Why We Badly Need the Local Language?

By: Alejandro Cardeinte, Phayao , Thailand
An excerpt from his unpublished book “The Gospel Call”

“…I had rather speak five words with my understanding, that [by my voice] I might teach others also, than ten thousand words in an [unknown] tongue.” 1 Cor. 14:19

Without taking time to learn the language, the goal to make real disciples will not likely to happen and the people you are reaching will stay in their hopeless condition. The truth you bring will be like another laughable thing to them. A missionary must know that it is not enough to sacrifice. He must not just tell the truth he has but must communicate it to them. If two persons in the same culture and language sometimes have misunderstanding, then how much more to us who don’t have any background of their dialect.
The most difficult part of the culture to learn is the language. It demands time, effort and money. But it is necessary and must be part of our pre-evangelism job, in order to have an effective ministry. Languages and cultures must be respected and acknowledged. In the course of time this helps missionaries to be comfortable.
Until the missionaries master the language of the local people they cannot hope to understand the symbols, covenants, teachings, stories, myths, art and music which native people use to express their religious beliefs and feelings. Sharing the mysteries of Christianity requires the missionary to understand the mysteries of where he is in.
Our goal of going to the mission field is to communicate Jesus to them. That means we must make ourselves understandable to make the gospel clear. “For if the trumpet give an uncertain sound, who shall prepare himself to the battle? So likewise ye, except ye utter by the tongue words easy to be understood, how shall it be known what is spoken? for ye shall speak into the air.” 1 Cor. 14:8,9
To communicate the gospel effectively we must not let them understand us but rather we must understand them by learning their own language.
The local people are using their language when they fight, pray, make love, mourn and the likes. It will not be easy to learn but it will save us from many mistakes later.
I used to watch a Korean TV channel when I was working in South Korea and I could appreciate some white people (social workers) who can speak Korean language fluently. If you will just listen to them without looking at the TV screen you will really be trick. Their intonations and the way they speak are of no difference from native Koreans. How much more to us who is commission to go to spread the gospel everywhere. To teach them to obey God’s given commands.
In this respect, as messengers of the gospel we are in need of reconciliation with the people whom we are working with. Basically, in the cross-cultural ministry, language problem is the barrier of that reconciliation. To be effective, the missionary must have a genuine love for people. He must participate in the lives of the village and be willing to expose himself to be known. Our local language ability is playing big role in it,
because we cannot really mourn with their sorrows and sympathized with them whenever it is needed when we don’t have the language.
Learning the language makes you aware of what is going on in the village. The missionary must not only perceive himself as an infant but an outsider, so that you will strive to become a part of the local community you are in. And when you become part of the community, it would be easier for you to reach them.
A missionary who is fluent in the local dialect knows the culture so well. This means he understands the people he is working with.
If you have the language you have freedom to move in our own. Long to write but you can recall your own experience when you were jailed in the box of your parsonage. That you could hardly ask help from your church members you don’t know anything about their language. Personally, what made me realize the importance of learning the language was that when I was attending the dying person. That I said to myself that if could have their language that time, I may be able to give Jesus the life not just the bowls of food. I may able to bring the spiritual healing not just the physical one. I may able to be a channel of eternal life rather than just extending their temporal one.
Learning the language is necessary, it is a time consuming but it is not time wasting. Here are few suggestions to learn efficiently the language. I did not discourage private learning but open learning is more advantageous since you can gain more contacts around. Our temptation here is to focus on studying the language.

1.Get foundation in the formal school- If it is possible, attend formal language school. It is better to become less effective for 6 months learning the language than to work 5 years with less effectiveness without going to school.
2.You may teach to public school- while teaching, you can bring pictures and ask the kids about them and you may take it down in your notes. That’s what I did when I was working in the Mien people. This is not recommended if you are in the higher level. Since most of the things you learn in school is just the basic things.
3.Learn publicly through interaction- this is more effective because you can learn how to pronounce the word correctly. Especially to those language which are so tonal. For example, the Thai language.
4.Spend time with the neighbors’ kids- This will help you got some words.
However, I do not claim that language ability is pre-requisite to effectiveness. Here, I’m talking about “long-term missionary” not “visiting missionary.” True, there are needs in the field that does not require language ability. Mastering the language may make any missionaries qualified to a certain mission opportunity. It may greatly help him to be more efficient to carry out his duties. But this does not mean he will always succeed in his mission.
There are many missionaries whom I know that their ministry becomes a mess because of their language ability. By experience, I learn that mastery of the local language, if we are not careful, can become a potential hindrance to our work. One reason is that we tend to become less sensitive of the people’s felt needs. This is one of the dangers of our success in acquiring the language. When a missionary dwell much on talking and become less sensitive real needs. Let us remember that language has its role to play but it is not the substitute of the Holy Spirit. The power of the Holy Spirit does the things to change the person not your ability.