We have a winner! Well, not exactly. My quest to find a Catholic Thinline Bible is pretty much over. There is no specific "Thinline" Catholic edition available to my knowledge, but I think I may have found the closest thing to it. It is RSV Catholic Readers Bible: Black / Blue Tu Tone published by Oxford.
Here are the details: The Revised Standard Version Catholic Bible's New Testament appeared in 1965, and the whole Bible was published the following year. The RSV remains the translation used in official Church documents, and served as the basis for the scriptural text used in the Catechism of the Catholic Church .The Reader's Edition is perfect for anyone needing a straightforward text Bible, whether for reading or personal devotions. It includes a presentation section, prayers and devotions of the Church, and the Dogmatic Constitution on Divine Revelation (Dei Verbum ). Gilded page edges and a ribbon marker make for a thoughtful gift. Size: 5-1/2 x 8-1/2
While I would prefer the NRSV-CE, the RSV-CE will probably work just fine. At this point, I prefer this edition of the RSV to the new Ignatius RSV-2CE because I at least know who did the editing and where the changes were made. In comparing the size of the RSV-CE with the previously mentioned TNIV thinline, which is 8.7 x 6.1 x 1.4 inches, it compares pretty well. The biggest difference, in my mind, is that the RSV-CE is thicker than the TNIV thinline. The RSV-CE is still not technically a "thinline" but it is pretty close.
Another difference is that the TNIV version has considerably more study helps included, like a concordance, maps, and some cross-references. The RSV-CE does not have any of these features, but includes the original RSV-CE explanitory notes at the end of each Testament, the Vatican II document Dei Verbum, and a small slection of Catholic prayers and devotions. I have been able to make up for the lack of cross-references by copying a list of "OT quotes in the NT" into one of the back blank pages in this Bible. Also, in regards to Bible maps, I purchased the very colorful Rose Bible Maps inserts, which fit nicely in the back of the Bible. I guess sometimes if you want a particular type of Bible edition, you just have to do it yourself.
I do like the feel of this Bible. This is the first one that I am going to use regularly that has a "pacific duvelle"cover. I am not sure about the quality and longevity of this type of cover, but it seems that many Bibles are now being produced with it. So far, it sits well in the hand and lays flat on the table. So, time will tell to see how well this edition holds up.
Finally, while the text layout is somewhat plain, it does include a lot of space at the top and bottom of each page for personal notations. It is also thumb-indexed, which is nice, but I don't necessarily need it.
Here are the details: The Revised Standard Version Catholic Bible's New Testament appeared in 1965, and the whole Bible was published the following year. The RSV remains the translation used in official Church documents, and served as the basis for the scriptural text used in the Catechism of the Catholic Church .The Reader's Edition is perfect for anyone needing a straightforward text Bible, whether for reading or personal devotions. It includes a presentation section, prayers and devotions of the Church, and the Dogmatic Constitution on Divine Revelation (Dei Verbum ). Gilded page edges and a ribbon marker make for a thoughtful gift. Size: 5-1/2 x 8-1/2
While I would prefer the NRSV-CE, the RSV-CE will probably work just fine. At this point, I prefer this edition of the RSV to the new Ignatius RSV-2CE because I at least know who did the editing and where the changes were made. In comparing the size of the RSV-CE with the previously mentioned TNIV thinline, which is 8.7 x 6.1 x 1.4 inches, it compares pretty well. The biggest difference, in my mind, is that the RSV-CE is thicker than the TNIV thinline. The RSV-CE is still not technically a "thinline" but it is pretty close.
Another difference is that the TNIV version has considerably more study helps included, like a concordance, maps, and some cross-references. The RSV-CE does not have any of these features, but includes the original RSV-CE explanitory notes at the end of each Testament, the Vatican II document Dei Verbum, and a small slection of Catholic prayers and devotions. I have been able to make up for the lack of cross-references by copying a list of "OT quotes in the NT" into one of the back blank pages in this Bible. Also, in regards to Bible maps, I purchased the very colorful Rose Bible Maps inserts, which fit nicely in the back of the Bible. I guess sometimes if you want a particular type of Bible edition, you just have to do it yourself.
I do like the feel of this Bible. This is the first one that I am going to use regularly that has a "pacific duvelle"cover. I am not sure about the quality and longevity of this type of cover, but it seems that many Bibles are now being produced with it. So far, it sits well in the hand and lays flat on the table. So, time will tell to see how well this edition holds up.
Finally, while the text layout is somewhat plain, it does include a lot of space at the top and bottom of each page for personal notations. It is also thumb-indexed, which is nice, but I don't necessarily need it.
5 comments:
Congratulations on the find; the Bible looks lovely.
Hi Tim, great bible blog you've started up.
Congrats on your new RSV-CE bible. I'm not familiar with the RSV-CE but is the text the same as the regular 1973 RSV (except for the deuterocanonical books), or has it been updated from the 1973 edition?
Kevin,
Thanks for stopping by. If you goto the RSV-CE wikipedia site they have the original list of changes, which are somewhat minor and limited to the New Testament: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Revised_Standard_Version_Catholic_Edition
There has been another edition produced by Ignatius Press, known as the RSV 2CE which eliminated the "thees" and "thous" and also made some additional changes, mostly placing some of the other renderings found in the textual notes into the text it self. The most notable would be the Is. 7:14. (The same wikipedia link has info on the RSV-2CE)
Tim, thanks for the link to the info. That answers my question.
With those changes in the text, it almost could have been named a brand new name(like what they did with the ESV).
Just nabbed a brand new copy of this off of ebay, still in the shrink wrap! Not sure why they discontinued these reader editions, they are the perfect size with a nice faux leather cover. I love the simple layout, and text size is ideal.
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