Who Told You?

Think about one of the first things you learned as a child. How did you learn it? Did your parents tell you? Did you hear it on TV, or in a classroom?

Think about the first time you heard about Jesus. Did you hear about Him from a pastor? Did a friend tell you about Him?

There is a good chance the first thing you learned as a child, and the first time you learned about Jesus, you learned orally. Before we learn to read, we learn by hearing. The first stories we heard helped shape how we see our world, ourselves, and God.

Working in the remote jungles of Peru —where books and Bible translations are scarce — AGWM global workers are using oral learning (sometimes called orality) to train pastors, disciple believers, and establish the Church.

Discipling Indigenously

In the dense rainforest of Eastern Peru, communication between churches is limited. Steve Ford, AGWM missionary educator, has lived in Iquitos, Peru, for more than 30 years. Iquitos is the capital of Loreto, a state in Northeast Peru. Steve travels by boat to reach indigenous communities. “Many indigenous groups isolate themselves; they live in hidden away places,” says Ford.

Mike and Sonja Trei are AGWM global workers who also live in Iquitos. Mike says, “The task of reaching the numerous indigenous groups is immense. The Peruvian government says there are 32 different indigenous groups in Loreto. Loreto is similar in size to Montana, but we travel by river systems.”

The isolation and different languages challenge workers and pastors. Animism — the worship of spiritual beings in nature — is dominant. Pastors often encounter people who mix Christian and animist beliefs.

“In our area, people have heard the gospel for decades,” says Mike. “But the foundation was not laid well. We encounter a lot of misunderstanding concerning biblical truths.”

Sometimes we encounter syncretism because Christian beliefs became lost in translation. “People may not have a word for something we take for granted,” continues Trei. “For instance, certain cultures do not have a word for Mary being a virgin.” Storytellers must carefully work with bi-lingual believers to find words or descriptions in their language when a direct translation is not available.

This is complicated further as workers translate the Bible from a written to an oral culture. Many indigenous languages do not have written forms. Instead, people pass down history and knowledge through stories.

Mike experienced this in an indigenous town. “I was building a church and at 3 a.m. I heard a commotion. Voices kept getting louder. Then someone built a fire and the voices got louder and louder. In these villages, a grandpa wakes up, starts the fire, and wakes up other family members. As everyone gathers they start telling stories. That’s how they pass on their history. That’s oral learning.”

Oral Bible Training

Realizing the importance of storytelling and oral learning for indigenous peoples, AGWM global workers and the national church developed oral teaching systems. These systems give indigenous pastors a pathway to fulfill the education requirements for ordination.

Students learn by memorizing and reflecting on Bible stories. “There are 48 story sets, or courses, and every course has 12 stories,” says Ford. Through this multi-year curriculum, students hear hundreds of Bible stories from the Pentateuch, the Gospels, Psalms, etc., and stories that teach biblical values and theology. “There are courses on the family, how to handle money, the parables of the Kingdom, prayer, the Holy Spirit, and the nature of Christ.”

When a session starts, the leader recites the story twice. On a third retelling, he or she guides the students, leaving out parts of the story for students to fill in from memory. Following this, the leader has two or three students retell the story. Then, the leader asks questions and starts a discussion.

“We have five basic questions,” says Trei. “What do you like about the story? What do you not like? What does it the show about human nature? What does it show about God’s nature? What is God telling you in this story?” As students process the story and answer questions, the leader guides the discussion, keeping the story in focus. This teaching style has several unique advantages.

First, it’s easier to translate and transmit stories orally, especially if a language does not have a written form. “The secret to storytelling is that we must present it in a person’s heart language — his or her native tongue,” says Sonja. With the various languages, however, this is difficult.

“These languages are far down the list for a Bible translation, and most of them are so small that they are considered insignificant. They are not on anybody’s radar for Bible translations,” continues Sonja. Bilingual translators who speak Spanish and an indigenous language help reproduce Bible stories in indigenous languages much faster than producing a written Bible translation.

Second, oral learning enriches biblical theology. “Some of our students read and write, but their preference is oral learning,” says Ford. “The Bible is still being translated and read. However, after some students hear the story, they’re able to read it and understand it better. One pastor said ‘I’ve heard foreign teachers, national teachers, teachers from my own people group. But now that we’re under this oral system, I finally understand the Bible.’”

The unique perspective of oral learning helps everyone. “As a teacher, I often think, Well, I never thought of that,” Ford continues. “These perspectives come from oral learners, who are no less intelligent than a traditional, literate learner.”

Third, the repetition and response style of oral learning engages listeners in discipleship. “Participation allows listeners to grow, because they’re invested,” said Mike. Personal investment is key to long-lasting discipleship.

While oral Bible training might sound exotic or unique, it is an age-old method even Jesus used. “Oral learning is natural to us,” says Trei. “It’s what Jesus did every day when He told stories. If He wasn’t telling stories, He was praying with His disciples and discipling them. That is the motivation for us.”

Listening In to the Future

As AGWM global workers adopt oral learning techniques, they see incredible success. In one town, a Peruvian pastor used orality to revitalize a dying church. “The pastor felt called to do storytelling the way he had heard,” said Mike. “Within a couple of weeks, his church grew from 5 to more than 30 people.”

This approach equips indigenous pastors to reach other indigenous groups. Speaking of the same church, Mike continues. “One bilingual, indigenous community leader — who didn’t believe in Christ — heard the stories and said, ‘I want to come back.’ Now this leader is telling his own people group about Jesus. Because of storytelling, they are seeing people saved, baptized in water, and filled with the Spirit.”

“Our hope for these oral students is that they transmit — in oral form — every course they learn,” says Ford. “Students can retell these stories to their people, starting churches in communities that do not have a church.”

Beyond Peru, AGWM workers and Assemblies of God fellowships are embracing oral learning techniques to reach and disciple the indigenous peoples in their nations. Oral learning was recently presented to the Colombia Assemblies of God. The Venezuelan Assemblies of God wants to officially adopt oral learning. In Brazil, AGWM missionaries are seeing a harvest using oral learning methods.

Miguel Morales, Bible school strategic leader, commented on orality across the Latin America Caribbean (LAC) region: “Christian Education Services of the Assemblies of God in Latin America (SEC-Servicio de Educación Cristiana) presented Oral Learning to national church superintendents and Christian education directors in 16 Spanish speaking nations. After hearing about the project, the group overwhelmingly accepted the program.”

Most important, AGWM workers attribute the success of oral learning to God. “It’s the Holy Spirit doing it all,” says Mike. “We all stand in awe."

“Humanly speaking, it was almost by accident,” Ford reflects, “but for sure the Lord was in it.”

Across LAC, indigenous people are hearing the gospel in their heart languages. The flexibility of AGWM workers to try new techniques, and their sensitivity to the Holy Spirit, have opened new doors for ministry. Where once language barriers and isolation disrupted the gospel, people are hearing a clear testimony, one story at a time.

By Alex Goodrich