A letter from Macedonia. –
Several years ago, Basil Stephanoff, a citizen of Macedonia in the European Turkey, came to this country to learn English and to learn the religion and the laws and statutes
of our country. He visited Elkhart and spent some time here. He visited the various communities and preached in several
places. Afterwards, he returned to his home. We publish a letter we recently received from him, which will no doubt interest our readers.
Monastir, Macedonia, European Turkey,
January 31,
1888.
Beloved brother in Christ:
I thank you for your kindness in regularly sending me the "Herald of Truth.” It
offers much that is interesting. It contains articles full of encouragement and truth. The Lord bless your faith and life’s work.
Our work is progressing well. In the near future, I intend to support one or two [???Onlyborn???] and four other American missionaries. We trust in God for all our needs. Even though I've already been through fiery trials, so far the Lord hasn’t left us. God’s grace is sufficient and the cross is my protection and fortress.
Our work is progressing well. In the near future, I intend to support one or two [???Onlyborn???] and four other American missionaries. We trust in God for all our needs. Even though I've already been through fiery trials, so far the Lord hasn’t left us. God’s grace is sufficient and the cross is my protection and fortress.
Last Sunday morning (29 Jan) I preached from Acts 17 about the "unknown God". About two
hundred listeners gathered
under my roof. The subject was principally
about God, nature, and the Bible. In the evening the missionary accompanying me discussed GAL. 3. 18. The people were very interested. God be
praised that the truth which was once proclaimed by the Saints in the dear old Macedonia again will be preached!
I hope that yours are all healthy. I am glad to know that your work is thriving. Could you send me a copy of your new book
'Martyrs Mirror' (MärtyrerSpiegel)?... Continue
to send me the "Herald." We intend to publish soon a tract
explaining our beliefs, but we don't know if the Turkish Government will give us permission to do so.
3 comments:
I couldn't do much better. For comparison purposes, here is my version:
A Letter from Macedonia.
Several years ago, Basil Stephanoff, a native of Macedonia in the European part of Turkey, came to this country to learn English and to become acquainted with the religion and the laws and regulations of our country. He visited Elkhart and stopped for some time here. He visited the various churches and preached in several places. Afterwards he returned to his home. Here we publish a letter we recently received from him, in which our readers will no doubt be interested.
Monastir, Macedonia, European Turkey, January 31 1888
Beloved Brother in Christ:
I thank you for your kindness, in regularly sending the "Herald of Truth" to me. It offers me much of interest. It contains articles full of encouragement and truth. The Lord bless you in your works of faith and love. Our work has made good progress. I have four other missionaries from America with me and intend in the near future to support one two native-born [ones]. We trust in God for all our needs. So far, the Lord has not abandoned [me], although I have already been through fiery trials. The grace of God is sufficient and The Cross a refuge and hiding place.
Last Sunday morning (January 29) I preached on Acts 17 on the "unknown God”. About two hundred listeners had gathered under my roof. The topic was primarily about God, nature, and the Bible. In the evening I spoke to my accompanying missionaries about Gal. 3. 18. The people were very interested. Praise God that once again the truth that was once proclaimed by the Saints in dear old Macedonia, will now be presented again! I hope that yours are all healthy. I am pleased to learn that your work is thriving so well. Could you send me a copy of your new book "Martyrs Mirror" (Martyrs' Mirror)? ..... Continue sending me the “Herald”.
We are contemplating publishing a tract about our faith soon, but we do not yet know whether the Turkish government will give us permission to do so. With heartfelt love and greetings, I remain yours
Basil Stephanoff.
I couldn't do much better. For comparison purposes, here is my version:
A Letter from Macedonia.
Several years ago, Basil Stephanoff, a native of Macedonia in the European part of Turkey, came to this country to learn English and to become acquainted with the religion and the laws and regulations of our country. He visited Elkhart and stopped for some time here. He visited the various churches and preached in several places. Afterwards he returned to his home. Here we publish a letter we recently received from him, in which our readers will no doubt be interested.
Monastir, Macedonia, European Turkey, January 31 1888
Beloved Brother in Christ:
I thank you for your kindness, in regularly sending the "Herald of Truth" to me. It offers me much of interest. It contains articles full of encouragement and truth. The Lord bless you in your works of faith and love. Our work has made good progress. I have four other missionaries from America with me and intend in the near future to support one two native-born [ones]. We trust in God for all our needs. So far, the Lord has not abandoned [me], although I have already been through fiery trials. The grace of God is sufficient and The Cross a refuge and hiding place.
Last Sunday morning (January 29) I preached on Acts 17 on the "unknown God”. About two hundred listeners had gathered under my roof. The topic was primarily about God, nature, and the Bible. In the evening I spoke to my accompanying missionaries about Gal. 3. 18. The people were very interested. Praise God that once again the truth that was once proclaimed by the Saints in dear old Macedonia, will now be presented again! I hope that yours are all healthy. I am pleased to learn that your work is thriving so well. Could you send me a copy of your new book "Martyrs Mirror" (Martyrs' Mirror)? ..... Continue sending me the “Herald”.
We are contemplating publishing a tract about our faith soon, but we do not yet know whether the Turkish government will give us permission to do so. With heartfelt love and greetings, I remain yours.
Basil Stephanoff.
Just an observation: my biggest challenge in translating the letter is the fact that in the old German Gothic letters, the lower case f and the lower case s are nearly identical (just as in Old English).
I'm also wondering if some of the difficulty may be due to the fact that German was not Stephanoff's first language.
Post a Comment