Another Bible Translator has been murdered in Cameroon

Tuesday, August 18, 2020

by Karen Faulkner, Worthy News Correspondent

(Worthy News) - The Wycliffe Bible Translators (WBT) charity has announced that another Bible translator in Cameroon has been murdered following an attack in his village, Assist News reported Monday. Pastor Christopher Tanjoh, a Bible translator and literacy teacher with the Moghamo Bible translation and literacy project, was murdered on August 7, WBT said in a statement. Two other translators were killed in Cameroon last year.

Pastor Tanjoh bled to death after being shot in the leg by unidentified gunmen who attacked him in the village of Guzang, in northwestern Cameroon. Tanjoh is survived by his wife and seven children.

In a statement, Keyeh Emmanuel, the General Director of the Cameroon Association for Bible Translation and Literacy, said that ongoing civil unrest in the region had caused numerous people, including “key translators” working on the Moghamo Bible translation and literacy project, to move away to Bermuda.

However, because he had a large family, Tanjoh decided to stay in Cameroon to finish the New Testament in the Moghamo language. “Christopher is gone but we pray that his last pastoral counsel to the fighters will contribute to bring lasting peace in the Moghamo area and to Cameroon,” Emmanuel said.

James Poole, Executive Director of Wycliffe Bible Translators, said in a statement: ‘This tragic news reminds us how much the gospel message is urgently needed in Cameroon. Until people are transformed by Jesus, there will be no lasting peace. We continue to work with local partners to translate the Bible so that every Cameroonian can read the Bible in the language that speaks to them best. Please pray that the work of Bible translation in Cameroon will continue despite setbacks, and that people will discover the life-giving message of Jesus.’