Translating Nephesh In The Psalms Into Chinese

This interdisciplinary study tackles the controversy of translating nephesh ( נפֶֶשׁ ) by using an intergenerational translation team to deepen our understanding of this term and providing a more valuable translation in Chinese, especially for use in specialist Children’s Bibles. Traditionally nephesh is often translated in the Bible as ‘soul’, but despite the limitations of this popular rendering, it has led Christians in Chinese contexts to falsely understand views regarding the nature of human beings as a trichotomy. Dr Hui Er Yu’s study offers different options for translating nephesh using the context of where the word appears in Scripture as well as in reference to linguistic and cultural meanings in Chinese contexts. The findings in this book will help to remove anthropological misunderstandings among many Chinese Christians related to nephesh as a result of historic translation decisions. Dr Yu takes a unique approach to translation by using an intergenerational Bible translation team, ranging from seven to fifty-one years of age, which not only demonstrates the importance of intergenerational ministry but also presents a way to fulfill the growing need for well-translated Children’s Bibles in China for thousands of young believers. This book provides important lessons for the many translation projects working towards Children’s Bibles but also for how translation of biblical terms can be better reached through this intergenerational process.

Manfred Kohl has served in many senior roles in theological education, and holds the distinction of having personally visited more theological institutions than anyone else in history (495). He has published over 120 books and articles and has received numerous awards and honorary doctorate degrees. He founded World Vision, the well-known Christian Humanitarian Organization, in several European Countries; Re-Forma., which has set a global standard for non-formal theological education; the Galilean Movement, calling for annually an additional 1 million women and men for biblical ministry and co-chairs the Integrity Commission of the World Evangelical Alliance and the Lausanne Movement. In this festschrift, more than 30 scholars from around the world pay tribute to this remarkable man, by each contributing an article focused on the areas of his career where he has made telling contributions. As theological educators, theologians, Christian leaders and students read this book, it will not only result in his legacy living on, but will make a significant contribution to theological education, both in the formal and non-formal sectors.

This study integrates three independent subjects—translation theory, Mandarin aspect, and Greek aspect—for the purpose of formulating a theory applicable to translating the Bible. Two passages from John 18–19 and 1 Corinthians 15 are provided as test cases.

The publication of the Chinese Union Version (CUV) in 1919 was the culmination of a hundred years of struggle by Western missionaries working closely with Chinese assistants to produce a translation of the Bible fit for the needs of a growing church. Celebrating the CUV's centennial, The Translation of the Bible into Chinese explores the unique challenges faced by its translators in the context of the history of Chinese Bible translation. Ann Cui'an Peng's personal experience of the role played by the CUV in Chinese Christian communities lends the narrative particular weight, while her role as director of the Commission on Bible Publication at the China Christian Council offers a unique insight into the continuing legacy of the CUV for Bible translators today.

The publication of the Chinese Union Version (CUV) in 1919 was the culmination of a hundred years of struggle by Western missionaries working closely with Chinese assistants to produce a translation of the Bible fit for the needs of a growing church. Celebrating the CUV’s centennial, The Translation of the Bible into Chinese explores the unique challenges faced by its translators in the context of the history of Chinese Bible translation. Ann Cui’an Peng’s personal experience of the role played by the CUV in Chinese Christian communities lends the narrative particular weight, while her role as director of the Commission on Bible Publication at the China Christian Council offers a unique insight into the continuing legacy of the CUV for Bible translators today.

Looking into the translation, publication, circulation and use of the Mandarin Bible, this book examines the relationship between Protestant Bible translation and the development of Mandarin into the national language of China during the late Qing and Republican era.

An interdisciplinary collection in the new field of environmental humanities, this volume brings together Chinese environmental ethics, religious ontology, and religious practice to explore how traditional Chinese religio-environmental ethics are actually put into social practice both in China’s past and present. It also examines how Chinese religious teachings offer a wealth of resources to the environmental project of forging new ontologies for humans co-existing with other living beings. Different chapters examine how: Buddhist ontology avoids anthropocentrism, fengshui (Chinese geomancy) can help protect the landscape from economic development, popular religion organizes tree-planting, ancient dream interpretation practices avoided constructing the possessive individual subjectivity of modern consumerism, Buddhist rituals and ethics promoted compassion for animals and modern recycling, Confucian ancestor rituals and tombs have deterred industrial expansion, and also how Daoism’s potential role to deter desertification in northern China was stymied by state operations in contemporary China. A significant advance in the field of Chinese environmental anthropology, the outstanding scholars in this volume provide a unique and much needed contribution to the scholarship on China and the environment.

The Union Version, China's preeminent and most widely used translation of the Bible, had achieved the status of a sacred Chinese classic within the Chinese Church not long after its publication in 1919. Jost Zetzsche's monograph on this remarkable translation traces the historical and linguistic background that led to the decision to translate the Union Version, with detailed analyses of the translation efforts that preceeded it. Special attention is given to the cooperation and confrontation among Protestant denominations as well as the rising prominence of the Chinese translators as these groups attempted to form a cohesive translation of the Bible. This is set against the background of the development of the Chinese language during the 30-year translation process, both in the perception of the translators and in the country at large.