So, how do we find out about unreached peoples anyway?
Over the last 40 years or so, missionaries from SIL, NTM, and other like-minded groups have made concerted efforts to determine what language groups there are in PNG and where they are located.
It turns out that the way to get reliable information is by hiking through the jungle and actually talking to people. It also turns out that this is also a really good way to lose weight, get lost, or get sick (very sick - just ask Nate, he is still coughing from the last trip...) Since survey is so rigorous, time consuming, and costly, much of the information that is gathered about the remotest places is gathered by asking the neighboring peoples (do you trust your neighbors to answer questions about you?)
Often the questions go something like this:
Once Pal was identified as a physically isolated group, it became a candidate for intensive survey- actually going there and talking to people. Pretty neat huh?
Thanks for praying for us this week as Nate continues to torture students with math and science and Elizabeth teaches and trains our kids.
Will you also pray with us for the 7-9th grade boys that Nate is discipling and the 7-9th grade girls that Elizabeth is walking through Bible study with?
Thanks again for everything!
Nate for the family.
PS: Tim has been saying some pretty interesting things lately, for instance: "Dad, could I please have some sweated wheat biscuits." (I think he was asking for the shredded wheat...)
Also, we have had a difficult time convincing the kids that science experiments are done, they call them science experience as in: "Dad when are we going to do another science experience."
It turns out that the way to get reliable information is by hiking through the jungle and actually talking to people. It also turns out that this is also a really good way to lose weight, get lost, or get sick (very sick - just ask Nate, he is still coughing from the last trip...) Since survey is so rigorous, time consuming, and costly, much of the information that is gathered about the remotest places is gathered by asking the neighboring peoples (do you trust your neighbors to answer questions about you?)
Often the questions go something like this:
- Are there any people that live on the other side of that (insert landmark here - river, mountain, valley)?
- Is their talk the same as yours?
- Do you ever go there? For what?
- Do your women marry their men? Do their women marry your men?
- What do they eat?
- When do they come to town?
- and many others...
Once Pal was identified as a physically isolated group, it became a candidate for intensive survey- actually going there and talking to people. Pretty neat huh?
Thanks for praying for us this week as Nate continues to torture students with math and science and Elizabeth teaches and trains our kids.
Will you also pray with us for the 7-9th grade boys that Nate is discipling and the 7-9th grade girls that Elizabeth is walking through Bible study with?
Thanks again for everything!
Nate for the family.
PS: Tim has been saying some pretty interesting things lately, for instance: "Dad, could I please have some sweated wheat biscuits." (I think he was asking for the shredded wheat...)
Also, we have had a difficult time convincing the kids that science experiments are done, they call them science experience as in: "Dad when are we going to do another science experience."
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