Biography Myanmar Christian Writers

Aye Myint Kyaw

(b. 10 Oct 1915). Pastor , teacher , educator, translator and writer in Myanmar.
Kyaw was the son of S'ra Byu and Nant Hnin Yone. His father was a village schoolteacher at first but later joined the ministry to become pastor of local church. Kyaw had a strict religious upbringing. He attended the Burma Divinity School (Myanmar Institute of Theology) and obtained the bachelor of theology degree in Mar 1939. In that same year, he was assigned to teach at the Pwo Karen Bible Training School in Yangon. He became assistant principal in 1940 and the next year its principal. He was ordained on 28 Jan 1954 and married Maiden Tun on 9 Aug 1969.

Kyaw traveled widely. One 5 Apr 1956, he visited Bangkok, Thailand, to make a survey of different dialects of Pwo Karen. In 1959, he was sent as a delegate to Kuala Lumpur , Malaysia, to attend the East Asia Christian Conference inauguration service. From there, he flew to Thailand to attend the Karen Baptist Convention. In 1961 he was sent as a delegate to the Third General Assembly of the World Council of Churches at New Delhi, India.

Kyaw served for six years (1962-67) with the World Council of Churches (WCC). He served two four-year terms as general secretary of the Burma Baptist Convention (1961-69). In 1961 he was privileged to attend the central committee meeting of the WCC in Paris, France. He was also able to attend the Baptist World Alliance executive committee meeting in Norway and visited the WCC headquarters in Geneva.

After his term as general secretary of the Myanmar Baptist Convention (MBC) had expired, Kyaw became general secretary of the Pwo Karen Conference, serving from 1969 to 1995. On 16 Dec 1990, the executive committee of the MBC and the board of trustees of the Myanmar Institute of Theology presented him with the Fellowship of Distinguished Christian Service (FDCS).

As author and translator, Kyaw has written and published a large number of booklets and lecture notes. They were written for use by Pwo Karen schools as well as individuals. Kyaw also helped write the Commentary of the Bible in the Pwo Karen language.

Kyaw give owner 50 years to the Lord. His unfailing service to the church, his interest in theological education, and his devotion to the spread of the Gospel in Myanmar made him exemplary in the eyes of Myanmar Christians.

J. MAUNG LAT and ANNA MAY SAY PA
A Dictionary of ASIAN Christianity
Scott W. Sunquist, editor
David Wu Chu Sing and John Chew Hiang Chea, associate editors.
@2001 Wm, B Berdmans Publishing Co. Michigan, USA