Scripting the JESUS film

screen shot from Jesus film http://jesusfilmmedia.org/

So the Jita team is working on the JESUS film. The first step was to translate the script into Jita. We used a normal spreadsheet with the English and Swahili already included. After we inserted the Jita it looked like this....

It may not look like much but there were 1,206 lines to translate!!

Then my friend Mitchell took all 1,206 lines of Jita and copied them into a computer program. (Mitchell is our media specialist.)

We used this program to check the timing of each scene because we wanted to make sure that the Jita "actors" would be able to fit all their lines into a given scene. We also wanted to make sure that the lips matched the voice as much as possible. (We've all seen badly dubbed movies, right?)

screenshot of the computer program we used

photo by M. Wimbush

Then Neema and Magesa and I reviewed every line of script to make sure it was accurate and that it would fit with the timing of the scene.

Finally, we were ready to take the script out to the community and test it with other Jita speakers.

We gathered a small group of Jita Christians in the village and read the entire script with them. They gave us some helpful feedback about the Jita words and phrases in the script. And they also had some interesting questions for us. "In this movie, will Jesus be an African or a white person?" Sorry, we can't change the video, we can only change the audio. But at least we'll have a white Jesus speaking Jita! That will be cool!!!!


Stay tuned for recording the JESUS film...

Next big project: JESUS Film

This year with the Jita team, we have finished the books of Acts and 1, 2 and 3 John. We're thanking God for his abundant grace. Now it's time for our next big project...

You remember that old movie from 1979? It has been translated into 1,214 languages around the world! We are partnering with the Jesus Film Project to bring the Jesus film to the people of the Mara region in Tanzania. Last year, members of our team helped produce the Jesus film in the languages of Kabwa and Zanaki.

Hundreds of Kabwa and Zanaki people saw the film and heard the good news about Jesus. Many people trusted Jesus for salvation.

Now it's time for the Jita people to have the Jesus film in their own language!

Here's a sample from the Jesus film showing English and Swahili, but no Jita.




Sadly, the Jita people don't have the Jesus film in their language. That means they can't use this evangelistic tool to tell other Jita people the good news about Jesus. That's why we're working hard to bring the Jesus film to the Jita people. Please pray for us. This is a huge project, with a huge amount of work, but a huge spiritual benefit for God's kingdom. We have already encountered some spiritual attacks in the process. Please pray for unity, wisdom and endurance.

Stay tuned for more updates...




Jesus film project logo and statistics taken from http://www.jesusfilm.org/
Jesus film video segments taken from http://jesusfilmmedia.org/
Photos of Jesus Film celebrations taken by C. Lucas and M. Nicholls

Mouth to mouth

"I wish I could talk to you mouth to mouth."

What would that phrase mean in your cultural background?

This is just one example of the interesting challenges we faced while translating the letters of John into the Jita language. I'll return to that example later.

Here's another example. Right away in 1 John 1:1 it says,

That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we looked upon and have touched with our hands, concerning the word of life.

The first draft of the Jita sounded like we heard him with our eyes and saw him with our hands. Uh oh! Thankfully, that was an easy fix.

Then there's this beautiful verse about God's love and Jesus' sacrifice.

1 John 4:10 In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins.

The word "propitiation/atonement" was a difficult concept to translate. The main components of meaning are sacrifice, covering of sin, removal of guilt and turning away God's wrath. We discovered a word in Jita [okugwatanya] which refers to the process of reconciliation. When one person wrongs or offends another, their relationship is separated. The guilty party must bring a goat, both parties lay their hands on the goat and a respected elder will slaughter the goat. When the blood is spilled, the relationship is reconciled. So we decided to translate the one English word "propitiation" with the Jita phrase, "sacrifice which removes our sins and reconciles us to God."

1 John 4:10 Rinu niryo eryenda, jitari ati, eswe chaatangatire okwenda Nyamuwanga. Tari omwene niwe :aatangatire okucheenda eswe. Niyo isonga ^naatuma Omwana waaye, abhe echoogo echa okusoosya‑wo ebhibhiibhi bhyeswe na okuchigwatanya na Nyamuwanga.

And of course, let's not forget 2 John. John writes this letter to a church personified as a "lady." The best way to communicate that idea is with the word "sister." But then at the end of the letter, when John sends greetings from a "sister" church, the Jita used a different word for "sister." 

Huh? 

In Jita culture, all greetings are determined by gender and age. So when John himself (a man) greets his sister church (a woman) he uses [omusubhaati]. But when he sends greetings from one sister church (woman) to another sister church (woman) he uses [omuyara]. Whew! That's confusing! But now the letter of 2 John will be accepted because it is natural Jita language.

And finally, in 3 John, John closes his letter with these words, 

"I had much to write to you, but I would rather not write with pen and ink. I hope to see you soon, and we will talk face to face." 

That phrase "face to face" was fun. The Greek literally says, "mouth to mouth." Swahili has two different ways to say it. And the Jita expression is "eye to eye." 

And just for fun, here's a word cloud I made for 1 John with the size of the words relating to the frequency in the letter. Enjoy! (have I mentioned that I love this job?!?!)

Past the zebras to the dentist

The other day we took Kara to the dentist. The nearest dentist is in the town of Mwanza, which is three hours away. Ugh! But the good news is, we drove past the Serengeti and enjoyed seeing some zebras and wildebeests.

Welcome to Tanzania!