Shekgalagari (and Setswana) don’t have gender distinction in the third person. You can refer to a sibling of the opposite sex, but that depends on the gender of the speaker to be clear. This feature of the language makes calling Jesus the “Son of God” impossible in Shekgalagari. Instead, we use Ngwana wa Morimo “Child of God” to make the distinction that Jesus is the offspring of God, God in human form.

These language distinctions may seem like a challenge, but we pray that they help us all understand that God is bigger than any one language can express. Each time the Bible is translated into a new language, we see MORE of God through the eyes of a new culture and language. Praise God for the gift of language that does such wonderful things!