Translation bridges gaps. Hebrew and Greek are the human languages made sacred by their use in Holy Scripture, which is the written witness to God's self-revelation in human history. The books of the Old Testament, most in Hebrew and some in Greek, and the books of the New Testament, all in Greek, have been put into almost every other language on the face of the earth. A Scriptural translation is not inspired, as is the original text, and every translation is therefore judged, first of all, by its fidelity to the original. The duet between fidelity to the original language and comprehensibility in the receiver language is a song sung by every translator.
Translation is a very exacting task, at the same time an art and a science.
Besides overseeing translations of Sacred Scripture to assure their fidelity to the Hebrew and Greek original texts, the Church also supervises translations of the liturgy. While the divinely inspired words of Holy Scripture bear witness to what God has done to create and save his people, the words of the liturgy bear witness to what the Church believes God has done and continues to do to sustain us in life and bring us to eternal life. The liturgical books are documents of the faith that enable us to worship in spirit and in truth. While not divinely inspired, the liturgical texts are fundamental witnesses to what Catholics believe. As documents expressing our faith, the liturgical books are given us by the Church and they are translated under the Church's supervision.