Overcoming the Language Barrier

 Language is a complicated and beautiful thing. We earnestly believe that learning to speak and communicate in another language is a deeply humbling and edifying process that everyone should experience.

Tom with teachers overcoming the English barrier!

At our last women’s gathering, three women joined us for the first time. One was an islander and the two other were women from other African nations. We have worked really hard to encourage the women’s gatherings to be in the local island language, and usually it is, but there is the tendency that when there is a foreign visitor that the educated women switch into French out of deference for the visitor, but in the process end up isolating the lesser educated women who can not follow the conversation in French. But this time it was more complicated than that, because although the two women were foreigners, only one of them knew French, the other spoke Swahili, so actually she was able to pick up more words from the local island language than the French (the local language is a Bantu language like Swahili). How do we bridge all these language without detracting from the study?

As I passed through the big island some weeks ago, I heard how the international group in the national capital overcomes the language divide. They encourage whoever is speaking to speak in whatever language they are most comfortable in, but then they have several translators avalailable— some people ready to go between French to English, or English to Swahili or Malagasy to French to make sure that everyone is hearing the message in a language that they understand. But the complication is that they only have people with certain combinations of languages, so if someone speaks in French, there is no one who knows both French and Swahili, so it first has to be translated into English and then from English it can translated into Swahili.  I didn’t get to witness it, but it is a lot of work and I am sure it makes their gatherings longer, but it is what they have commited themselves to in order for everyone to be connected to what is being shared.

Enjoying nature doesn't require language!

Back at the womens’ gathering, we didn’t have an established way of how to proceed.  We just went ahead with the study— primarily in the local language but with some translation given in French and some responses in Swahili (which those of us who speak the local language could get the gist of if not the entire meaning). It was a interesting and lovely time of study, because  although I don’t know that either of these women followed everything, they were engaged. There was a feeling of camaraderie and connection despite the language barrier. We were all reading the same story in our languages so even if we couldn’t understand each other perfectly, we were all engaging with the same source and finding lessons in it together.  

I was proud of these two women. It can be easy as a language learner to check out and disengage, because staying engaged takes energy and willpower. They stuck with it. Ultimately they both hope to learn the local language, but it will take time. Meanwhile, we rejoice that even with language barriers we can find community and unity through the One who understands every language!

PRAYERS ANSWERED
We are thankful for this group of women and their commitment to meeting together and to one another.  May they continue to grow and encourage one another.  We are thankful that our daughter’s health continues to improve. We are thankful for good timing as Tom was able to finish up a class and go to an English ceremony over the weekend, leaving him more free to travel this coming week.  We’re thankful for Muki and Mtsa who continue to come and get so much out of their study times.  This week has had some particularly good times together.  We are thankful for a door getting installed in our office with minimal trouble and for the opportunity this might give us for new uses of our group office space going forward.

PRAYERS REQUESTED
We travel on Wednesday and Thursday.  Pray for the travels to go well and smoothly.  We are hoping to connect with some of our colleauges on the big island as we pass through, pray that flights would be on time to give us the opportunity to make those connections.  Continue to pray for our daughter’s health.  The powerful prayers of our island sister for healing have been answered.  May it be not just be for a few weeks!  Pray for our son who will be performing in a drama performance this coming weekend (which we will get to attend!)  May he and all the other actors have some great performances.  Pray for a family from our group on the big island who have had a rough year with lots of medical emergencies.  Soon they will travel for yet another medical reason and they also received news that their landlord has given them their two months notice to find another place to leave.  It just seems like one thing after another for them. Pray for healing and grace and perseverance for their whole family.