Travelling storyteller takes Jesus to Tibetans

Not on foot but an ambitious new DVD project

The profound influence of Buddhism means that Tibetans instinctively misunderstand Christ and his teaching. Some see Jesus as similar to Buddha or the high lamas rather than God himself in human from. The Tibetan Storytelling Project (TSP) was born out of this need to present Jesus and the Bible in a way Tibetans could understand.

In 2001 two couples (one from WEC) began to collect resources for a DVD project using traditional Tibetan art, songs, choreography and rhythmic speech. They particularly wanted to use thangka paintings, a religious art form, to create an overview of the entire Bible. In the DVD a Tibetan traveling storyteller, Choembay, and his daughter, Lhakpa, use these paintings as they explain their own search for truth.

In 2003 they came across an 80 minute DVD called ‘The Hope’ by Mars Hill Productions. It shared the same set of stories and themes with Middle Eastern looking Biblical footage. In a wonderful way Mars Hill agreed to let TSP use the DVD while a gifted video maker agreed to help them adapt it for a Tibetan audience.

In 2005 a camera crew traveled to the Tibetan plateau to shoot scenes with Choembay and Lhakpa and a cast of 50 locals. However, the post-production phase was delayed for months by setbacks. A Tibetan believer fell and broke his jaw just as he was about to restart script checking. The main musician demanded more money, walking off in the middle of filming, and technical equipment malfunctioned inexplicably. The team was aware that this project was being heavily contested.

However, to God’s glory and after six years, the 2 hour DVD was completed on 19 May 2007. Now Tibetans living on the high plateau and those in the diaspora community have greater access to a Jesus who comes in their dress, culture and language.

To view the paintings and download the songs go to the website: www.rewahope.com
For copies of the DVDs (with English subtitles) or the beautiful poster sets of paintings write to: tbwcentral@psmail.net