First Tetum-language New Testament for East Timor

Contents - Jul 2001 - Buy a copy now Editorial: Archbishop Pell receives the pallium - Peter Westmore New Vatican guidelines call for sound, accurate liturgy translations - Michael Gilchrist News: The Church Around the World AD2000 makes impact on the Internet - Francis Young Thomas More Centre Winter Schools 2001 for Ballarat and Brisbane Education: National Catholic Education Conference: but who chose the guest speakers? - Michael Gilchrist Carnivale Christi: an inspiring display of Christian culture - Angela Smith Archbishop Carnley: controversial Primate - Dr Ian Spry QC Basic Ecclesial Communities - Archbishop Leonard Faulkner Report on Marins BECs workshop in Ballarat - Peter Finlayson The case for more Church History in Catholic schools - Michael Lynch First Tetum-language New Testament for East Timor Letters: Australia's Patroness? (letter) - Rev W.J. Robley Adm Letters: Ballarat Diocese (letter) - Peter Jenkins Letters: Ambiguities (letter) - Philip Robinson Letters: Mass media (letter) - Errol P. Duke Letters: New Testament books (letter) - Fr G.H. Duggan SM Letters: De facto relationships (letter) - Deirdre Lyra Letters: Church land (letter) - Charles Haber Books: Testimonies to the Glory of God: World Youth Day Pilgrimage AD2000 - Catherine Sheehan (reviewer) Books: 'Five Loaves and Two Fishes' by Archbishop F. X. Nguyen Van Thuan - Anthony Cappello (reviewer) Books: The Gift of the Rosary: How to make and How and Why to Pray, by Brian Peachey - Barry Morgan (reviewer) Music: From the Great South Land of the Holy Spirit: - John Miles (reviewer) Corpus Christi Seminary Inquiry Day Reflection: An Australian World War II hero - Ron Cowban

The first ever edition of the New Testament in the Tetum language was unloaded in Dili last May. Fr Rolando Fernandez SDB - a Filipino priest from the Don Bosco Centre at Comoro near Dili - who worked on the translation for a number of years was overjoyed to finally see the project reach fruition. "What a wonderful day!" Fr Rolando exclaimed as he unpacked the 30,000 copies from the container in Dili.

The international Catholic charity, Aid to the Church in Need, funded this unique project with a grant of $35,000.

Due to this grant Fr Rolando said "Now we will be able to send complimentary copies to all the priests and religious communities in Timor and then be able to sell the rest at a much lower price than it would have cost if we did not have the subsidy. And whatever gains we will get will be used to re-print the much sought-after Mass guide and songbook Hananu ba Nai."

Last year Aid to the Church in Need also gave a grant of $15,000 for the reprinting of 10,000 copies of the Child's Bible in the Tetum language after these books were destroyed in the looting and burning of Dili in September 1999.

For further information please contact Phillip Collignon, Australian Director, Aid to the Church in Need, tel/fax: (02) 9679 1929, E-mail: info@aidtochurch.org and website: www.aidtochurch.org.

Reprinted from AD2000 Vol 14 No 6 (July 2001), p. 13