Cebuano and Ilocano Church Translation for Filipino Congregations

Not every Filipino thinks in Tagalog

Filipino churches abroad bring together members from Luzon, the Visayas and Mindanao. Many older members understand Cebuano (Bisaya), Ilocano or Hiligaynon far better than Tagalog or English. Regional captions let them read the sermon in the language of home.

• English or Tagalog preaching with Cebuano captions
• Ilocano and Hiligaynon captions for members from those regions
• Kapampangan, Pangasinan and Bikol are available too

What works in each language today

Taken from the app's own language settings, so it matches what the app does now. Verse popups can show Bible text in English, Traditional Chinese, Korean, Japanese, Vietnamese, Farsi / Persian, Spanish, Brazilian Portuguese, French, German and Filipino / Tagalog.

• Cebuano: reading language only, the app cannot yet listen to preaching in it; no built-in church vocabulary yet; no verse popup text in this language yet.
• Ilocano: reading language only, the app cannot yet listen to preaching in it; no built-in church vocabulary yet; no verse popup text in this language yet.
• Hiligaynon: reading language only, the app cannot yet listen to preaching in it; no built-in church vocabulary yet; no verse popup text in this language yet.

What to expect

These languages have no built-in church vocabulary, and translation engines have less text in them than in Tagalog, so ask a native reader to check the first services. The app cannot listen to preaching in these languages, only write captions in them.

Several dialects, one screen

The Subtitles screen shows up to 5 caption languages together, so Tagalog and Cebuano can run side by side for a mixed congregation. Free and Basic include one reading language, Standard includes two and All Languages includes every language. Each language beyond that uses another hour of plan time for every hour of the service.

How to set it up for a service

One laptop, tablet or phone near the pulpit does the work. Give it clean sound from the sound desk or a microphone close to the preacher, sign in, choose the language being preached and the reading language or languages your members need, and start. The room reads the captions on the projector through the Subtitles screen, online viewers see them in the livestream through the OBS overlay, and members who prefer their own phone scan a QR code with QR Code Join, included in every plan, and read with no account.

• Before the service: add names, ministries and church terms to the glossary, and choose a Bible version for verse popups
• During the service: keep the device on power and online; captions follow the preaching sentence by sentence
• After the service: the transcript is saved to the account, and the Standard plan turns it into AI sermon notes

Can our pastor preach in Cebuano?

Not yet. Cebuano, Ilocano and Hiligaynon are reading languages only; Tagalog (Filipino) and English can be preached in.

Do verse popups show a Tagalog or Cebuano Bible?

Tagalog, yes: Filipino verse popups show Ang Dating Biblia (1905). Cebuano, Ilocano and Hiligaynon have no connected edition yet; the Bible editions connected today cover English, Traditional Chinese, Korean, Japanese, Vietnamese, Farsi / Persian, Spanish, Brazilian Portuguese, French, German and Filipino / Tagalog.

Is there a page for English to Tagalog?

Yes, the English to Filipino page covers Tagalog captions in detail.

What does it cost to run this every Sunday?

Every account gets 1 free hour every month of live translation, enough to test a full service. Basic is $19.99 a month for 12 hours and Standard is $34 a month for 30 hours. Free and Basic include one reading language, Standard includes two and All Languages includes every language. Each language beyond that uses another hour of plan time for every hour of the service.