Wycliffe, John

<<Bible translator>>

An English Roman Catholic theologian (1324-1384), church reformer and producer of the first complete translation of the Bible into English (he translated from Latin). He then oversaw the production of numerous hand-copied Bibles for a population who previously had been held in Scriptural illiteracy by a church jealous of its influence, power, wealth and privileges. He was a forerunner of the Protestant Reformation, which occurred around 1517. His influence came at a time when organized religion was depraved and corrupt, with the churches’ traditions and ceremonies blinding people to the saving relationship with Jesus Christ. Because the common people had no way of obtaining direct knowledge of the Scriptures, (the only Scriptures were in Latin) many were lead into realms of darkness and doubt, being taught only that ceremonies and practices would save them.

Wycliffe declared the Bible to be the highest authority for every Christian – the standard of faith and human perfection – and that each person was directly responsible to God, the gospel by itself being sufficient to guide the life of every Christian without any other rules. He was convinced the common people would never know the true basics of faith unless they had the Bible in their own language.

He is quoted as saying, ‘It is not good for us to trust in our merits, in our virtues or our righteousness; but only in God’s free pardon, as given us through faith in Jesus Christ’ and ‘Englishmen learn Christ’s law best in English. Moses heard God’s law in his own tongue; so did Christ’s apostles’.

Inspired by his ministry, Wycliffe Bible Translators (WBT) was established and its dedicated workers are involved in learning the spoken lingo, developing a written text and producing Scriptures in the language of tribal people who only have verbal communication.