For those interested, Ignatius Press does have a specific site devoted to the Ignatius Catholic Study Bible New Testament. I think it has been up for a few months, but today was the first time I visited it. It includes links to a .pdf sample as well as the ability to download those study questions, which were not included in the one volume New Testament edition. Besides that, it is pretty much a promotional site, with only a slight bit more information about the ICSBNT as oppose to what is on their main website. While there is not much to the site, perhaps it is a step in the right direction. The ICSBNT is such a good product that it deserves, IMHO, a site all on it's own, with interactive options, some limited search abilites, interviews with the editors, and updates on the progress of the OT volumes. Promote this great study Bible! Here is an example of what I am talking about.
(I should point out that my review of the ICSBNT is mentioned on this promo site, which is pretty cool!)
15 comments:
Thank you for pointing this out, you can download Study Guides from this site. These are the study questions which are in the individual Ignatius Catholic Study Bible booklets and not in the one volume release.
Thank for posting this info. I love the NT study bible. I am excited to be able to print off the study questions. You are right that this excellent study bible deserves a site all its own. Ignatius please look at the Orthodox Study Bible web site!!!!!!!!!
Sharon in Waxahachie, Texas
Now that I have had my leather ICSBNT for a month or so I can say that, while I love the content (duh!) I am pretty disappointed with the externals and wish I had ordered the hardback instead. Maybe its just me and my likes but for a leather edition of a so-long awaited volume with excellent Catholic notes it appears and feels so "cheap", so less-than it should be (again for the leather edition). I would like to see the next printing of it use a more supple high quality leather (or even an excellent duraflex type) . While the page quality is nice for a paper or hardbound study edition (for note-writing) I wish the leather volume had used higher quality paper as can be found in the NISB or the JB/NJBs leather editions. And finally, the cover. It looks pretty awful for a higher quality edition and a near-embarassment (so to speak) to bring to NT class and since its slightly over-sized finding a leather cover for it is not a cheap or easy task (and unfortunate that a leather edition needs a leather cover to make it look nicer.
Ignatius had the doctrine, the content, the study aids above the rest but their art department shoudl could use a class or two from HarperOne or another pro to teach them how to produce a text with an exterior worhty of such an awesome interior.
Timothy this is off topic but now that you have had your leather NOAB 4th edition for the summer what are your thoughts on it? I am trying to decide if I want to order the edition in leather in the next few weeks and would appreciate any updates you can give me. Thanks/Sharon in Texas
Diakonos,
Yes, I am sorry to say that you are spot on, and I am glad I stul with the hardbound edition. To be honest, one of my worries go forth is that Ignatius will not put this fine study Bible in the binding it deserves. This is one o those nagging things that keeps me from fully embracing the RSV-2CE as my main everyday Bible. Is it perhaps being nit picky? Perhaps. But that is just me.
Sharon,
On the other hand, Oxford's binding on the NOAB 4th is outstanding. I really like it, particularly because it is very supple and will lay flat with ease. If you are going to make it your everyday study bible, I say go for it.
Sharon,
I highly recommend making the NOAB4 your daily study bible. While I appreciate the additional Catholic insight provided by the ICSBNT, I can't say that I have found it any more 'pastoral' than the NOAB.
I have the NOAB4 in hardcover and still use it almost exclusively as my go-to bible even though it sits next to the ICSBNT. For less real estate, I get OT + NT + excellent notes and study material in a concise package.
Tim and Terri thank you for your input on the NOAB 4th edition. I have been using the 3rd edition in hardcover over the past year and have become to rely on it more and more as my daily bible. I love the NRSV translation and would like to have this edition in leather to take to classes. Thanks again. Sharon in Texas
I have ordered my copy from Amazon. Still waiting to be shipped.
One thing I really liked about the NAB is that it has two different footnote markers within the text. Across at the verse number alerts you that the verse has a study note associated with it. A start at the verse number alerts you that this verse has cross-references associated with it. This helps quite a lot for knowing whether you should look for notes and cross-references. The NJB also has a different style, but equivalent mechanism.
In the sample pages of the ICSBNT, I do not see such markers. Presumably you have to look down to the bottom of the page to know if this verse has a study note or cross-reference associated with it.
I find this very unhelpful, and I hope they add footnote markers in the next version. Do any of you miss these markers?
It has been about 5 years since Ignatius published the RSV-2ndCE. Do you have any info on how it has established itself among bible translations? Is it succesful in replacing the RSV-CE, or is it carving out its own niche and not affecting the RSV-CE at all? How popular is it with clergy, bible scholars/critics, and laity?
One of the main reasons I think Ignatius developed the RSV-2ndCE was in the event the English speaking world outside the USA would want to replace the JB in liturgy, the RSV-2ndCE would be the ideal choice. That has been an utter failure, as the English speaking world is turning to the NRSV to replace the JB (something I cannot comprehend at all, with the NRSV's rampant use of inclusive language and lack of "hail full of grace" and "amen I say to you")
Can you give us a progress report on the RSV-2ndCE (perhaps devote an entire blog entry to it)?
Toby --
While it is always fun to ask the question "which one is #1?", I don't think that is a particularly important or interesting question with translations. We are all a little richer with one more translation to choose from (especially because it did not push out any other translation). I am more interested in the questions: "what are the relative advantages of different translations?", "which translations best capture the original source texts?", "which translations can I best learn from", "which translations can others best learn from." For me, the number one translation is the one that teaches the most, not the one with the biggest sales or recognition of various big shots.
I agree with Theophrastus. I keep certain versions and editions of the Bible for various needs. While I appreciate the ICSBNT for its study aids, I do not at all find inspiration in the RVS-CE or CE2 translations. When I pray and turn to the Scriptures for spiritual formation and growth I tend to the Christian Community Bible: Catholic Pastoral Edition because it applies the Word of God to daily living (as well as containing a sufficient amount of academic-style notes). When I seek a solid application of a text I tend to the Jerusalem Bible (over the NJB). I have the NOAB (NRSV) on my shelf basically as a reference to what contemporary "party line" scholars are saying from an literary-academic viewpoint and the NISB for what they are saying from a more theological-academic viewpoint. Finally, I keep an edition of the NAB in the bookcase so that I can feel like a "good American Catholic boy"...but it also serves to remind me to pray for a real renewal of Scriptural studies and publications in this country. :)
Theophrastus and Diakonos, thank you for your opinions, but neither one of you answered my question. I simply wanted an analysis of how well the RSV-2ndCE is being received. Your comments are of a philosophical nature, which my post did not refer to. But thanks for your input anyway.
Toby,
Thanks for the question.
It is a tough to answer, simply because there is no apparatus that measures the sale of Catholic bible. I would say that it is pretty clear that it will not be the translation used in the majority of English speaking lectionaries. The US will continue to use the NAB while many others, including Canada and the UK, are using or are adapting the NRSV. While, in general, I like the RSV-2CE, I think the promotion of it has been poor by Ignatius. Outside of traditional or conservative circles, it doesn't seem to be that popular or even known. It also comes in so few editions that there are very little options in finding a style of RSV 2CE that might fit a persons likes or needs. Also, even though it has been 'updated' it remains a 50+ year old translation.
My opinion (and I could be totally wrong) is the RSV-2ndCE will be a minor translation that will never have much impact.
The reason being, when it first was published, the main promotional selling point was that it follows Liturgiam Authenticam. Ignatius was obviously setting it up to be the succesor to the JB in Liturgy in the English speaking world. The fact the UK bishops are turning to the NRSV instead seals the RSV-2ndCE's fate as a minor, fringe version.
The only thing that could rescue it is if Fr. Fessio can convince the Vatican to declare the NRSV unfit for Liturgy and urge the RSV-2ndCE instead....or if Ignatius makes a deal with the copyright owners of the ESV, makes a few more changes to the RSV-2ndCE (like using "gates of hell" instead of "gates of hades", restoring "amen I say to you", and other changes to make it fulfill Liturgiam Autheticam more completely), and repackage it as the ESV-CE.
My thoughts, for what it's worth (not much).
Enjoy your blog.
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