Wycliffe & SIL International
In 1917 a missionary named William Cameron Townsend went to Guatemala to sell Spanish Bibles. But he was shocked when many people couldn’t understand the books. They spoke Cakchiquel, a language without a Bible. Cam believed everyone should understand the Bible, so he started a linguistics school (the Summer Institute of Linguistics, known today as SIL) that trained people to do Bible translation. The work continued to grow, and in 1942 Cam officially founded Wycliffe Bible Translators.
Today, Wycliffe partners with numerous partner organizations. SIL International is one of Wycliffe’s key partners. While Wycliffe does the recruiting and sending of missionaries, SIL is the primary on-the-ground organization for which many Wycliffe missionaries serve around the world doing the work of Bible Translation.
For more than 70 years, Wycliffe has helped people around the world translate the Bible into their own languages. Wycliffe believes that Bible translation is most transformational as a locally-led, sustainable ministry of the church. Wycliffe USA serves together with churches and Bible translation organizations around the world so that local churches have Scripture and other resources to meet their spiritual needs, along with the capacity to continue to meet those growing needs in the future.
SIL International is a global, faith-based nonprofit that works with local communities around the world to develop language solutions that expand possibilities for a better life.