Contact: Arthur Lightbody, JAARS, 704-843-6048

WAXHAW, NC, Sept. 22 /Christian Newswire/ -- In an intimate one-man performance at the JAARS Center in Waxhaw, N.C. on October 3, JAARS guests can hear John Wycliffe, the 14th century reformer who first translated the Bible into English. Wycliffe will tell about his personal transformation while studying the Latin Bible which he could understand and most other English speakers of his day could not.

JAARS President David Reeves says, "In the spirit of John Wycliffe, we desire to see God's glory clearly revealed through His Word in a language that speaks to the heart of every people group on the face of the earth. This is why we provide tools such as aviation, information technology and many others, to speed the task of Bible translation so that the light will break through for the nearly 2,400 language groups that don't yet have it."

JAARS will highlight information technology at the Saturday, October 3 "JAARS Day." Interesting programs will illustrate how JAARS partners with Wycliffe Bible Translators and others in providing informational technology expertise and service.

On the same day, the JAARS Museum of the Alphabet will host its inaugural display of a Hebrew Sefer Torah scroll, a handwritten copy of a Torah. According to one appraisal, this 123-foot long manuscript, made of ox skins sewn together, has survived at least 100 years and sustained constant use in synagogues in Europe before being brought to the United States.

Wycliffe Bible Translator's member Freddy Boswell wrote the script for "Daybreak!"--John Wycliffe's story. Wycliffe's Arthur Lightbody, will portray John Wycliffe.

The day's opening program begins in the Townsend Building at 10 a.m. See the "Visit" section of www.jaars.org for more JAARS Day information.

JAARS, staffed by members of Wycliffe and volunteers, provides training and worldwide coordination for technical services that speed Bible translation.

JAARS Day Information Technology Sessions:

• Language software and Bible translation.
   
• God provides when things go wrong.
   
• 3-D animation will enable Bible translation for over 200 unique sign languages around the world.
   
• Business enterprises such as computer technology support Bible translation.
   
• Low power computers in Papua New Guinea.
   
• Speech analyzer software helps translators see and hear tones in a language. 
   
• Software tools are used throughout the Bible translation process.
   
• How satellite dishes and phones are used.