Alumni & Friends
Bethel Focus
A Magazine of Bethel University
Translating God’s Word into “the language of their heart"
The Bethel-Wycliffe Connection
By Barbara Wright Carlson
Wycliffe Bible Translators was founded in 1942 by William Cameron Townsend. A missionary to the Cakchiquel Indians of Guatemala, Central America, Townsend caught a vision for translating the Bible after Cakchiquel-speaking men expressed their concern and surprise that God did not speak their language.
Resolving that every man, woman, and child should be able to read God’s Word in their own language, Townsend borrowed the name of the Reformation hero John Wycliffe, who first translated the Bible into English, and founded “Camp Wycliffe” in 1934 as a linguistics training school. By 1942, “Camp Wycliffe” had grown into two affiliate organizations, Wycliffe Bible Translators and the Summer Institute of Linguistics (SIL).
Today, Wycliffe has completed more than 600 translations of the Word, and hundreds more are in the process. And God is using many Bethel graduates to serve both as translators and administrative staff in making sure God’s Word is accessible to all people in the language of their hearts.
Bethel’s earliest Wycliffe connection was Carol Applequist ’41 who worked in church ministry with husband Ray S’43. Applequist helped Townsend edit a book about Mexican president Lazaro Cardenas, whom he had come to know and admire while working with the tribes of Mexico. Applequist also attended one of the first SILs, held in Oklahoma.
Tim C ’93, S ’97 and Chris (Hinrichs) Gilmore ‘92 serve in Tanzania.
Bible translators like Tim ’93, S’97 and Chris (Hinrichs) Gilmore ’92, are in Tanzania, Africa, translating for the Zinza people; they just finished the book of Genesis. More than 138,000 Zinza make their home in the islands and shorelines near Lake Victoria in Tanzania. Tim says the people are in great danger both spiritually (because the culture is predominantly animistic) and physically (because researchers note that locale has the highest concentration of AIDS in Africa).
Wycliffe’s translation work can be dangerous and even life threatening—not only because of disease and climate, but also from the threat of government-sponsored violence. The ministry of Tom ’90 and Joy (Sandberg) Tebow ’90 is so sensitive they cannot publicize where they are or what they do, only that they work with Wycliffe. Still, some choose to devote a lifetime to this work, like Robert A. Earl ’54 who served for decades in Mexico translating the New Testament and Psalms into four Yatee Zapotec languages.
Martha ’66 and Hugh Tracy with a Quechua friend in Peru. Martha was recently honored for 40 years of service with Wycliffe.
Nancy and Joel Stolte S’60 are working in the Waimaha language in Bogotá, Colombia. Their translations have been approved for publications of the books of John, Colossians, Titus, James, 1 and 2 Peter, and the translation for the revised Jesus Film script. Martie (Gemmel) Tracy ’66 has been with Wycliffe for 40 years. She and husband Hugh serve the Quechuas in Huánuco, Peru. CJ and Johanna (Tiller) Fenton ’02 are relative newcomers to New Guinea, where Johanna works in the linguistics office. JoAnn Richards ’05 graduated from Bethel with a master’s degree in ethnomusicology and found a perfect place for ministry with Wycliffe.
Like JoAnn, not all are in translation work. Mark Anderson ’84, the IT director for Wycliffe in Dallas, says, “Let the word out: Bible scholars are not the only ones needed in missions!” He adds, “Wycliffe is a fairly data-centered operation. Our work revolves around gathering, categorizing, and dispersing data. How many languages are there? Where are they geographically? Who is working on them? Remove telephones and computers from the process, and the work would certainly decelerate.” Amy Jeanne Marie Barnes ’97 is another example of support personnel, serving as an office manager for the Europe Area Office in Burbach-Holzhausen, Germany.
Some who serve on the field return to be administrators. Donna (Aiton) ’62 and John Sahlin ’58 spent 10 years in Papua, New Guinea, and five more in administrative work for the Wycliffe regional office in Illinois. Janet (Chryst) ’71 and Dave Harthan S’71 have completed their 10-year assignment in Mozambique, Africa, and are starting a new one in Waxhaw, N.C. Dave has been using his gifts of administration for more than 30 years, and Jan served in multiple roles (editor, bookkeeper, office manager, and public relations officer).
Melinda Sue (Bradshaw) Connon ’86 taught high school math and computer skills at SIL-supported Rain Forest International School (established for children of missionaries) from 1992-1994. A missionary kid herself, Connon credits mentors at Bethel with preparing her academically, emotionally, and spiritually to be an effective teacher.
James Boyer ‘80 has served in Peru with the Culina people for more than 15 years.
Paul I. Johnson ’67 has been home assigned since 1976. For the last 20 years he has been teaching “partnership development.” He created a successful program showing missionaries how to promote their work and the work of Wycliffe, which is now used by other faith-based ministries as well.
Also deeply involved in getting the word out about Wycliffe is Ruth Hubbard ’84, senior vice president of marketing and public relations at the Orlando home office. With a journalism and design background, Hubbard uses her skills to communicate to Wycliffe supporters and potential workers.
Just after her Bethel Seminary graduation in 2007, Sharon Nordley stepped out to answer God’s call to Wycliffe to serve in Senegal, Africa. She’s traveling a trail blazed by many who also were challenged at Bethel to go forth, “transform culture, and advance the gospel.”