Adam Boyd, a translator friend that has spoken at a number of events for All-Nations, serves with Wycliffe Bible Translators in Papua New Guinea. He recently posted the following:
After ten years of translating, a year of recording and typesetting, and many months of planning, the Enga New Testament dedication will take place tomorrow in Wabag town. This is the first of at least six dedication events, and it is the main dedication for the people of Enga. In the last two weeks, I along with four Enga pastors (two of whom are translators) have been traveling throughout the Wabag district of Enga Province to raise awareness and invite people to the dedication.
In the course of raising awareness for the Enga New Testament dedication, we drove to the summit of a mountain range near Wabag town, ascending to an altitude of 8,600 feet. We then drove across the ridge and down the other side of the mountain, stopping at each village along the way to tell people about the upcoming Enga New Testament dedication. As we stopped in the village of Tole, I was suddenly overcome by the incredible significance of me being there together with Pastor Timothy Pesone, the Enga Bible translation committee chairman, who was traveling with us to raise awareness. Pastor Timothy is from the village of Tole, an important place in the history of Enga. As I stood there with him, I knew that I needed to get a picture of us standing there together to capture the significance of what was happening.
You see, almost ninety years ago to the day, Australian gold prospectors Mick and Dan Leahy set up camp in the village of Tole in Enga Province. It was the first time foreigners had ever entered the heart of Enga territory. That evening, an Engan man named Pingita rushed toward the camp, attacking with a spear. After Pingita released his spear, Mick Leahy shot him dead, sparking an onslaught in which additional Engan men were killed and injured. It was an inauspicious start to the relationship between Engans and foreigners.
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Pastor Timothy, the man I am standing with in the picture above, is Pingita's grandson. The place where the two of us are standing is the very place where Timothy's grandfather Pingita attacked the Leahy camp and was shot and killed. But as Pastor Timothy and I stood there together, there was no hostility between men of different cultures. Rather, we were there together spreading the news about the upcoming dedication of the Enga New Testament. What an amazing turn of events, which can only be attributed to the restorative power of our Lord Jesus Christ! Praise God that, in Christ, there is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female, and there is neither Engan nor foreigner, for we are all one in Christ Jesus.
All-Nations would also like to celebrate this milestone and join our voices in praising God!
We are thankful too for the faithfulness of the Boyd family and the many mother-tongue translators who have labored together for years to see this happen! May the Lord continue to establish the work of your hands and bless your labors abundantly. In the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.