A new milestone has been reached as the Bible has been translated into another Philippine dialect.
The revised Cuyonon version of the Bible was launched in the city of Puerto Princesa on Friday, coinciding with the 151st anniversary of the first Mass in the Palawan capital.
The new version, a “faithful translation” of the fifth edition of the United Bible Societies’ Greek New Testament, is an initiative of the Philippine Bible Society (PBS), an ecumenical movement.
Speaking during the event, Bishop Socrates Mesiona of Puerto Princesa said the Bible is translated into a local language to be understood better by the people.
“Conversely, the end goal of translating the Bible to a certain language like Cuyonon is based on our inherent or built in desire to connect with God,” Mesiona said.
Saying that God speaks to people in the Bible, “it will be easier for us now to understand him because He will be speaking to us in our native language,” the bishop added.
The Cuyonon version has been in the works for the past five years through a translation team that was formed in 2017.
According to PBS, the first translation for Cuyonon was published in 1982.
Since then, it said, “the Cuyonon language has changed and there are many words used in the 1982 New Testament that now sound archaic to younger Cuyonons”.
The launching also took place as the apostolic vicariates of Puerto Princesa and Taytay mark the 400 years of Christianity in Palawan.
Among those present were Bishop Renato Mayugba of the CBCP Episcopal Commission on Biblical Apostolate, Bishop Broderick Pabillo of Taytay and his predecessor, retired Bishop Edgardo Juanich.