Martin and Joan Weber wear traditional clothing of Cameroon.

Nganko Emmanuel, Joan Weber, Martin Weber and Yuare Jerome were the key translators of the Kwanja New Testament.

Samuel, Sarah and Nathan Weber pose during a rare occasion when all three were together.

LBTC missionaries desire to serve God by sharing the Gospel with others beyond their homeland. They are willing to live among people in cultures quite different than their own.

To meet its purpose as a charity, Lutheran Bible Translators of Canada (LBTC) recruits Lutherans to become missionaries to serve as Bible translation advisors and consultants, or as specialists in literacy, literature development, language survey and vernacular media or as support staff to missionaries.

As full-time staff, these individuals divide their work terms overseas with furlough time in North America when they upgrade their education and develop their prayer and financial support for their next overseas term.

To learn about LBTC missionaries who served in the past, see the bottom of this page.

History

In 1982, Martin and Joan began their work in Cameroon to learn the Kwanja language, analyzing it to develop an alphabet and writing it down. Translation work began and progressed as Martin worked with a Kwanja team including Pastor Nyigandj Samuel, Nganko Emmanuel, Yuare Jerome and others. The entire New Testament has been translated and was dedicated in December 2006.

Their work continues in translating portions of the Old Testament and establishing a literacy curriculum to teach the Kwanjas to read in their own language.

Pray that the Holy Spirit will direct and empower this work, that the Word of God in Kwanja will touch and change Kwanja lives, so they will know and follow Jesus as their Lord!

Family

Martin Weber, son of a Lutheran pastor, lived in Saskatchewan and then in British Columbia. He became interested in Bible translation and began his studies in linguistics and Biblical studies. It was at this time he met Joan who became his wife and co-worker. Joan grew up in Iowa and she was a school teacher when she met Martin.

They have 3 children who were homeschooled by Joan in Cameroon. Their two sons graduated from Moody Bible Institute in Chicago. Nathan is self-employed and living in the Chicago area. Sammy has returned to Cameroon to begin work as an evangelist right in Yimbéré where he grew up. Sarah is completing her university education in Minneapolis to become a school teacher.

Martin’s mother, Melita, lives in Surrey, BC and his siblings live in Canada and California. Joan’s family resides in Iowa.

Kwanja Language Work

When Martin and Joan Weber were linked to the Kwanja people, it was the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Cameroon that coordinated the effort with LBT/Lutheran Bible Translators of Canada. The desire had come from the Kwanja people themselves to have their oral language written down so they could have the Bible in their own language

Some national coworkers that have been instrumental in the process of writing down the Kwanja language and translating the New Testament include:

• Missa Alexi – literacy supervisor
• Tchi Tchi Samuel – president of the Kwanja language committee
• Djadon Emmanuel – literacy staff member
• Issa Venant – literacy staff member
• Yuare Jerome – Old Testament translator
• Sawari Emmanuel – Old Testament translator

Weber Stories

Quotes from Martin: It’s pineapple season here. Marie, a friend, came a couple days ago and gave us a large pineapple to thank us for loaning them money so they could pay for medicine for their sick baby. The baby recovered! And the pineapple was delicious! …Too bad we can’t send you any!

To learn more about the Webers on a regular basis, click here.

To learn more about becoming a missionary with LBTC and view job description, click here.

Former LBTC Missionaries include:

• Ted and Gloria Engel, serving in Guatemala with the Pokomchi Indians
• Horst and Eugenie Schulz, support workers in Papua New Guinea
• Martin and Joan Weber, Kwanja translation in Cameroon
• Bob and Jean Schmitt, Limba literacy in Sierra Leone
• Richard Roth, short-term computer operator and trainer in Sierra Leone and Liberia
• Tim and Bonnie Stime, translators with the Atikamekw Indians in Quebec
• Darren Schiemann, printshop manager in Liberia and Kazakstan
• Lorraine Toderash, Kompana translation in Cameroon
• Scott and Annette Westerman, computer training and support, and language survey in Cameroon