Last JAARS Day of 2009 Highlights God's Word
Information technology highlighted; newly acquired, 100-year-old Hebrew Sefer Torah on display; and reformer John Wycliffe speaks at October 3 JAARS Day
For more information, contact:
Arthur Lightbody, APR
JAARS Media Relations Officer
1-704-843-6048
arthur_lightbody@sil.org
Ann Rodgers
JAARS Tour Director
1-704-843-6130
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
WAXHAW, N.C. — September 22, 2009 — In an intimate one-man performance at the JAARS Center in Waxhaw, N.C., on October 3, JAARS guests can hear John Wycliffe, the 14th-century reformer who first translated the Bible into English. Wycliffe will tell about his personal transformation while studying the Latin Bible, which he could understand and most other English speakers could not.
In Daybreak!—the story of Wycliffe and his passion for God’s written Word and his translation of it into English—he exclaims, "Then one morning ‘the light’ broke through. Daybreak! The written word became the revelation of the living Word. I began to understand the forgiveness so eloquently expressed in the gospel of Jesus Christ!"
JAARS President David Reeves says, “In the spirit of John Wycliffe, we desire to see God’s glory clearly revealed through His Word in a language that speaks to the heart of every people group on the face of the earth. This is why we provide tools such as aviation, information technology and many others, to speed the task of Bible translation so that the light will break through for the nearly 2,400 language groups that don’t yet have it.”
JAARS will highlight information technology at the Saturday, October 3, JAARS Day. Activities begin at 10 a.m. with a general session. Interesting breakout programs will illustrate how JAARS partners with Wycliffe Bible Translators and others in providing information technology expertise and service.
On the same day the JAARS Museum of the Alphabet will host the inaugural display of a Hebrew Sefer Torah scroll—a gift to JAARS from John Jeffcoat of Lake Mary, Fla. A “Sefer Torah" is a handwritten copy of a Torah.
Torah Information
According to one appraisal, this 123-foot-long manuscript, made of ox skins sewn together, has survived at least 100 years and sustained constant use in synagogues in Europe before being brought to the United States. European Jews meticulously transcribed the 304,805 letters from several scripts in a Jewish scriptorium in order to avoid error in duplicating them from the older, accurate copies.
The Torah contains the age-old foundational books. They are called Bereshit, Shemot, Vayyiqra, Bamidbar and Devarim in the Jewish Bible, and Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy in the Christian Old Testament.
The Museum of the Alphabet artistically traces the history of alphabets and other writing systems. The Torah scroll will be displayed Monday through Saturday at the Museum of the Alphabet from 9 a.m.–12 p.m. and 1–4 p.m., and for a special showing October 4, 5–7 p.m. It will remain on display until January 2010.
Information Technology Sessions
Amazing Language Software and Bible Translation. Get a glimpse of what translators use to speed Bible translation work.
Exciting Stories from Overseas. Hear how God has provided when things go wrong.
An IT Chronicle. Watch a video about how translators on the field receive help from the various IT departments at JAARS.
3D Animation of Signed Languages. Discover and view how 3D animation will enable Bible translation for well over 200 unique signed languages around the world.
Business as Mission. Explore how computer technology and other business enterprises can support Bible translation on the field.
Information Technology Displays
Got Power? Explore how national translators in remote conditions use low-power computers in Papua New Guinea.
How Do You Sound? Discover how this software helps translators see and hear tones in a language. Come see how colorful your voice is on screen.
What’s on That Computer? Investigate the various software tools that are used throughout the translation process, as well as training materials used on the field.
What’s Inside? Ever wonder what the inside of a computer looks like? Try your hand at computer repair.
Why Can’t the Computer Just Translate It? Discover intricacies of Bible translation as you translate Scripture yourself, matching words to a back translation.
Be a Bible Translator for a Day! Learn six words of the Kalinga language and how to respond appropriately for meals in Kalinga culture.
Field Communications and Power. Talk via Skype or high-frequency radio. See how computers are powered in remote locations. Check out the satellite dish and phones.
The Daybreak! John Wycliffe Performance
JAARS partner in ministry, Wycliffe Bible Translators, is named after John Wycliffe, the man credited with being the first to head a team that translated the Scriptures into the English language. His life is set in the turbulent 14th century, a time of grave catastrophe, notable church upheaval and the beginnings of major reformation.
Wycliffe member Freddy Boswell wrote the script for the production of Daybreak! Arthur Lightbody, known in the Waxhaw area for his one-man performances of President Andrew Jackson, will portray Wycliffe at 12:30 p.m.
General JAARS Day Information
Signage at JAARS and Davis Roads will direct visitors to the various events. See the “Visit” section of www.jaars.org for directions.
The day’s opening program begins in the Townsend Building at 10 a.m. Activities will conclude by 3 p.m., although the Museum of the Alphabet and the Mexico-Cárdenas Museum will remain open until 5 p.m. to accommodate guests.
Guests can meet representatives from every major JAARS department and see demonstrations each JAARS Day. They can experience missionary travel by taking the “Mission Adventure Ride,” a four-wheel-drive trip through the woods, followed by a brief airplane ride on the Helio Courier airplane, taking off from a dirt airstrip. “The Mission Adventure Ride” and helicopter rides cost $22.
JAARS, staffed by members of Wycliffe Bible Translators and volunteers, provides training and worldwide coordination for technical services that speed Bible translation. Log on to www.jaars.org and www.wycliffe.org for an informative and interesting look at these two related organizations.
There is no cost for the JAARS Day program or visiting the JAARS Museum of the Alphabet or Mexico-Cárdenas Museum. Aircraft rides and lunches can be purchased on JAARS Day. A “Voluntary Release of Rights and Waiver of Liability” must be signed for all who fly, or by a parent or guardian for a minor. See the "JAARS Day" section on www.jaars.org for a form to be signed prior to a visit for children not accompanied by a parent or guardian.
JAARS Days will continue next year on the first Saturdays of March, May, August and October. Call 1-704-843-6130 to request a weekday tour.
For information on acquiring ancient Bibles and for a timeline on English Bible translation history, see John Jeffcoat’s Web site: www.greatsite.com.
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