From Typewriters to AI
“The Moni people are closer than ever to holding a complete Bible in their own language!”
When Decades of Work Meet a Divine Timetable
One of the most defining accomplishments of Mom and Dad Cutts and the Moni translation team is something that took a lifetime to build: a complete New Testament, fully translated into the Moni language, along with major portions of the Old Testament.
It began with no materials, no dictionary, and no roadmap. Learning the Moni language fluently took years of painstaking effort before translation could even begin. Every day was a guessing game, piecing together meaning from conversations with sick patients they were treating and curious villagers who stopped by to check out the strange newcomers in the jungle. Their dictionary grew word by word.
For decades, the team pecked away on old typewriters, producing pages of carbon copy text with an ever-ready eraser close at hand. Those early pages eventually became mimeographed portions of the New Testament used by Moni students learning to read. Through relentless determination and God's steady guidance, the complete New Testament was finished. But the much larger Old Testament remained incomplete. As of 2026, the majority of it is translated, and the goal had been to have it finished and ready for the printer by 2030.
Then, in just 48 hours, God rewrote the timetable entirely.
Two Phone Calls That Changed Everything
On a recent trip to the United States, a casual thought surfaced: it had been years since there had been any contact with David, an Indonesian student from Papua who had moved to Texas to attend university. A phone call was made to catch up. In the course of conversation, David casually mentioned he was now an AI expert and offered to help the Moni people however he could, should the opportunity ever arise.
The significance of that call was not yet clear.
Two days later, Seth, a longtime friend in Georgia, called to invite a coffee meetup to talk about the latest news from Papua. One of his first questions was about the status of the Moni Bible translation. When the current timeline of three to four more years was shared, Seth leaned in. He explained that Wycliffe Bible Translators were already using AI to accelerate translations in other countries, and that he had a Wycliffe contact who might be able to help with the Moni project. There was just one catch: they would need someone with strong AI expertise who also spoke Indonesian.
The words came out almost before the thought was finished. God had arranged exactly that person just two days earlier, and he had already volunteered to help.
Punching Into Hypersonic Flight
Speeds above Mach 1 are supersonic. Speeds above Mach 5 are hypersonic. The translation team had been committed to reaching supersonic speed on finishing the Old Testament. In the span of two phone calls, God advanced the throttle into hypersonic territory.
As this is being written, the translation team is preparing to fly into Moni villages. They'll read the most recently translated Old Testament chapters aloud to the community in order to gather final feedback on how well the verses are understood. A mission plane is being arranged to transport the team for three weeks of living and working alongside the community.
The road to this moment has not been easy. Satan has done everything possible to slow the work. One team member was shot and killed. Another became sick and died. Henok, the head of the team, developed two cataracts that left him nearly blind. With God's help and the generous support of many friends and donors, Henok was able to travel nearly 2,000 miles to Jakarta for surgery. Both cataracts have been removed, and he has healed in time to join the team on this critical village trip.
David, the AI expert, is planning to fly to Papua in the coming months to work directly with the Moni translation team. As a preview of what is coming, he recently used AI to translate a 218-page pastor's seminar from English into flawless Indonesian in just two and a half hours. That translated seminar will be used at a major pastor's conference in mid-March. His next challenge: translating it into Moni. AI may find that a bit more of a challenge, but as the story says, with God, all things are possible.
How You Can Be Part of This
Thank you to every person who has prayed and given over the years. You are not just supporters of this work, but co-laborers in one of the most remarkable translation stories of our time. Please pray for
The translation team as they travel into the villages
Henok's continued health and strength
David as he prepares to bring his AI expertise to Papua.
The Moni people are closer than ever to holding a complete Bible in their own language!
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