c9Vew^ Jrom

Field Address:
Box 997

Madang,
Papua New Guinea

Tlie "Wilcox
serving tfie ^ot~d

Forwarding Agent's

as

Address;
Letha Weaver
406 Thornton Cr Rd

r W>

'B/b/e 'Translators /"/

Toledo, OR
Phone:

97391

503-875-4022

March 1992
^apua c^eW^ Quinea
Dear Friends,

Greetings in the precious name of Jesus.

After being gone from the village about 5
weeks we returned to find that spiders have
taken over our house. Today is the day for
re-conquest of our home from the webs of the
8-legged population. But better them than the
centipedes.
In our time in town we had a spiritual
retreat, our mission's annual business meeting,
a translation checking session, time doing lan
guage work in the computer room, and time

Spent buying and packing for our return to the

village. We kept busy.
After our annual meeting David and Sharran Pryor, Martha Wade,and I checked part of
the book of Mark in both the Kire and Kiahig
Balag languages. David and Sharran worked on
chapters one through eight while I worked on
four through six. Martha was our session coor
dinator.

These peer checking session are a time

where we go over each others materials looking
for omissions, shifts of meaning, the tracing of
participants, etc. They also give us a

Htfi late various pas ages.

II

broader perspective on how we can trans-

Often the way we need to translate in

PNG languages is quite different from

English. One of the reasons is that the
grammars of PNG languages use far more
verbs.

I will illustrate this with a portion of

Mark 6:6 & 7. The format of the example

involves the Kianig Balag (the \tx line)

with an English literal word for word

it. Then after the sentence we have an

English free (the \ef line) translation of

ill

tries to reflect the actual content and

grammatical form of Kiahig Balag rather
than proper English.

translation (the \wg line) right underneath

^ the literal English. The "English Free"

Yakambik, Dan, and Amfat]gasak work on the translation
of the book of Mark. Having the office rebuilt will be a
blessing to them since it will mean not having to move all
their books after each session.

The term "pro-verb" is a word that stands

for the verb (or verbal construction) that im
mediately precedes it. In English we might say,
"this having happened" or "having done this."

when they are introduced, or when they change

from being subject to object, etc. As long as

\ef Okay, Jesus went to many villages

and spoke his thoughts.

one person is filling the sentence role, he is

never mentioned again by a noun or pronoun.
To use as many nouns and pronouns as Greek
or English does we would probably be intro
ducing too many new characters. Or we can
end up getting people twisted around into the
wrong roles. By translating literally word for
word we can actually seriously distort or
obscure the intended meaning.
Tim Wright, a PET Board member, and his
daughter, Stacy, were here for our spiritual
retreat. They also spent Christmas with us here
at Gilig. They were only with us for a few days
before going on to visit other PBTers, but we
really enjoyed them while they were here.

Mark 6:7a

Their visit marked the first time a board mem-

Mark 6:6b

\tx De Jisasilin
\wg okay Jesus-(subject)
\tx wata-watatik
\wg to-many-villages

\tx wokok
\wg his

gilali
moved-repeatedly

jugjugama
thoughts

sivitveve.
spoke

\tx Kape,
de, wun wokok 12
\wg (pro-verb) okay he
his
12
\tx balahju kanigmiveve.
\wg people summoned

\ef This having happened, okay, he summoned

his 12 people.
Mark 6:7b

\tx Kahigim evekandi asikuveve

\wg having-summoned sent-out
\tx alawihe alawihe.
\wg by-two by-two

\ef Having summoned them he sent them out

two by two.

The pro-verb connects the sentence that it

is in (7a) to the sentence before it (6b). The
verb that starts the third sentence (7b) is a
repeat from the previous sentence (7a), with
"kandi" added. This is another way that the
sentences are connected. Without those verbal

connections the language does not sound right.

It can even be misleading in that there seems
to be a change of setting or activity indicated
by their absence.
Another way that PNG languages often
handle things differently than English or Greek
is the way people are referred to through a text.
PNG languages will often list a person only

Decorating our plastic Christmas tree has

always been a fun time for the kids. This
year we joined the high technology set by
adding 12 volt Christmas tree lights.
The villagers and ourfamily thoroughly
enjoyed the addition.

ber or a member of the International Office has

She will continue to be with us until mid

come to visit our village.

While Tim and Stacy were here they got to
see part of the revival that has been taking
place locally. It has been exciting in that many

May when she takes a vacation. Then she will

be with another PBT team, the Butlers, for a
few months until they leave in November.
Then she will return to help us again for the

of the former "hold-outs" have decided to

remainder of '92.

accept Christ and be baptized. One is my boat

Our PBT board once asked the branch what

driver, Taipai, and another was my village

would help us most in terms of additional

personnel for the field. The translation teams

mama, Wukanbit. Beth and D-III had several

of their friends baptized, too.

The hard part of the revival is that our house

were virtually unanimous in their cry for

is so close to the church building. "How is that

hard?" you ask? Well, when the people get

village with teams, either in the same house or

nearby, according to each individual situation.

going they like to sing and beat the drum all

night. Now that drum, when conditions are
right, can be heard for miles. Hearing it go

We also need teachers that would be willing to

live at Ukarumpa (at the Summer Institute of
Linguistics base there) and teach at their

teachers. We need teachers who will live in the

boom, boom, boom, boom hour after hour gets'

school. This will allow PBT members to con

to be old. It isn't that we want to squelch the

worship. We want the people to worship, and
we believe it needs to be in a culturally ap
propriate format. But we just can't seem to
work days unless we can sleep nights. And that
boom, boom, boom is not conducive to sleep.
Afterwhile you hear it echo in your head long
after they quit.
The revival here has brought with it its own
set of problems. Be praying with us as we help
steer the church leadership to the proper scrip
tures so they can be equipped to deal with
all that they need to handle. Sometimes it
will mean stretching to absorb all that the
Lord is doing; other times it will mean

tinue to use the school. Especially important

are the higher grade levels. There seems to be
a perpetual shortage of teachers both for the

village and for the mission schools. If you are

a qualified teacher and interested in this type
of work, please contact PBT for further infor
mation.

Recently Pioneer Bible Translators has

been given the opportunity to become involved

in a matching funds campaign. The person

donating the funds involved has put stock in

defusing Satan's counterattack. And always |

it will mean learning to tell one from the
other.
Since about September we have been
enjoying having a teacher, Bobbye Eiland,
living at Gilig and teaching Beth and D-III.
This has been a real blessing for us in that

J
I

it has allowed us to fit into a more normal

family structure. Mom and Dad are no

longer the teachers. So when school is over

the trouble of the classroom can usually be

left in the classroom. It is almost impossible

to tell how much this has improved our

home. We praise the Lord for sending her
to us.

L
Teaching school in a PNG village situation isn't a new
experience for Bobbye. She's PBT's latest addition to
our itinerate teaching staff. Beth and D-III have been
lucky to get their own teacher for most of the year.

trust that PBT has first opportunity to useif

we can get matching new donations. If you are
not currently supporting Pioneer Bible Trans
lators, but are supportive of the concept of
translation of God's word into the heart lan

guage of minority groups around the world,

please consider this an opportunity to become
involved in a way that what you give financially
will count double. Funds can be sent either to

our forwarding agent and marked to go in the

matching fund campaign, or they can be sent
to Pioneer Bible Translators, PO Box 381030,

Duncanville, TX 75138-1030. Or you can

phone 1-800-332-8667 and ask for further in
formation.

Now, it is time to let you know what we areplanning to do for 1992. First,I need to expand
my office space. I am currently working in an
area about 7 ft square. When you put in a desk,
a file cabinet, bookshelves, etc. I find I don't
have room for me! Well, actually, I can usually
get in, but getting language helpers in too is
often impossible. So I will be rebuilding my old
office (the posts are rotted off, the roof leaks,
the floor has gaps big enough for pencils to fall
through, the structure has been used to feed
termites, and the walls are coming apart, but it
is otherwise okay). Almost all materials are on
hand for the task, other than what I can get
from the jungle. I hope do be done before most
of you even get this!

Next I want to revise the portion of Mark

that we went through during our checking
session. Then we will continue translating in
Mark, followed by a checking session in late
May.
In June I plan to return to Yimnalam to
work on the airstrip there. I would really like
to finish it at that time, but it may require
another trip later in what would be early fall in

America. In late July or early August I may

take another course (by extension) in PNG
from Fuller Theological Seminary's School of
World Mission.

- Following the Fuller course we may be

having q^j;luaich convention here. I will be
and h

needed

preparai

t. Th

babi

me into
back to

smo

and lin

ork f(w4;he

rest of tne year

I just wish I could do all that as easy as I
can write it! But if I can get it done this year
we will be ready for a checking session with a
United Bible Societies consultant in late 1992-

-and maybe be about ready to print Mark.

Please PRAY!
Grace and Peace.

Yours in Christ,

Dan Wilcox & Family

First Christian Church

609 SE Second St

Newport, OR 97365

Non-profit Organization
U. S. Postage Paid
Newport, OR 97365
Permit Number

Mission Services Association

PO Box 2427

Knoxviiie TN 37901

ADDRESS CORRECTION REQUESTED

'w: 'r-

6^-27
(fNewg Jrom

/
Field Address:

T/je 'Wilcox '^amily\^

serving tiip ^ofd
as

'^ible '^fanslatofs /
in

Box 997

Madang
Papua New Guinea
Forwarding Agent's
Address:
406 Thornton Cr Rd

Toledo,OR 97391
Phone: (503)875-4022

October 29,1992

^apua S^eW^ Quinea

Dear Friends,

Greetings in the precious name of Jesus.

We are presently in Oregon. Rosalind was having some medical problems that
we tried unsuccessfully to get treated in PNG. Because of some abnormal test results
followed by the lack of trained personnel and equipment needed to get an accurate
diagnosis of the cause, we were advised to return to America for diagnosis and
treatment. Madang has one gynecologist. Rosalind got to see her once, and then she
left the country along with her husband, Madang's only anesthesiologists. To top it
off, Madang's only lab, such as it is, had it's workers go on strike, making it
impossible to have even the limited available lab work done. Even though we
didn't feel we were able to totally trust the results of the tests we had been able to
have taken, they indicated that something could be seriously wrong, so we headed
back to the States.

We got back here on August 4. It was discovered that Rosalind had a severe case
of endometriosis and needed a hysterectomy, which took place September 10. She is
recovering well, but hasn't recovered all her strength yet and is having some
problems adjusting to the hormones she has to take now. She doesn't feel up to
doing much traveling yet.
While here we decided to put our kids in school. This has turned out to be an
adventure in its own right. I suppose you are used to itwe are not. Plus we have
had a few little twists that most of you do not get. For instance, Oregon now
requires that children born in many countries to get a TB test before going to school.
This was a surprise to us, but we are not opposed to it. We have seen too many
people die of TB. But we know that due to the BCG shots they got overseas both of
our kids test positive to the skin test (though neither has TB), and D-III gets a huge
sore from the test. So we wanted to skip the skin test and go directly on to the x-ray
stage, since that is what they would have to have done anyway.

Then we bumped into bureaucracy. The woman at the county health

department said we could not do that. It seems to me that she must deal with a lot

of people who do not want their kids to be tested or inoculated, so put us in the
same category. Or else she was having a very bad day. Anyway,she was adamant
that the kids had to take the skin test, and that we did not know what we were

talking about!

We did get from her the phone number for the state office that is in charge of the
TB testing, so we called them. On the third call we got a doctor who told us that we

could go through our family physician, and if he agreed, we could skip the skin tests
and have x-rays done.
We set up appointments.JWhen we talked to our doctor he had a "That's

logical!" attitude that really encouraged us. The x-rays were okay,so everything is
now fine.

It has also taken us quite a bit of adjustment to figure out how to work out our
dealings with our insurance company. This is a new experience for us, never
having had health insurance before. But what was really fun was trying to get it
straight with the bookkeeper at the doctors office.
When we first started going the various people all wanted to talk to Rosalind,
not me. If they called wanting to know insurance information, they would ask for
her, even though the insurance is in my name. I figured that was really good for
Rosalind because it would give her experience in handling such matters if
something ever happens to me. But one particular woman decided that she could
not accept anything Rosalind told her.

For instance, we have a deductible, then a portion where co-insurance applies,

then the insurance pays the rest. After we had paid the deductible, this particular
woman wanted to charge us our co-insurance percentage on the deductible, too. She
also said our deductible was twire as much as it is. JWe called our insurance
company and confirmed our coverage, then Rosalind again told the woman what
the situation was. She would not believe her. So the next time I told her. There

was no argument, no discussion, just an "Okay." Rosalind did not know whether to
laugh or scream. I told her to go ahead and laugh. And to remember that some
women are prejudiced against women. What baffles me is why she is working in a
gynecologist's office!

Other things have been equally strange, to us. Like putting Beth into high
school. It probably isn't really the high school that is confusing. It is the 14 year old
girl. Somehow it is hard to keep accepting the concept that "this is normal." I keep
hearing that teen age years are tough on teenagers and that they are a real emotional
roller-coaster. Well, it is certainly true for the parents, too. And in our case there is
always the cross cultural element thrown in. Many times we find ourselves saying

"Do you know what that means?" Of course this is followed by either, "But
everybody is doing it!" or "It doesn't mean that!" or "What's wrong with that?"
Other times we find ourselves overjoyed by the maturity of decisions she makes.
Only to be dashed to the rocks ("pride comes before the fall") when we find out that
the homework was not getting turned in.
Mom says that I did the same things. I do not know if that is all that comforting.
D-III has said a few things he didn't understand, too. His problems are more in
terms of dealing with bullies and so forth. He even had his backpack with all his
school books stolen off the bus. He came home upset that he could not get his
homework done. He was so upset he had the dry heaves! I cannot see my mom
saying that I was that responsible! He did get everything back but a pair of sun
glasses. The kid who took the pack was identified and wrote him an apology.

There have been good times, too. Seeing family and friends is refreshing. Hot'
fudge milkshakes, and an occasional visit to a fast-food restaurant, or even a not so

fast food restaurant. Trees turning red and gold in the crisp fall air. Being able to get
what you want at the store, and knowing it will still be there if you do not get it
today. The list goes on.
It is special to get to vote to. While overseas the ballots arrive after the election,
so we have even quit trying to vote. Now we get to.
But the biggest blessings have been in terms of people. The love showered on us

by our home church and other Christian friends has been truly refreshing. Talking
to some of you on the phone is a rare treat to us. Knowing that we will get to see
more of you as we travel around before leaving near the end of January is also
special. We only wish we could see all of you. Departure is set for the end of
January in order to allow Rosalind to recover her strength and adjust to the
hormones.

Grace to you, and peace from God our Father, and our Lord,Jesus Christ.
/

In Him,

Dan Wilcox
Pioneer Bible Translators

Newport First Christian Church

Non-Profit Organization
U.S. Postage Paid
Newport, OR 97365

809 S.E. Second

Newport, OR 97365-4099

Address Correction Requested

Mission Services Association
PO Box 2427

Knoxvllle TN 37901

ImIM lulllillliMltilll iiiiiilninltlltiiiiiiiil

This is our most recent family portrait. It was taken while we were in Madang some
time ago. Beth is now taller than her mother~and trying hard to go past her dad.
D-III is growing ,too, so I guess we had best get another taken soon!