Every year, September 30 commemorates the feast day of Saint Jerome for the Christian church. As it so happens, this date also marks the annual celebration of International Translation Day. But the overlap of these two holidays is no mere coincidence.

Born in the middle of the 4th century, Jerome pioneered one of the most groundbreaking Bible translation projects in church history. A prolific Scripture scholar and master in Hebrew and Greek, Jerome translated nearly all of the Old Testament into Latin—the people’s common language in his day. He also helped produce revised translations of New Testament books. The net result was an updated, unified Bible for the Christian church called the Vulgate.

As American Bible Society celebrates Bible translation work around the world on International Translation Day, it is only fitting that we are encouraged by Saint Jerome’s example. Jerome worked with an unprecedented urgency to translate God’s Word for waiting Christians as efficiently as he possibly could. He is said to have worked with a human skull on his desk as a reminder of his own mortality. His urgent quest to improve Bible translation work is best summarized in his plea, “Catch, then, O catch the transient hour; improve each moment as it flies!”

Like Saint Jerome, American Bible Society yearns for a world where all people can access and engage with God’s Word. Of the 7,102 languages in the world, only 531 have full Bible translations. It’s this need that drives us to open 100 percent of the world’s language to Bible engagement in the next 10 years.

And like Jerome, American Bible Society urgently seeks to accelerate Bible translation projects by improving technology, training and processes for translators around the world. We do this by partnering with Bible translators on the ground in places like Zambia, Angola and the Philippines. By offering support and removing barriers to efficient translation, we help them bring God’s Word to their local communalities as quickly as possible.

On International Translation Day, join us as we celebrate the noble work of Bible translators in our own day. And join us in beseeching God’s help as we seek to ensure that everyone on the planet has access to God’s Word in his or her heart language.