Leading Congregations in Mission - Community of Christ

Beyond Translation:
Creating World Church
Publications in Language and
Cultural Contexts
By Steven L. Shields,
International Resource Development Consultant
I am excited to announce to the Quorum of High Priests
the soon-to-be-released French language Disciple Formation
Guide for youth and a Spanish-language Disciple Formation
Guide for children.
With the launch of the Disciple Formation Guide early
in 2011, Community of Christ entered an exciting era for
teaching and developing disciples! Disciple formation is
important for the church throughout the world. The pressing
question is how our approach can be effective in an increasingly
diverse denomination. Community of Christ has great
experience with creating culturally suitable resources for regional
use. The church has translated many publications from
English into a dozen or more languages used by congregations
around the world.
Resource-creation teams at International Headquarters
realized that creating the Disciple Formation Guide needed
to involve more people, more places, and more languages.
Translation of English-language documents, written in and for
a particular socioeconomic and cultural environment, would
not be satisfactory. A worldwide church needs to hear the
voices of all members from all places. Ideally, such communication
ought to be multidirectional.
Using the church’s successful model of regional resource
creation, we formed two teams. We asked them to write
culturally suitable Disciple Formation Guides. The French-language
team met in French Polynesia in November 2011 and
wrote a guide for youth. The Spanish-language team met in
Honduras in February 2012 and wrote a guide for children.
Using an outline identical to the English-language Disciple
Formation Guide, each team wrote more than 100 disciple
practices, grounded in a variety of cultural frameworks. Using
the Disciple Formation lesson template, they took the work a
step further and wrote a basic lesson plan for each practice.
Team members looked to the English-language Disciple
Formation Guide for inspiration and ideas, but rather than
translate, they created something new.
High Priests Newsletter
International Resources
12
What is most exciting, though, is the teams created not
a regional resource as in the past, with limited distribution,
but a World Church resource. Translation still plays an important
role in World Church resources. The French-language
guide will be translated into Spanish, and eventually into the
many other languages Community of Christ uses.
With the launch of the
Disciple Formation Guide
early in 2011, Community of
Christ entered an exciting
era for teaching and
developing disciples!
Likewise, the Spanish-language guide for children will
be translated into French. Both guides will be translated into
English, and many disciple practices and lesson plans will be
added to the English-language website so they can be used
in the United States, Canada, Britain, Australia, and other
English-speaking areas.
The French-language team of 10 included four members
of the Quorum of High Priests: Pasoti Lee, French
Polynesia Mission Center presidency; Benjamin Colombani
Jr., pastor and congregational consultant; and Larry Tyree and
Steven L. Shields from International Headquarters. Others
were Tanoh Assoi, Ervelyne Bernard, Noëlline Colombani,
Romina Mootua, Tehinarii Reiatua, and Ilona Tauraa.
The Spanish-language team included three members
of the quorum: Gonzalo Mejia, Central America Mission
Center president; Art Smith, apostolic assistant; and Steven
L. Shields, International Headquarters. Other members
were Edgar Copa, Vanesa Herrera, Maria Ramirez, Angela
Ramirez, Amanda Hernandez, Gleidy Tejada, Delfina Mencia,
and Debora Ulloa Castellon de Mejia.
Because the Disciple Formation Guide is not a Sunday
school curriculum, the disciple practices and lesson plans
can be used in many settings. The writing teams feel families
can use the practices for devotional use in the home. Youth
groups can use them in meetings. Adults can use many of the
practices.