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Press Releases
2/15/2007: Living on a Ridge: The Folopa People Receive their First New Testament
(Orlando, Florida)—In the rainforests of Papua New Guinea (PNG), separated by ancient volcanic formations and a rough geography of jungles and isolated plateaus, you will find some of the richest cultures in the world. Linguistic and anthropological experts have determined that over 800 languages are spoken in the country. One particular group of people with their own language and customs are the Folopa, who live 3,000 feet above sea level along a ridge in PNG called Mt. Tawa. It is here that Neil and Carol Anderson have spent most of the last 35 years translating the New Testament into the Folopa language.
One Folopa village is called “Fukatao,” located on a remote ridge in the Southern Highlands of Papua New Guinea. Missionaries wanting to get there can only do so by airplane, landing on an airstrip carved into the side of Mt. Tawa.
Wycliffe Associates President/CEO Bruce Smith made the trip to Fukatao to take part in the dedication of the Folopa New Testament. “The Folopa have been waiting hundreds of years for this moment. As the New Testament was being translated for them by Neil and Carol Anderson and their team of nationals, God’s truth has emerged and totally transformed these people,” he said.
“As rain drenched the dedication ceremony, the Folopa began a dramatic recreation of the arrival of the gospel and, later, God’s Word to them. Through various dramatic means, they showed how the truth was within view, but, frustratingly, out of reach. The drama showed the arrival of the first evangelist, the arrival of the Andersons, and the ministry of their local pastor in revealing the truth of the Word to them, bit by bit. The completed New Testaments arrived toward the end of the drama with several attached to tall poles carried vertically. This is the way the Folopa display wealth in situations like weddings or public transactions. The Folopa New Testaments were presented as part of the community’s wealth. Boxes of the New Testaments followed, carried in on poles shouldered as a slaughtered pig might be carried. Neil Anderson cut the ties, releasing the New Testaments to the people. Their pastor then proceeded to exhort the people and lifted high the New Testament for all to see.”
Continued Smith, “the Andersons have dedicated their lives to see that the Folopa people can read God’s Word. Their heroic efforts will also help other translators focus the processes of translation and lessons learned so that hundreds of other programs underway in Papua New Guinea can succeed. This is why hundreds of volunteers, worldwide, are helping with Bible translation and putting in thousands of hours into the support of missionaries like Neil and Carol Anderson. Additionally, Wycliffe Associates is building a new national training center in the country to assist in this development and is seeking men and women to volunteer their time.”
During 2006, some 1,315 Wycliffe Associates volunteers served in 36 countries as part of the worldwide Bible translation team. Wycliffe Associates plans to send more than 1,500 volunteers to 40 different countries this year to build and renovate facilities, construct roads and airstrips, teach Vacation Bible School, help with language development and office work, oversee projects, use their computer skills, and much more. For more information, visit www.wycliffeassociates.org or call 1-800-THE WORD (1-800-843-9673).
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