The Douay-Rheims Bible and Conversion

I am happy to present Jonny's conversion story into the Catholic Church and the role the Douay-Rheims Bible played in it. Jonny is a frequent commentator on this blog, as well as a regular guest blogger.

I wanted to share my story about the Catholic Holy Bible and my conversion. I was raised an evangelical Protestant Christian and mostly read the New International Version. My family bounced around to various denominations through the years, but two things remained fairly consistent: the NIV Bible, and the one-time salvation prayer. I admit, I did hear sermons regarding repentance and recommitment to varying degrees depending on the denomination, but there were never clear distinctions to me regarding morality, and if I was actually “saved” or holy enough to “go to Heaven if I died today” as I was frequently reminded. My overall impression ended up being that those who were supposedly most zealous about my salvation were very self-righteous and judgmental. I know this is a stereotype, but it was my feeling at the time, and I had no solid doctrinal foundation to check myself against.

Years had gone by, and I was out of church for some time and on my own. I was seeking a deeper truth, and I found that when I re-read the Holy Bible. The words of Christ were simply so profound to me. I was reading them without pre-conceived notions like “A-B-C” salvation, a second baptism only evidenced by “tongues,” tithe-conditional holiness, and others! But yet as I read the Scriptures, I desired to worship God in the Church with other believers. This led me on my spiritual journey that in retrospect went back in time to the roots of the Protestant Reformation. I will spare all the details here, but I will mention that along the way I was involved in a pacifist/feminist church that denied the inspiration of certain Scriptures and also left me with a great distaste for gender-inclusive Bible translations for a long time. But ultimately I ended up in the grandfather denomination of the Protestant Reformation: The Lutheran Church. I really liked the conservative doctrines of the Missouri Synod, and especially the beautiful ritual of the divine service, and the absence of the ridiculous and complex “left behind” rapture/millennium doctrines. I ended up being such a big Luther fan that when I saw a picture of him holding his precious copy of the Psalms in Latin, I just had to have an English translation of the Psalms in Latin! This brings me to the point of my story.

I don’t know if I would ever have even heard of the Douay-Rheims Bible if I did not have a Catholic grandfather who died before I was born. I saw the copy of the Douay-Confraternity Bible at my grandmother’s house when I was a child, which was given to her at my grandfather’s funeral. Remembering this, I looked up the nearest Catholic bookstore and forthwith drove 45 minutes to get there that day after work on the assumption that I would find a copy waiting for me. There was actually a copy there (but only one), and despite a nearly 70 dollar price sticker I happily purchased the book after just glancing through it in the few minutes before the store closed.

My Douay-Rheims Bible soon became dearly treasured amongst my collection. Not only did it have the majestic language of my King James Version that I had grown accustomed to in the past few years, I also found there were less archaisms therein (as being a revision from the 1750’s compared to the pre-1600’s language of the KJV.) I approached the D-R with a greater reverence due to its ancient connections to the Latin translations of the earliest centuries of Christianity. I felt that it had, therefore, a unique devotional quality, and also as a literal translation, one that demanded to be read slowly and reverently. But even beyond these things, the D-R had an extra super-power that really helped to change my life!

Part of what I am referring to here is the genius of the Christ’s Church expressed in the translation itself. I found that very common Biblical words such as “repent” and “righteousness” were instead translated as “do penance” and “justice.” My very first reading of the D-R brought me closer to the mind of Christ and the teaching of the Church! When I began to second guess my convictions, I turned to the major objector verses in Romans. I was pleasantly shocked to find in the footnotes the Church’s teachings about justification and what it really means to believe in Christ, and many references where Jesus himself explicitly explains over, and over, and over, that we are not justified by faith alone! Then I found other Biblical references in the notes about Mary’s perpetual virginity, and the fact that Jesus did not have any biological brothers and sisters is not disproved by scripture as I was formerly led to believe. All of my inhibitions against the Catholic Church and even my very self was crumbling underneath the rock of apostolic truth revealed by Christ, as the Scripture saith, “upon whomsoever it shall fall, it will grind him to powder.” (Luke 20.18.)

I know that many Catholics have heard the arguments pro and con the Douay-Rheims, although I believe it is frivolous to argue about translations of texts whose original autographs do not exist, and even the original understanding of the languages may have changed since they were written. Nor do I fault the D-R for being first translated from Latin (for in doing so I would also condemn our current Catechism which was first written in French before being translated into Latin, then into other languages.) I can argue, however, for the beauty of the Douay-Rheims Bible, and the effectiveness of its light but powerful annotations in blasting through the foundations of Sola Fide based theologies, which are as relevant and important today as the day they were written. I thank God for one, authoritative, interpretation of Scripture through the Church, and the Douay-Rheims Bible that helped me break the bondage of doctrines that only led me to many grey areas of uncertainty.

Bible Study Series: Philippians 1:1-11

I will typically include only one translation of the given passage for each study, but in this case, to show some of the main differences that are found in this letter, I am going to show both the NABRE and RSV-CE for this instance.

Paul and Timothy, slaves of Christ Jesus, to all the holy ones in Christ Jesus who are in Philippi, with the overseers and ministers: 2 grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Thanksgiving.3 I give thanks to my God at every remembrance of you, 4 praying always with joy in my every prayer for all of you, 5 because of your partnership for the gospel from the first day until now. 6 I am confident of this, that the one who began a good work in you will continue to complete it until the day of Christ Jesus. 7 It is right that I should think this way about all of you, because I hold you in my heart, you who are all partners with me in grace, both in my imprisonment and in the defense and confirmation of the gospel. 8 For God is my witness, how I long for all of you with the affection of Christ Jesus. 9 And this is my prayer: that your love may increase ever more and more in knowledge and every kind of perception, 10 to discern what is of value, so that you may be pure and blameless for the day of Christ, 11 filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ for the glory and praise of God (NABRE).

Paul and Timothy, servants of Christ Jesus, To all the saints in Christ Jesus who are at Philip'pi, with the bishops and deacons: 2 Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. 3 I thank my God in all my remembrance of you, 4 always in every prayer of mine for you all making my prayer with joy, 5 thankful for your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now. 6 And I am sure that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ. 7 It is right for me to feel thus about you all, because I hold you in my heart, for you are all partakers with me of grace, both in my imprisonment and in the defense and confirmation of the gospel. 8 For God is my witness, how I yearn for you all with the affection of Christ Jesus. 9 And it is my prayer that your love may abound more and more, with knowledge and all discernment, 10 so that you may approve what is excellent, and may be pure and blameless for the day of Christ, 11 filled with the fruits of righteousness which come through Jesus Christ, to the glory and praise of God (RSV-CE).

As with many of his letters, minus Galatians, Paul begins Philippians with a greeting and prayer of thanksgiving.

Let's take a look at a few of the verses:

**Philippians 1:1-2:
We see here a standard opening of Paul, though with a few twists. First off, my namesake, Timothy, is mentioned at the beginning, although it is clear that Paul is the primary writer of this letter with his use of "I" throughout. Timothy joined Paul, after Paul's parting-of-ways with Barnabas, just before the mission to Philippi. You can read about this at the beginning of Acts 16.

Of note, verse one proves to be interesting because it shows four significant differences between the NABRE and RSV. In the beginning of verse one, the NABRE goes with "slaves" instead of the RSV's "servants", while in the second half of that verse the NABRE goes with "holy ones", "overseers" and "ministers", instead of the RSV's "saints", "bishops", and "deacons". In the first case, concerning the Greek word doulos, I actually prefer the NABRE's decision to go with "slave". As the NABRE note in Romans 1:1 points out: "Paul applies the term slave to himself in order to express his undivided allegiance to the Lord of the church, the Master of all, including slaves and masters. "No one can serve (i.e., be a slave to) two masters," said Jesus (Mt. 6:24). It is this aspect of the slave-master relationship rather than its degrading implications that Paul emphasises when he discusses Christian commitment." However, I can certainly understand, nowadays, why some translators go with 'servant".

The second half of the verse I tend to prefer the all of RSV's rendering. The Greek term hagios can be either options, and I certainly understand the translators of the NABRE not wanting to confuse readers in regards to canonized saints, but historically it has always been rendered as "saints". Also, are we not called to strive for sainthood while here on earth? I think a footnote would have been sufficient to explain this.

As for the final two differences in verse one, the key is how one translates episkopos and diakonoi. The RSV is consistant, particularly with episkopos in translating it as "bishops". While in this one instance, the NABRE decided to go with "overseers" because, as the NABRE note says:

"Overseers: the Greek term episkopos literally means “one who oversees” or “one who supervises,” but since the second century it has come to designate the “bishop,” the official who heads a local church. In New Testament times this office had not yet developed into the form that it later assumed, though it seems to be well on the way to such development in the Pastorals; see 1 Tm 3:2 and Ti 1:7, where it is translated bishop. At Philippi, however (and at Ephesus, according to Acts 20:28), there was more than one episkopos, and the precise function of these officials is uncertain. In order to distinguish this office from the later stages into which it developed, the term is here translated as overseers.

While it seems likely that the development of the office of bishop was still in its infancy, a point that is made in both the Navarre and ICSBNT as well, is it not better to be consistent in translating it as either "bishops" or "overseers" throughout? In any case, we do see that, even before the writing of the Pastoral Letters, the local churches have some kind of hierarchical structure (Navarre 499). The same thing goes for the office of deacon, although there are some more complicated issues regarding diakonoi which may be a bit too much to get into at this point.

Finally, Paul concludes, in verse 2, with "Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ." We see here, not only a pretty standard Pauline greeting, but more importantly an important Christological statement. Grace and peace do not come simply from the Father, but also the Lord Jesus Christ, second Person of the Blessed Trinity. This will make more sense, once we look at the great Christ-hymn of 2:6-11.

**Philippians 1:3-11:
In my introduction to this series, I mentioned that of all Paul's letters, this one probably shows the most joy and affection. As the Navarre Compact New Testament confirms, these opening verses show "more vividly than any other, St. Paul's affection and appreciation for the Christians of those communities he founded (Navarre 499)." In many ways, this could be described as an epistle of joy. In verses 3-11 we find that Paul is joyful, thankful, holding in his heart, and yearning with affection for the Philippian church. (Could this be the anti-Galatians epistle?) It should be remembered that Paul wrote this letter while imprisoned, so you can imagine how uplifting it would be for him to be able to communicate with this thriving, yet young, Philippian church which he founded in Christ Jesus.

Yet, even with this sense of joy, there is an underlying sense of urgency, particularly when Paul mentions "the Day of Jesus Christ" in verses 6 and 10. While Paul recognizes the sanctity of the Philippian church, he also knows that they need to continue to grow spiritually. This is most clear in verses 9-10: "And it is my prayer that your love may abound more and more, with knowledge and all discernment, so that you may approve what is excellent, and may be pure and blameless for the day of Christ." Here, and in verse 6, Paul reminds them to cooperate with the graces that God is giving them, so that they will attain salvation. Here, we see echoes of what Paul will later say in 2:12-13, where he urges the Philippians to "work out your salvation with fear and trembling, for God is at work in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure."

Next time, we will look at chapter 1, verses 12-26.

Bible Study Series Contest Winner

Congrats to Mary Cardwell who was the randomly selected winner. Please send your address to my email, mccorm45 (at) yahoo (dot) com, and your prize will be sent out early this week. Congrats again and stay tuned since there will be one more contest very soon.

Mondays with Verbum Domini

Dialogue between Christians and Muslims

Among the various religions the Church also looks with respect to Muslims, who adore the one God. They look to Abraham and worship God above all through prayer, almsgiving and fasting. We acknowledge that the Islamic tradition includes countless biblical figures, symbols and themes. Taking up the efforts begun by the Venerable John Paul II, I express my hope that the trust-filled relationships established between Christians and Muslims over the years will continue to develop in a spirit of sincere and respectful dialogue. In this dialogue the Synod asked for a deeper reflection on respect for life as a fundamental value, the inalienable rights of men and women, and their equal dignity. Taking into account the important distinction to be made between the socio-political order and the religious order, the various religions must make their specific contribution to the common good. The Synod asked Conferences of Bishops, wherever it is appropriate and helpful, to encourage meetings aimed at helping Christians and Muslims to come to better knowledge of one another, in order to promote the values which society needs for a peaceful and positive coexistence.-Verbum Domini 118

Article on Jewish Annotated New Testament

In this coming week's edition of the Catholic paper Our Sunday Visitor there is an interesting article, by Carl Olson, dealing with the recently published The Jewish Annotated New Testament from Oxford University Press. The article includes an interview with one of the volume's editors, Amy-Jill Levine. I own Oxford's Jewish Study Bible, which has provided some wonderful insights for my class on Thursday nights. Perhaps this new volume might need to be included in my library as well. The translation used for The Jewish Annotated New Testament is the NRSV.

Below is a snippet from the article that I found interesting:

“The Jewish Annotated New Testament” reflects the co-editors’ desire, first, to encourage Jews to open the New Testament and read it without fear or prejudice, especially when it comes to passages that might seem anti-Jewish.

“We felt that Jewish readers might be more comfortable reading the New Testament if it dealt explicitly with such issues,” the co-editors told OSV, “and if the annotations and essays were written entirely by Jews, so it was clear that the volume was not intending to proselytize.”

A second audience is Christian readers who wish to learn more about the first-century Jewish context in which Jesus lived and the Gospels and other New Testament books that were written. Some specific examples: “how Jesus’ Jewish audience would have understood the parables; how Jesus’ interpretation of Torah and his ethical teachings fit within first-century Judaism; how proclamations of Jesus’ divinity could be accepted by early Jews, and how understandings of the ‘messiah’ change over time.” To this end, the volume often highlights the common roots shared by Jews and Christians, but without glossing over or ignoring the significant differences between Jewish and Christian beliefs.

The third group consists of secular readers who “want to understand the New Testament in its historical context.”

You can read the whole article here.

Bible Study Series Contest

With the beginning of the Bible Study Series on Philippians, I am excited to offer a contest to coincide with it. The winner of this contest will receive a new paperback edition of the ICSB: The Letters of St. Paul to the Philippians, Colossians, and Philemon. All you need to do to enter is simply to put your name in the comment section of this post. No anonymous entries will be considered. The winner will be randomly drawn at the end of the contest, which will be Sunday, February 26th at 11:59PM. This contest is open to anyone in North America. (Sorry again to my loyal readers in the rest of the world.) Also, if you have a blog and would like to advertise this contest, it would be much appreciated. I will announce the winner on Monday.

Bible Study Series: Philippians Intro

Philippians is a favorite letter for many Bible readers, due to its mostly positive tone. One can really sense the affection that Paul has for the Philippian church, which he founded sometime around 50 AD. The founding of the church at Philippi is recorded in Acts 16, which should be consulted before engaging this letter. Philippians is also unique in the fact that it doesn't seem to be addressing any problems concerning doctrine or behavior. Rather, Paul seems to be encouraging these young Christians to remain faithful, while remaining joyful in imitating the Lord. There are a few other issues concerning themes and characteristics that will come up while examining each section, such as the unity of the letter.

Philippi was a a city in north east Greece in the province of Macedonia. Named after Philip II, the father of Alexander the Great, this former Greek city had become a Roman colony during the reign of Augustus. This made Philippi unique, in that it had a large population of Roman veterans who resided there and had received full citizen rights due to their years of service. It also seems that there was only a small population of Jews there. Of note historically, Philippi was the site of a major battle during the Roman civil war between Mark Antony and Octavian (Augustus) and Brutus and Cassius in 42 BC.

Paul is the author of this letter, along with his spiritual son Timothy. It was written during a time of Paul's imprisonment (1:7), but a precise date is difficult to attain since he was imprisoned at various points during his apostolic work. If the "praetorian guard" mentioned in 1:13 and "Caesar's household" in 4:22 mean that he is under arrest in Rome, a date somewhere around 62 AD is possible. However, other scholars think the letter was written earlier, perhaps in the middle or late 50's, while Paul was imprisoned in Caesarea or Ephesus.

Finally, we will break Philippians into six manageable sections:

I: Opening Address (1:1-11)
II: Progress of the Gospel (1:12-26)
III: Exhortation to the faithful (1:27-2:18)
IV: Travel Plans (2:19-30)
V: The Way of Salvation (3:1-21)
VI: Final Instructions and Conclusion (4:1-23)

A Blessed Lent to You!

ICSB Continued....

Assuming that Dr. Hahn is correct and the complete ICSB will be released in 2-3 years, what one thing would you ask him (or Ignatius Press) to do with the finished product? For me, I would ask that the complete ICSB be produced at a reasonable size, thus making it useful for everyday travel and use. The size of the current ICSB NT is quite massive. If they were able to keep it to the size of the Catholic Bible, Personal Study Edition or perhaps have multiple editions like the NIV Study Bible, I would be a happy camper. How about you?

Further Confirmation on ICSB

According to Dr. Scott Hahn, via Facebook:

An invitation to read Exodus for Lent! Our commentary in the Ignatius Catholic Study Bible just came out... Designed for personal study and prayer, it will prepare you to enter into the Paschal Mystery at the end of Lent with deeper understanding of Christ's sacrifice and the New Covenant Passover in the Holy Eucharist.

P.S. We're almost finished with the OT, and hope to see the entire Ignatius Catholic Study Bible published in the next 2-3 years.

So there you go! As long as the world does not end in December, we may actually see a complete, one-volume ICSB fairly soon! ;)

Any Plans for Lent?

As Catholics, we tend to prepare ourselves for Lent by trying to figure out what we should give up for these upcoming Forty Days. Most people will give up something that they eat or do daily, like coffee and sweets, or maybe even going on Facebook. Doing so is a laudable and recommended of course! (BTW, I am still undecided as to what I am going to give up.)

However, while giving up something is a noble thing, it is also important, I think, that we use these days to double our efforts in immersing ourselves in the Scriptures. One thing that I have done over the past few years is to pick a book of the Bible that I have neglected and spend Lent studying it. This has been a wonderful practice for me during the past few Lenten seasons. This year, I have decided to spend my nightly prayer time reading through 1 and 2 Chronicles. I have spent far more time in the Deuteronomic Histories of 1 Samuel through 2 Kings in contrast to 1-2 Chronicles. I should also mention the fact that Dr. Scott Hahn's book Kingdom of God as Liturgical Empire, The: A Theological Commentary on 1-2 Chroniclescomes out in the next few days is also another reason to go back and read 1-2 Chronicles.

In addition to the Scriptures, I try to pick out a book to use as a devotional for Lent. This year I have decided to read through Mark Shea's The Work of Mercy: Being the Hands and Heart of Christ. I plan to blog on my reading of this book throughout Lent as well.

So, are you planning anything for Lent? Do any of you use a particular devotional just for Lent?

Mondays with Verbum Domini

The value of interreligious dialogue

The Church considers an essential part of the proclamation of the word to consist in encounter, dialogue and cooperation with all people of good will, particularly with the followers of the different religious traditions of humanity. This is to take place without forms of syncretism and relativism, but along the lines indicated by the Second Vatican Council’s Declaration Nostra Aetate and subsequently developed by the magisterium of the Popes. Nowadays the quickened pace of globalization makes it possible for people of different cultures and religions to be in closer contact. This represents a providential opportunity for demonstrating how authentic religiosity can foster relationships of universal fraternity. Today, in our frequently secularized societies, it is very important that the religions be capable of fostering a mentality that sees Almighty God as the foundation of all good, the inexhaustible source of the moral life, and the bulwark of a profound sense of universal brotherhood.

In the Judeo-Christian tradition, for example, one finds a moving witness to God’s love for all peoples: in the covenant with Noah he joins them in one great embrace symbolized by the “bow in the clouds” (Gen 9:13,14,16) and, according to the words of the prophets, he desires to gather them into a single universal family (cf. Is 2:2ff; 42:6; 66:18-21; Jer 4:2; Ps 47). Evidence of a close connection between a relationship with God and the ethics of love for everyone is found in many great religious traditions.- Verbum Domini 117

NT Wright on Reading Mark for Lent

He also has a devotional entitled Lent for Everyone, Mark, Year B: A Daily Devotional which was published in January by Westminster John Knox Press that may serve as a good companion during this Lent.

Contest Winner

The winner of the pre-Lenten contest is ... Keith Corso. Congratulations! Please send your address to my email at mccorm45 (at) yahoo (dot) com to claim your prize. Thanks to all who entered. Stay tuned, there will be another contest at the beginning of Lent.

Lenten Bible Study Series: Philippians

"Have among yourselves the same attitude that is also yours in Christ Jesus,
Who, though he was in the form of God,
did not regard equality with God something to be grasped.
Rather, he emptied himself,
taking the form of a slave,
coming in human likeness;
and found human in appearance,
he humbled himself,
becoming obedient to death, even death on a cross.
Because of this, God greatly exalted him
and bestowed on him the name
that is above every name,
that at the name of Jesus
every knee should bend,
of those in heaven and on earth and under the earth,
and every tongue confess that
Jesus Christ is Lord,
to the glory of God the Father "
-Philippians 2:5-11 (NABRE)

I think it is about time to have another Bible Study Series. Lent is, as always, a wonderful time to take up a book of the Bible, or any spiritual work really, and spend some serious time studying and praying over it. Since Philippians is only four chapters long, it should prove to be quite manageable. There are many wonderful themes in the letter, most notably the majestic Christ-hymn of Philippians 2:5-11, which is certainly applicable to Lent and Easter. As last time, I hope this study will provide both some historical, theological, and spiritual insights, not only by what I write, but also from your comments. So, let me know, via a comment box RSVP, if you are interested in participating in this. I will lay out a general plan-of-action early next week.

Some resources I will be consulting:
Ignatius Catholic Study Bible (RSV-2CE)
Catholic Bible, Personal Study Edition (NABRE)
Navarre New Testament (RSV)
New Oxford Annotated Bible 4th Edition (NRSV)
Catholic Bible Dictionary
Four Times Peter: Portrayals of Peter in the Four Gospels And at Philippi by Richard J. Cassidy

The Red "Barron" Takes His Aim at the HHS Mandate.......

and, as usual, is spot on in his critique.




The USCCB has a page dedicated to this, which can be accessed here.

For now...

As we are now less than a week away from the start of Lent, life has been hectic on my end. That is why posting has been rather light recently. Things will be picking up in the coming days, but until then, why not listen to the official theme song of the Catholic Bibles Blog, written and performed by my good friend Paulo:

Pre-Lent Contest

All you need to do to enter is simply to put your name in the comment section of this post. No anonymous entries will be considered. The winner will be randomly drawn at the end of the contest, which will be Thursday, February 16th at 11:59PM. This contest is open to anyone in North America. (Sorry again to my loyal readers in the rest of the world.) Also, if you have a blog and would like to advertise this contest, it would be much appreciated. I will announce the winner on Friday.

The winner will receive the paperback edition of the Fireside Catholic Youth Bible: NABRE. This lovely youth Bible includes:

The complete New American Bible Revised Edition recently released by the United States Catholic Bishops. It features articles on subjects of concern to teenagers with an emphasis on what the scriptures teach regarding those subjects. This Bible explains what Catholic teens need to know and why they need to know it. A collection of insightful articles is presented in seven unique sections including: Your Decision / Your Reward; What Does the Bible Say About?; Roots of Our Faith; Saints Relate; 1 on 1with Christ; What Jesus Did; What Jesus Said and Putting My Faith Into Action. Features include: a Presentation Page; the Dogmatic Constitution on Divine Revelation; the Origin, Inspiration and History of the Bible; the Three Year Cycle of Readings; The Celebration of the Eucharist; Terms of the Mass; Basic Prayers and Practices of Our Catholic Faith and Page-edge Indexing.

Mondays with Verbum Domini

God’s word transcends cultural limits

"The synodal assembly, in its discussion of the relationship between God’s word and cultures, felt the need to reaffirm something that the earliest Christians had experienced beginning on the day of Pentecost (Acts 2:1-2). The word of God is capable of entering into and finding expression in various cultures and languages, yet that same word overcomes the limits of individual cultures to create fellowship between different peoples. The Lord’s word summons us to advance towards an ever more vast communion. “We escape the limitations of our experience and we enter into the reality that is truly universal. Entering into communion with the word of God, we enter into the communion of the Church which lives the word of God. … It means going beyond the limits of the individual cultures into the universality that connects all, unites all, makes us all brothers and sisters”.The proclamation of God’s work thus always demands, of us in the first place, a new exodus, as we leave behind our own limited standards and imaginations in order to make room for the presence of Christ." -Verbum Domini 116

Spot Check: Mark 1:40-45

This week's spot check comes from this coming Sunday's reading from the Holy Gospel according to Mark. The translations below are the NABRE, RSV-2CE, NJB, and CEB. So, which one is which? Which one do you like the best?

And a leper came to him begging him, and kneeling said to him, "If you will, you can make me clean." Moved with pity, he stretched out his hand and touched him, and said to him, "I will; be clean." And immediately the leprosy left him, and he was made clean. And he sternly charged him, and sent him away at once, and said to him, "See that you say nothing to any one; but go, show yourself to the priest, and offer for your cleansing what Moses commanded, for a proof to the people." But he went out and began to talk freely about it, and to spread the news, so that Jesus could no longer openly enter a town, but was out in the country; and people came to him from every quarter.


A leper came to Jesus and kneeling down begged him and said, "If you wish, you can make me clean." Moved with pity, he stretched out his hand, touched him, and said to him, "I do will it. Be made clean." The leprosy left him immediately, and he was made clean. Then, warning him sternly, he dismissed him at once. He said to him, "See that you tell no one anything, but go, show yourself to the priest and offer for your cleansing what Moses prescribed; that will be proof for them." The man went away and began to publicize the whole matter. He spread the report abroad so that it was impossible for Jesus to enter a town openly. He remained outside in deserted places, and people kept coming to him from everywhere.


A man suffering from a virulent skin-disease came to him and pleaded on his knees saying, 'If you are willing, you can cleanse me.' Feeling sorry for him, Jesus stretched out his hand, touched him and said to him, 'I am willing. Be cleansed.' And at once the skin-disease left him and he was cleansed. And at once Jesus sternly sent him away and said to him, 'Mind you tell no one anything, but go and show yourself to the priest, and make the offering for your cleansing prescribed by Moses as evidence to them.' The man went away, but then started freely proclaiming and telling the story everywhere, so that Jesus could no longer go openly into any town, but stayed outside in deserted places. Even so, people from all around kept coming to him.


A man with a skin disease approached Jesus, fell to his knees, and begged, “If you want, you can make me clean.” Incensed, Jesus reached out his hand, touched him, and said, “I do want to. Be clean.” Instantly, the skin disease left him, and he was clean. Sternly, Jesus sent him away, saying, “Don’t say anything to anyone. Instead, go and show yourself to the priest and offer the sacrifice for your cleansing that Moses commanded. This will be a testimony to them.” Instead, he went out and started talking freely and spreading the news so that Jesus wasn’t able to enter a town openly. He remained outside in deserted places, but people came to him from everywhere.

New Book from the USCCB's Mary Sperry

Our friend Mary Sperry, Associate Director for Utilization of the New American Bible, will be publishing a new book in early March called Bible Top Tens: 40 Fun and Intriguing Lists to Inspire. Published by Our Sunday Visitor, this book:

"is intended to open Scripture in a brand new way. By organizing important people, places, and events into lists, we can reframe our experience and understanding of God's Word, while serving as a memory aid or providing ideas for further reading and study. Discover the top ten Bible misunderstandings, the top ten things to know about the Bible, the top ten animal stories, the top ten angelic appearances, or the top ten miracles. Get introduced to the top ten women with attitude, the top sibling rivalries, the heroes, the villains, or even the top ten people you should know but probably don't. Explore the top ten parables, promises, or challenges from Jesus. Finally, be inspired to create your own top ten list whether it is modifying an existing category of people, places, or sayings, or one you create yourself. Use this book for family reading, small faith groups, adult study, or simply personal reflection. Grow in your love of God by better understanding the story of His love for you."

Coming in at around 160 pages, this looks like quite a fun little book. I look forward to providing a review once it is released.

B16 on the Final Prayer of Jesus

This comes from the Papal Audience yesterday. I thought this might be a nice reflection to consider as we approach the Lenten season.

From the Vatican Information Service:

The prayer of Jesus at the moment of His death, as narrated by St. Mark and St. Matthew was the theme of Benedict XVI's catechesis during his general audience, held this morning in the Paul VI Hall.

"In the structure of the narrative", the Pope said, "Jesus' cry rises at the end of three hours of darkness, which had descended upon the earth from midday to three o'clock in the afternoon. Those three hours of darkness were, in their turn, the continuation of an earlier period which also lasted three hours and began with the crucifixion. ... In biblical tradition darkness has an ambivalent meaning: it is a sign of the presence and action of evil, but also of the mysterious presence and action of God Who is capable of vanquishing all darkness. ... In the scene of Jesus' crucifixion darkness envelops the earth, the darkness of death in which the Son of God immerses Himself, in order bring life with His act of love".

"Insulted by various categories of people, surrounded by a darkness covering everything, at the very moment in which He is facing death Jesus' cry shows that, along with His burden of suffering and death apparently accompanied by abandonment and the absence of God, He is entirely certain of the closeness of the Father, Who approves this supreme act of love and of total giving of Self, although we do not hear His voice from on high as we did in earlier moments".

Yet, the Holy Father asked, "what is the meaning of Jesus' prayer? The cry addressed to the Father: 'my God, my God, why have you forsaken me?'" He explained that "the words Jesus addresses to the Father are the beginning of Psalm 22, in which the Psalmist expresses the tension between, on the one hand, being left alone and, on the other, the certain knowledge of God's presence amongst His people. ... The Psalmist speaks of a 'cry' to express all the suffering of his prayer before the apparently absent God. At moments of anguish prayer becomes a cry.

"This also happens in our own relationship with the Lord", the Pope added. "In the face of difficult and painful situations, when it seems that God does not hear, we must not be afraid to entrust Him with the burden we are carrying in our hearts, we must not be afraid to cry out to Him in our suffering".

"Jesus prays at the moment of ultimate rejection by man, at the moment of abandonment. However, He is aware that God the Father is present even at the instant in which He is experiencing the human drama of death. Yet nonetheless, a question arises in our hearts: how is it possible that such a powerful God does not intervene to save His Son from this terrible trial?"

The Holy Father explained that "it is important to understand that the prayer of Jesus is not the cry of a person who meets death with desperation, nor that of a person who knows he has been abandoned. At that moment Jesus appropriates Psalm 22, the Psalm of the suffering people of Israel, at that moment He takes upon Himself not only the suffering of His people, but also that of all men and women oppressed by evil. ... And He takes all this to the heart of God in the certainty that His cry will be heard in the resurrection. ... His is a suffering in communion with us and for us, it derives from love and carries within itself redemption and the victory of love.

"The people at the foot of Jesus' cross were unable to understand, they thought His cry was a supplication to Elijah. ... We likewise find ourselves, ever and anew, facing the 'today' of suffering, the silence of God - many times we say as much in our prayers - but we also find ourselves facing the 'today' of the Resurrection, of the response of God Who took our sufferings upon Himself, to carry them with us and give us the certain hope that they will be overcome".

"In our prayers", the Holy Father concluded, "let us bring God our daily crosses, in the certainty that He is present and listens to us. The cry of Jesus reminds us that in prayer we must cross the barrier of 'self' and our own problems, and open ourselves to the needs and sufferings of others. May the prayer of the dying Jesus on the cross teach us to pray with love for so many brothers and sisters who feel the burden of daily life, who are experiencing moments of difficulty, who suffer and hear no words of comfort, that they may feel the love of God Who never abandons us.

Family Prayer Time and the Bible

While I was poking around the NABRE section of the USCCB site, I spotted a short article by Jem Sullivan called A Spiritual Feast for Your Home: How Catholics Can Use the Old Testament in the Family which you can read here. This short essay caused me to think a bit about how I utilize the Old Testament for prayer, particularly within the context of my own family. While it is true that I am currently teaching an intro class about the historical narrative of the Old Testament, I wonder if I am spending enough time, within the family setting, prayerfully reflecting on the many treasures found in these passages.

To be sure, once my daughter, as well as our new child to be born in July, get a little bit older, I am going to love reading Bible stories from a children's Bible to them. But what else? I would be interested in hearing from you, my fine readers, as to how you integrate the Old Testament, or the whole Bible in general, into your family prayer time.

Mondays with Verbum Domini

God’s word transcends cultural limits

'The synodal assembly, in its discussion of the relationship between God’s word and cultures, felt the need to reaffirm something that the earliest Christians had experienced beginning on the day of Pentecost (Acts 2:1-2). The word of God is capable of entering into and finding expression in various cultures and languages, yet that same word overcomes the limits of individual cultures to create fellowship between different peoples. The Lord’s word summons us to advance towards an ever more vast communion. “We escape the limitations of our experience and we enter into the reality that is truly universal. Entering into communion with the word of God, we enter into the communion of the Church which lives the word of God. … It means going beyond the limits of the individual cultures into the universality that connects all, unites all, makes us all brothers and sisters”.[375] The proclamation of God’s work thus always demands, of us in the first place, a new exodus, as we leave behind our own limited standards and imaginations in order to make room for the presence of Christ.

The synodal assembly, in its discussion of the relationship between God’s word and cultures, felt the need to reaffirm something that the earliest Christians had experienced beginning on the day of Pentecost (Acts 2:1-2). The word of God is capable of entering into and finding expression in various cultures and languages, yet that same word overcomes the limits of individual cultures to create fellowship between different peoples. The Lord’s word summons us to advance towards an ever more vast communion. “We escape the limitations of our experience and we enter into the reality that is truly universal. Entering into communion with the word of God, we enter into the communion of the Church which lives the word of God. … It means going beyond the limits of the individual cultures into the universality that connects all, unites all, makes us all brothers and sisters”.[375] The proclamation of God’s work thus always demands, of us in the first place, a new exodus, as we leave behind our own limited standards and imaginations in order to make room for the presence of Christ.' -Verbum Domini 115

A Little More Scott Hahn For You

The title of his talk is: "Paschal Sacrifice: A Heavenly Banquet for Earthly Beggars"

Spot Check: 1 Cor 9:16-19, 22-23

It is time for another spot check of this coming weekend's second reading, which comes from St. Paul's first letter to the Corinthians. Your choices are the RSV-CE, NABRE, and the NJB. Which one is which? Which one do you prefer?

"If I preach the gospel, this is no reason for me to boast, for an obligation has been imposed on me, and woe to me if I do not preach it! If I do so willingly, I have a recompense, but if unwillingly, then I have been entrusted with a stewardship. What then is my recompense? That, when I preach, I offer the gospel free of charge so as not to make full use of my right in the gospel. Although I am free in regard to all, I have made myself a slave to all so as to win over as many as possible. To the weak I became weak, to win over the weak. I have become all things to all, to save at least some. All this I do for the sake of the gospel, so that I too may have a share in it."


"In fact, preaching the gospel gives me nothing to boast of, for I am under compulsion and I should be in trouble if I failed to do it. If I did it on my own initiative I would deserve a reward; but if I do it under compulsion I am simply accepting a task entrusted to me. What reward do I have, then? That in my preaching I offer the gospel free of charge to avoid using the rights which the gospel allows me. So though I was not a slave to any human being, I put myself in slavery to all people, to win as many as I could. To the weak, I made myself weak, to win the weak. I accommodated myself to people in all kinds of different situations, so that by all possible means I might bring some to salvation. All this I do for the sake of the gospel, that I may share its benefits with others."


"For if I preach the gospel, that gives me no ground for boasting. For necessity is laid upon me. Woe to me if I do not preach the gospel! For if I do this of my own will, I have a reward; but if not of my own will, I am entrusted with a commission. What then is my reward? Just this: that in my preaching I may make the gospel free of charge, not making full use of my right in the gospel. For though I am free from all men, I have made myself a slave to all, that I might win the more. To the weak I became weak, that I might win the weak. I have become all things to all men, that I might by all means save some. I do it all for the sake of the gospel, that I may share in its blessings."

New Scott Hahn Series on EWTN

A Reader's Question

A reader recently asked the following question about the Little Office of the BVM, which I do not have the answer to. So I thought I would throw it out to you, my fine readers.

Do you know if the Fr. Agustin Bea's Amplior Edition of the Little Office conforms to Summorum Pontificum & can be considered as 'public prayer' of the Church?

So what do you think (or know)?