LONDON - 11 September 2007 - 195 words
British
Jesuit to translate New Testament into Patamona
A renowned Jesuit biblical scholar is embarking upon a unique
experience this month, as he joins an ecumenical group attempting
to translate the New Testament into Patamona.
Father Nicholas King SJ, who is tutor in biblical studies at Campion
Hall in Oxford, is spending a week among the Patamona Amerindians
in the Interior of Guyana, South America. He will be working with
Fr Paul Martin SJ who is based at the Catholic Church at Kurukabaru
in the Pakaraima Mountains, and a group of other Christian scholars,
on a translation of the New Testament into the language that is
indigenous to around 5,000 people.
"Patamona is an oral and aural language, more than a written
language," says Nick. "No one has ever translated the
New Testament into Patamona before, because the people in this
part of Guyana speak English. I will be offering technical advice
on the translation, so that the local Amerindians will e able
to read the Good News in their native tongue for the first time."
Nick is fluent in Greek and his recent translation of the New
Testament from the original was widely acclaimed. He is currently
working on a new translation of the rest of the Bible. He joins
a long line of Jesuit linguists who have bridged cultural differences
by learning or promoting unfamiliar languages. Best known of these
is probably St Francis Xavier who, on his arrival as a missionary
in Japan, spent over a year learning Japanese. He also learnt
to communicate fluently with the Paravas of southern India. In
1603, the Nippon Jisho a unique Japanese/Portuguese dictionary
was published by the Jesuits, and in the first half of 18th
century, Jean François Pons SJ pioneered the study of Sanskrit
in the West. Jesuits are also well known for providing translations
of Tupi-Guarani in South America the language that gave
us words such as tapioca and jaguar.
Guyana is part of the British Province of the Jesuits, who are
this year celebrating 150 years of working in the country.
Source: Jesuit Communications Office
© Independent Catholic
News 2007
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