Table of Contents

Introduction

Chapter 1: Relevant Communication

Chapter 2: Context and Comprehension

Chapter 3: Context Building

Chapter 4: The Design and Effects of Relevant Products

Chapter 5: Ways of Supplying Context: Out-of-Text and In-Text Solutions

Chapter 6: Cultural Research

Chapter 7: First-Century Jewish Perceptions of the Unseen World

Chapter 8: The Effect of the Key Term Choices on Adioukrou Theology

Chapter 9: Identifying and Adjusting Contextual Mismatches in John 13:1-30

Chapter 10: The Communication Context: Working with the Church Community

Chapter 11: Conclusions and Implications

Appendix A: Identifying and Adjusting Contextual Mismatches in Matthew 4:1-10

Appendix B: Identifying and Adjusting Contextual Mismatches in Mark 5:1-20

Appendix C: Identifying and Adjusting Contextual Mismatches in Luke 11:14-26

Appendix D: Catherine Vos' Bible Story: In the Upper Room

Appendix E: Example Work Chart: John 13:1-30

About the Author

Harriet Hill has worked on Bible translation in minority languages in Africa with Wycliffe Bible Translators and SIL since 1978. She has authored articles in language learning, linguistics, cultural anthropology, translation and missiology and holds a PhD from Fuller School of Intercultural Studies.

Reviews

This book on one level is a detailed discussion of the practices, challenges, and pitfalls of Bible translation. On another level the book is a critique of the process of the transmission of Scripture where the focus is on cultures and societies as recipients rather than on the cultures and societies of transmission. In fact, the book is the convergence between transmission and reception, between ideas and their embodiment in practice. Often one gains an insight into the mind of the author herself, but even there the author is immersed in a world of other people's making. From this complex interaction we obtain a challenging understanding of what the "word of God" means as an intercultural process. (Professor Lamin Sanneh, Yale University) ... an impressive piece of work, which interprets relevance theory for practical bible translation and presents a solid piece of field research that gives readers a good insight into the work of bible translators and cultural anthropologists. (Professor Juliane House, Hamburg University) An innovative empirical study on the influence of socio-cultural factors on the communicative impact of translated texts in a challenging cross-cultural setting. A significant contribution to translation studies. (Ernst-August Gutt, author of Translation and Relevance)