Catholic Bible Research Articles

Beyond the Douai-Reims Bible: The Changing Publishing Strategies of the Kellam Family in Seventeenth-Century Douai

Abstract The career of the Catholic Englishman Laurence Kellam is often reduced to his most impressive edition, the Old Testament of the Douay-Rheims Bible (1609–1610), an English Catholic Bible translation edited by the English College of Douai. Yet, there has been scarce attention for the remaining 190 editions, printed in English, as well as in Latin, French and Dutch, that bear a Kellam imprint. The discovery of another fifty editions that should be ascribed to the Kellam press demands a reappraisal of its activities and significance. By analysing both printed and archival sources, this article intends to fit the Bible edition of 1609–1610, and English Catholic printing on the continent more generally, into the wider perspective of three generations of publishing activities and family history, highlighting the increasingly tight connections between several generations of the Kellam family and the authors, institutions, and fellow-publishers of their host society.

A semantic comparison of the conclusion of LXX Tobit and Semitic 4QTobit

At the beginning of the 20th century, the shorter Greek version of the book of Tobit, GI, which is included in the Catholic Bible, was thought to be the oldest version. It was defined as ‘a lesson on almsgiving and its redeeming powers’. As the discoveries of the Semitic copies of Tobit at Qumran, GI is recognised to be a reworking of the longer version GII, most probably originally written in Aramaic, between 225 and 175 BCE. In all versions of Tobit, the theme of almsgiving is introduced as specifically directed to Jewish kinsmen, but towards the end, is to be directed to all poor, suggesting that it may have been written by a Hellenistic Jew. Although the surface context of the narrative of Tobit is the Jewish tradition of proper observation of mitzvot and sacrifice and eventual reward, the various versions contain varying degrees of ancient Near Eastern wisdom, and an ironic, subversive reflection of hypocritical righteousness. This article questioned why the endings differ markedly in different versions. To try to find answers, a semantic comparison was made between GI and the most complete Aramaic version 4Q196.Contribution: This article considered the implications of source criticism in the reception of the various versions of Tobit. The possibility was examined that the pre-Christian, Aramaic version 4Q196Tobit does not confirm the excessive focus on almsgiving as righteousness apparent in the GI version of LXX Tobit.

Biblijna kosmologia Jana Kochanowskiego. Ciała niebieskie w „Psałterzu Dawidowym” na tle XVI-wiecznych przekładów Biblii

Tematem tekstu są odniesienia astronomiczne w Psałterzu Dawidowym Jana Kochanowskiego, zaliczającym się do dzieł poety najbogatszych w tego typu nawiązania. Koncentrują się one wokół budowy wszechświata, najważniejszych ciał niebieskich: Słońca i Księżyca (w dalszej kolejności też gwiazd) oraz ich ruchu po niebie, wyznaczanego przez nie kosmicznego ładu i pochwały harmonijnego dzieła Stworzenia oraz jego Autora. W tekście omówiono kilka wybranych motywów związanych z tematyką astronomiczną w Psałterzu. Zaliczają się do nich wschody i zachody słońca powiązane z porami dnia i porządkiem czasu, obraz kręgu ziemskiego, przeciwstawienie Bóg na wysokościach–ziemia na dole, zestawienia głównych obiektów astronomicznych: Słońca i Księżyca. Wybrane motywy astronomiczne w Psałterzu Kochanowskiego odniesiono do dwóch szesnastowiecznych tłumaczeń Księgi Psalmów, które można uznać za najważniejsze dla dwóch głównych stronnictw uczestniczących w sporach o teksty święte: protestancką Biblię brzeską i katolicką Biblię Jakuba Wujka. Nie ma to na celu szukania bezpośrednich zależności (w przypadku przekładu katolickiego, późniejszego niż zbiór Kochanowskiego, niemożliwych), ale skonfrontowanie dzieła poetyckiego z koncepcjami czytania i przekładania Biblii wykreowanymi przez twórców przekładów konfesyjnych.

집회서 48:17-22의 히스기야 터널에 관한 고찰 - 히브리어 본문과 칠십인역의 본문 비교 -

In this paper, I will search the story of Hezekiah’s tunnel in the Book of Ben Sira called Ecclesiasticus as well as in the biblical texts, comparing the Hebrew text and the Septuagint to discern differences in the translation among the Korean Common Translation, the Korean Catholic Bible, and the New American Bible Revised Edition.<BR> Hezekiah was one of the great kings of Judah, at least from the religious viewpoint of the Deuteronomist, the Chronicler, and Ben Sira. Hezekiah bored a tunnel from the Spring of Gihon to the Pool of Siloam (2Ki 20:20; 2Ch 32:30), thus assuring Jerusalem a good supply of water when Sennacherib attacked Judah and surrounded the city of Jerusalem.<BR> We can find this story of Hezekiah in the Book of Ben Sira 48:17-22. Ben Sira was originally written in Hebrew around the 2nd century BCE, and was later translated into Greek as one book of the Septuagint. Between 1896 and 1900, many fragments of Ben Sira in Hebrew were identified by scholars among the vast collection of materials recovered from the Cairo synagogue genizah.<BR> Ben Sira 48:17c “and he hewed through the rocks with bronze” is evidently referring to the boring of the tunnel from the Gihon to the Pool of Siloam. This resembles the description of the Siloam inscription. The verb חצב(hew through) and the noun צוד(rock) both occur twice in the Siloam inscription found six meters before the exit of Hezekiah’s tunnel in 1880, and it describes the dramatic meeting between the workers who have completed the tunneling.<BR> While the Hebrew text declares ‘the Most High God

A Handbook on 1–2 Esdras by Roger A. Bullard and Howard A. Hatton

Reviewed by: A Handbook on 1–2 Esdras by Roger A. Bullard and Howard A. Hatton Richard J. Bautch roger a. bullard and howard a. hatton, A Handbook on 1–2 Esdras (UBS Handbook Series; Miami, FL: United Bible Society, 2019). Pp. xi + 894. $20. Although it is not among the seven books that form the Deuterocanonical books of the Catholic Bible, 1 Esdras is part of the Apocrypha and an important witness to ancient traditions involving the biblical figure Ezra. In the narrative of 1 Esdras, Ezra leads a group from exile in Babylon to Jerusalem, where he refurbishes the temple and publicly proclaims the law to the people. His actions parallel those of the biblical Ezra in the Book of Ezra (and the Book of Nehemiah, 8:1–12). Ezra also appears prominently in 2 Esdras, where he receives seven visions that foretell the climax or end of history. 2 Esdras is a Jewish apocalypse, to which later Christian writers appended two introductory chapters and two concluding chapters. It too forms part of the Apocrypha. 1 Esdras and 2 Esdras are the subject of this volume by Roger A. Bullard and Howard A. Hatton, who aim to assist translators making these texts available in diverse languages and cultures, per the aims of the United Bible Societies. The handbook allows translators without knowledge of Greek to carry out their work while relying on B. and H. for discussions of any lexical issues in the original language. Bullard and Hatton provide a systematic presentation of the text. A pericope appears synoptically in two translations (RSV and the Good News Translation, which reads like a “functional equivalent” [p. 878]). A short commentary follows, with exegetical, historical, linguistic, and cultural information. The authors then treat each verse in the pericope individually, with attention to the Greek on which the two English translations are based. In this way, the commentary imparts a deeper knowledge of the text without requiring readers to be familiar with its original language. Units often conclude with B. and H. writing their own translation of certain verses to guide the translator rendering 1 Esdras or 2 Esdras in a “receptor” language, that is, the language spoken today where these two books of the Apocrypha are being introduced. Given the intended readership, the volume has appropriate and ample resources. There are brief introductions to 1 Esdras and 2 Esdras, a selected bibliography, a glossary, and a subject index. Certain terms in the glossary provide a window on the global work of translators who would use this volume. “Ideophone,” for example, is defined as “a form of expressive language that can describe anything that a person’s senses might feel or observe. … They are especially common in African languages. For example in one language prrrr! expresses whiteness or brightness. In another language yaa indicates complete emptiness” (p. 879). The bibliography is not up-to-date, as there are only a handful of entries published after 2000. Missing are notable discussions of 1 Esdras such as Lisbeth S. Fried, ed., Was 1 Esdras First? An Investigation into the Priority and Nature of 1 Esdras (AIL 7; Atlanta: Society of Biblical Literature, 2011); and Dieter Böhler, 1 Esdras (International Exegetical Commentary on the Old Testament; Stuttgart: Kohlhammer, 2015). Böhler’s commentary features one of the most cogent arguments to date that 1 Esdras is best understood as a composition in its own right; the author of 1 Esdras culled (and revised) materials from an early Ezra source (specifically, an early stage of Ezra-Nehemiah before the Nehemiah Memoir and various minor portions of Ezra were incorporated) in order to write a freestanding book that features the wisdom of Zerubbabel at its center. This view is quite different from that of 1 Esdras as merely a compilation of texts or as a fragment [End Page 476] from an earlier, united version of Chronicles-Ezra-Nehemiah. Such assessments of 1 Esdras held sway in the last century, along with the theory that it is a translation from the Hebrew and Aramaic of Chronicles, Ezra, and Nehemiah, the view put forth by B. and H. (p. 2). Such views are increasingly relegated to the...

Dupont de Nemours and the origin of the maxim 'laissez faire, laissez passer'

Dupont de Nemours begins his 'Lettre a la Chambre de Commerce de Normandie' (1788) with an excerpt from the catholic bible. This quote refers to the Lazarus's miraculous re-birth: Otez-lui fes liens, & laiffez-le aller.1 The quote is Jesus' statement upon bringing Lazarus back to life. This reference begins our inquiry into the origin of the laissez-faire maxim. In this paper, we highlight some mistranslations, some historical shortcomings and present our perspective on the origin of the maxim.

Networks of Piety and Slavery among Late Eighteenth-Century Rural Maryland Catholics

The first Catholic Bible published in the United States in 1790 contained a subscriber list: names and locations of people, mostly Catholics, who helped finance the publication. An initial map of these 429 names, created for a 2017 exhibition in the University of Notre Dame's Rare Books and Special Collections, showed clusters of subscribers in Maryland and Pennsylvania. The largest subset identified so far (102 subscribers) was in rural Maryland, and is this paper's focus. Digital tools helped us visualize networks within this community, including historical connections between slavery and piety. We found that a large majority of Maryland Catholics who purchased Bibles were also slaveholders (more than twice the average rate of slaveholding in the South). The densest subscriber locations also trace a discernable path along the pattern of Jesuit plantations in southern and eastern Maryland, a parallel between piety and slaveholding the map made visible. Digital mapping also pulled into focus connections among rural Catholics, as well as relationships between them and the people they enslaved. Archival records revealed dense kinship, religious, and fraternal relationships among subscribers. Records also uncovered enslaved Marylanders who embraced Catholicism, sued or petitioned for freedom, or fled. Slavery and religion formed connective tissue in post-Revolutionary Maryland.

Bishop Challoner’s Ecumenical Revision of the Douai-Rheims Bible by Way of King James

The Catholic Bible printed at Rheims in 1582 (New Testament) and Douai in 1610 (Old Testament) was brought out in a new edition in 1749-1752, the work of the chief Catholic prelate in the realm, Dr Richard Challoner. It has often been assumed that he merely updated the spelling and added explanatory notes, but he changed some 15% of the text: sometimes modernizing the language, but more often making judicious adjustments while preserving the formal ‘register’ of the original. In doing so, he frequently took advantage of the diction and style of the King James Version of 1611. In fact, three quarters of the changes coincide with the Protestant Bible, coming to 11% of the whole; and most of this language is taken from William Tyndale 80 years earlier. By combining older vocabulary with some newer words and by mixing older syntax with more recent phrasing, Challoner honours traditional biblical usage at the same time as he gently updates the text. The subtle but significant revisions he makes have been under-appreciated. Because his language draws from the Protestant as well as the Catholic Bible, Challoner sculpts a hybrid scriptural genre, one that was unprecedented. As a result of its non-denominational features, his new Douai-Rheims was more amenable to non-Catholic readers, which would stand it in good stead as the King James text grew in reverence and came to be spoken of as ‘the Authorized Version’. Challoner’s use of it was rightly termed an ‘act of moral courage’.

The First Catholic Bible in Chinese: Gabriele Allegra and His Translation

Abstract Christian missionaries play an important role in the history of the relationship between China and Europe. Their presence in China has been widely explored, but little attention has been paid to the role played by the Bible in their preaching. From 13th to 19th century, although they did not translate the Bible, Catholic missionaries preached the Gospel orally or with catechisms. On the other hand, the Protestant missionaries had published many version of the Chinese Bible throughout the 19th century. It was only in the 20th century that the Franciscan friar Gabriele Allegra decided to go to China as a missionary to translate the Holy Scriptures into Chinese. He arrived in China in 1931 and translated from 1935 to 1961. He also founded a biblical study centre to prepare expert scholars to collaborate in the Bible translation. Allegra and his colleagues completed the translation in 1961, and the first complete single-volume Catholic Bible in Chinese was published in 1968. After presenting the historical background of Allegra’s activity, a textual analysis of some passages of his translation will be presented, emphasizing the meanings of the Chinese words he chose to use to translate particular elements of Christian terminology. This study will verify the closeness of the work by Allegra to the original Greek text and the validity of some particular translation choices.

Catholics and the King James Bible: Stories from England, Ireland and America

AbstractThe King James Bible was widely celebrated in 2011 for its literary, religious and cultural significance over the past 400 years, yet its staunch critics are important to note as well. This article draws attention to Catholic critics of the King James Bible (KJB) during its first 300 years in print. By far the most systematic and long-lived Catholic attack on the KJB is found in the argument and afterlife of a curious counter-Reformation text, Thomas Ward's Errata of the Protestant Bible. This book is not completely unknown, yet many scholars have been puzzled over exactly what to make of it and all its successor editions in the nineteenth century – at least a dozen, often in connection with an edition of the Catholic Douai-Rheims Bible (DRB). Ward's Errata, first published in 1688, was based on a 1582 book by Catholic translator and biblical scholar Gregory Martin. The book and its accompanying argument, that all Protestant English Bibles were ‘heretical’ translations, then experienced a prosperous career in nineteenth-century Ireland, employed to battle the British and Foreign Bible Society's campaign to disseminate the Protestant King James Bible as widely as possible. On the American career of the Counter-Reformation text, the article discusses early editions in Philadelphia, when the school Bible question entered the American scene. In the mid-nineteenth century, led by Bishop John Purcell in Cincinnati, Bishop Francis Patrick Kenrick in Philadelphia and Bishop John Hughes in New York City, many Catholics began opposing the use of the KJB as a school textbook and demanding use of the Douai Rheims Bible instead. With reference to Ward's Errata, they argued that the KJB was a sectarian version, reflecting Protestant theology at the expense of Catholic teachings. These protests culminated in the then world-famous Bible-burning trial of Russian Redemptorist priest, Fr Vladimir Pecherin in Dublin, in late 1855. The Catholic criticisms of the KJB contained in Ward's Errata, which was reprinted for the last time in 1903, reminded the English-speaking public that this famous and influential Protestant version was not the most perfect of versions, and that it was not and never had been THE BIBLE for everyone.

“Take the Word of God to the Heart of the City”: Cincinnati’s Catholic Bible Center Apostolate, 1964–1971

“Take the Word of God to the Heart of the City”: Cincinnati’s Catholic Bible Center Apostolate, 1964–1971

Translation That Openeth the Window : Reflections on the History and Legacy of the King James Version (David G. Burke, Society of Biblical Literature 23, Atlanta: Society of Biblical Literature, 2009)

This book includes three parts: (1) The World of Bible Translation Before the King James Version, (2) The Making of the King James Bible, and (3) The World of Bible Translation After the King James Version. As the subtitle of it shows, it is an anthology of 12 articles about “reflections and legacy of the King James Bible.” From this book we can get the detailed knowledge of the historical background and translation purpose of KJV as well as a variety of influences on later generations. To say nothing of English literature and philosophy, KJV had heavily influenced English speaking Jews and African Americans.<BR> According to the authors of this book, King James I of England initiated the translation project of KJV when he led “the Hampton Court Conference” in 1604 for unity and stability in his church and state. He wanted a new Bible translation: an accurate, popular, nonsectarian, speedy, national, and authoritative translation. The translators consisted of about 50 scholars from Cambridge and Oxford Universities. They took Hebrew and Greek Bibles as their basic texts for their translation. They also frequently referred to the earlier translations such as Bishops’ Bible, Coverdale Bible, Great Bible, Geneva Bible, Matthew Bible, Rheims-Douay Bible, Wycliffite Bible, Tyndale Bible, or the like. KJV’s translation team tried to make their translation in current English as literal as they can. But “elegance was achieved by accident, rather than design”(McGrath).<BR> This book, however, does not contains an article of textual analysis about KJV and its relations to later translations such as RV, ASV, and RSV etc. For this argument, the following books are recommended to read: Gordon Campbell, Bible: The Story of King James Version 1611-2011 (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2011); David Norton, A History of the English Bible as Literature (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2000); and David Crystal, Begat: The King James Bible and the English Language (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2010).<BR> How about KJV’s influence on East Asian Bibles? It is deeper than we think. Chinese Bridgeman and Culbertson’s Version (1874), Japanese Meiji Translation (1888) and Korean Old Version (1911) had leaned deeply on KJV for their textual decision and selection of their diction and expressions. Let us take a few examples by Korean Bibles. New Korean Revised Version (1998)’s “mist”(Gen. 2:6) seems to come from KJV because LXX, Peshitta and Vulgate take the Hebrew “ed” as “river” or “fountain”, or the like. “Still waters”, which Korean Old Version (1911) and Korean Catholic Bible (2005) contain in Psalm 23:2, must be KJV’s term for MT’s “water in places of repose”(me menuhot). In addition, New Korean Revised Version also seems to follow KJV in 1 John 2:23 for the textual decision.

Pontifical Encyclical Divino Afflante Spiritu (1943) and Principle of Interpretation Bible

Pontifical Encyclical Divino Afflante Spiritu (1943) and Principle of Interpretation Bible Divino Afflante Spiritu (Inspired by the Divine Spirit) is an encyclical letter issued by Pope Pius XII on September 30, 1943. It inaugurated the modern period of Roman Catholic Bible studies by permitting the limited use of modern methods of biblical criticism. The Catholic bible scholar Raymond E. Brown described it as a 'Magna Carta for biblical progress'. The first purpose of the encyclical was to commemorate the fiftieth anniversary of the issuing of Providentissimus Deus by Pope Leo XIII in 1893, which had condemned the use of higher criticism. In the encyclical, Pius XII noted that since then, advances had been made in archeology and historical research, making it advisable to further define the study of the Bible. In his encyclical the Pope stressed the importance of diligent study of these original languages and other cognate languages, so as to arrive at a deeper and fuller knowledge of the meaning of the sacred texts. Catholic translations of the Bible have been based directly on the texts found in manuscripts in the original languages, taking into account also the ancient translations that sometimes clarify what seem to be transcription errors in those manuscripts, although the Latin Vulgate remains the official Bible in the Latin Rite of the Catholic Church. The Holy Scripture as a source of revelation was getting more often towards the believers at the beginning of last century. Interest in individual aspects of biblical text meant many difficulties for the Church. On the other end it brought great interest in Bible. Also new movements in Church and Magisterium explications helped it. Convocation of Second Vatican council vouched Catholics interest in positive changes in various Church ranges. It led to ratification the constitutions, edicts and declarations.

Stroke in ancient times: a reinterpretation of Psalms 137:5,6

Stroke was probably first described in Psalms 136: 5-6 of the Catholic Bible, and Psalms 137:5-6 of the Evangelical Bible. Based on the Portuguese, Spanish, English, German, Dutch, Russian, Greek, and original Hebrew Bible, the significance of this Psalm is the invocation of a punishment, of which the final result would be a stroke of the left middle cerebral artery, causing motor aphasia and right hemiparesis.

The CTS New Catholic Bible edited by Henry Wansborough OSB, (Catholic Truth Society: London, 2007). Pp. 2264, £15 hbk. - Lectionary: Revised Standard Version, Second Catholic Edition (two volumes), (Ignatius Press: San Francisco CA, 2006). Pp. 1044 &amp; 2438, $270 hbk.

The CTS New Catholic Bible edited by Henry Wansborough OSB, (Catholic Truth Society: London, 2007). Pp. 2264, £15 hbk. - Lectionary: Revised Standard Version, Second Catholic Edition (two volumes), (Ignatius Press: San Francisco CA, 2006). Pp. 1044 &amp; 2438, $270 hbk.

Through a Gloss Darkly: Biblical Annotations and Theological Interpretation in Modern Catholic and Protestant English-Language Bibles

This article represents a first effort at characterizing the theological and interpretive functions of biblical annotations in modern Roman Catholic and Protestant Bibles. It argues that annotations are not simply subservient to their texts, but typically express a theological agenda. This became clear in the battle over annotations among Protestants and between Protestants and Catholics during the 16th and 17th centuries. It is also evident in the present examination of both Bishop Richard Challoner's annotations (1750) to the English-language Catholic Bible and the notes in the Scofield Reference Bible (1909). The article concludes with a discussion of five basic functions that biblical annotations serve.

Das Gesetz im Alten und Neuen Testament (review)

Book Reviews 157 e.g., the far more limited models oflsrael's emergence in Canaan posed in historical reconstruction must be weighed in relation to Joshua's portrayal ofcomplete conquest. Finally, one may applaud Brueggemann's attempts to legitimize the plurality of theological perspectives concerning the Hebrew Bible, but one may also ask what motivates the proponents of any particular perspective to listen to those of others. He has done a remarkable job ofcharacterizing the testimony ofthe Hebrew Bible in all of its variety, but the theological interpretation ofthe Hebrew Bible also requires attention to the communities that read it. Theology is after all speech about G-d, not only by the voices found in the Hebrew Bible, but also by its readers. These questions should not detract from Brueggemann's achievement, which is considerable, but they point to the need for continued work to ensure the vibrancy and relevance of the dialogue that he identifies and stimulates. In sum, Brueggemann is to be congratulated for opening a discussion concerning theological interpretation ofthe Hebrew Bible that can fruitfully engage a wide variety of interpretive perspectives. Marvin A. Sweeney Claremont School of Theology and Claremont Graduate University Das Gesetz im Alten und Neuen Testament, by Meinrad Limbeck. Darmstadt: Wissenschaftliche Buchgesellschaft, 1997. 253 pp. DM 60. A negative assessment ofthe Torah was-and is-a central element ofthe traditionally anti-Jewish thrust of Christian theology. The Catholic Bible scholar Meinrad Limbeck made an important contribution to the long process ofa new assessment after the Shoah with his 1971 book, The Order ofSalvation: Investigations into the Understanding of the Law in Early Judaism (Diisseldorf: Patrnos-Verlag). In that book he presented the Torah as the order ofcreation in post-biblical writings (Enoch, Jubilees, Qumran, etc.). From this vantage point an affirmation ofthe law was intended to become a theological possibility as an affirmation of our own creatureliness. In accordance with his longstanding activity in a Catholic Bible Society, this new book (in English: "The Law in the Old and New Testament") is not intended to be a contribution of his own scholarship, but rather an attempt to present "the harvest of Old and New Testament scholarship" in a way that can be commonly understood. Thereby, as the bibliography shows, the book centers around the discussion in German-language research. Some notes do, indeed, carry references to English works, but their formulation of the questions remains marginal. In the center ofthe terse presentation (145 pages oftext in addition to about 100 pages of notes) stand four Old Testament chapters (Book of the 158 SHOFAR Fall 1999 Vol. 18, No.1 Covenant, Prophecy, Deuteronomy, Priestly Writing) followed by three New Testament chapters (Jesus, Paul, Matthew). In between them is the chapter on "The Law in Crisis" (Ecclesiastes, Psalms, Proverbs, Jesus Sirach, Psalms of Solomon, Qumran). The Introduction (pp. 1-3) opens with a reference to the fundamental ambiguity of law and order: They are necessary for life, but they in no way guarantee "our wellbeing ." This corresponds to the basic tension in which this book views "the law." Against the traditional Christian prejudices "clarifications" are first of all posited. Behavior over against the law in the Bible entails neither "punishment" nor "obedience" because these concepts have still not evolved. We are dealing here instead with "experience with and insights into" the workings of a God "who cares." Through an extensive reception ofrecent writings it is consequently shown, in the case ofthe nonpriestly books of law as well as in the view of the law in prophecy, that there is a thoroughgoing emphasis on God's caring, which has the "well-being ofall" as its goal. Above all in the case of Deuteronomy it is regrettable that the sparse presentation (pp. 47-61) only contains a few examples of this. Worse yet, the political and social regulations are not developed at all. In connection with the priestly writing (pp. 64-81) there then appears an explicitly negative assessment ofparts ofthe Torah. After the presentation ofthe covenant as the basis ofthe relationship to God and God's indwelling with His people as the goal ofthe covenant, it is asserted on the basis of examples such as the...

2: How Catholics Read the Bible

A correct reading of the Bible is, for Cardinal Bernardin, an important responsibility and pleasure for Catholics, who are called to accept the fullness of the message that they find in the Scriptures and incorporate it into their daily life. Considering that both on the street and in the workplace, it is not difficult to encounter fundamentalist Christians arguing on Biblical interpretations and underlining how past Catholics had a reputation for ignoring the biblical books, The Cardinal helps to resolve confusions and motivate reading of the Scriptures, offering several valid points. Questions are also raised about some Catholic beliefs and actions that are not explicitly found in the Scriptures. Cardinal Bernardin underlines the fact that the authors of the Bible should be understood in terms of their relationship with the teaching authority of the Church, which was founded prior to me development of the biblical books, also called the New Testament.Furthermore, the Cardinal adds that the apostles, in their teaching and preaching, handed down oral traditions about the life of Jesus and His message to the world. He also casts light on the fact that Catholics esteem Scripture as part of their tradition and consider the Bible as a source of divine revelation.In addition to that we must look for an authentic interpretation of Scripture by asking how the community of believers understood biblical texts through the centuries. In this context it is very important to recognize the interpretation of the apostolic generation and the fidelity evident in its apostolic teaching, which was a point reiterated by the Second Vatican Council.Cardinal Bernardin analyzes not only the differences between the Catholic Bible and those of other religious sects, but also the meanings of the different interpretations. The Archbishop of Chicago concludes, underlining that regular use of the Bible is a point of departure for guidance and nourishment.

The New Testament: New International Version. An Ecumenical Bible Study Edition. New York: Paulist, 1986. 451 pages. $7.95 (paper). - The New Catholic Study Bible, The St. Jerome Edition, Today's English Version. Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson, 1985. xxxiv + 1680 pages. $29.95. - The New Jerusalem Bible. Edited by Henry WansbroughO.S.B., Garden City, NY: Doubleday, 1985. xvi + 2108 pages.

The New Testament: New International Version. An Ecumenical Bible Study Edition. New York: Paulist, 1986. 451 pages. $7.95 (paper). - The New Catholic Study Bible, The St. Jerome Edition, Today's English Version. Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson, 1985. xxxiv + 1680 pages. $29.95. - The New Jerusalem Bible. Edited by Henry WansbroughO.S.B., Garden City, NY: Doubleday, 1985. xvi + 2108 pages.

Recent Roman Catholic Bible Study and Translation

Recent Roman Catholic Bible Study and Translation