What Goes Around

    I was reminded recently of how things go in cycles. By some mysterious cause, things come into style and go out again only to reappear a generation later. Case in point is short skirts. After a delightful stretch of modest long skirts, suddenly hems rose  above the knees and modesty disappeared. But that is not what triggered my thoughts.

    A committee is currently working on translating the Martyrs' Mirror into a more readable English. It is slow and tedious work, not expected to be finished before 2029. It was originally written in the Dutch language and published in the Netherlands. In 1748, it was translated into German by Peter Miller and printed at the Ephrata Cloister for the Mennonites. The first English translation of the book was printed in 1837 in Lancaster.

    In 1780, a reprint of the German edition was made in Germany. Ten years ago, a committee in Germany began translating the German edition into more modern and readable German. When asked what German version they used as a basis in their translating, they said it was the 1748 translation. The new German edition is now complete. It has gone full circle from Europe to Pennsylvania and back to Europe. What goes around comes around.