Swahili Translation - Refining the work

Thursday September 11

Since last Thursday when the translation was finished, we have regrouped the teams and now have only three teams for the review process.  The purpose is for different people to review each chapter that has been translated into Kiswahili (Swahili).  Some of the team members had to return home and left last Sunday after the brief celebration and break from all the work that had been done.  The new teams consist of the same people, some interchanged, but the intent is not to allow any documents that were translated to be reviewed by the same individuals.  We have kept two people per team—one who uses the computer and the other to access either an English Book of Mormon, one of the other three translations of the Book of Mormon into Swahili, English or Swahili Bible or any of a number of dictionaries as needed.  

It is a good thing that my stay here was extended because I'm sure that the details of the review process will probably extend into late next week.  My ticket is for Sunday the 21st, but I must travel by bus across the country again from Kisumu to Nairobi a day or two ahead of time to assure that there will not be any snags in getting to the airport on time.  At present we are at about 1/3 finished reviewing the chapters.  We hope to also have a couple of other small documents translated before leaving.  

I'm leaving templates with each member of the teams which can be used to translate materials of their choice into Luo and other languages when they have time to work on them.  All members of the teams now understand the process quite well and know how to use the page layout program so that they can proceed to do other things as needed.

They will be left with copies of many testimonies and articles about a wide variety of Gospel topics which hopefully will prove to be useful in their work after I return home.  They have been formatted into the A4 paper sizes to facilitate the printing on paper that is sold here.

Please keep the review process in your prayers as we still have a lot of work ahead of us.  The team members are still very excited about what they are doing and very dedicated.  We have a short worship service and prayers every morning and evening followed by a 30 minute class which I've been teaching.  Some of the men continue to get up in the wee hours of the morning (3:00 — 4:00 a.m.) to continue with their work.  Some of the rest of us work quite late and get up in time for the 7:00 a.m. worship service and class.  We are all tired, but we are enjoying it all and will be very happy to see the work finished.

Brother Tom Okeyo who is coordinating the entire project, has been bringing friends in on a frequent basis to have be share with them things that he feels they would benefit from.  It will be good to get back home but I will miss the good friends and the close fellowship that we have enjoyed here during the past four weeks.

In gospel bonds,

Frank Frye

--

"In God we trust"

"En Dios confiamos"

"[T]he only means of establishing and perpetuating our republican forms of government is the universal education of our youth in the principles of Christianity by means of the Bible".

Founding Father, Benjamin Rush.

"[L]a única manera de establecer y perpetuar nuestras formas republicanas de gobierno es la educación universal de nuestra juventud con los principios del cristianismo por medio de la Biblia".

Padre Fundador, Benjamín Rush

Update on the Book of Mormon Translation

Today is Thursday September 4th and we are progressing very rapidly in the translation work on the Book of Mormon.  We do not have easy access to the Internet or email, but to some extent that is an advantage because there are fewer distractions.  I will include photos of the facilities and of the teams in my final report.

Twelve Swahili/English speakers (all members of the Church) have been invited to assist in this project.  We have divided them into six teams, five of which are doing the direct translations and the sixth team is doing some review work as it proceeds.  We felt it important to analyze which teams would be doing the best work, but surprisingly, after their training and about ten days of translating, all of the teams are producing very good translations.  As of last night we had finished about 85% of the text with only seven chapters that are yet to be assigned.  Each team is assigned a few chapters at a time and they return the documents to me continually so that their work can be backed up (by several different methods) and then reassigned to the revision team.

In preparation for this task I originally prepared the documents into the separate books of the Book of Mormon for translation, however during the past four years since I was here last, it became apparent that those were mostly too big for a team to deal with.  If a document were lost or damaged, it would be catastrophic and the men became discouraged.  Smaller documents were necessary.  So I divided the text into a separate document for every chapter in the Book of Mormon.  Each group of chapters were kept in a separate folder for its respective book.  

In translating materials from English to Spanish over the years in Mexico, we discovered that word processors just won't do the job, because two, three or more columns of text are sometimes necessary and they must all be independent of each other.  So a page layout program must be used.  Most have been quite expensive in the past.  One or two are now available at fairly reasonable costs.  So I began with page templates that had three columns that I had developed for the Spanish translations.  We now have the entire Book of Mormon divided into separate documents for each chapter.  The English is in the left hand column, the second column is used for the new translation and the third column can be used either for a different translation or for a blank column for comments.

Next I developed a spreadsheet to keep track of the chapter assignments and their progress.  Since all of the chapters are obviously of differing lengths—some dozens of pages long and others less than a page, it became a challenge to keep track of the progress as the work proceeded.  The length of verses also complicated the tracking.  Then I found that if we counted the number of pages in our page layout program, they would give us a fairly accurate way to track the progress.  While one of the men helped in counting the pages in each documents, I set up the spreadsheet and designed a few simple calculations to make a graph of our progress and project a finishing time.  What we could not project is that the team members improved both in the quality of their translations and in their speed as the weeks passed by.  So we now expect to be finished with the initial translations from the five teams by this weekend.  Everyone here is so excited!  The people here in Eastern Africa have been waiting to be able to read the Book of Mormon in Swahili for many years, and now the end is in sight.

It is very easy to see the growth of the team members as the weeks have passed.  Their knowledge of the Scriptures, their own Swahili language and of the English language has been greatly increased.  The fact that they now have this experience behind them and they all have a sound knowledge of how to use this page layout program as well as the laptop computers, they will be able to easily repeat the process to translate other materials into Swahili or even into Luo—a more localized language on the eastern side of Lake Victoria in Kenya.  Many classes have been taught about the gospel and before we part, each team member will be given a packet of DVDs and CDs with an enormous amount of information on them.  We will be giving out several books and other materials as gifts for those who were especially helpful, or who showed the most improvement or for whatever other reason—to be selected by the teams themselves.  Team members are already excited about sharing what they have learned and done with friends at home and with friends in other countries of Africa—such as the Congo where we already have a small mission, in South Africa and in Malawi which is south of Tanzania.  

It has been an exciting time to be a part of this project.  It has been such a blessing to me to see a renewed cooperation between the Saints in the Center Place.  I believe that the Lord is moving to reunite the Lord's work all over the world.

Funding through the ARM board has made it possible for this group of twelve men to assemble in a reasonably sized facility that is very secure and quiet enough to do the work without interruptions.  My plane ticket and a small amount for personal expenses were provided by the Joint Conference of Branches, and MMSG continues to take care of my wife, Patti at home so that these kind of activities can continue.

___________

Since I don't have easy access to the Internet, it has been several days since the above was written.  These last paragraphs are to announce that we have finally finished the first draft of the translation.  100% of the chapters of the Book of Mormon have been turned in to me for editing and to prepare them for the final review which begins tomorrow after church services here in Kisumu.

Today was set aside as the first break we've had in the weeks-long task of this first draft.  The average work day here has been between 16 and 18 hours.  Some of the men worked very late into the night and others began getting up as early as 3:30 a.m. to see the work accomplished on time.  A special meal was prepared and visitors were invited for a meeting that lasted about two hours where each team was invited to share some of their testimonies.  I was asked to give a sermon and chose to speak about the Restoration and the Book of Mormon.  Before the day was over, three new people asked for copies of the Book of Mormon.  

I've been asked to extend my stay for one more week to assist in the final review process.  It has been very exciting to be a part of this historic effort.  I want to thank all of you for your prayers and also for the cooperation of all of the various groups that have made this possible.

I'll keep you updated as things progress.  There will be many things to share when I get back to Missouri.

In gospel bonds,

Frank Frye

--

"In God we trust"

"En Dios confiamos"

"[T]he only means of establishing and perpetuating our republican forms of government is the universal education of our youth in the principles of Christianity by means of the Bible".

Founding Father, Benjamin Rush.

"[L]a única manera de establecer y perpetuar nuestras formas republicanas de gobierno es la educación universal de nuestra juventud con los principios del cristianismo por medio de la Biblia".

Padre Fundador, Benjamín Rush

Prayers for Rick Kohn Family

Seventy Rick Kohn died Tuesday. He fought cancer for several years. Please pray for his family.

England Missionary Trip ~ March 6-22, 2016

England —Missionary Report March 6-22, 2016

Seventies James and Patrick McKay 

As we set out to enter the mission field in England, we had memories of the efforts of the Brethren that arrived on these shores in 1837. The first missionaries of the Latter-day gospel sent to the British Isles in June of 1837 proved equal to the task. Remarkable indeed, was the success they found. By April of 1838, twenty-four branches were reported with a membership of approximately 1,500. These brethren enjoyed a fair amount of success especially among the working class of the United Kingdom. They appealed to this particular social group in large measure due to their own social background. They frequently found themselves preaching to the British citizenry directly in the streets, not respecting the social distinctions often found in the larger; more established denominations, particularly the Church of England. Perhaps the most attractive part of the Latter-day message was that it offered to its hearers a concrete and pragmatic approach with temporal as well as spiritual benefits of obeying the gospel, and then having the opportunity of immigrating to America and assisting in the building up of the Kingdom of God on the earth.

Over a period about 9 months an amazing harvest of souls was had as approximately 2000 entered the waters of baptism. Orson Hyde was evidently personally responsible for about 1500 of those baptisms. No other religious sect of the 1840's matched the rapid growth of Mormonism among a working class populace such as that of early Victorian Britain. Beginning with this initial success of the first missionaries in the late 1830's, the church grew by the addition of 51,000 converts in the British Isles by 1851. Many meetings were held in homes for those interested who had gathered. The message and hope of Zion touched the hearts of the pure in heart and eventually there were thousands that asked for and came to American and the hope of assisting in the building up of Zion. Yet by the late 1850's the group was in precipitous decline, due in part to its public announcement that adherents were practicing plural marriage in America.

Our arrival brought us to a very different place, both in time and atmosphere. Certainly those first brothers came to a nation of believing Christians who would could best be classified as seekers. We found a nation that declares only 9% church attendance. Although the Church of England is still the largest point of worship, there are other denominations that garner their portion of that 9%. We found a nation that is steeped a level of socialism that was surprising and more advanced then seen in America. Why do we mention all of this background, it is important to understand the nature of the field that we have labored in?

We came with the goal to baptize at least 5, adding to the February baptism by Brother Vick, and to receive direction from above about a call to the ministry that we might organize a branch. Our heart’s desire fell short of that goal. We were still blessed as we added 3 more souls to this little fledgling group, two brothers and one sister. This group is comprised of what could only be describe as “the weak and simple” of the earth and as promised that it would be the 'weak things of the world that should come forth and break down the mighty and strong' (D&C 1:4c). What they lack in experience and a knowledge of the Restoration distinctives they are desirous to learn and eager to share the love of Christ towards others. The sister came out of the LDS church after being greatly disturbed with what goes on in the temple endowments. The three brothers have spent the better part of 15 years in the LDS Church, The Community of Christ Church and a group that we have become acquainted with called the Latter Day Church of Jesus Christ. In each of these organizations they held priesthood. All were priests and elders in the LDS Church, one was a deacon in the COC and all three were apostles, with one being a Counselor in the First Presidency of the Latter Day Church of Jesus Christ. Some concepts in understanding the ministry of priesthood have not yet been shared with them. We have begun and will continue to give instruction helping them reach a more complete understanding.

We have constantly made it a matter of prayer and supplication to our God for direction relating to a potential call[s]. We believe in time God will raise up local ministry to fashion the work, but presently more preparation and understanding will have to manifest itself prior to that happening. There was found in the sister a good mind and a desire help keep the group on task with weekly study in one of the homes and once a month gathering is an affordable building which we have identified that they will rent to give greater exposure to the community.
We have offered extensive instruction to the one that is outwardly the most capable. Time and patience, with continued contact after we return to the states will be required on our part. We have study materials that we believe will assist this little group in learning and growing in a proper understanding of the restored gospel. They will be using Facebook to invite others, especially among the disenfranchised LDS members that have separated themselves over three primary issues, the unfair application of the tithing law, the stringent application of the Word of Wisdom and temple works.

They have been left with the assignment to not only strengthen and grow in their knowledge of the scriptures, but to identify individuals that at a future date can be taught and enter the waters of baptism when we return.

We ask of the Seventy to uphold this little band of members that they might remain faithful, knowing that there is presently no priesthood direction as we depart. We believe the work here is in a fragile state that needs a great deal of nurturing. This is a group of affectionate and caring individuals that love the Lord and want the work to grow, even though they are lacking in so many areas that we are not accustomed to seeing.

We believe that we should make a follow up trip, perhaps before the year is out, but we have let them know there needs to be people for us to teach that would cause that to happen. 

Received from Seventy Ananda Rao,

Greetings, Happy New Year to you.

My Hyderabad (the capital of southern India's Telangana state) trip was good. In all we had one common gathering and two house church worships during the time I stayed there. I have not only provided the ministry of the word on Christmas but also learned quite a few things from the people there.

There are four families in the middle to lower middle class and four  youngsters in college.They do not know the scriptures well, but are anxious to learn. This is a good thing. I will go there at my next convenience and hold classes to teach them the scriptures on a Friday night, the whole of Saturday and worship with them on Sunday before returning. Some of the parents will also join for the classes, as some of them work on Saturdays also.

That is my plan, before coming to the general conference.

Seventy Whiting in Honduras

Seventy Gary Whiting made a two week visit to Honduras in early October 2015. He labored in Siguatepeque during his stay. The purpose of his visit was to fill in for Elder Chuck Sperry who needed to return to the United States. Elder Sperry has raised his family in Honduras while laboring across the country, bringing the message of Jesus Christ and the Restoration to may people.

Brother Whiting worked with members and non-members associated with the Restoration branch in Siguatepeque. During his stay he preached four times, taught a few classes and made several visits. His ministry was assisted by Joshua, Tikva and Hannah Sperry. They provided help with Spanish translation and transportation.

"The presence of the Holy Spirit was very much present with me during my visit in Honduras. Before every visit and ministerial opportunity I had clear and specific guidance about things that I should say and the kind of ministry that was needed. As I followed the instruction of the Lord, I discovered that in every case, the Lord had given me exactly what was needed.

It was a testimony to me and to the Saints that the Lord was with us. I felt that it was a fulfillment of the promise of the Lord to provide what I needed in the moment of need. Thanks be to God for his blessings to his people."

Seventy George Thomas in the Northwestern U.S.

Seventy George Thomas traveled through Colorado, South Dakota, Wyoming, Montana, Idaho, Washington and Oregon in July and August of 2015. He had two major goals for this trip. He was searching for scattered saints to whom he could minister. He was also desiring a way to make contacts with various first nation peoples in the northwestern United States.

He started the journey with his wife, Jeanette. She accompanied him for the first three weeks. When Jeanette flew home, Elder Glenn Vreeland joined George for the remainder of the trip.

Brother and Sister Thomas ministered on the Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota where they had some opportunity to witness of Christ. In Montana, contact was made with a member of the Flathead nation who was seeking a witness of Jesus Christ. Brother Thomas was able to share with him and left contact information for follow up.

He reported that several areas in Colorado and Montana where Saints had previously lived, were now dead or had moved on. He and Brother Vreeland we able to visit with several of the Saints in Idaho, but they are widely scattered.

While staying at a state park, Brother Thomas reported this event,

A sixteen year old young man had accompanied his aunt to camp and fish for a few days. The trout were large and plentiful. I went to the dock the first night to just visit with the young man. I could tell by his body language that he was not happy being there. I talked to him about Jesus and we had prayer together. The next morning early he was down fishing alone. Once again we talked about Jesus. The young man was from a broken home and was really not wanted by his mom or dad. Religion was not a part of his life. Soon it was time for him to help his aunt break camp and prepare to drive back to Washington. We had prayer and I encouraged him to find a bible based church and begin his walk with Jesus Christ. He thanked me and said he felt we were guided to meet.

The trip ended with a return to the Pine Ridge Reservation. The pair of ministers were able to teach some classes and encourage the Saints.

Restoration Seventies Minister in Utah

Seventies Jim and Patrick McKay were invited as guests of Brigham Young University in Provo, Utah to attend the Sperry Symposium. The symposium was the 44th annual gathering of this scholarly event. It was held from October 21-24, 2015. This year the event theme was "The Coming Forth of the Book of Mormon, A Marvelous Work and a Wonder." Fourteen presentations were delivered covering various aspects of the coming forth of the Book of Mormon, the miracle of its translation and publication.

Patrick was asked to address the faculty from the Religious Education and Church History Departments. He shared with them the changes that had occurred in the Reorganized Church as well as the tension they too face with the same or similar issues confronting them as a church; such as women's ordination, the pressure to accept alternative life styles altering our Judeo-Christian concept of marriage and progressive thinkers who question the historicity of the Book of Mormon, and how they might respond to preserve the unique Restoration message. He concluded by sharing with them the common future we all share as believers in the Restoration.

The McKays attended several classes on campus, interacting with both the faulty and students and were asked to join the dialog. They were also invited to share in a fireside in one of the homes and testified of the wonderful things the Lord is doing among all Restoration believers.

They also meet with several professors to work on the details for the next Book of Mormon Festival to be held this May in Independence, Missouri.

Seventy Gary Metzger Ministering in Honduras

(Sent August 6, 2014 ) Greetings from Honduras. The Lord has blessed me with many opportunities to share with the saints and be with my grieving family in Las Vegas, Santa Barbara, Honduras. Thanks to all for their prayers. My health is good and I have an important meeting this afternoon with some of the Honduran Priesthood. I pray for peace and light to be prevalent. Best wishes to all. I leave tomorrow at mid-day to return.

Ron Smith's travels

We spent 3 wonderful weeks in North and South Carolina.  We met with saints in the Winston-Salem and Carey, NC areas for church services, and visited in a number of homes.  The saints in the Upstate Restoration Branch in Taylors, SC invited us to come on the weekend of June 14-15.  On Saturday, they had a nice dinner for us, and we visited for a long time before and after with a number of the Saints.  On Sunday morning, I taught the Sunday School class and preached.  There was a very good spirit there.  The whole congregation went to dinner at a nearby Hibachi Grill so that we could all sit at one table.

On this trip we felt especially blessed that the Lord had placed us at the right place and time.  One night we got a text asking us to visit a lady in the hospital at Gastonia, NC.  Her name is Antonia, and she had been in a diabetic coma for three days.  Josh Pederson is one of two young men who are currently studying Spanish in Oaxaca, Mexico.  He met Antonia's brother, who expressed the desire for someone in North Carolina to go and administer to her.  Josh called his father in Independence, Missouri to see if there was any elder who could go.  One of Josh's good friends, Tyler Ramirez, had been asked to go to North Carolina with me, but had not been able to go.  Tyler remembered that I was there, so I got texted.  As it turned out, we were within 200 miles of Gastonia, and had nothing scheduled the next day, so we went to see Antonia.  We found her niece, and she took us to the intensive care ward of the hospital to see Antonia.  We found her awake and alert.  As the family spoke mostly Spanish, we sang a few Spanish songs and had a wonderful "Spanglish" conversation.  I administered to her, and we enjoyed a good spirit. At the end of our trip, we stopped by to see Antonia once again.  This time, she was not in the hospital, but had been moved to a rehabilitation center, so we know that she had improved a lot. 

Ron Smith in North Carolina

Ron Smith and his wife Di have gone to North Carolina for a missionary trip.  Yesterday (June 1) we shared in the communion service in Winston-Salem held in the Alan Step home.  There were at least 19 in attendance. After the service, we enjoyed a pot luck.  In the evening, we shared in singing and scripture study with Daniel and Lauren Nixon in their home in Carrboro.

KANSAS - COLORADO - UTAH MISSION TRIP

Mission Report 

Seventies Jim and Patrick McKay

Kansas

   We traveled to St John, Kansas to meet with two elders from The Church of Jesus Christ (Bickertonites).  This community was originally settled by William Bickerton and called Zion Valley.  He believed this was a Stake of Zion with a purpose of ministering to the American Indians, which their church likes to identify as the "Seed of Joseph."

   We spent several hours discussing the commonalities of our organizations and discussed the possibilities of healing the breach.  They offered some testimonies to us, which were new regarding the prophetic promise of this event-taking place. We spent the night and left rejoicing in finding those desirous to be yoked together in the cause of Zion.

Colorado (Colorado Springs)

   We continued our trip taking us to Colorado Springs to meet with a group of saints who are without any resident priesthood.  We stayed in the home of sister Cindy Webb.  We gathered several of the group for a class on the prophetic trajectory of the Book of Mormon and then continued to discuss the work with those in the home we stayed in.  On Sunday morning we again taught a class on the Letter's of Oliver Cowdery and the commencement of the latter day work.  We also occupied the pulpit and spoke on the power of faith.  Two asked for administration following the preaching, both testified of receiving a blessing, one was immediate.  We continued to discuss the angel message throughout the day and evening and moved on our journey Monday morning. Upon leaving, the group wanted to assist in our travel expense and made us a generous gift.

Utah

   We visited the Provo Campus of Brigham Young University and met with the Chair of the Ancient History Department and two of her colleagues.  They treated us to lunch and we were able to share seven testimonies regarding the healing of the breach in the Restoration.  They were amazed at what we shared and asked for copies of the testimonies.  We meet for 31/2 hours and at the end of our visit they expressed a desire to create a Book of Mormon Symposium Committee to produce a yearly Book of Mormon Festival.  Our impression of them and the greater Salt Lake Basin was somewhat paradoxical.  The LDS Church carries some beliefs which other portions of the Restoration do not embrace and have cause many to keep this Branch of the Restoration at arms length, yet they have seemingly an exhaustless amount of Book of Mormon Scholars who truly love this record and have blended their academic learning with their faith to testify of the books divine authenticity.  We were reminded of one of Joseph Smith III's revelation that "the places we occupy should shine as Zion the redeemed of the Lord," and witnessed that to a very large extent they have done this.  We realized they have created a system which has served their people well and has enabled them to grow the work with the understanding they posses.  We could see the blessing these saints will bring when the Lord moves to unite the Restoration.

Colorado  (Aurora)

   We returned to Colorado and met with the Rocky Mountain Restoration Branch.  They have two elders, although presently one is hospitalized and is in his ninetieth year.  We stayed in the home of the presiding elder, Brother Mark Nunn and his lovely wife, Sheri.  We had the opportunity to teach 3 classes, two dealing with the office work of the Book of Mormon and the other on the gospel of the kingdom which Jesus taught as recorded in the New Testament.  We preached on the atonement and the power to live our lives after the manner of happiness. Our discussion throughout the four days with these saints centered on the need to find common ground in the Restoration branches and prepare for the coming storm of judgment which is just before us.  We felt impressed in our visit that the hand of The Lord's protection over this land was soon to be removed.  These saints were active, hungry and ready to receive the ministry we were able to provide.

Conclusion

   The scattered saints are anxious for ministry; many feel exiled in their isolated areas and are looking for direction to prepare for the unfolding events that are now happening.  The need to remember the saints in the US should not be abandoned as opportunities present themselves for ministry in other parts of the world.  We have witnessed a general senses that the saints are troubled by our times and the condition of the church.  Hope should be our watchword as we seek to strengthen these faithful members in their remote condition. Many have not been able to retain their children following their displacement from the larger church with its various helps and governments.