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June 2016: "One Thousand Tribes Untouched":
Elvira Malmstrom Townsend and the Founding of Wycliffe Bible Translators |
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One of the most significant chapters
in the history of Christianity in the 20th century is the story of Bible
translation. The Scriptures were translated into multitudes of languages
in 1900s, far more than all the previous centuries combined. Some of
the major agencies for this work were started by William Cameron Townsend
(1896-1982), such as Wycliffe Bible Translators (WBT), the Summer Institute
of Linguistics, and Camp Wycliffe. And a major partner and co-worker
in this ministry was his wife, Elvira, nee Malmstrom (1892-1944).
Townsend had already begun distributing Bibles in Guatemala when he
met and married in July 1919 Elvira, a Presbyterian missionary there.
Together they joined the Central American Mission and together they
opened a new missions station among the Cakchiquel people. The evangelized,
started a school and began translating the Bible into the Cakchiquel
language. It was while doing this translation, which took over a decade,
that the Townsends started to develop some of the principles of linguistics
and translation that would guide WBT in later years. In 1932 they left
Guatemala and returned to the United States because of William's ill
health. It was during this furlough that they met Leonard Legter, who
urged the Townsends to begin a Bible translation work in Mexico. The
next year they held the first Camp Wycliffe to train translators and
began their work in Mexico. For the next ten years, until her death
on Christmas Eve in 1944, Elvira was working alongside of William in
expanding this work, as well as continuing in witnessing and teaching.
She was a member of Moody Church in Chicago, which supported her mission
work from her first first arrival in Guatemala in 1917 until her death.
Collection
330 contains some of the letters Elvira wrote to the church and
its pastor, H. A. Ironside as well as the numerous articles about the
Townsends that appeared in the church newsletter, usually in Elvira's
own words. Below are links to a selection of these documents, which
tell of the origins of one of the most influential ministries of the
modern age. |
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Date |
Location |
Description |
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Good News (the church newsletter) |
Newsletter article. Elvira's arrival,in Guatemala |
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Good News |
Newsletter article. Letter from one of Elvira's students |
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Good News |
Newsletter article. Learning the Cakchiquel language |
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Moody Church News |
Newsletter article. Evangelism in Guatemala towns |
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Moody Church News |
Newsletter article. Meeting with the President of Guatemala |
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Moody Church News |
Newsletter article. Distributing the first Cakchiquel New Testaments
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Moody Church News |
Newsletter article. An erupting volcano |
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Moody Church News |
Newsletter article. William's illness |
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Moody Church News |
Newsletter article. Visit from the President of Mexico |
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Moody Church News |
Newsletter article. Faithfulness in Service |
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Moody Church News |
Newsletter article. One Thousand Tribes Untouched |
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Collection 330, Box 7, Folder 3 |
Postcard. From Elvira Townsend to H. A. Ironside. With transcript |
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Collection 330, Box 7, Folder 3 |
Letter. From Elvira Townsend to Moody Church |
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Collection 330, Box 7, Folder 3 |
Letter from Elvira Townsend to Moody Church |
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Collection 330, Box 7, Folder 3 |
Letter. From the Townsends to the supporters of Wycliffe Bible Translators |
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Collection 330, Box 7, Folder 3 |
Letter. From Elvira Townsend to H. A. Ironside. With transcript |
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Moody Church News (January
1944) |
Newsletter article. Translating the Word of God |
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Collection 330, Box 19, Folder 4 |
Letter. From William Cameron Townsend to H. A. Ironside on the relation
of Bible translation to Biblical prophecy |
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Moody Church News |
Newsletter article. Bible Training for Indian Key Men |
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Collection 330, Box 19, Folder 4 |
Telegram from Elvira Townsend, Doris Needham. Mary Beaer (all of
whom received support from Moody Church) to Moody Church about the upcoming
Camp Wycliffe |
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Collection 330, Box 19, Folder 4 |
Telegram. From William Cameron Townsend to H. A. Ironside, announcing
Elvira's death |
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Collection 330, Box 19, Folder 4 |
Letter. From H. A. Ironside, responding to Townsend's telegram |
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Moody Church News |
Newsletter article. Obituary of Elvira Malmstrom Townsend |
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