At The First Church of Christ, Scientist, in Boston, Massachusetts, the Office of the Publisher’s Agent for Mary Baker Eddy’s Writings regularly receives inquiries and suggestions related to translations of this author’s books. Also received are inquiries about various non-English translations of the Bible. As this is an international church with the Holy Bible and Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures by Mary Baker Eddy as its “dual and impersonal pastor” (Mary Baker Eddy, Miscellaneous Writings 1883–1896, p. 322), what follows is an exploration of the relationship between these two books, in many languages, and their role in this global church and movement—written by the Translations Manager in the Office of the Publisher’s Agent.
Gathering to pray together on a Sunday morning in parts of New Zealand, locals in Christian Science branch churches and societies do what many around the world do every week. Members and visitors pray with and for the congregation, sing hymns, and hear the Christian Science Quarterly Bible Lesson read aloud as a sermon from two books: the Bible and Science and Health.
A few hours or so later, services are held with the same sermon in Australia, Japan, South Korea, and the Philippines. As the sun warms more storefronts and hillsides, congregations in Hong Kong, Singapore, and Indonesia welcome visitors and members to the embrace of this pastor’s sermon. Not long after, services are starting in India, then across Africa and throughout Europe.
By the time churches open in Brazil, Uruguay, and Chile, numerous Christian Science services have already taken place that day. Now they ripple through South and Central America, the United States, and Canada.
Growth in spiritual understanding is supported by each attendee having direct access to the Bible and Science and Health, often in their own language.
Finally, Sunday morning services are held in Hawaii—at a time when the churchgoers in New Zealand who greeted their day with the same sermon have long since said good night and even started their Monday morning. Thus, every Sunday, a Christian Science church service blesses members and guests most hours around the clock, delivering the same comforting, healing sermon.
Spread across the globe, members and visitors gather to worship God and learn more of each one’s actual, present perfection as God’s loved creation, which naturally leads to healing in all aspects of our lives. Such growth in spiritual understanding is supported by each attendee having direct access to the Bible and Science and Health (the Christian Science textbook), often in their own language.
“Unity is the essential nature of Christian Science. Its Principle is One, and to demonstrate the divine One, demands oneness of thought and action,” Mrs. Eddy wrote (Miscellaneous Writings, p. 264). In designating the Bible and Science and Health as the pastor of the church she founded, she ensured one vibrant voice would, as she put it, “preach for this Church and the world” (Manual of The Mother Church, p. 58). And she saw a need for this pastor to “preach” in languages other than English.
Mary Baker Eddy’s Books in Translation
On March 31, 1910, after fielding requests for at least twenty years, Mrs. Eddy authorized the first translation of Science and Health with important requirements. She wrote to Allison V. Stewart, publisher of her books at the time: “Please take immediate steps to have Science & Health translated into the German language. This new edition shall be printed with alternate pages of English and German, one side to contain the divinely inspired English version which shall be the standard, the other to contain the German text which shall be a translation.
“This work must be done by a committee of not less than three persons who are thorough English and German scholars, and good Christian Scientists” (L03271, The Mary Baker Eddy Library; © The Mary Baker Eddy Collection).
This led to the first authorized translation of Science and Health, published in 1912. A French translation of the textbook followed just under six years later; eventually came Spanish and others, and later Portuguese and more (see “Further Information” at the end of this article for a complete list). Each translation was developed by a team of class-taught Christian Scientists who were native speakers of that language.
Today, there are authorized translations of Science and Health, along with authorized Bibles, available in 16 languages, as well as informal translations in Igbo, a language local to southeastern Nigeria, and simplified and traditional Chinese. All the authorized translations of Science and Health follow the standards its author established for her writings, including that each translation display the original English pages side by side with the translated pages. Many of the Science and Health translations were preceded by a Christian Science Herald magazine in that language, containing testimonies of healing and articles about Christian Science—for then, as now, Christian Science is proven by, and grows through, individuals’ healing work for themselves and others.
Translators of Mrs. Eddy’s books cherish their time together as a team, learn from each other, and strive to accurately represent the English words in their language, while simultaneously turning regularly to the Bible for guidance, education, and of course, inspiration. Throughout the process of developing a new or revised translation of one of Mrs. Eddy’s books, both a core team of translators and a long line of reviewers search their hearts and listen for divine Mind’s direction. That quiet work is essential to the overall demonstration of expressing the oneness and only-ness of Mind, God, in each language and culture.
Mrs. Eddy wrote, “In Science, Mind is one, including noumenon and phenomena, God and His thoughts” (Science and Health, p. 114). God is expressing His thoughts to all humanity through the Bible and Mary Baker Eddy’s books, tangibly showing everyone’s inherent individuality, yet unity in His ever-present love.
Throughout the textbook, Mrs. Eddy either quotes or alludes to Bible references, on average one to two times per page (almost all from the King James Version). These interwoven scriptural passages are like a stream flowing steadily throughout the entire book that indissolubly links it to the Holy Scriptures. The true account of creation, the guidance of the prophets’ lives, the comfort of the Psalms, and the teachings and healings of Christ Jesus—all these and more are referenced in the Christian Science textbook, providing a unique and unifying message for all who study these books or hear them read in church.
Non-English Bibles
For every Science and Health translation, there is a selected non-English Bible quoted throughout. To be authorized, these Bibles are required to meet certain criteria—criteria which have been in place for decades. These include:
Their content has been directly translated by a professional committee from the original texts (Hebrew, Greek, and Aramaic) and therefore is not an interpretation or explanation of an English text.
Each is a Protestant Bible widely respected, read, and studied by those in many different Protestant churches.
Each non-English Bible needs to contain theology concordant with Christian Science as taught by Mary Baker Eddy; for example, a Bible translation that may imply that Jesus is God would not meet this requirement.
The Bible and the Christian Science textbook, as our dual pastor, provide abundant inspiration, clarity, and strength.
Our office has the privilege of shepherding non-English Bibles through the authorization process and overseeing the translation of our Leader’s writings, always with the intent of enabling newcomers and students of Christian Science to grow in their spiritual understanding by reading in their native languages. Having a single “dual and impersonal pastor” available across seven continents means that, regardless of the language one reads it in, students of Science are all turning to the same pastor. Readers for almost a century and a half have been inspired and enabled to demonstrate this divine Science— individually and collectively—through this pastor.
How can I help?
Anyone can continually strive to develop and deepen their understanding of the ideas in this pastor, often in their native language. This simple activity inevitably helps all who engage with these books to draw closer to God and to each other, and strengthens prayers for themselves, their families and neighbors, and all of humanity. The Bible and the Christian Science textbook, as our dual pastor, are like a familiar friend and provide abundant inspiration, clarity, and strength. People all over the world, from New Zealand to India, Austria, and Cameroon, and Colombia to the Hawaiian Islands, attest to the love at the heart of this precious Science.
Studying these books (including through the weekly Bible Lesson) and then prayerfully listening to the Lesson-Sermon at church on Sundays brings us into the profound promise of Mrs. Eddy’s words to one branch: “The silent prayers of our churches, resounding through the dim corridors of time, go forth in waves of sound, a diapason of heart-beats, vibrating from one pulpit to another and from one heart to another, till truth and love, commingling in one righteous prayer, shall encircle and cement the human race” (The First Church of Christ, Scientist, and Miscellany, p. 189). It is a joy to be part of this movement with its global, healing outreach for humanity in English and translation.
Further Information:
The authorized non-English Bibles, each paired with a translated Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures by Mary Baker Eddy, have been reviewed with the help of members of The Mother Church all over the world. Translations of Mary Baker Eddy’s published books and the non-English Bibles are authorized by the Christian Science Board of Directors. Authorized translations of Science and Health are currently available in Czech, Danish, Dutch, Finnish, French, German, Greek, Indonesian, Italian, Japanese, Norwegian, Polish, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish, and Swedish. Translations of Science and Health and most of the non-English Bibles can be purchased at shop.christianscience.com. Questions can be sent to mbetranslations@csps.com.
