The Reverend Dr Kennedy Owiredu, the translation Manager at the Bible society of Ghana, has advised Christians to own a Bible in their local dialects so as to get the actual meaning and understanding of the Bible.

That, he noted, would also help them preserve and pass on their local languages to the next generation.

Reverend Dr Owiredu was speaking on the sidelines of the 2023 Translation and Trauma Healing Seminar at Sefwi-Dwenase Pentecost Central in the Waiwso Municipality of the Western North Region.

The seminar attended by pastors, church leaders and Local Council of churches within the Western North Region was on the theme: “Bible Translation and Mother -tongue Interpretation for Pulpit Ministry.”

According to Reverend Dr Owiredu, among the core responsibilities of the Bible society of Ghana was to translate the Bible into local languages and encouraged pastors, church leaders and religious groups to accept the local Bible in their respective churches.

He expressed worry that if pragmatic measures were not put in place, many local languages would die with time because the current society was not passing them unto the youth who are the future generation.

Rev. Owiredu Expressed worry in the emerging trend where some churches did not use the local Bible at all for church services and advised those churches to begin using the local Bible during church service, adding, ”for the Lord we serve speaks all our local dialects.”

He called on the media to support the campaign for the translation of the Bible into the various languages by contacting the Bible society for the appropriate information.

Miss Afua Addae Adjeii-Authur, the Western North Regional Manager of the Bible Society of Ghana, on her part, said they had identified some groups who were supporting people to learn and write the Sehwi language and had graduated three groups since 2020 within Wiawso, Bekwai and Nkwadum areas and would soon be moving to Akontombra and its environs.

That, she explained was to motivate residents to use the Bible, which had been translated into Sehwi language, “We anticipate the Sehwi language would be a written subject at the Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE).”

She in that regard said her outfit had engaged the traditional authorities and stakeholders to make sure it materialized.

Some of the participants in an interview with the Ghana News Agency lauded the Bible Society of Ghana for the Seminar and embraced the idea of translating the Bible into local languages.

Some of them also asked church leaders to endeavour to use local Bible during church services.