of Vuokkiniemi. Representatives of supporting organizations, such as the Finnish Bible Society, Avainmedia (also in Finland), along with Evangelical Lutheran churches in Lempäälä and Pirkkala participated in the presentation. Thanksgiving services were held in the city of Kalevala (previously named Uhtua) on Sunday July 31, 2011 in the Orthodox and Lutheran churches together with other evangelical believers. New Testaments were distributed free of charge to everyone both in Vuokkiniemi and Kalevala. Churches and cultural centers in Karelia are continuing the distribution throughout the region. This includes the distribution of the New Testament in audio format. "I became a Christian"
Anna Vlasova, who participated in the translation process as a comprehension tester, summarized the importance of the New Testament in her mother tongue in four words: "I became a Christian." The Word in her mother tongue led her to Jesus. Now, Anna conducts Bible reading groups in her own village, Pääjärvi, and wants to gather more people to simply listen to the audio recording of the New Testament. |
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Institute for Bible Translation
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Institute for Bible Translation
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