Why Keep Bound Volumes?

An essay by Cindy Safronoff, Oct. 13, 2021 (revised Dec. 23, 2022)

Summary: The popularity and ease of digital access to the entire history of Christian Science periodicals through JSH-Online raises the question of whether print bound volumes are worth keeping anymore. Even in an earlier era there were questions about the value of bound volumes, but nonetheless they were widely kept and used. They remain useful as an option for traditional book reading, an impactful public relations display, and for archival purposes. History provides examples of significant periodicals lost for lack of sufficiently redundant archival copies. If we want to ensure that Reading Rooms have replacement sets available for disaster damage and the complete record of the periodicals survives the coming centuries, we should encourage the keeping of bound volumes now. We can cherish the idea of future church growth, and renewed desire for bound volumes. 

Technology Has Changed the Reasons for Keeping Bound Volumes

These days most Christian Science church members use JSH-Online to search, read, and print current and articles from the Christian Science Journal, Sentinel, and Herald. For those who have internet access and subscribe to JSH-Online (online digital archives for Journal, Sentinel, and Herald), this service is convenient, has powerful search functions, and many new options for reading and printing. This innovative service has been so popular that many Christian Science Reading Rooms stopped maintaining their bound volume sets around 2011 when JSH-Online became available. Some Reading Rooms have removed their Bound Volumes, sometimes destroying them. JSH-Online subscribers have less reason to visit Christian Science Reading Rooms, since most of what they want is available to them through the internet, and so even the few bound volume sets that are still being maintained by active Reading Rooms are rarely used by visitors anymore.

Why continue to keep and maintain print bound volumes? Do they have any use anymore? Recently, I have often been asked this question by fellow Reading Room Librarians. I advocate for keeping and maintaining bound volumes, and the preservation of the sets that remain. Here’s why.

There is Nothing New about Questioning the Need for Bound Volumes

Christian Science churches in Seattle started having the CS periodicals bound in the early 1930s. Initially, not everyone was certain it was a good idea to make old issues easily available, out of concern that people might neglect reading the current periodicals, or come to believe that the older articles were better. But the trend took hold, and branch church members put them in their church board rooms and Reading Rooms. Christian Science practitioners often had a professional office in a commercial building, sometimes with their own personal set of bound volumes. The objection to providing content indexes for all previous issues took longer to yield. At first, local branch churches created their own indexes for church related topics, sometimes sharing their indexes with other branch churches. Some third-party print indexes were available. Eventually, independent software products “Found Volumes” and “The Ark” provided computer search functionality and became indispensable resources for every Christian Science Reading Room to have.

A Tactile Option for Browsing Unplugged 

While there are many efficiencies to using JSH-Online, some people still find taking a paper book off the shelf a better way to browse, read, and binge. Some people appreciate having the option to engage with the content in a tactile way. Also, as terms like “Zoom fatigue” and “digital detox” gain usage, people are recognizing that screen time can seem to have a detrimental effect on well being, and asking the question, How much screen time is too much? Computer screens are so new that we don’t really know. It may be a lot less than many of us are now routinely doing. We might consider advertising Christian Science Reading Rooms as a place to retreat from technology.

An Impressive Public Relations Display

A set of bound volumes prominently displayed attractively, especially with a sign that explains the 140+ year record of healing, is extremely useful as a public relations tool. The public confusion of Scientology and Christian Science is pervasive, persistent, and pernicious. Passers-by of our Christian Science Reading Rooms very often are heard talking about Scientology. I have overheard people reading aloud our illuminated sign that reads “Church of Christ, Scientist” and the words that come out of their mouth is “Church of Scientology.” Even people who come inside to talk with us, and we talk with them about the Bible, Jesus Christ, and Mary Baker Eddy, and healing, are often still convinced this is Scientology, regardless of how often you say “this is not Scientology.” One thing I have found effective is to walk them over to the study room and show them the bound volumes. They understand in about three seconds. For any first time visitor, it’s an impressive way to quickly convey the depth and breadth of the Christian Science experience of healing. Not many Christian Science Reading Rooms display their bound volumes with this public relations purpose in mind, but perhaps more would if they realized how useful bound volumes can be simply sitting on the shelves as a display. However, if print record stops at 2011, it might suggest to someone, now or in the future, that Christian Science healing had a limited run.

TMC Doesn’t Do Everything 

But doesn’t The Mother Church take care of historic preservation? Yes! Sometimes, for some things. Since the opening of The Mary Baker Eddy Library there is a new focus by TMC on preserving a broader range of Christian Science historical records and making them more available. But similar to any active branch church, The Mother Church has been mainly focused on current activity. Every church has to make hard choices about what records to keep. TMC is sometimes a late adopter of new ideas, including historic preservation.

Disaster Replacement for Reading Rooms

For the few remaining active Christian Science Reading Rooms that continue to keep bound volumes (and the fewer still that are maintaining them), there is a danger of loss. In the past 2 years alone, three Reading Rooms in Seattle had major plumbing disasters that could have destroyed all or part of their bound volume sets. (We can be very grateful all 3 sets were untouched!) Previously, Third Church had a roof leak which damaged books in the Reading Room—in its newly rennovated building. Globally, we’ve seen many major natural disasters: floods, wild fires, earthquakes, hurricanes, and climate change experts predict increasing frequency of such events through the next century, even if we take steps now to dramatic reduce atmospheric CO2. Any one of these disasters could have destroyed bound volumes sets. Some Reading Rooms might need replacement sets.

A Long Term Data Storage System

Why not rely on digital backups for historic preservation? Digital data and the internet is an excellent medium for immediate and broad access to information, but long-term data storage is problematic. As a society we are increasingly relying on “the cloud” to back up everything we care about. Data mostly resides in a few very large facilities. There are many ways digital data could disappear in an instant: computer viruses, electric surges, solar flares, war, terrorism, governmental action, a disgruntled employee. Even without these external risks, there are many things that can go wrong with digital data. Sometimes it seems the more that is understood about how all this technology really works, the less confidence there is in the absolute reliability of the digital system. As an example, Hollywood movies are now filmed, edited, and distributed to theaters digitally, but when it comes to long term preservation of classic movies for future generations, they are transferred to good old-fashioned film, because it is known to be a reliable long-term storage medium. We don’t really know how well digital data will hold up through the coming centuries. We do know that paper reliably lasts thousands of years. Bound Volumes are a low-tech decentralized redundant long-term data storage system for the history of the Christian Science movement.

A Cautionary Tale for Historic Preservation

In my historical research work, I have learned about many different types of periodicals that have been published in America through the centuries. Many of these periodicals have been preserved. Some are now available online. But many have been lost. One especially significant periodical is sadly incomplete. The only known complete set of The North Star, a highly influential abolitionist paper published by African American activist Frederick Douglas, was stored in his home. They were destroyed when his home burned down. He believed the fire to be arson by his political enemies. 16 volumes are forever lost.

Think Long Term

The moral of the story is that if you want to be certain something survives long into the future, it seems wise to keep many copies. Anything worthy of being known by people 1000 years from now should be kept in many places and in many forms, under the control of many different people and many types of organizations. Early scriptures that now comprise the Bible survived to this day in this way.

Mary Baker Eddy’s published books were hermetically sealed in a metal cases and placed inside a granite block within the stone walls of original Mother Church and all the early stone and brick Christian Science branch church edifices, providing a redundant low-tech long-term data storage system. I’m not as certain about the published record of Christian Scientists, especially if our generation of church members continues the present practice of destroying our own books, including the historical record of the Christian Science movement contained in the bound volumes.

Going Beyond USA

Most of the bound volume sets needing new homes are likely currently in the United States. Christian Science churches in other countries may appreciate having sets, even if English is not their native language. For relatively new churches, such as those in Africa where the Christian Science branch church movement continues to grow, having a bound volume set could provide them a meaningful sense of inclusion in our rich religious heritage. In areas where technology and internet is not as accessible and reliable as what we enjoy in urban areas of USA, they may appreciate the reliable access and the tactile reading option. Shipping overseas has its challenges, but these challenges could be met. A proactive effort to find new homes for bound volumes could place successfully place more sets abroad. The act of trying would provide opportunity to develop new relationships between Christian Scientists all over the world.

Hope for the Future

Right now the human picture of the state of Christian Science branch churches does not look promising. It’s hard to even imagine new Christian Science churches forming and opening new Christian Science Reading Rooms. It’s hard for us to know how the Christian Science movement will unfold through the 21st Century and beyond. A bound volume set even in storage can represent hope for a future when Christian Science churches once again flourish with a tangible sense of history and heritage.