Book Review: “Silence” in Translation: 1 Corinthians 14:34-35 in Myanmar and the Development of a Critical Contextual Hermeneutic by Anna Sui Hluan

Abstract

Silence in Translation is a reworking of Dr. Anna Sui Hluan’s PhD dissertation in which she examines the key role that context plays in the interpretation of Scripture. She calls the reader’s attention not only to the contexts of the biblical text and those of the contemporary interpreter, but also to that of the translator. The book focuses on 1 Cor 14.34-35, attempting to answer two main questions: “What is the impact of these verses on Myanmar Christians’ views of the role of women in the church?” (9) and “what would a satisfactory contextual hermeneutic in Myanmar today look like in order to interpret passages that concern women today?” (10). While the book looks specifically at the context of Myanmar (where Dr. Hluan is a lecturer at the Myanmar Evangelical Graduate School of Theology), her work more broadly demonstrates the impact of translation on the interpretation of Scripture. The book is divided into three sections. The first (chapters 2 and 3) describes the Myanmar context, investigating the historical, religious, and political factors that have influenced both the concept of silence and the role of women in Myanmar culture. Hluan stresses the importance of “the contextual background of silence in Myanmar,” which she says “is inextricably linked to its hierarchical and patriarchal culture and the symbols that embody that cultural worldview” (75). Hluan then goes on to give a careful examination of 1 Cor 14.34-35 in the Burmese translation of Adoniram Judson, which she glosses as “Your wives should remain silent in the church. 1151412 TBT0010.1177/20516770231189295The Bible TranslatorBook Review book-review2023