June F Dickie
I am a Bible translator with field experience in Mozambique, Nigeria, Ethiopia, and various other countries. My interest is in biblical poetry (particularly Psalms) and their interpretation by (and application for) contemporary audiences. I have worked with psalms of praise and lament, with Zulu youth, the Coloured community, and refugees. I try to use performance and psychological insights to enhance our understanding of biblical poetry.
I have converted my thesis into a book ("Composing and Performing Psalms of Praise for African Audiences"). It will soon be available online (free for those from disadvantaged backgrounds). I have also consolidated my work on lament into a book ("Composing and Performing Lament Poems, based on Biblical Laments") which will also be available soon.
Supervisors: Gerald West; Jonathan Draper; Ernst Wendland
I have converted my thesis into a book ("Composing and Performing Psalms of Praise for African Audiences"). It will soon be available online (free for those from disadvantaged backgrounds). I have also consolidated my work on lament into a book ("Composing and Performing Lament Poems, based on Biblical Laments") which will also be available soon.
Supervisors: Gerald West; Jonathan Draper; Ernst Wendland
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This paper seeks to introduce the theology behind lament as well as practical examples of how to lament, privately and communally. Lament is clearly an effective means to deepen one's spiritual walk, become more authentic, and learn to enter compassionately into the pain of others, for their healing
• How might we read Hebrew poetry as divine communication? What is the theological significance of this poetry within the context of a given community of faith?
• How do the biblical poets construct meaning? How do faithful readers of these poems creatively read biblical poetry to find meaning for today?
• How might poetry facilitate an encounter with God? How can we embody a proper responsiveness to what a particular poem is doing/saying?
• What can the genre of poetry do that another genre cannot do?
Speakers include:
John Goldingay,
Ellen Davis,
Katie Heffelfinger,
Benjamin Sommer,
Shai Held,
David Firth,
June Dickie, and
Yisca Zimran
milieu. We have now reached a stage at which we have something to share that could benefit others. In particular, we have noted three areas which are important if translators are to be able to express the message of a poem: first, they need to enter into its emotional content. Second, they need to hold its content as a whole (since a poem must be understood as a unit). And third, they need to engage creatively, using all the senses to explore the full rhetoric of the poet. This requires an application of the dynamics of performance (for the first), memory theory (for the second),
and methods of stimulating creativity (for the third).
The research aspect of this paper involves applying insights from other disciplines to Bible translation. Many scholars (for example, Aboelela et al. 20072) would assert that this is where exciting discoveries are currently being made, at the intersection of related disciplines. Thus, in this paper I focus on the application of findings from related fields (memory studies, creativity studies, and performance studies) rather than critically assessing those findings. I present those findings which have been tested in practice and found to be helpful when translating psalms. Most Bible translators have neither the time nor the opportunity for such focused study, and I offer this paper to help them.
The nature of this paper is practical. The research question is simple: How can we translate psalms in a more culturally sensitive way, including the poetic features of the RL and the community’s musical and performance
modes? The method comes from twenty weeks of workshops with three language groups of three African countries. By sharing proven ideas, the paper offers an innovative, creative, and stimulating approach to psalm translation.
We have noted three areas which are important if translators are to be able to express the message of a poem: first, they need to enter into its emotional content. Second, they need to be able to hold its content as a whole (for a poem must be understood as a unit). And third, they need to engage creatively, using all the senses to explore the full rhetoric of the poet. This requires an application of the dynamics of performance (for the first), memory theory (for the second), and how to stimulate creativity (for the third).
The paper includes both research (applying insights from other disciplines to Bible translation) and practical examples. The research question is simply this: How can we translate psalms in a more culturally-sensitive way, including the poetic features of the Receptor Language and the community’s musical/performance modes? The methodology comes out of twenty weeks of workshop in three different language groups in three countries in Africa. By sharing proven ideas, it offers an innovative, creative, and stimulating way to approach psalms translation.
If you have difficulty downloading it through your institution, please contact junedickie@gmail.com
This article is about burials that are lacking in dignity and care, either intentionally or due to adverse circumstances. The impact of such a burial on family and friends is also explored. Two case studies feature in this study, namely the burial of Jesus of Nazareth in the first century CE and the burials of Covid-19 victims today. In both cases, the inability to bestow the respect and compassion considered fitting leads to damage control. The article interprets the burial accounts in the Gospels with the help of the tradition-versus redaction model whilst not ruling out oral traditioning and the role of social memory. The continuing burial tradition in the Gospels progressively rids Jesus’s burial of disgrace, thereby admitting to a distressing past event. It (re)presents Joseph of Arimathea, whose status is raised to that of a friend, as capable and willing to provide Jesus with a respectable burial. Those experiencing loss today due to the Covid-19 pandemic likewise mitigate the negative effects resulting from the interruption of traditional funeral rituals, in order to honour a loved one and allow grief and mourning processes to continue. It is the contention of this article that the selected method of comparing two exempla enhances our understanding of this study’s subject matter; moreover, today’s Covid-19 victims and bereaved can take comfort from the fact that in terms of the pain of inadequate burial someone has gone before, namely Jesus.
In this study, women (and a few men) from a poor community in Cape Town, South Africa, were invited to study some psalms of lament and then to compose their own laments. A validated measure of authenticity (the Authenticity Index) was administered to them before and after the lament exercise, as well as Rosenberg’s Self-Esteem Scale and two measures of personal well-being (the Affect Balance Scale and the Satisfaction with Life Scale). It became apparent that the opportunity to express themselves using the form of biblical lament led to a greater sense of authenticity for participants. Their responses on the other scales also indicated that they found the opportunity to lament led to an enhanced sense of self-esteem and well-being. This suggests that those committed to facilitating psychological healing for those who have suffered trauma will do well to provide space for pain-bearers to lament following the biblical pattern.
In this study, oral performance of a text is used, with audience participation, to discern ambiguities and gaps. Two groups in South Africa present a performance of the book of Ruth to three audiences. A jester questions the audience at particular points in the story, as to their perceptions of characters’ moods or motivations. Ruth, being largely dialogue, lends itself to dramatic performance, but the methodology could be applied to any text, with enlightening results.
The approach shows that by imagining texts as performances, translators can become more aware of ambiguities and decide how they should be treated. Gaps resulting from a lack of understanding of the biblical context should be remedied in some way, but intentional gaps should probably be maintained in translation. As part of the literary art, they serve to provoke questions in the readers, and enrich their involvement with the text.
identity may often feel like “outsiders” and battle to fit
into the community; yet “insiders” rarely recognize their
difficulties. One such group in South Africa are refugees,
particularly those coming from francophone Africa.
This empirical study attempts to waken South African
members of a local church to the heavy concerns carried
by fellow Christians who have had to flee their homelands.
The study intends to not only highlight refugees, but also
any group within a church that may feel “excluded”.
The aim is to show that a more supportive community
can be fostered through an application of principles from
many disciplines (studies relating to community-building,
lament, empathy, and rituals). It is hoped that other
churches can benefit from this example, thus promoting
unity and incorporating the “excluded”, and enabling the
establishment of healthier communities.
Empirical studies with these two prayer-forms helped participants in a South-African Township to express their pain to God. The structure of biblical laments helped them express their own personal pain, and the Lord’s Prayer gave space for them to voice their frustrations against the lack of justice in their situations. In these days of much trauma, this study presents a way in which pain-bearers can learn to release their concerns and feel empowered.
A recent empirical study invited Zulu youth to participate in translating and performing three praise psalms. They learned the basics of Bible translation and poetics, including rhythm, and their translations show a sensitivity to Zulu poetry and music which makes them highly rhythmic and singable. The underlying understanding of “translating with rhythm” can be applied to other languages and is an essential element of translating biblical poetry.
can inform the translation of biblical praise-psalms. Zulu youth
(“poetry fans”) were invited to learn about Hebrew and Zulu poetics
as well as the process of Bible translation. Then they made their own
translations and performances of biblical praise-psalms, following
the Literary-rhetorical approach of Ernst Wendland.
The results show a strong Zulu imprint from the source to the receptor
text, although the original message is retained along with some of the
poetic features. The literary and rhetorical power of the Hebrew is
transformed into images and thought patterns that come alive to the
Zulu mind while still being acceptable (to them) in terms of biblical
accuracy. The performances of the translated texts (using rap, song,
or spoken poetry) utilise prosody to deliver the message, thus
requiring some adjustment to the texts. The audience enters into the
experience, impacting the performers. Thus, there are four “voices”
apparent: those of the original author, the Zulu translator, the Zulu
performer, and the audience. A rich texture of cultural beauty emerges
as the Hebrew and Zulu horizons merge in a panorama of literary
beauty and rhetorical power.
This paper seeks to introduce the theology behind lament as well as practical examples of how to lament, privately and communally. Lament is clearly an effective means to deepen one's spiritual walk, become more authentic, and learn to enter compassionately into the pain of others, for their healing
• How might we read Hebrew poetry as divine communication? What is the theological significance of this poetry within the context of a given community of faith?
• How do the biblical poets construct meaning? How do faithful readers of these poems creatively read biblical poetry to find meaning for today?
• How might poetry facilitate an encounter with God? How can we embody a proper responsiveness to what a particular poem is doing/saying?
• What can the genre of poetry do that another genre cannot do?
Speakers include:
John Goldingay,
Ellen Davis,
Katie Heffelfinger,
Benjamin Sommer,
Shai Held,
David Firth,
June Dickie, and
Yisca Zimran
milieu. We have now reached a stage at which we have something to share that could benefit others. In particular, we have noted three areas which are important if translators are to be able to express the message of a poem: first, they need to enter into its emotional content. Second, they need to hold its content as a whole (since a poem must be understood as a unit). And third, they need to engage creatively, using all the senses to explore the full rhetoric of the poet. This requires an application of the dynamics of performance (for the first), memory theory (for the second),
and methods of stimulating creativity (for the third).
The research aspect of this paper involves applying insights from other disciplines to Bible translation. Many scholars (for example, Aboelela et al. 20072) would assert that this is where exciting discoveries are currently being made, at the intersection of related disciplines. Thus, in this paper I focus on the application of findings from related fields (memory studies, creativity studies, and performance studies) rather than critically assessing those findings. I present those findings which have been tested in practice and found to be helpful when translating psalms. Most Bible translators have neither the time nor the opportunity for such focused study, and I offer this paper to help them.
The nature of this paper is practical. The research question is simple: How can we translate psalms in a more culturally sensitive way, including the poetic features of the RL and the community’s musical and performance
modes? The method comes from twenty weeks of workshops with three language groups of three African countries. By sharing proven ideas, the paper offers an innovative, creative, and stimulating approach to psalm translation.
We have noted three areas which are important if translators are to be able to express the message of a poem: first, they need to enter into its emotional content. Second, they need to be able to hold its content as a whole (for a poem must be understood as a unit). And third, they need to engage creatively, using all the senses to explore the full rhetoric of the poet. This requires an application of the dynamics of performance (for the first), memory theory (for the second), and how to stimulate creativity (for the third).
The paper includes both research (applying insights from other disciplines to Bible translation) and practical examples. The research question is simply this: How can we translate psalms in a more culturally-sensitive way, including the poetic features of the Receptor Language and the community’s musical/performance modes? The methodology comes out of twenty weeks of workshop in three different language groups in three countries in Africa. By sharing proven ideas, it offers an innovative, creative, and stimulating way to approach psalms translation.
If you have difficulty downloading it through your institution, please contact junedickie@gmail.com
This article is about burials that are lacking in dignity and care, either intentionally or due to adverse circumstances. The impact of such a burial on family and friends is also explored. Two case studies feature in this study, namely the burial of Jesus of Nazareth in the first century CE and the burials of Covid-19 victims today. In both cases, the inability to bestow the respect and compassion considered fitting leads to damage control. The article interprets the burial accounts in the Gospels with the help of the tradition-versus redaction model whilst not ruling out oral traditioning and the role of social memory. The continuing burial tradition in the Gospels progressively rids Jesus’s burial of disgrace, thereby admitting to a distressing past event. It (re)presents Joseph of Arimathea, whose status is raised to that of a friend, as capable and willing to provide Jesus with a respectable burial. Those experiencing loss today due to the Covid-19 pandemic likewise mitigate the negative effects resulting from the interruption of traditional funeral rituals, in order to honour a loved one and allow grief and mourning processes to continue. It is the contention of this article that the selected method of comparing two exempla enhances our understanding of this study’s subject matter; moreover, today’s Covid-19 victims and bereaved can take comfort from the fact that in terms of the pain of inadequate burial someone has gone before, namely Jesus.
In this study, women (and a few men) from a poor community in Cape Town, South Africa, were invited to study some psalms of lament and then to compose their own laments. A validated measure of authenticity (the Authenticity Index) was administered to them before and after the lament exercise, as well as Rosenberg’s Self-Esteem Scale and two measures of personal well-being (the Affect Balance Scale and the Satisfaction with Life Scale). It became apparent that the opportunity to express themselves using the form of biblical lament led to a greater sense of authenticity for participants. Their responses on the other scales also indicated that they found the opportunity to lament led to an enhanced sense of self-esteem and well-being. This suggests that those committed to facilitating psychological healing for those who have suffered trauma will do well to provide space for pain-bearers to lament following the biblical pattern.
In this study, oral performance of a text is used, with audience participation, to discern ambiguities and gaps. Two groups in South Africa present a performance of the book of Ruth to three audiences. A jester questions the audience at particular points in the story, as to their perceptions of characters’ moods or motivations. Ruth, being largely dialogue, lends itself to dramatic performance, but the methodology could be applied to any text, with enlightening results.
The approach shows that by imagining texts as performances, translators can become more aware of ambiguities and decide how they should be treated. Gaps resulting from a lack of understanding of the biblical context should be remedied in some way, but intentional gaps should probably be maintained in translation. As part of the literary art, they serve to provoke questions in the readers, and enrich their involvement with the text.
identity may often feel like “outsiders” and battle to fit
into the community; yet “insiders” rarely recognize their
difficulties. One such group in South Africa are refugees,
particularly those coming from francophone Africa.
This empirical study attempts to waken South African
members of a local church to the heavy concerns carried
by fellow Christians who have had to flee their homelands.
The study intends to not only highlight refugees, but also
any group within a church that may feel “excluded”.
The aim is to show that a more supportive community
can be fostered through an application of principles from
many disciplines (studies relating to community-building,
lament, empathy, and rituals). It is hoped that other
churches can benefit from this example, thus promoting
unity and incorporating the “excluded”, and enabling the
establishment of healthier communities.
Empirical studies with these two prayer-forms helped participants in a South-African Township to express their pain to God. The structure of biblical laments helped them express their own personal pain, and the Lord’s Prayer gave space for them to voice their frustrations against the lack of justice in their situations. In these days of much trauma, this study presents a way in which pain-bearers can learn to release their concerns and feel empowered.
A recent empirical study invited Zulu youth to participate in translating and performing three praise psalms. They learned the basics of Bible translation and poetics, including rhythm, and their translations show a sensitivity to Zulu poetry and music which makes them highly rhythmic and singable. The underlying understanding of “translating with rhythm” can be applied to other languages and is an essential element of translating biblical poetry.
can inform the translation of biblical praise-psalms. Zulu youth
(“poetry fans”) were invited to learn about Hebrew and Zulu poetics
as well as the process of Bible translation. Then they made their own
translations and performances of biblical praise-psalms, following
the Literary-rhetorical approach of Ernst Wendland.
The results show a strong Zulu imprint from the source to the receptor
text, although the original message is retained along with some of the
poetic features. The literary and rhetorical power of the Hebrew is
transformed into images and thought patterns that come alive to the
Zulu mind while still being acceptable (to them) in terms of biblical
accuracy. The performances of the translated texts (using rap, song,
or spoken poetry) utilise prosody to deliver the message, thus
requiring some adjustment to the texts. The audience enters into the
experience, impacting the performers. Thus, there are four “voices”
apparent: those of the original author, the Zulu translator, the Zulu
performer, and the audience. A rich texture of cultural beauty emerges
as the Hebrew and Zulu horizons merge in a panorama of literary
beauty and rhetorical power.
In the empirical studies described in this paper, trauma-bearers engaged with the emotions experienced by characters in the biblical story of “Ruth” and with the pain evident in some cries of lament in selected psalms. By identifying with the difficulties experienced by those in the text, they were able to give vent to their own pain and to explore the way God intervened and brought a measure of healing and hope. The methodology of the empirical work involved oral performance, and this creative outlet was found to be not only enjoyable and fun, but the physical activity also stimulated a measure of neural healing, in addition to the emotional and spiritual healing arising from the interaction with the texts and with fellow-sufferers.
Performance of psalms of praise can be easily incorporated into a church service, but there is an increasing understanding of the importance of including communal lament within corporate worship and an example is given. Psalms of lament can also serve a valuable function in trauma-healing, and thus some examples of using lament-psalms for personal application are included. Also, groups that have a common identity – such as youth-groups or support-groups – can benefit enormously by together expressing their common pain in prayer to God. Further, by acting out a lament psalm, youth can hear God speak to them through the dialogue.
In many communities today, the psalms are little known or appreciated, or are only read briefly in church. Thus this paper seeks to highlight some helpful ways young Africans have explored the poetic texts and found innovative ways to communicate the message through oral performance.
Cognitive psychotherapy approaches and the three therapeutic steps proposed by trauma specialist Judith Herman are incorporated in the methodology. Further, insights of Louis Cozolino (a clinical psychologist and neuroscience researcher) are applied, suggesting that lament per se can stimulate the biological healing of the brain, allowing for the healthy processing of trauma memories. Thus healing—personal, social, biological, and even spiritual— can result from using (the form of) biblical laments to express pain.
This paper does not claim to present the “long-sought-after” solution for the paradox of Ps 88, but it does show how reading a psalm within various contexts can be helpful. Moreover, such an approach offers insight for many different contemporary readers, each within their own personal contexts. By holding the various interpretations in tension, a richer, wider, and deeper understanding will ensue.