Post by Daniel on Mar 20, 2016 10:40:58 GMT -5
Bible Translators Making The Scriptures More Acceptable To Appease Muslims?
By Tom Olago March 16, 2016
What should Christians do when they find that the Gospel of Jesus Christ, or certain aspects of it, may cause offense to those to whom it is preached? One approach is to stick to delivering the Bible message without compromise, knowing that this approach is the only way to ensure a genuine choice between the truth and falsehood.
Another alternative would be to water down the message in order to make it palatable to its audience even at the cost of distorting and misrepresenting central doctrines of the true Gospel such as the divine nature of Jesus, His virgin birth, His place in the Holy Trinity and how He was able to become incarnate as both the Son of God and the Son of man.
Such is the dilemma reportedly being faced by some Bible translators today.
Billy Hallowell for theblaze.com recently reported that Wycliffe Associates (WA), a group based in Orlando, Florida has announced that it would not be renewing its affiliation with Wycliffe Global Alliance (WGA), an international cohort of more than 100 translators that was formed back in 1991.
Bruce Smith, president of Wycliffe Associates, told staff and the public via a press release that there are a number of reasons why the translator has chosen to split from the group.
The first reason is the ongoing debate over the language used to describe Jesus and God. For Wycliffe Associates, literal translation of Father and Son of God is not negotiable, said Smith.
Hallowell explained that the issue reportedly hinged, more specifically, on the way in which the Biblical Trinity is presented to Muslims. He made reference to a similar Christianity Today report that some translations attempt to "soften" the language describing the relationship between Jesus and God so as to not confuse adherents of Islam who might incorrectly believe as a result of certain phrasing that God and Mary - Jesus mother - had sexual relations.
At least one past use of language to get around this problem referred to Christ as "the Beloved Son who comes (or originates) from God."
Here's how Christianity Today framed the debate back in 2011: "A dispute over the most faithful and effective way to render the common Biblical phrase 'Son of God' is dividing missionary from missionary, scholar from scholar, in a time of evident mistrust between Western Christians and Muslims."
"Son of God" scripture references are therefore said to be creating anxiety, especially when missionaries and evangelists sharing the Gospel with Muslim communities are concerned. Muslims have a different understanding of who Jesus is and would find any reference to Him as deity, whether in part or in full, both confusing and offensive from the perspective of the teachings of Islam.
The Biblical portrayal of Jesus as both the begotten Son of God and the Son of man, made possible by the virgin birth is also not consistent with Islamic doctrine and belief and could even be interpreted as blasphemous by Muslims.
Hence, some Bible translators have come up with a compromise: change the Biblical references to Jesus in ways that Muslims can relate to and accept. Give them that amended version, albeit less accurate, and hopefully, they will better understand and receive it - and still qualify for salvation following that understanding.
In the eyes of such translators, 'The beloved Son who comes from God' which could, in essence, describe any child that God gives as a gift to man - becomes a socially acceptable alternative to "the Son Of God", deemed to be part and parcel of God Himself.
Other Bible translators cringe at the very thought of watering down the integrity and uniqueness of the Gospel to appease its target audiences. Little wonder, given that tampering with original meanings of scripture could make the difference between eternal life and death according to other Bible references such as I John 5:20:
"And we know that the Son of God is come, and hath given us an understanding, that we may know Him that is true, and we are in Him that is true, even in His Son Jesus Christ. This is the true God, and eternal life"
continue reading
www.prophecynewswatch.com/article.cfm?recent_news_id=190
By Tom Olago March 16, 2016
What should Christians do when they find that the Gospel of Jesus Christ, or certain aspects of it, may cause offense to those to whom it is preached? One approach is to stick to delivering the Bible message without compromise, knowing that this approach is the only way to ensure a genuine choice between the truth and falsehood.
Another alternative would be to water down the message in order to make it palatable to its audience even at the cost of distorting and misrepresenting central doctrines of the true Gospel such as the divine nature of Jesus, His virgin birth, His place in the Holy Trinity and how He was able to become incarnate as both the Son of God and the Son of man.
Such is the dilemma reportedly being faced by some Bible translators today.
Billy Hallowell for theblaze.com recently reported that Wycliffe Associates (WA), a group based in Orlando, Florida has announced that it would not be renewing its affiliation with Wycliffe Global Alliance (WGA), an international cohort of more than 100 translators that was formed back in 1991.
Bruce Smith, president of Wycliffe Associates, told staff and the public via a press release that there are a number of reasons why the translator has chosen to split from the group.
The first reason is the ongoing debate over the language used to describe Jesus and God. For Wycliffe Associates, literal translation of Father and Son of God is not negotiable, said Smith.
Hallowell explained that the issue reportedly hinged, more specifically, on the way in which the Biblical Trinity is presented to Muslims. He made reference to a similar Christianity Today report that some translations attempt to "soften" the language describing the relationship between Jesus and God so as to not confuse adherents of Islam who might incorrectly believe as a result of certain phrasing that God and Mary - Jesus mother - had sexual relations.
At least one past use of language to get around this problem referred to Christ as "the Beloved Son who comes (or originates) from God."
Here's how Christianity Today framed the debate back in 2011: "A dispute over the most faithful and effective way to render the common Biblical phrase 'Son of God' is dividing missionary from missionary, scholar from scholar, in a time of evident mistrust between Western Christians and Muslims."
"Son of God" scripture references are therefore said to be creating anxiety, especially when missionaries and evangelists sharing the Gospel with Muslim communities are concerned. Muslims have a different understanding of who Jesus is and would find any reference to Him as deity, whether in part or in full, both confusing and offensive from the perspective of the teachings of Islam.
The Biblical portrayal of Jesus as both the begotten Son of God and the Son of man, made possible by the virgin birth is also not consistent with Islamic doctrine and belief and could even be interpreted as blasphemous by Muslims.
Hence, some Bible translators have come up with a compromise: change the Biblical references to Jesus in ways that Muslims can relate to and accept. Give them that amended version, albeit less accurate, and hopefully, they will better understand and receive it - and still qualify for salvation following that understanding.
In the eyes of such translators, 'The beloved Son who comes from God' which could, in essence, describe any child that God gives as a gift to man - becomes a socially acceptable alternative to "the Son Of God", deemed to be part and parcel of God Himself.
Other Bible translators cringe at the very thought of watering down the integrity and uniqueness of the Gospel to appease its target audiences. Little wonder, given that tampering with original meanings of scripture could make the difference between eternal life and death according to other Bible references such as I John 5:20:
"And we know that the Son of God is come, and hath given us an understanding, that we may know Him that is true, and we are in Him that is true, even in His Son Jesus Christ. This is the true God, and eternal life"
continue reading
www.prophecynewswatch.com/article.cfm?recent_news_id=190