The journey of Vision 2025: Bible translation in every language
By Kirk J. Franklin | Wycliffe Today Autumn 2025 |
Missiologist for Wycliffe Global Alliance
Global Missional Leadership lecturer for the Melbourne School of Theology
Past CEO of Wycliffe Australia
The birth of a vision
In June 1999, a historic gathering occurred at the JAARS Centre in Waxhaw, North Carolina. Known as ICON99, it brought together the Wycliffe International Convention and the SIL International Conference. During this event, 350 delegates adopted ‘Vision 2025’: a commitment to ensure that a Bible translation project would be underway for every group needing one by 2025. Part of the resolution stated:
Motivated by the pressing need for all peoples to have access to the Word of God in a language that speaks to their hearts, and reaffirming our historic values and trust in God to accomplish the impossible, we embrace the vision that by 2025, a Bible translation project will be in progress for every people group that needs it.
This vision was more than a goal; it was a reimagining of Bible translation as a Holy Spirit–led movement that invited collaboration with the global Church. Vision 2025 called for new attitudes, partnerships, and approaches aligned with God’s mission. It was also meant to be a challenge for the next generation to embrace.
The vision in action
Vision 2025 brought a sense of urgency for making Scripture accessible in every language, ensuring that no linguistic or cultural barriers keep people from encountering God’s Word. The vision also recognised that a new approach was needed, so sustainability, capacity-building and collaboration all became priorities. Genuine partnerships with Bible agencies and the worldwide Church became important, along with a commitment to unity and humility before God, acknowledging the Holy Spirit’s leading.
The changing landscape in Bible translation
In the years following its adoption, Vision 2025 stimulated changes within the Bible translation movement. By 2011, more Christians in the Majority World were leading translation work. Consequently, Wycliffe International renamed itself Wycliffe Global Alliance (WGA) to emphasise this change from an international mission agency to a global movement for Bible translation.
One of the most striking outcomes from Vision 2025 has been the global expansion in Bible translation. In 1999, Wycliffe was still predominantly Western, but by 2010, over 70 per cent of Wycliffe Global Alliance organisations were from the Majority World. This reflects a collective shift toward shared ownership and local initiative.
A further strength has been the movement’s adaptability. New technologies, fresh strategies, and a willingness to experiment have enabled Vision 2025 to respond to a rapidly changing world.
A commitment to the future
With the year 2025 now well underway, we can reflect on the significance of Vision 2025. When this bold commitment began 26 years ago, it was estimated that it could take 125 to 150 years to start Bible translation projects for the remaining 3,000 people groups without Scripture in the languages they understand best. Today, through the collective efforts of Bible agencies and the global Church, that number has dramatically reduced to 985 languages.[*] This progress reflects God’s faithfulness and the tireless dedication of his people.
The journey is far from over, and the need for Bible translation remains urgent. This vision is not bound by a deadline but by a divine calling to participate in God’s mission. It is an invitation to every believer to pray, support, and act so that all people groups may encounter the transformative power of God’s Word in a language that speaks to their hearts. Together, we carry forward the legacy of Vision 2025, trusting in God to accomplish what seems impossible, for his glory.
[*] For more information visit https://www.wycliffe.net/resources/statistics/
Dedication to the ‘hidden people’
By Deb Fox | Wycliffe Today Spring 2024 Edition |
Des and Jenny Oatridge, c1980.
Wycliffe Australia celebrates the lives of Des and Jenny Oatridge who both recently passed on to glory. Their legacy lives on after a lifetime dedicated to the Binumarien people, a remote people group in the Eastern Highlands of Papua New Guinea (PNG).
Des, a plumber from New Zealand and Jenny, a midwife from Brisbane, met at Bible College (Melbourne Bible Institute, now Melbourne School of Theology) in 1953. They attended the Summer Institute of Linguistics (SIL) School where Des’s phenomenal talent for phonetics was recognised and his relationship with Jenny grew.
Des travelled to PNG in 1956 where his plumbing skills helped establish the centre at Ukarumpa. Des and Jenny were married in Brisbane in 1957 and moved to PNG in 1958. For the next 26 years, they made their home among the Binumarien people.
Des’s skills as a plumber and handyman and Jenny’s background as a nurse and midwife had an immediate impact on improving the health and the quality of life in the community. Yet what they were most excited about was helping the Binumarien people understand God’s Word in their own language.
The Binumarien New Testament was completed in 1984. This was possible because of the years the Oatridges invested in language learning, developing a writing system for the language, translating the New Testament and promoting literacy across all age groups, starting with the elders.
The Oatridge family outside their home in Papua New Guinea.
Before the Oatridges arrived, years of fighting, violence and disease had decimated the Binumarien population from 3000 to just 111 people. Yet the arrival of the New Testament brought healing and forgiveness, and the Binumarien population has now grown to more than 1000. The family of one of Des’s original language consultants, Tuluo, continues to work on the Old Testament translation.
Barry Borneman, speaking at Des’s service, reflected on ‘Uncle Des’. Despite struggling with school, Des became a master teacher. His uncanny talent for phonetics and mimicking sounds was a huge help when constructing the alphabet and dictionary to record the Binumarien language, especially when he realised that Binumarien was a tonal language.
The Oatridge extended family meeting the Binumarien people.
Barry went on to share:
The Oatridges purposely chose the smallest language group because they wanted to show that the ‘weak and insignificant’ still mattered to God. It was not so much what Des and Jenny did that caught my attention, but how they did it that left an indelible mark. The Oatridges brought the Binumariens from being a pre-literate community to a literate one. Now there are new generations going to university!
During Des’s service, a video message was played from the Binumarien village where the Oatridges had lived. An elder, FauFau, said through tears how grateful he was that God sent them to him and his people.
Des went to be with the Lord at the age of 95 on 24 June, followed just 16 days later by his dear wife Jenny on 10 July (aged 94). The services to honour their lives were held by Bethel Funerals at Reedy Creek Baptist Church and Allembe Gardens (Gold Coast), with friends and colleagues joining their family in person and online. Our thoughts and prayers are with Des and Jenny’s children Ruth, Rosemary, Doug, Rob and Jean and their families.
Donations can be made to the Binumarien Old Testament Translation fund.
Binumarien Old Testament Translation – PNG – Wycliffe Australia
Transformed by the Word: Under Construction
By Lyn Wake | Wycliffe Today Winter 2024 Edition
And I am certain that God, who began the good work within you, will continue his work until it is finally finished on the day when Christ Jesus returns. Philippians 1:6 (NLT)
In a few months, I’ll be headed to Vanuatu to support those involved in new translation projects. The long, challenging, and often costly work of Bible translation reminds me of the ongoing journey of grief I began after my daughter Bethany lost her battle with brain cancer 13 years ago. As I grieve, I’ve developed a new contemplative habit of taking notice of epitaphs engraved on headstones. Some epitaphs are sad and futile. But I love discovering words that leave me with a desire to know more of the story beyond the grave.
Several years ago, I visited the gravesides of evangelist Billy Graham and his wife, Ruth Bell Graham. I’ve always thought of Billy as my ‘spiritual grandfather’ but it was Ruth’s epitaph that captured my attention that day. The words simply read: ‘End of Construction. Thank you for your patience.’
Before her passing in 2007, Ruth recounted navigating a highway through the middle of a construction site and eventually seeing a sign with those same words. ‘When I die, I want that engraved on my stone’, was her request to her family.*
Ruth lived the truth that every believer in Christ is ‘under construction’ as we are transformed into his likeness. One glorious day, that construction will be complete. But until then, our lives are made up of mistakes and learning, waiting and growing – all requiring a great deal of patience through the process.
Friends, as we continue to trust the Master Builder, we can be assured that all his work will indeed be completed in his perfect way, in his perfect time – for our good, and his glory.
For further reflection: What memorial words would you like engraved on your gravestone?
Be transformed by the Word as you engage with: Psalm 138:8 and Philippians 1:1-6.
Prayer: Father, thank you for your patience with me as I live into the truth that your master plan will be completed on time – and be exceedingly more wonderful than I can imagine! Amen.
Read more of Lyn’s story and be encouraged by others who have learned to give their pain to God in her new book Waiting Well With Jesus. Refer to the Response Form for details.
The legacy of a 60-year friendship and Scripture engagement
Dr Joseph Havel is a retired forestry officer now living in Western Australia. He has been a faithful supporter of Bible translation through the years, giving in various ways to Vision 2025 projects, Next Step Development projects and Wycliffe members, including friends, Richard and Aretta Loving (d). Dr Havel shares the story behind the deep friendships he formed in Papua New Guinea that gave him a heart for Bible translation:
By Dr Joseph Havel, Western Australia
My contact with Richard and Aretta Loving started rather informally but it lasted for 60 years. Back in 1957, I was working as a forestry officer for the Australian administration of what was then the Territory of Papua and New Guinea. I was working at Bulolo, a gold mining and timber town.
The project employed several hundred local workers, mainly hired in the highlands for a period of 18 months at a time. Some of the people we employed were from the Awa language group. On Sundays, I used to drive up to their camp in the rainforest above us, to run an adult Sunday school class. This was only possible because of an Awa translator and foreman, Yeda.
I used a New Testament in Neo-Melanesian (now called Tok Pisin)—a trade language used for contact between locals, administrators, traders and missionaries. I would read the lesson and make comments on it in Tok Pisin and Yeda would translate it into Awa.
A few months into our lessons, I had a visit from a rather tall American, not unlike Abraham Lincoln in looks, who introduced himself as Dick Loving. He explained that he was involved in translating the New Testament into the Awa language and he wanted to know who was running the Awa Sunday school class. When he found out that I was theologically sound, Dick gave me a partial copy of the Awa NT translation, and showed me how to read it phonetically.
After the translation for the Awa New Testament was completed, the Lovings moved around PNG before eventually heading to East Africa. By 1997, they were back in Papua New Guinea at the Ukarumpa centre, working on a revision of the New Testament translation. We continued correspondence and I supported them through Wycliffe.
I kept my contact with the Lovings afterwards until replies stopped in 2018. It was only recently that I learned that they passed away to be with the Lord ahead of me. I am grateful for the contact I had with them. Our friendship opened doors for me to experience firsthand the power of people receiving God’s Word in their own language. My connection to Wycliffe over the years has influenced my understanding and appreciation for mission and how we can all play a part in God’s work.
If you are thinking of leaving a legacy to Wycliffe, go to https://wycliffe.org.au/support/make-a-bequest/ for details. If you would prefer to talk directly with someone about this, please contact ceo@wycliffe.org.au.
Housing, goats and hiring: the story of Bethel Funerals
How to raise enough money to retain Wycliffe’s valued Australia-based members has long been on David Cummings’ mind. Unlike other agencies, crucial home-based staff such as administrators, mobilisers and trainers are not paid a salary, instead relying on faith support.
‘Our home staff need support just like anyone out on the field, but find it difficult,’ the former Wycliffe chief executive said.
It was a problem he and Wycliffe’s Word Investment committee were determined to solve, leading them on a journey from bricks and mortar to goats, and eventually, funerals.
The first step was the creation of Word Investment Limited (WIL), enabling people to invest in ethical ventures with the interest going to Wycliffe and other causes. But an early investment in house building in Geelong, Victoria hit turbulence when a downturn in the local automotive industry made for unreliable returns.
WIL moved on to goat farming, then a hiring business, while David pondered how to best use limited resources to create income for mission.
‘I realised that through Word Investment, we could start our own business, moving on from stocks and shares to something that would help others while helping the mission,’ he said.
He remembered a friend’s family had successfully run a business for decades in a stable industry with consistent demand: funerals.
After much prayer, research and the generous guidance from that friend, Trevor Adams, (now Chairman of Word Investments) David took his idea of starting a Christian funeral company to WIL and Wycliffe leadership.
‘They had some reservations at first, but a key investor said “go for it” and they did,’ he said.
‘We wanted to run the business the right way, with integrity, and set clear goals: to make money for mission and minister to grieving people.’
Almost thirty years on, the not-for-profit company they created, Bethel Funerals, has contributed more than $6 million to missions, and to Wycliffe in particular. The service enables families to contribute to missions in a unique way, and is a wonderful opportunity for people to leave a legacy as they depart from this life.
‘It makes my heart rejoice how this has worked out, and how Bethel has a wonderful ministry,’ David said.
‘I love too that we have this testimony of how God was in it from the start, from gathering the key people we needed through to providing the material things.’
For more information visit www.bethelfunerals.com.au
This story is from Wycliffe Today – April 2017
Information updated July 2025
About the Author: Louise Bettison. Louise is a Perth journalist spurred on by having witnessed the impact of people being able to access and understand God’s word.
Thanks for your patience...