Philip and the Ethiopian

Hand colored stencil print on momigami by Sadao Watanabe (1989).

Image taken with permission from the SadaoHanga Catalogue where you can find many more images and information about Sadao Watanabe. For other images of Sadao Watanabe art works in TIPs, see here.

The following is a stained glass window from the Exeter College Chapel in Oxford:

Source: Art in the Christian Tradition , a project of the Vanderbilt University Divinity Library, Nashville, TN. Original source: photograph taken by Father Lawrence Lew, O.P., available on Flickr

Stained glass is not just highly decorative, it’s a medium which has been used to express important religious messages for centuries. Literacy was not widespread in the medieval and Renaissance periods and the Church used stained glass and other artworks to teach the central beliefs of Christianity. In Gothic churches, the windows were filled with extensive narrative scenes in stained glass — like huge and colorful picture storybooks — in which worshipers could ‘read’ the stories of Christ and the saints and learn what was required for their religious salvation. (Source: Victoria and Albert Museum )

complete verse (Acts 8:31)

Following are a number of back-translations of Acts 8:31:

  • Uma: “That person said: ‘How do you (sing.) think I could understand, because there is no one who clarifies it to me.’ From there, he urged/invited Filipus to climb up in his cart and sit beside him.” (Source: Uma Back Translation)
  • Yakan: “The official answered, ‘How can I understand if no one explains it to me?’ And he told Pilip to ride and sit beside him.” (Source: Yakan Back Translation)
  • Western Bukidnon Manobo: “And the official said, ‘How can I understand this when there is no one to interpret for me?’ And he caused Philip to ride.” (Source: Western Bukidnon Manobo Back Translation)
  • Kankanaey: “‘No, because there is no one to explain it to me,’ he said in reply. Then he invited Felipe to ride-with-(him).” (Source: Kankanaey Back Translation)
  • Tagbanwa: “‘I don’t understand anything,’ was the reply of that taga Etiope. ‘Maybe if there was someone to explain to me, I would understand it.’ Therefore he then caused Felipe to ride.” (Source: Tagbanwa Back Translation)

Translation commentary on Acts 8:31

The invitation of the Ethiopian official to Philip must frequently be expressed as direct discourse, for example, “he said to Philip, Please come up and sit in the carriage with me.”

In some languages it is important to specify that the carriage continues to go forward, and therefore a term for “sitting” must also imply “riding,” for example, “ride along in the carriage with me.”

Quoted with permission from Newman, Barclay M. and Nida, Eugene A. A Handbook on The Acts of the Apostles. (UBS Handbook Series). New York: UBS, 1972. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .