| Katharine Barnwell’s earliest memories take place underground as Nazi bombing raids pierced the sky above her. Sent to live with family in the English countryside, Barnwell developed a love of reading during her childhood which led to an interest in linguistics.
Her early penchant for semantics would launch a 60-year career in which Barnwell became known as the “mother of Bible translation in Africa.” Barnwell was one of the early pioneers of the “cluster model,” in which multiple translation teams representing diverse languages are trained simultaneously. According to many, Barnwell revolutionized the world of Bible translation.
Barnwell herself wouldn’t exactly put it that way. When Christianity Today writer Jordan K. Monson asked Barnwell if her influence is as great as many say, Barnwell frowned.
“Well,” she said, “it may be true. But I don’t want to talk about that.”
Instead, Barnwell—who is now 84 and has moved back to the United Kingdom—prefers to keep her head down, working on three Old Testament translations with her Nigerian colleagues through Zoom. She continues to study Hebrew and is training two Nigerian consultants.
Retirement, in other words, does not seem to be on the table for the woman who gave the world a thousand names for God, revolutionized the translation and production of the Jesus Film Project, and opened doors for hundreds of workers.
“What else would I do?” Barnwell said. For her, the joy is in the work of giving more and more people access to the Word of God. Barnwell isn’t interested in thinking of herself as a retiree anymore than she cares to consider her life revolutionary. For her, the goal is clear and simple: the living and effective word of God made accessible, so that many may know him. |
