{"id":41321,"date":"2022-03-02T13:23:51","date_gmt":"2022-03-02T04:23:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/vomkorea.com\/?p=41321"},"modified":"2022-03-02T15:50:34","modified_gmt":"2022-03-02T06:50:34","slug":"vomk-report-194","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/vomkorea.com\/en\/2022\/03\/02\/vomk-report-194\/","title":{"rendered":"VOMK PARTNERS WITH NK DEFECTORS TO PREPARE \u201cREADER\u2019S EDITION\u201d OF ROSS BIBLE"},"content":{"rendered":"

[vc_section][vc_row][vc_column][vc_single_image image=”41313″ img_size=”full”][vc_custom_heading text=”2022 marks the 140-year anniversary of the release of the first portion of scripture ever translated into the Korean language: Missionary John Ross\u2019 Gospel of Luke, first published in 1882 and smuggled into Korea from Moukden, China (today\u2019s Shenyang). Voice of the Martyrs Korea announced today that it is currently preparing a \u201cContemporary Reader\u2019s Edition\u201d of the Ross New Testament with the aid of its North Korean students and constituents and will be releasing the Gospel of Luke in fall 2022, followed by a Luke\/John\/Acts trilogy in 2023 and a full Ross New Testament \u201cContemporary Reader\u2019s Edition\u201d in 2024. ” font_container=”tag:p|font_size:1.2em|text_align:left” google_fonts=”font_family:Noto%20Sans%3Aregular%2Citalic%2C700%2C700italic|font_style:700%20bold%20regular%3A700%3Anormal” el_class=”headline”][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n

\u201cToday, Korean Christians are able to read the Bible in a large number and variety of translations. Sadly, the one Bible that is not available for them to read is the Bible that has been called the foundation of the Korean Church<\/span>,\u201d said Voice of the Martyrs Korea CEO Pastor Eric Foley. <\/span>\u201cThe Ross Bible <\/span>was for two decades the <\/span>only Hangul New Testament available to Koreans<\/span>, <\/span>until in 1900 the first edition of the Korean Authorized Version N<\/span>ew Testament <\/span>was published<\/span>.<\/span> The Ross Bible was the <\/span>Bible <\/span>of the Korean church during its <\/span>formative period<\/span>, and it <\/span>left a permanent imprint on the Korean church in the form of a church that is <\/span>Bible-<\/span>centered and lay-driven.<\/span> God used <\/span>the Ross Bible <\/span>powerfully to <\/span>impart the saving knowledge of Jesus Christ to <\/span>the first generation of Korean Christians <\/span>even before <\/span>missionaries arrived in <\/span>Korea.<\/span>\u201d<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]An estimated 15,000 copies of the Ross New Testament were distributed throughout Korea and Northeast China by Korean colporteurs and <\/span>Bible smugglers before <\/span>foreign <\/span>missionaries <\/span>became established in <\/span>Korea and decided to develop their own Bible translation.<\/span> \u201cThe pioneering missionaries were amazed <\/span>at the fruit that the Ross Bible produced,\u201d said Pastor Foley. \u201c<\/span>In 1889, <\/span>just <\/span>four years after he first arrived in Korea, H.G. Underwood wrote<\/span>, \u2018Applications for baptism are coming to Seoul to-day by the hundreds from all parts of the land where copies of the [John Ross] gospel have been distributed.<\/span>\u2019 That was just one of <\/span>countless <\/span>reports the missionaries received as churches sprung up <\/span>wherever the Ross Bible was distributed, in places the missionaries had not yet visited.<\/span>\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span>[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]Pastor Foley notes that <\/span>while <\/span>the official translation committee <\/span>ultimately decided to <\/span>create their own translation rather than to revise <\/span>and continue to use <\/span>the <\/span>Ross <\/span>version<\/span>, <\/span>respect for the Ross translation has grown over the years.\u00a0<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span>[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n

\u201cThe <\/span>translation committee raised various concerns about the Ross translation, including the possible difficulty of adapting the Pyongan dialect, as well as <\/span>issues about the use and non-use of Chinese, the spelling, the <\/span>new Korean words the translators created<\/span>, and even some questions of translation philosophy<\/span>,\u201d says Pastor Foley<\/span>. <\/span>\u201c<\/span>But in 1960 when the <\/span>translation committee was working on the new translation of the New Testament, a liaison to the committee from the <\/span>British and Foreign Bible Society, Richard Rutt wrote, \u2018The best piece of [Bible] translation <\/span>work so far done in Korean was Ross\u2019s\u2019<\/span>,<\/span> because <\/span>of how easy to understand that it was for <\/span>ordinary Korean people<\/span>.<\/span>\u201d<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1\/2″][vc_single_image image=”41311″ img_size=”large” alignment=”center”][vc_custom_heading text=”North Korean defector students at Voice of the Martyrs Korea\u2019s Underground University work to update the Ross Bible as part of a \u201cContemporary Reader\u2019s Edition\u201d marking the 140th anniversary of the first appearance of scripture in Hangul.” font_container=”tag:p|font_size:13px|text_align:center|color:%230a0a0a|line_height:1.45em” google_fonts=”font_family:Noto%20Sans%3Aregular%2Citalic%2C700%2C700italic|font_style:400%20regular%3A400%3Anormal”][\/vc_column][vc_column width=”1\/2″][vc_column_text]Pastor Foley added, \u201c<\/span>S<\/span>ome scholars have even suggested that the reason why the Ross Bible was not adopted by the translation committee was <\/span>precisely <\/span>because <\/span>it was <\/span>primarily <\/span>the work of ordinary Koreans, written for other ordinary Koreans.<\/span> After all, these were not professional Bible translators. Missionary Ross and Missionary McIntyre were still learning Korean. The many Koreans who were involved in the <\/span>translation were still learning Christianity. In fact, the reason why they came to Ross and McIntyre was to be <\/span>discipled<\/span>. And the way that Ross and McIntyre discipled them was to have them help to translate the Bible.<\/span>\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span>[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]Pastor Foley said that his organization\u2019s work <\/span>in <\/span>creating a \u201ccontemporary reader\u2019s version\u201d of the Ross Bible has given <\/span>the <\/span>participants in the <\/span>project<\/span> a deep appreciation for how <\/span>sophisticated Ross\u2019 translation process was. \u201c<\/span>Missionary Ross and his team <\/span>may not have been professional Bible translators,\u201d says Pastor Foley, \u201cBut <\/span>when you read the detailed documentation of the <\/span>steps<\/span> they went through to ensure both the accuracy and the understandability of the translation, it\u2019s <\/span>clear that they <\/span>had a professional process. And when you look at how the Ross translation<\/span> fundamentally shaped the character of the Korean church<\/span>, it\u2019s clear that the <\/span>process was guided by the Holy Spirit.\u201d<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span>[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]Pastor Foleys says <\/span>that his own motivation for participating <\/span>in the project comes from a desire to see that spirit return to the Korean church. \u201cMissionary Ross had absolute trust in the sufficiency of scripture to reveal Christ fully. <\/span>There\u2019s a great story about <\/span>Yi Song Ha, one of the earliest colporteurs, <\/span>when he was trying to smuggle Bibles into Korea. He was staying at an inn<\/span> on the border<\/span>, and the innkeeper reported to the authorities that he <\/span>had these books. <\/span>So<\/span> Yi had to quickly burn some of the books and then throw the rest in the Yalu River. He was sad and embarrassed to tell this to Missionary Ross. But Missionary Ross responded, \u2018Whoever then drinks the waters of the Yalu or lives in the houses on which <\/span>fall the ashes of burning Bibles will believe in Christ!\u2019 And Ross was right: Christianity spread up and down the banks of the Yalu. Now, with Korean Christianity in sharp decline, we need to recover Missionary Ross\u2019 trust in the word of God. We hope the publication of the \u2018Contemporary Reader<\/span>\u2019<\/span>s <\/span>Edition\u2019 can <\/span>accomplish that goal.\u201d<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span>[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]Pastor Foley says that he has had the goal of publishing a reader\u2019s edition since starting Voice of the Martyrs Korea twenty years ago, but that he and his wife and ministry co-founder Dr<\/span>.<\/span> Hyun Sook Foley found that it was a project that professional translators <\/span>and publishers were reluctant to undertake. \u201c<\/span>Some<\/span> told us there would be <\/span>little <\/span>popular interest in the <\/span>book. Others told us that it might be too controversial to publish it. But to me<\/span>, when I see Korean Christians reading the Message Bible or the Living Bible or some of the other popular new translations, <\/span>how can it be that the only place to see a Ross Bible is in a museum and the only people who can read it are scholars of early Korean writings? The Ross Bible is how the voice of Christ first came to ordinary Korean people. <\/span>Ordinary Korean people deserve to hear that voice again today, exactly as it first sounded\u2014or as close to how it first sounded as possible.<\/span>\u201d<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span>[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]According to Pastor Foley, <\/span>undertaking the project has required assembling a team and process similar to Ross\u2019. \u201c<\/span>We have foreign missionaries <\/span>and bilingual staff <\/span>who are able to read Ross and McIntyre\u2019s <\/span>English language <\/span>notes in order to help <\/span>track down why <\/span>certain words <\/span>or phrases were used. We have people who can look at the Chinese versions that Ross\u2019 team used, which is necessary for solving certain translation puzzles.<\/span>\u201d<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span>[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1\/2″][vc_single_image image=”41308″ img_size=”large” alignment=”center”][\/vc_column][vc_column width=”1\/2″][vc_single_image image=”41305″ img_size=”large” alignment=”center”][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_custom_heading text=”North Korean defector students at Voice of the Martyrs Korea\u2019s Underground University work to update the Ross Bible as part of a \u201cContemporary Reader\u2019s Edition\u201d marking the 140th anniversary of the first appearance of scripture in Hangul.” font_container=”tag:p|font_size:13px|text_align:center|color:%230a0a0a|line_height:1.45em” google_fonts=”font_family:Noto%20Sans%3Aregular%2Citalic%2C700%2C700italic|font_style:400%20regular%3A400%3Anormal”][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]But <\/span>Pastor Foley says that <\/span>the core members of the team are <\/span>Voice of the Mart<\/span>y<\/span>rs Korea\u2019s <\/span>North Korean students and constituents. <\/span>\u201c<\/span>Since the Ross translation was originally done by Koreans from the north and west parts of the country, <\/span>ordinary <\/span>North Koreans <\/span>of today actually can better understand some of the dialect and vocabulary than professional South Korean translators can.\u201d<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span>[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]Pastor Foley says that the <\/span>Ross Bible <\/span>project has become the entire curriculum of both of Voice of the Martyrs Korea\u2019s schools for North Korean defectors this year<\/span>, just as it was for the North Koreans who came to Ross and McIntyre<\/span>. \u201c<\/span>Now that we\u2019ve been doing the project for a while, it\u2019s easy to see why Missionary Ross <\/span>discipled North Koreans by having them translate. Many of our North Korean students get completely absorbed <\/span>in <\/span>the <\/span>work of updating the translation<\/span>,\u201d says Pastor Foley<\/span>. <\/span>\u201c<\/span>They will <\/span>work intensely all day and into the evening <\/span>without taking a break. <\/span>It\u2019s been the most effective form of ministry we\u2019ve ever done<\/span> with North Koreans<\/span>. Missionary McIntyre wrote that during the translation process, his role was mainly to sit back and listen. That\u2019s been our experience<\/span>,<\/span> too.<\/span>\u201d<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span>[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]Pastor Foley added, \u201c<\/span>I believe <\/span>God has given <\/span>North Koreans a particular anointing or <\/span>gift or <\/span>connection related to the Ross Bible<\/span>. One of our North Korean students<\/span> attends a<\/span> North Korean defector congregation <\/span>at a South Korean <\/span>church. Some of the church members were skeptical about the project<\/span>. <\/span>So,<\/span> she stood up in front of the leaders and<\/span> passionately <\/span>shared with <\/span>them <\/span>how she encountered God in translating the Bible<\/span>,<\/span> and <\/span>how important the project is to both North Koreans and <\/span>South <\/span>Korean<\/span>s<\/span>.<\/span> There were South Koreans <\/span>there <\/span>who <\/span>heard her, and they <\/span>clapped <\/span>enthusiastically. One said, \u2018<\/span>I have never heard any testimonies like this one before.<\/span>\u2019\u201d<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span>[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]Pastor Foley emphasized that <\/span>creating a \u201cContemporary Reader\u2019s Version\u201d of the Ross Bible<\/span> is hard work. \u201c<\/span>It\u2019s difficult to explain how long <\/span>it <\/span>takes, and how <\/span>challenging <\/span>it is<\/span> for the participants<\/span>,\u201d says Pastor Foley. \u201cThe Ross Bible was done before the standardization of the Korean language, so the text<\/span> represents <\/span>every word phonetically. You <\/span>have to<\/span> sound out the word, figure out what it is, write it out, figure out how it is written today, figure out what the whole sentence is, figure out <\/span>what words are obsolete, research those\u2014literally every sentence is a challenge.<\/span> But it drives all of us further into the text, and like our North Korean student said, that\u2019s where you meet God.\u201d<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span>[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]According to Pastor Foley, the goal of the project is to put the Ross Bible back in the hands of ordinary Koreans. \u201cThere was a previous effort by a South Korean scholar to update the Ross Bible<\/span>. It was well done<\/span>, but the <\/span>end product<\/span> was a <\/span>limited edition<\/span> hardback book for other <\/span>scholars, with many footnotes. Our project is <\/span>designed to more closely mirror the original one: Ordinary North Koreans, assisted by missionaries,<\/span> putting the New Testament in a<\/span>n inexpensive paperback <\/span>book format that ordinary Koreans all over the country can read. No footnotes, no scholarly comments, no fancy printing<\/span> or binding<\/span>. Just the words of life<\/span>, <\/span>expressed<\/span> in ordinary Korean words <\/span>through the work of <\/span>ordinary North Korean people<\/span> who are learning to follow Christ<\/span>.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span>[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]Pastor Foley says Voice of the Martyrs Korea is scheduled to release the first installment of the <\/span>project, the \u201cContemporary Reader\u2019s Version\u201d of the Ross Bible Gospel of Luke, in <\/span>fall<\/span> 2022. He says distribution is planned for both North and South Korea.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span>[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]More information about Voice of the Martyrs Korea\u2019s schools for North Korean defectors is available at <\/span>https:\/\/vomkorea.com\/en\/project\/northkorea\/uu-school\/<\/span><\/span><\/a>.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

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Those who are interested in donating to the Ross Bible project can make their donation at\u202f<\/span>www.vomkorea.com\/en\/donation<\/span><\/span><\/a>\u00a0 or give via electronic transfer to:\u202f\u202f<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

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\uad6d\ubbfc\uc740\ud589<\/span>\u202f(KB Bank) 463501-01-243303\u202f<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\uc608\uae08\uc8fc<\/span>\u202f(Account holder): (<\/span>\uc0ac<\/span>)<\/span>\uc21c\uad50\uc790\uc758\uc18c\ub9ac<\/span>\u202f\u202f<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Please include the phrase \u201cNK Bible\u201d on the donation<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][\/vc_section]<\/p>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"[vc_section][vc_row][vc_column][vc_single_image image=”41313″ img_size=”full”][vc_custom_heading text=”2022 marks the 140-year anniversary of the release of the first portion of scripture ever translated into the Korean language: Missionary John Ross\u2019 Gospel of Luke, first …","protected":false},"author":659,"featured_media":41316,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"give_campaign_id":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[857,235,869,140],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-41321","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-russian-special","category-special-column","category-china-special","category-vomk-report"],"translation":{"provider":"WPGlobus","version":"3.0.2","language":"en","enabled_languages":["ko","en","zh","ru"],"languages":{"ko":{"title":true,"content":true,"excerpt":false},"en":{"title":true,"content":true,"excerpt":false},"zh":{"title":true,"content":true,"excerpt":false},"ru":{"title":true,"content":true,"excerpt":false}}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/vomkorea.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/41321","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/vomkorea.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/vomkorea.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vomkorea.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/659"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vomkorea.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=41321"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/vomkorea.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/41321\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vomkorea.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/41316"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/vomkorea.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=41321"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vomkorea.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=41321"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vomkorea.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=41321"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}