Watering Down the Bible

Shame is a Given: All its Permutations Are Not

In recent days we have been invited to sign an (electronic) petition protesting against biblical translation organizations such as Wycliffe Bible Translators.  Apparently these well-meaning folk have been busy preparing a translation of the Bible into Arabic, especially for the Muslim world. 

There has been an overt, deliberate attempt  to remove references to the "Father" and the "Son" from the text of this translations of the Bible.  Why?  Well, apparently we all want to celebrate what we have in common with Islamic believers and not offend them from the "real" message of the Bible (whatever that might be). 

Reportedly a significant number of Wycliffe missionary and support staff  have resigned.
  Appeals, arguments, and protests have fallen on deaf ears.  When you are doing "God's work" don't let a few pathetic remonstrants stand in your way. 

Like Prufrock, we have seen all this before.  We know what the outcome will be.  After World War I, liberalism and progressivism gained a vice-like grip on many parts of the Western church.  These "parts" have usually been called the "mainline" denominations.  These folk inherited the modern missionary movement whereby hundreds of thousands of missionaries had spread out across the globe, proclaiming the Gospel of Jesus Christ.  But liberal, humanistic "believers" began to be troubled by what they saw as offensive arrogance on the part of Christians in the West. 

Rodney Stark takes up the story:

In the aftermath of World War I, liberal condemnations of missionizing great increasingly strident and public. . . . (L)iberal Protestants charged that Christianity has no greater claim to religious truths than do other religions, and that the entire mission effort must accept the validity of non-Christian religions rather than try to replace them. Rodney Stark, One True God [Princeton: Princeton University Press, 2001], p.99)

One very influential book in these circles of culturally superior and effete Christians was written by William Hocking of Harvard Divinity School.  It was entitled Re-Thinking Missions.  The basic thesis was that there was nothing distinctive in Christianity: its truth belonged to the human mind everywhere, just in different forms.  Like Islam, for example.  The outcome: within two generations, the modern missionary movement had ceased to exist--at least in the halls of "mainline" denominations.  In 1935, missionaries from mainline denominations represented about half those on the field.  By 1996, it had fallen to just 4.2 percent. 

So we have a pretty good idea about what is going to happen to Wycliffe and those associated with it.  Relying as it does on voluntary donations, and from volunteering linguists and life-long field workers, it will attenuate and wither.  We suspect that, unless it repents, Wycliffe will cease to exist in a generation. 

Those who try to add their own offence to the Gospel bring dishonour to Christ.  Those who try to detract from the offence of the Gospel are dishonoured by God.  And, just co-incidentally, it is the very worst thing that could be done for Islamic people world-wide.