Like An Open Road

The translated Scriptures are paving the way for spiritual renewal and church growth among the Kera.

She calls them, “the icing on the cake.” Wycliffe Canada’s Jackie Hainaut, who struggled early on to gain acceptance from Kera church leaders, believes the current team of Kera pastors and elders is the finest she has worked with since she began serving in one of Chad’s poorest language groups in 1989.

Today, Jackie counts many of them as dear friends, not just coworkers.

“They’re just incredibly keen men of God—men of prayer, men of the Word.”

The Kera shepherds serving in this southwest corner of Chad lead a wide variety of church ministries as well as Bible translation initiatives, elementary education and literacy efforts affecting thousands of Kera believers and non-believers alike.

They include men like Aidjo Felix, the main translator of the Kera New Testament, and Kouri Benjamin, who is currently training in Central African Republic for his future role in translating the Old Testament.

A Kera pastor, Kotwe Jerome, says the recently dedicated Kera New Testament is equipping him and other Kera leaders to help their people grow in Christ.

“Having the New Testament in my language is like an open road now,” says Jerome. “It helps me to express things, to use the Word and to share the gospel in a confident way.”

Serving as a youth leader many years ago, Jerome was troubled to see an increase in the number of sects being established among the Kera. He saw the need for more pastors who could teach from God’s Word.

“There has to be more people that really know the Word of God properly,” he says, “to withstand these sects and to teach people.

“That’s when I began to feel a burden to be able to develop into a pastor, someone who could really teach and help ground the Church in the Word of God.”

Growing the Church
Ouangmene Simon, president of the region’s Lutheran Brethren congregations, shares Jerome’s concern for the Kera Church. Simon, who also serves as the principal of the local Bible college, holds onto a dream for every church under his care.

“I’d like to see each church have somebody that is able to teach his brothers and sisters, so those people can become strong in their faith and be able to multiply themselves.

“I don’t want them to be like little babies in the Lord…and that’s what most of them are right now.”

Simon is hopeful that the catechists, or elders, enrolled in the three-year Bible training course will become teachers well versed in the Word. Now that they have the New Testament in their heart language, it’s becoming much easier for staff and students to understand the Scriptures and teach them to others.

Like many other Kera church leaders, Simon once had to rely solely on French translations of Scripture when teaching or preaching.

“For years, I struggled to understand some passages in French,” he recalls. “I had to study commentaries…but now I read those passages in Kera and I understand.”

Making Studies Easier
The Kera New Testament is also making life much easier for the 11 students currently studying at the Bible college—many of whom have limited proficiency in the French language.

“What a help it is for us!” says Simon. “Before, we teachers would struggle to find the right expressions in Kera. Now we can just read it out and they understand right away.”

The Kera New Testament is breathing new life into their theological studies—especially when you consider that nearly all of the 90-odd theological books in their library are written in French.

Simon, who worked with SIL’s Mary Pearce to help translate seven of the New Testament books into Kera, says the mother tongue translation has also come alive for others in his family.

“Before, I would read from the French Bible and then translate it into Kera,” says Simon. “Now they have their own New Testaments and they’re able to read too.

“Instead of me being the one to teach, they’re getting new insights themselves—and I’m excited about that.”