East African Christians in Britain and Ireland
East African Christians belong to many British and Irish churches: Kenyan nurses and carers working in hospitals and care homes, Ugandan and Tanzanian families who settled years ago, students on postgraduate courses. Some attend East African fellowships or Swahili-speaking congregations; many others are faithful members of local Anglican, Methodist, Baptist and Pentecostal churches, often serving on rotas and in the music group.
Most speak good English. But Swahili is the language of many of their prayers and songs, and parents and relatives visiting from home are often far more comfortable in it. Offering Swahili on the Sunday a mother visits from Nairobi or Dar es Salaam is a small thing that says a lot.
Refugees from the Great Lakes region
People who fled eastern Congo or Burundi, some through resettlement schemes, often speak Swahili alongside French, Kirundi, Kinyarwanda or Lingala. For them Swahili can be a good bridge. French is available too. Kinyarwanda is available with a Beta label, so test it with a native speaker first. Kirundi and Lingala are not available at the moment. Ask newcomers which language they follow best before you decide, and see refugees and newcomers for the wider welcome.
Which Swahili?
The translation is into standard Swahili, the form used in schools, newspapers and Swahili Bibles. Coastal Kenyans and Tanzanians speak it as a first language; Ugandans and Congolese often speak it as a second language with their own words and accent. Most follow standard Swahili without trouble, though some words will sound different from home. Bible names and church terms are the hardest part; ChurchTranslate keeps a terminology list per language to correct known terms in the captions. See Bible names and terms.
Joint services with an East African fellowship
Where a Swahili-speaking fellowship meets in a British church building, a joint service is a good way for the two to get to know each other. Set English as the speaker language for the host minister and switch to Swahili with one tap when the fellowship's pastor preaches, so English speakers can choose English. A fellowship can also use ChurchTranslate in its own services, to offer English to children who grew up here and to British friends.
How listeners use it
- 01Scan
The QR code is on the screen, a card or the fellowship's WhatsApp group. The page opens in the browser.
- 02Choose Kiswahili
No account and no app needed. There is also an iOS app.
- 03Listen or read
The Swahili voice follows the preacher a few seconds behind, with captions on screen. In a lively service, earbuds make the voice much easier to follow.
Cost
A two-hour service into Swahili uses 120 credits, however many people listen. With French alongside for Congolese members it is at most 240. The Duo plan (€100 per month, 960 credits) covers four such services. See the pricing.