Bruce Slawter of Springfield presents an exhibition and talk on the history of the Bible at First Church of Christ, Scientist in Springfield. Photo by Tim Peterson.
How did the King James Version of the Bible come to be? In a one-day exhibition celebrating International Bible Day on Nov. 23, Springfield resident and historian Bruce Slawter showcased several ancient Bible pages and explained some of the book’s origin story.
The exhibition took place at First Church of Christ, Scientist in Springfield, where Slawter is a member and “first reader.” Not to be confused with the Church of Scientology, the Christian Science Church was founded by Mary Baker Eddy in 1879. Members follow the Bible and Eddy’s interpretation of it as their spiritual basis.
Slawter of Springfield has alway been interested in history and is a “first reader” at the First Church of Christ, Scientist. In 2011, the 400th birthday of the King James Bible, Slawter said was “the big push” to pursue Bible history scholarship as he was teaching college-age Sunday School at the church.
Questions of how the King James Version of the Bible came about compelled Slawter to contact the Folger Shakespeare Library and begin work on his own exhibition. Slawter connected with vendors and collectors online, and came into possession of several historic pieces he had verified by experts at Folger.
His pieces include a page from the William Tyndale New Testament, from around 1526, the first English translation from the original Greek; the Matthew Bible, circa 1537, a first edition from Antwerp printed with movable type on rag-cotton linen; and the Geneva Bible, circa 1560, by English Protestants who fled England.
The primary collection of Slawter concludes with a page from the 1611 first edition of the King James Version, the culmination of work from six different companies exchanging drafts, peer reviews and circulating corrections before a general review committee and senior review.
“It’s considered one of the greatest collaborative efforts of scholarship in history,” Slawter said.
Slawter managed an open house at the church during the day and led a more detailed talk that evening. Seeing the pages first hand has given him a more profound perspective on his own scholarship.
“It makes you appreciate the dedication of the forerunners of Biblical scholarship,” Slawter said. “Many of these individuals were martyred for their views, like Tyndale, who asked for his stylus and his Hebrew dictionary so he could work on translating right up until his execution.”
“You wonder whether you would have that sort of faith, that courage, today,” Slawter added.
First Church of Christ, Scientist is located at 5315 Backlick Road in Springfield.