Wycliffe Bible Translators

Launch to Timor-Leste: Embracing people, culture and language

By John Tan  |  Wycliffe Today Autumn 2024 Edition

John and Remy Tan are Wycliffe Australia members based at the National Centre in Melbourne. They recently took a short-term assignment, spending six weeks in Timor-Leste to assist in the Australia Timor-Leste Group (ATG) office in Dili. John explains how SIL Australia’s Launch language learning and cultural awareness course prepared them for their short-term assignment. 

We found our ‘workation’ in Timor-Leste was a refreshing time with the Lord. I helped record and edit the books of Ruth and Mark in the local Mambae language. Remy led an in-house staff training session on record keeping and management. 

When you spend time with people from a different country and language, it helps to immerse yourself in their culture, and SILA’s Launch course was great preparation. At the end of our short-term mission assignment in Timor-Leste, our hosts reported that we connected positively with their team. They enjoyed our friendliness and willingness to learn their language, eat their food and sing their songs. I thought SILA’s summer Launch course prepared us well for this assignment. The four modules of the course laid the foundation for our positive service in Timor-Leste:

Language Learning

Most Timorese people know many languages, but they are more comfortable using their national language of Tetum Dili. While they practised English, we practised Tetum Dili by getting used to sounds over lunchtime conversations and attending church services. We added to our vocabulary by using ‘power-tool phrases’ like ‘how do you say … ?’ then reviewed everything by reading Scripture and a dictionary.

Language Awareness

As time went on, we learned to construct our own sentences, as we learned how to arrange noun and verb phrases and other words in the right order.

Phonetics

My assignment in Dili was to record two books of the Bible in the Mambae language. The phonetics training helped me listen for voiced and voiceless consonants, aspiration and plosives. This helped me know what to look for in the audio wave diagrams as I was editing.

Cultural Anthropology

I found it interesting to learn about the Timorese people: their worldview, mythology, geography and history. They also invited us to weddings and welcomed us into their lives. We felt embraced by the people and will treasure the time we spent in Timor-Leste.

Inquiries are now open for Launch 2025 enrolments.  Visit https://www.sila.org.au/courses/summer-school/ for more information.

Launch 2022: preparing a new generation

By Sharna Steinert | Wycliffe Today Spring 2022|

Where do you look for training for what God is leading you to do in the future? Who do you ask for advice?

SIL Australia (SILA) provides training in language development and linguistics for people who are or will be involved in intercultural work, either in their home country or in another context. One of the key ways in which we do this is through Launch, our four-week cross-cultural preparation course. The training is usually held in summer but in 2021 and 2022 it took place during winter.

Many students who come to Launch are members of Wycliffe Australia, or in the process of becoming members of Wycliffe Australia. Increasingly, SILA is partnering with more Wycliffe organisations in Asia and the Pacific. 

This year, two of the students at Launch came from Japan– one is already a member of Wycliffe Japan and the other is in the process of becoming a member. Two students in the Cultural Anthropology subject remained in their homes in Vanuatu and joined classes via Zoom.

A further two students were also non-native speakers of English, creating a diverse community in terms of language and culture. Everyone, staff and students alike, learns more in this environment, becoming more aware of their own language and culture as well as beginning to understand other languages and cultures better. 

We already anticipate having students from Malaysia, Papua New Guinea, New Zealand and around Australia for our next Launch course, which will be held in summer in 2023. 

For more information, check out our website: www.sila.org.au/launch 

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