How to Translate a Church Service Live

Step 1: Decide which parts of the service to translate

Anything spoken into a microphone can be translated: the welcome, announcements, prayers, Scripture readings, the sermon or homily, testimonies and the benediction. Sung parts are recognised less reliably than speech, so most churches translate the spoken parts live and project song lyrics in two languages from their presentation software.

Step 2: Get the speaker's voice to one device

Run a feed from the sound desk into a laptop through an audio interface or USB adapter, or place a phone, tablet or USB microphone close to the pulpit and away from loudspeakers. The same device follows the service from start to finish, so connect it to power and a reliable internet connection.

Step 3: Choose the spoken language and the reading languages

Sign in, choose the language the service is led in and the language or languages people will read. 61 languages can be spoken into the app and 123 can be read. Multiple mode shows up to 5 reading languages side by side.

Step 4: Decide where people will read

For the whole room, put the Subtitles screen on the projector with up to 5 caption languages. For a livestream, add the OBS overlay link as a Browser Source. For people who prefer their own phone, show a QR code with the QR Code Join add-on ($10.00 a month) so they can read in the browser without an account.

Step 5: Prepare names, terms and Bible versions

Add the names of the people leading the service, your ministries and any church terms your members translate in a particular way to the church glossary. Choose a Bible version for each reading language, so a named passage opens in the edition your members carry.

Step 6: Test with the real room

Run the captions for ten minutes during a rehearsal or a normal Sunday before any big event. Every account gets 1 free hour every month, enough to test a full service. Ask one reader from each language group to tell you afterwards what was hard to follow.

The words churches use, and why they matter here

Churches name the same things differently, and people search with their own church's words. The app translates what is spoken whatever it is called, and your glossary can fix the wording your tradition prefers.

• Evangelical, Baptist and nondenominational churches: sermon, message or preaching, at a worship service or Sunday service
• Pentecostal and charismatic churches: the message, the Word or ministration
• Catholic parishes: the homily and the readings at Mass
• Orthodox churches: the homily at the Divine Liturgy, where much of the service is chanted
• Spanish speaking churches: predicación, prédica or sermón at the culto; homilía at the misa
• Korean churches: 설교 at 예배; Chinese churches: 講道 or 證道 at 主日崇拜

Translating a Mass or a liturgical service

In a Catholic, Orthodox, Anglican or Lutheran liturgy, the homily and the readings are the parts that translate best live, because they are spoken by one person at a lectern. Fixed prayers that the congregation says together, and parts that are sung or chanted, are better printed or projected in advance in each language. Verse popups show the reading in each listener's chosen Bible edition when the passage is named.

Bible studies, small groups and prayer meetings

A small group is a conversation, not a lecture. For two people speaking two languages, Conversation mode splits one phone screen so each person reads the other's words. For a teacher leading a group, the same live captions as the Sunday service work on a laptop or a TV in the room.

How much translating a service costs

Basic is $19.99 a month for 12 hours of live translation and Standard is $34 a month for 30 hours. A one hour service translated into one language uses one hour; in two languages it uses 2 hours. Subtitles on the projector are included in Standard, or $10.00 a month on Basic.

Can a whole worship service be translated, not just the sermon?

Yes. Everything spoken into the microphone is translated: welcome, announcements, prayers, readings, the sermon and the benediction. Sung lyrics are recognised less reliably than speech.

Can we translate the Catholic Mass and the homily?

The homily and the readings translate well because one person speaks them at the lectern. Sung and chanted parts and prayers said together are better printed or projected in each language.

Do people need headsets or an app to follow the translated service?

No headsets. People read captions on the projector, the livestream or their own phone in the browser. With the QR Code Join add-on they scan a code and need no account.

What is the difference between a sermon, a message and a homily?

They are the same moment in different traditions: evangelical churches often say sermon or message, Pentecostal churches the Word or ministration, and Catholic and Orthodox churches the homily. The app translates the spoken words whatever they are called.