Welcoming the “Other”: Translating Truth for the Post-truth World

This paper is an attempt to answer the question whether Bible translation may help building a community or communities, which would contribute to creating the framework for a commonality of faith. The answer is not difficult to state, since translation is about bridging gaps, about creating communities, as steps forward in this process. It is impossible to understand the process and to formulate an adequate and articulate answer to the initial question without taking a journey through the complex field of Translation Studies, and of Bible translation, in particular. The method of study involves analysis and use of concepts such as the paradox of translation, dynamic equivalence and (essentially) literal translation, in a dialog with authors such as Ricoeur, Berman, Nida or Ryken. This analysis shows that a linguistic oikumene, as a step towards a commonality of faith, is achievable through the translator’s hard work of producing linguistic hospitality, as a sine qua non condition for making our home, our language warm enough for the foreigner to dwell in and feel as if he were in his own.