A Christian nonprofit plans to translate the hit series “The Chosen” into 600 languages around the world. in a recent interview CBN NewsStan Janz, President and CEO please come and seea nonprofit leader in the Bible translation industry, explained the importance of their work.
“The area where the most translation activity is done is with the Bible,” Jantz said. “And you've probably heard about Every Tribe Every Nation, a group of Bible translation companies. Their goal is to translate the Bible into every language on earth, and by 2033 there will be about 6,000 companies. So many people have at least a copy of the New Testament, and probably about 95 percent understand the entire Bible in the language of their hearts.
To date, The Chosen has been translated into more than 50 languages, and Come and See plans to translate the show's seven seasons into more languages.
“We're taking a media project, a multi-season television series about the life of Jesus and His chosen followers, and translating it into 600 languages, which is the first kind of television… It's never been done before on the show…It's an extraordinary feat, but we're excited to be a part of the process.”
Janz also shared how the translation project has impacted communities around the world.
“I received a letter from a woman in India who first saw 'The Chosen' in English. Of course, most Indians speak English, but English is not their first language. And she “I watched it in 2016, and it changed the meaning of the movie. It gave her a deeper connection to the characters,” Jantz said. “She just said, 'Thank you for translating it into Hindi, because it meant so much to me to see and experience it in the language of my heart.'
In another case, Jantz told how The Chosen One was translated into Malagasy's native language at the request of the Madagascan president.
“The president of Madagascar is a Christian, and he probably saw The Chosen in English and said, 'That's what I would love to do if you translated it into Malagasy, the language of Madagascar.' “If we can do that, we'll show it in public and make it available everywhere,” Jantz said to 25 million people.
“As a result, they showed the film all over the country. They showed it in prisons. They showed it in orphanages. They put it on trucks and took it to villages and showed it on public television,” he explained. “A year later, we're still hearing the results of people affected by this. They had celebrations across the country. There were billboards everywhere just to celebrate this idea. This is the chosen one, but it is actually Jesus.”
“The Chosen,” currently in its fourth season, is the largest crowdfunded television project in history. Since the first season premiered, it has been streamed more than 500 million times and is currently watched by more than 108 million people.
On Monday, Bible translation experts celebrated International Bible Translation Day.
According to the United Nations, “This day celebrates the work of language professionals who play an important role in uniting nations, promoting dialogue, understanding and cooperation, contributing to development, and strengthening world peace and security.” It represents an opportunity to show respect.” ”
Photo credit: ©TheChosen; used with permission.
