Sunday, May 31, 2015

Sunday's Message: Trinity Sunday

Welcome back to another edition of Sunday's Message.  Here, I will reproduce the readings for Mass from The Message: Catholic/Ecumenical Edition.  (I want to thank Greg Pierce at ACTA for giving me permission to do this weekly post.)  While this is not an "official" Catholic edition, one of my hopes for doing this new series is to have a lively discussion on the renderings, compared to the more formal ones we are use to reading and hearing at Mass.  Is there a place for a translation like this?  Could this be a good Bible to give to a Catholic "seeker" or young adult? I have used it while teaching my high school theology classes, along with the NRSV and NABRE, and have had positive results.  

I would like to also propose a question each week to reflect upon, particularly in light of the rendering found here in The Message:  German theologian Karl Rahner wrote in his treatise on the Trinity that
“despite their orthodox confession of the Trinity, Christians are, in their practical life, almost mere ‘monotheists’. We must be willing to admit that, should the doctrine of the Trinity have to be dropped as false, the major part of religious literature could well remain virtually unchanged.”  As you reflect on the profound mystery, and reality, of the Most Holy Trinity on this day, ask yourself whether or not your worship of God is merely "monotheistic' or full Trinitarian.


Deuteronomy 4:32-34, 39-40
Ask questions. Find out what has been going on all these years before you were born. From the day God created man and woman on this Earth, and from the horizon in the east to the horizon in the west—as far back as you can imagine and as far away as you can imagine—has as great a thing as this ever happened? Has anyone ever heard of such a thing? Has a people ever heard, as you did, a god speaking out of the middle of the fire and lived to tell the story?
Or has a god ever tried to select for himself a nation from within a nation using trials, miracles, and war, putting his strong hand in, reaching his long arm out, a spectacle awesome and staggering, the way God, your God, did it for you in Egypt while you stood right there and watched?
Know this well, then. Take it to heart right now: God is in Heaven above; God is on Earth below. He’s the only God there is. Obediently live by his rules and commands which I’m giving you today so that you’ll live well and your children after you—oh, you’ll live a long time in the land that God, your God, is giving you.

Psalm 33
For God’s Word is solid to the core;
everything he makes is sound inside and out.
He loves it when everything fits,
when his world is in plumb-line true.
Earth is drenched
in God’s affectionate satisfaction.
The skies were made by God’s command;
he breathed the word and the stars popped out.
He spoke and there it was,
in place the moment he said so.
Watch this: God’s eye is on those who respect him,
the ones who are looking for his love.
He’s ready to come to their rescue in bad times;
in lean times he keeps body and soul together.
We’re depending on God;
he’s everything we need.
Love us, God, with all you’ve got—
that’s what we’re depending on.

Romans 8:14-17
There are things to do and places to go!
This resurrection life you received from God is not a timid, grave-tending life. It’s adventurously expectant, greeting God with a childlike “What’s next, Papa?” God’s Spirit touches our spirits and confirms who we really are. We know who he is, and we know who we are: Father and children. And we know we are going to get what’s coming to us—an unbelievable inheritance! We go through exactly what Christ goes through. If we go through the hard times with him, then we’re certainly going to go through the good times with him!

Matthew 28:16-20
Meanwhile, the eleven disciples were on their way to Galilee, headed for the mountain Jesus had set for their reunion. The moment they saw him they worshiped him. Some, though, held back, not sure about worship, about risking themselves totally.
Jesus, undeterred, went right ahead and gave his charge: “God authorized and commanded me to commission you: Go out and train everyone you meet, far and near, in this way of life, marking them by baptism in the threefold name: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Then instruct them in the practice of all I have commanded you. I’ll be with you as you do this, day after day after day, right up to the end of the age.”

Friday, May 29, 2015

Update to the Reading Guides for the Catholic Study Bible?

I pose this question because I was in an email conversation with a reader of this blog who had mentioned that his edition of The Catholic Study Bible NABRE seems to have been updated.  Looking back at an older post on this subject, he pointed out that "the 'cereal offering' you mentioned on pg. 128 is "grain offering" for me. They had to have updated the reading guide."

Has anyone purchased a CSB recently and can confirm this?  If so, do you have the hardcover or bonded leather?

Wednesday, May 27, 2015

Poll Time!

Which Catholic Translation (in English) will be the most popular in America in 2025?
New American Bible - Revised Edition (re-revised NT)
RSV-2CE
NRSV
A New Catholic Translation
Other?
Poll Maker

Tuesday, May 26, 2015

ABS Lectio Divina Resource

If you head over to the American Bible Society (Catholic Ministries Section) you can find a weekly, online, lectio divina prayer resource for use with the Sunday readings.

Lectio Divina is a weekly framework for a faithful and respectful reading of the Bible, coordinated with the Catholic lectionary calendar.  Reflections written by Rev. Fr. Mariano Perrón, Roman Catholic priest, Archdiocese of Madrid, Spain

Monday, May 25, 2015

Dei Verbum at 50 (Paragraph 11)

In celebration of the 50th Anniversary of Vatican II's Dogmatic Constitution on Divine Revelation, I will be posting twice a month, on Mondays, a paragraph from this important document.  There are a total of 26 paragraphs, so this will take us through to the Fall when we reach the anniversary of its promulgation by Pope Paul VI on November 18, 1965.  I look forward to our discussion.  May I suggest a helpful book by Fr. Ronald D. Witherup called The Word of God at Vatican II: Exploring Dei Verbum published by Liturgical Press.

11. Those divinely revealed realities which are contained and presented in Sacred Scripture have been committed to writing under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. For holy mother Church, relying on the belief of the Apostles (see John 20:31; 2 Tim. 3:16; 2 Peter 1:19-20, 3:15-16), holds that the books of both the Old and New Testaments in their entirety, with all their parts, are sacred and canonical because written under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, they have God as their author and have been handed on as such to the Church herself.  In composing the sacred books, God chose men and while employed by Him they made use of their powers and abilities, so that with Him acting in them and through them, they, as true authors, consigned to writing everything and only those things which He wanted.

Therefore, since everything asserted by the inspired authors or sacred writers must be held to be asserted by the Holy Spirit, it follows that the books of Scripture must be acknowledged as teaching solidly, faithfully and without error that truth which God wanted put into sacred writing for the sake of salvation. Therefore "all Scripture is divinely inspired and has its use for teaching the truth and refuting error, for reformation of manners and discipline in right living, so that the man who belongs to God may be efficient and equipped for good work of every kind" (2 Tim. 3:16-17, Greek text).

Sunday, May 24, 2015

Sunday's Message: Pentecost

Welcome back to another edition of Sunday's Message.  Here, I will reproduce the readings for Mass from The Message: Catholic/Ecumenical Edition.  (I want to thank Greg Pierce at ACTA for giving me permission to do this weekly post.)  While this is not an "official" Catholic edition, one of my hopes for doing this new series is to have a lively discussion on the renderings, compared to the more formal ones we are use to reading and hearing at Mass.  Is there a place for a translation like this?  Could this be a good Bible to give to a Catholic "seeker" or young adult? I have used it while teaching my high school theology classes, along with the NRSV and NABRE, and have had positive results.  

I would like to also propose a question each week to reflect upon, particularly in light of the rendering found here in The Message:Reflecting on the readings for this holy feast of Pentecost, where do we allow the Holy Spirit to transform us in our everyday lives?  Do we utilizes the charisms that we have received as adopted sons and daughters of our heavenly Father?


Acts 2:1-1
When the Feast of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place. Without warning there was a sound like a strong wind, gale force—no one could tell where it came from. It filled the whole building. Then, like a wildfire, the Holy Spirit spread through their ranks, and they started speaking in a number of different languages as the Spirit prompted them.
There were many Jews staying in Jerusalem just then, devout pilgrims from all over the world. When they heard the sound, they came on the run. Then when they heard, one after another, their own mother tongues being spoken, they were thunderstruck. They couldn’t for the life of them figure out what was going on, and kept saying, “Aren’t these all Galileans? How come we’re hearing them talk in our various mother tongues?
Parthians, Medes, and Elamites;
Visitors from Mesopotamia, Judea, and Cappadocia,
Pontus and Asia, Phrygia and Pamphylia,
Egypt and the parts of Libya belonging to Cyrene;
Immigrants from Rome, both Jews and proselytes;
Even Cretans and Arabs!
“They’re speaking our languages, describing God’s mighty works!”

Psalm 104
O my soul, bless God!
God, my God, how great you are!
beautifully, gloriously robed,
Dressed up in sunshine.
What a wildly wonderful world, God!
You made it all, with Wisdom at your side,
made earth overflow with your wonderful creations.
If you turned your back,
the creatures would die in a minute—
Take back your Spirit and they die,
revert to original mud;
Send out your Spirit and they spring to life—
the whole countryside in bloom and blossom.
The glory of God—let it last forever!
Let God enjoy his creation!
Oh, let my song please him;
I’m so pleased to be singing to God.

1 Corinthians 12:3-7, 12-13
By using your heads, you know perfectly well that the Spirit of God would never prompt anyone to say “Jesus be damned!” Nor would anyone be inclined to say “Jesus is Master!” without the insight of the Holy Spirit.God’s various gifts are handed out everywhere; but they all originate in God’s Spirit. God’s various ministries are carried out everywhere; but they all originate in God’s Spirit. God’s various expressions of power are in action everywhere; but God himself is behind it all. Each person is given something to do that shows who God is: Everyone gets in on it, everyone benefits. All kinds of things are handed out by the Spirit, and to all kinds of people! You can easily enough see how this kind of thing works by looking no further than your own body. Your body has many parts—limbs, organs, cells—but no matter how many parts you can name, you’re still one body. It’s exactly the same with Christ. By means of his one Spirit, we all said good-bye to our partial and piecemeal lives. We each used to independently call our own shots, but then we entered into a large and integrated life in which he has the final say in everything. (This is what we proclaimed in word and action when we were baptized.) Each of us is now a part of his resurrection body, refreshed and sustained at one fountain—his Spirit—where we all come to drink. The old labels we once used to identify ourselves—labels like Jew or Greek, slave or free—are no longer useful. We need something larger, more comprehensive.

John 20:19-23
Later on that day, the disciples had gathered together, but, fearful of the Jews, had locked all the doors in the house. Jesus entered, stood among them, and said, “Peace to you.” Then he showed them his hands and side. The disciples, seeing the Master with their own eyes, were exuberant. Jesus repeated his greeting: “Peace to you. Just as the Father sent me, I send you.”
Then he took a deep breath and breathed into them. “Receive the Holy Spirit,” he said. “If you forgive someone’s sins, they’re gone for good. If you don’t forgive sins, what are you going to do with them?”

Thursday, May 21, 2015

OBOY: The Journey Home and OBOY


Thank you to Daniel for posting this in the comments section. Some great things here. Not only is Dr. Mary Healy a wonderful scripture scholar and one of the editors of the Catholic Commentary on Sacred Scripture, she is a true missionary. Also, there is a great section on this program, from minutes 23-30, where Marcus speaks about having one Bible. I thought that was pretty cool considering the Monday post. Enjoy.

ICSB: Joshua + Judges/Ruth for October 2015

The 19th and 20th volumes in the popular Bible study series leads readers through a penetrating study of the Book of Joshua using the biblical text itself and the Church's own guidelines for understanding the Bible.
Ample notes accompany each page, providing fresh insights by renowned Bible teachers Scott Hahn and Curtis Mitch, as well as time-tested interpretations from the Fathers of the Church. They provide rich historical, cultural, geographical or theological information pertinent to the Old Testament book - information that bridges the distance between the biblical world and our own.
It also includes Topical Essays, Word Studies and Charts. The Topical Essays explore the major themes of Joshua, often relating them to the teachings of the Church. The Word Studies explain the background to important Bible terms, while the Charts summarize crucial biblical information "at a glance".


Wednesday, May 20, 2015

Great Men of The Bible: A Guide for Guys

Focusing on eleven men - the ones, in addition to Jesus, he considers "great"- Father Martin Pable explains their identity, sacred stores, and message for today's men. "This one's for you, guys," he says in his Introduction. 
A well-known and respected Franciscan Capuchin priest who works with both men and women in retreat settings, Father Pable appraches the Scriptures with his own Catholic sensibility, but he appeals to those of all Christian denominations and to truth seekers of all backgrounds. 
Learn what these "great men of the Bible" have to teach men today: Abraham, the flawed father of our faith; Jacob, a case study of the male journey; Joseph, a model of reconciliation; Moses, a spiritual-political leader; David, from greatness to failure and back again; Elijah, a prophet who wouldn't give up; Jeremiah, a man unbeathen by depression and failure; John the Baptist, a man without ego; Joseph of Nazareth, a man for our times; Peter, more heart than rock; Paul, a man who caught fire.
Questions for reflection and discussion follow each chapter, and Fr. Pable uses a new contemporary translation, The Message: Catholic/Ecumenical Edition, to make the great men of the Bible come alive in ways you may have never experienced before. 
This devotional, published through ACTA Publishers, can be purchased here.

Monday, May 18, 2015

OBOY: Reflecting on Bibles and Translations

I am going to do a little thinking/writing out loud here today.  Consider it a journal entry for the day.  The context of this reflection is my year doing the OBOY (One Bible, One Year) challenge and the results of my prayer life for the past year or so.  I will caution you that this might border on babbling with apparently little coherence.  Of course, if you have been reading this blog for a while, this will not be shocking in any way!  Still, I am going to do it anyways.

When I started this blog back in 2008, part of my motivation was just a desire to find "my Bible."  You know what I mean?  I was looking for the "perfect" translation in the best binding and cover materials (Allan's?), with the best cross-references, maps, annotations, all bound together in format that suited my needs.  I was seeking perfection.  (Or at least what I perceived as perfection.)  Often I would complain about this or that translation or publisher, lamenting the "woes" of being a Catholic who actually likes nice Bibles.  I am sure many of the posts during my first few years of doing this blog often reflected that mentality.

As I reflect on all of that now, much of my thought (and crusading) was focused on seeking something fairly unimportant, really, while missing the whole point altogether.  It has taken a number of years, multiple re-bindings, dozens (although my wife would say more) Bible purchases, and hundreds of posts on this blog to realize that all of that really didn't matter.  I have come to the conclusion that what matters most is represented in the picture above.  Yeah, its not a Catholic version, but that is not the point.  It represents the many, mostly older women, who I have seen and talked with at charismatic and other prayer groups who have been reading their one, single, solitary Bible for decades.  Specifically, there was a woman I talked with at a conference about five years ago or so who was reading out of her 1966 imitation leather Jerusalem Bible.  The full one too, with all those fantastic notes and the beautiful single-column format.  Her Bible was tattered, underlined and highlighted, bent, torn, and worn.  The Bible ribbon looked like it had fallen off sometime in the 1980's.  The spine was held together with duct tape and she used a thick rubber band to close the Bible with all her hand written notes and prayers.  What a beautiful sight!  Outside of my wife and children (and maybe Rome), I would say that tattered, decrepit  old Bible was the most gorgeous thing I had ever seen. It was loved, prayed with, studied, and had clearly been a constant companion to that woman for likely longer than I had been alive.

Over the past year, I have had a hard time getting that image out of my mind, particularly during morning prayer time.  I know, at least for me, seeking the Holy Grail of Catholic Bibles is not an option anymore.  Particularly since it doesn't actually exist!  It is time to settle down with one Bible.  (Now don't worry, I'll still be doing reviews and welcoming guest Bible reviews.)  I want my Bible to look like the one pictured above.  I will of course be using reference and study Bibles for teaching and study.  I think I will stick to hardcover editions of those, since they reflect a more reference Bible style.  It is time, however, to have one Bible.  While the "head" knowledge is important, the "heart" knowledge is what gives life.

So, I am starting a process of gifting out most of my Bibles.  I have been sort of doing that on this blog for the past year or so, sensing that this was the direction I was going to go.  Stay tuned for some more opportunities on getting some of the Bibles I have left.  For me, it is time to have a companion. It is time for a Bible that is more than a translation or a premium style of leather, but one that I will remain faithful to.  That is the thing really, if I actually want to be honest.  I have too often been flirting with other Bibles and translations, when the reality is that all I needed was just the one.  It was always just the one.  I am Gomer.

Sunday, May 17, 2015

Sunday's Message: Feast of the Ascension

Welcome back to another edition of Sunday's Message.  Here, I will reproduce the readings for Mass from The Message: Catholic/Ecumenical Edition.  (I want to thank Greg Pierce at ACTA for giving me permission to do this weekly post.)  While this is not an "official" Catholic edition, one of my hopes for doing this new series is to have a lively discussion on the renderings, compared to the more formal ones we are use to reading and hearing at Mass.  Is there a place for a translation like this?  Could this be a good Bible to give to a Catholic "seeker" or young adult? I have used it while teaching my high school theology classes, along with the NRSV and NABRE, and have had positive results.  

I would like to also propose a question each week to reflect upon, particularly in light of the rendering found here in The Message: Reflecting on the Ascension of Christ, how do you live out the reality of being a part of the Body of Christ here and now?  In what areas of your life do you need to do this more?

Acts 1:1-11
Dear Theophilus, in the first volume of this book I wrote on everything that Jesus began to do and teach until the day he said good-bye to the apostles, the ones he had chosen through the Holy Spirit, and was taken up to heaven. After his death, he presented himself alive to them in many different settings over a period of forty days. In face-to-face meetings, he talked to them about things concerning the kingdom of God. As they met and ate meals together, he told them that they were on no account to leave Jerusalem but “must wait for what the Father promised: the promise you heard from me. John baptized in water; you will be baptized in the Holy Spirit. And soon.”
When they were together for the last time they asked, “Master, are you going to restore the kingdom to Israel now? Is this the time?”
He told them, “You don’t get to know the time. Timing is the Father’s business. What you’ll get is the Holy Spirit. And when the Holy Spirit comes on you, you will be able to be my witnesses in Jerusalem, all over Judea and Samaria, even to the ends of the world.”
These were his last words. As they watched, he was taken up and disappeared in a cloud. They stood there, staring into the empty sky. Suddenly two men appeared—in white robes! They said, “You Galileans!—why do you just stand here looking up at an empty sky? This very Jesus who was taken up from among you to heaven will come as certainly—and mysteriously—as he left.”

Psalm 47
God Most High is stunning,
astride land and ocean.
He crushes hostile people,
Sing songs to God, sing out!
Sing to our King, sing praise!
He’s Lord over earth,
so sing your best songs to God.
God is Lord of godless nations—
sovereign, he’s King of the mountain.
Princes from all over are gathered,
people of Abraham’s God.
The powers of earth are God’s—
he soars over all.

Ephesians 1:17-23
I ask—ask the God of our Master, Jesus Christ, the God of glory—to make you intelligent and discerning in knowing him personally, your eyes focused and clear, so that you can see exactly what it is he is calling you to do, grasp the immensity of this glorious way of life he has for his followers, oh, the utter extravagance of his work in us who trust him—endless energy, boundless strength!
All this energy issues from Christ: God raised him from death and set him on a throne in deep heaven, in charge of running the universe, everything from galaxies to governments, no name and no power exempt from his rule. And not just for the time being, but forever. He is in charge of it all, has the final word on everything. At the center of all this, Christ rules the church. The church, you see, is not peripheral to the world; the world is peripheral to the church. The church is Christ’s body, in which he speaks and acts, by which he fills everything with his presence.

Mark 16:15-20
Jesus said to his disciples, “Go into the world. Go everywhere and announce the Message of God’s good news to one and all. Whoever believes and is baptized is saved; whoever refuses to believe is damned.
“These are some of the signs that will accompany believers: They will throw out demons in my name, they will speak in new tongues, they will take snakes in their hands, they will drink poison and not be hurt, they will lay hands on the sick and make them well.”
Then the Master Jesus, after briefing them, was taken up to heaven, and he sat down beside God in the place of honor. And the disciples went everywhere preaching, the Master working right with them, validating the Message with indisputable evidence.]

Wednesday, May 13, 2015

Guest Post: Bible Versions in Spanish

Thank you to Javier for this wonderfully helpful essay!

Before the Encyclical Letter Divino Afflante Spiritu of 1943, all catholic bibles in spanish were translations of the Vulgate. There were not many of them either: only two, as far as I know: the Petisco-Torres Amat Bible, and the Scío de San Miguel Bible. Very few lay people had a Bible in their homes up to that date, and even fewer ever read them.

From that date on, translations into Spanish from the original languages (hebrew, aramaic, and greek) began to appear. The first such translation to reach the market was the Nácar-Colunga Bible. It was first published in Spain in 1944 by BAC (Biblioteca de Autores Cristianos), and its translators were bible scholars Alberto Colunga Cueto O.P., and Fr. Eloíno Nácar Fúster. It has been revised and reprinted several times (there have been 30 editions so far). Its latest revision was in 2010. (Pictures are from the 1961 edition).


The second translation to be released was the Bóver-Cantera Bible. It was published in 1947, in Spain (also by BAC). Its translators were José María Bóver, S.J., and Francisco Cantera Burgos. It is considered the first critical edition of the Bible in spanish, translating (of course) from the original languages. It is not being reprinted, as it was superseded -so to speak- by the Cantera-Iglesias Bible, in 1975.

La Biblia de Straubinger (The Straubinger Bible): Next there was a translation published in Argentina (my country, of all places), in 1951, by Mons. Johannes Straubinger. This german priest was living in Argentina due to the political turmoil in Germany (he fled the nazi regime, narrowly escaping arrest by the Gestapo). In Argentina, he translated the Bible from the original languages. His version is considered to be a very orthodox and reliable version (particularly because of its notes and introductions). It is very well liked by Trad Catholics in Argentina. In fact, this is the Bible that the SSPX recommends in Argentina.
Straubinger also wrote several essays on biblical translation, and on theological matters. He could well have been our Ronald Knox, had his Bible not been abducted by the Trads (and then, because of it, automatically shunned by the Church in Argentina).

In 1964, La Santa Biblia, translated by Evaristo Martín Nieto (and his team of 15 members) was published in Spain. It is said to be in a very correct spanish.

In 1966, in Barcelona, Editorial Regina publishes la Sagrada Biblia, translated by claretians Frs. Pedro Franquesa and José María Solé. This bible is extremely rare. It has been praised for its fidelity to the original languages (so, formal equivalence I guess).

In 1967 appears the spanish version of the Jerusalem Bible, known as La Biblia de Jerusalén. There were revisions in 1975, 1998, and 2009. It is claimed it translates the biblical text from the original languages, and the notes from the french edition.

La Biblia Latinoamericana (The Latin American Bible), is the brainchild of french Fr. Bernardo Hurault. He was a missionary in rural areas of Chile. He noticed that the evangelical protestant faithful were well equipped with their own bibles, and read them, while catholics didn’t usually have a bible, and those bibles they could eventually have access to, were translated into a spanish that was cultured and from Spain, and thus sounded unnatural to Fr. Hurault intended target audience. So, with the help of chilean Fr. Ramón Ricciardi, he began translating the bible from its original languages. It was not easy for Fr. Hurault to get the “Church License” to print his bible. He finally found a Bishop that gave him his authorization, and the Bible was published in 1972. It is a dynamic equivalence translation. As its notes and illustrations were -at least in the early editions- heavily reminiscent of marxism and third world liberation, it stirred at first a great controversy. Subsequent editions have polished the translation, and gave less political flavor to the notes.
This Bible inserts the deuterocanonical books in a separate section between the Testaments.
This might well be the best-selling catholic bible in spanish speaking Latin America.
(Some years later, Fr. Bernardo Hurault would move to the Philippines, where he published his Christian Community Bible).

Sagrada Biblia Cantera-Iglesias: Translated by Francisco Cantera and Manuel Iglesias, it was published by BAC in 1975. It is a formal equivalence translation. It is highly valued as a tool for approaching the underlying meanings of the original languages.

Nueva Biblia Española (New Spanish Bible): this translation is the work of bible scholars Juan Mateos and Fr. Alonso Schökel. It was published in Spain in 1975, by Ediciones Cristiandad, and it was quite revolutionary. It is clearly a dynamic equivalence translation. And it strived to use a natural spanish language, that the reader could approach without previous knowledge of specific “biblical” terminology. Furthermore, the translators tried to keep the peculiarities of each genre in the target language, so that poetry, when translated, still read as poetry. It even translated into spanish the hebrew names of cities and places (when those names meant something specific in the original hebrew).
Until recently, this was the translation chosen for official liturgical use in Spain.

La Biblia, published in 1975 by Editorial Herder, in Spain, and translated by a team directed by Fr. Serafín de Ausejo, OFM. The team included catholics as well as protestants, from Spain and Latin America.

Sagrada Biblia de Magaña: Published in Mexico in 1975, it was translated by mexican Fr. Agustín Magaña Méndez. It seems to be very popular in Mexico. He translated the Old Testament from the LXX. This is unique among Catholic translations into spanish.

La Biblia de “La Casa de la Biblia”: First published in 1966, by “La Casa de la Biblia” from Spain, this translation was completely revised in 1992. It is still being published.

El Libro del Pueblo de Dios (The book of the People of God): This is an argentine translation, by Fathers Armando Levoratti and Alfredo Trusso. It is official for the Lectionaries (and for all liturgical use) in Argentina, Chile, Paraguay, and Uruguay. It is also the only bible in spanish featured in the official Vatican site (and in case you ask, this happened way before an argentinian was elected as Pope). The translation uses a neutral latin american spanish. It is a very readable -but by no means beautiful- translation. At times it can be a bit prosaic. (This is, so far, the only Bible I have read cover to cover).
This Bible inserts the deuterocanonical books in a separate section between the Old and the New Testament.

Biblia del Peregrino (Pilgrim’s Bible): Published in 1996, by Editorial Mensajero, in Bilbao, Spain. This translation was the work of a team directed by the late Fr. Luis Alonso Schökel -Professor at the Pontifical Biblical Institute in Rome- who had previously translated the Old Testament for the Nueva Biblia Española. It is a dynamic equivalence translation. As with the Nueva Biblia Española, the translator wanted a Bible that sounded natural in the target language. Many consider this translation to be the most beautiful version of the Bible in spanish. (I’m currently reading this bible. I could not say if this is ‘the most beautiful’ spanish translation. But it certainly makes for very pleasurable reading. Fr. Schökel did have a superb command of spanish).


Biblia Americana San Jerónimo (revision of the Vulgate translation of Fr. Felipe Scío): Published in 1994, by Edicep, in Valencia, Spain. This a very strange translation: Fr. Jesús María Lacea, S.P., took a translation into spanish from the Vulgate, dating from 1793, and corrected it by comparing it with the Bible text in the original languages (hebrew, aramaic, and greek). The target audience seems to be the catholics of Latin America. But I have never seen it in a bookstore (or anywhere else, for that matter).

Dios Habla Hoy: Published in 1979, by Sociedades Bíblicas Unidas (United Bible Societies). The translation team included evangelicals and catholics. It has a catholic edition, with deuterocanonicals and with official Church approval, by the CELAM (Latin American Bishops Conference). It is a dynamic equivalence translation. Its language is natural and not particularly sophisticated. Its target audience is mostly latin american catholics. It is sold in catholic bookstores, and it is widely accepted by the catholic faithful. It is published by Ediciones Paulinas, with the cover title La Biblia, Palabra de Dios (The Bible, Word of God).


Biblia de América (Bible of the Americas): Published in Mexico, by PPC, in 2001. It is an initiative of La Casa de la Biblia publishing house, from Spain. It was translated by a team coordinated by Santiago Guijarro Oporto and Miguel Salvador García. It is intended as a Bible for the Catholic Church in spanish speaking Latin America. The translation team includes prestigious scholars from the different language areas of the continent.

Biblia - Traducción en Lenguaje Actual (Bible - Today’s language translation): This is a translation by Sociedades Bíblicas Unidas (United Bible Societies), whose goal it is to simplify the language in order to reach a wider audience. It is a paraphrase. This is an ecumenical translation with Church Approval. The edition I own is approved by Oscar Andrés Rodríguez Maradiaga, SDB, Archbishop of Tegucigalpa, President of CELAM. It also includes a recommendation letter from 2006, signed by none other than Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio, SJ.


Biblia de Navarra - Edición Popular: From 1997 to 2004, EUNSA (Ediciones Universidad de Navarra, S.A.) published the five volumes of the “Sagrada Biblia”, translated by the Theology School of the University of Navarra (affiliated with Opus Dei). The translators team was led by Fr. José María Casciaro. This one volume Popular Edition is a joint initiative of the Midwestern Theological Forum (MTF) and EUNSA. It was first published in 2009.

La Biblia de Nuestro Pueblo (Our People’s Bible): This 2009 bible, is the ‘pastoral version’ of the “Biblia del Peregrino”. It takes its excellent translation, and changes the notes and introductions -which were more of an exegetical nature in the Biblia del Peregrino-, to make them more pastoral and relevant to the everyday problems of a latin american audience. It is published by Ediciones Mensajero, and printed in China.

Biblia Católica para Jóvenes: This version, published in 2005 in the USA, was originally aimed at the american youth of latin background. It takes the text of the Biblia de América, but uses different notes and introductions. It sells in all of spanish speaking Latin America.

La Biblia - Traducción Interconfesional (BTI) (The Bible - Interdenominational Translation): This ecumenical Bible was published in Spain in 2008. It is the result of a long joint effort between Sociedades Bíblicas Unidas, and La Casa de la Biblia, which had began in 1973. The introductions and notes are of a linguistic, historical, and literary nature, as opposed to a denominational approach. In 2014, the version for Latin America -Biblia Hispanoamericana- was published. The evangelical version of this translation, without deuterocanonicals, is the Bible La Palabra (The Word).


Sagrada Biblia - Versión Oficial de la Conferencia Episcopal Española (Holy Bible - Official Version of the Bishops Conference of Spain): This version has been published in 2010, in Spain, by BAC (Biblioteca de Autores Cristianos). The translation project began in 1996, as an initiative of the Bishops Conference of Spain. The goal of this version is to be the one and only version to be used by the Catholic Church in Spain for every official use of scripture: Mass Lectionaries, catechisms, liturgy of the hours, etc.. It was translated by a team of twenty four scholars, from the original languages. While translating, they took also into account the already existing liturgical translations, and the latest edition of the latin Neovulgata. This version, of course, has full backing of the Bishops Conference of Spain.

Biblia Católica de la Familia (Family Catholic Bible): Published in 2012 by Editorial Verbo Divino, this Bible uses the text of the argentinian El Libro del Pueblo de Dios translation, with different notes and introductions. Its intended audience are the spanish speakers of the Americas.
Just as the El Libro del Pueblo de Dios does, this Bible places the deuterocanonical books in a separate section between the Old and the New Testaments.

Biblia de la Iglesia en América - BIA (Bible of the Church in the Americas): This is the latest catholic translation project of the Bible into spanish that I’m aware of. It began by a request of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops to the Bishops Conference of Latin America for a new bible translation that could be used by the US spanish speakers. The translation team itself began working in 2004. The project eventually expanded to become an initiative for a common catholic bible in spanish for the Americas. The New Testament is to be published during the second half of 2015.
The website for the New Testament is set to be launched next week (May 11th, 2015): http://www.nuevotestamento-bia.com/

List of Catholic Bibles published in spanish after the release of the Encyclical Letter Divino Afflante Spiritu, in 1943, by Pope Pius XII:

1-. Biblia Nácar-Colunga

2-. Biblia Bóver-Cantera

3-. Biblia de Monseñor Straubinger

4-. La Santa Biblia (Evaristo Martín Nieto)

5-. Biblia Regina (Franquesa-Solé)

6-. La Biblia de Jerusalén

7-. Biblia Latinoamericana

8-. Sagrada Biblia Cantera-Iglesias

9-. Nueva Biblia Española (Schökel-Mateos)

10-. La Biblia de Herder (Serafín de Ausejo)

11-. Sagrada Biblia de Magaña

12-. La Biblia de “La Casa de la Biblia”

13-. El libro del Pueblo de Dios

14-. Biblia del Peregrino

15-. Biblia Americana San Jerónimo (revision of the XVIII century translation of the Vulgate    by Fr. Felipe Scío)

16-. Dios Habla Hoy (Sociedades Bíblicas Unidas)

17-. Biblia de América (by La Casa de la Biblia)

18-. Biblia - Traducción en Lenguaje Actual (Sociedades Bíblicas Unidas)

19-. Biblia de Navarra - Edición Popular

20-. La Biblia de Nuestro Pueblo

21-. Biblia Católica para Jóvenes (text of “La Biblia de América”)

22-. La Biblia Traducción Interconfesional (BTI)

23-. Sagrada Biblia - Versión Oficial de la Conferencia Episcopal Española

24-. Biblia Católica de la Familia (text of “El Libro del Pueblo de Dios”)


25-. BIA (La Biblia de la Iglesia en América)

Monday, May 11, 2015

Dei Verbum at 50 (Paragraph 10)

In celebration of the 50th Anniversary of Vatican II's Dogmatic Constitution on Divine Revelation, I will be posting twice a month, on Mondays, a paragraph from this important document.  There are a total of 26 paragraphs, so this will take us through to the Fall when we reach the anniversary of its promulgation by Pope Paul VI on November 18, 1965.  I look forward to our discussion.  May I suggest a helpful book by Fr. Ronald D. Witherup called The Word of God at Vatican II: Exploring Dei Verbum published by Liturgical Press.

10. Sacred tradition and Sacred Scripture form one sacred deposit of the word of God, committed to the Church. Holding fast to this deposit the entire holy people united with their shepherds remain always steadfast in the teaching of the Apostles, in the common life, in the breaking of the bread and in prayers (see Acts 2, 42, Greek text), so that holding to, practicing and professing the heritage of the faith, it becomes on the part of the bishops and faithful a single common effort. 

But the task of authentically interpreting the word of God, whether written or handed on, has been entrusted exclusively to the living teaching office of the Church, whose authority is exercised in the name of Jesus Christ. This teaching office is not above the word of God, but serves it, teaching only what has been handed on, listening to it devoutly, guarding it scrupulously and explaining it faithfully in accord with a divine commission and with the help of the Holy Spirit, it draws from this one deposit of faith everything which it presents for belief as divinely revealed.

It is clear, therefore, that sacred tradition, Sacred Scripture and the teaching authority of the Church, in accord with God's most wise design, are so linked and joined together that one cannot stand without the others, and that all together and each in its own way under the action of the one Holy Spirit contribute effectively to the salvation of souls.

Sunday, May 10, 2015

Sunday's Message: 6th Sunday of Easter

Welcome back to another edition of Sunday's Message.  Here, I will reproduce the readings for Mass from The Message: Catholic/Ecumenical Edition.  (I want to thank Greg Pierce at ACTA for giving me permission to do this weekly post.)  While this is not an "official" Catholic edition, one of my hopes for doing this new series is to have a lively discussion on the renderings, compared to the more formal ones we are use to reading and hearing at Mass.  Is there a place for a translation like this?  Could this be a good Bible to give to a Catholic "seeker" or young adult? I have used it while teaching my high school theology classes, along with the NRSV and NABRE, and have had positive results.  

I would like to also propose a question each week to reflect upon, particularly in light of the rendering found here in The Message: What in being a Christian brings you the most joy?


Acts 10:25-26, 34-35, 44-48
The minute Peter came through the door, Cornelius was up on his feet greeting him—and then down on his face worshiping him! Peter pulled him up and said, “None of that—I’m a man and only a man, no different from you.”
Peter fairly exploded with his good news: “It’s God’s own truth, nothing could be plainer: God plays no favorites! It makes no difference who you are or where you’re from—if you want God and are ready to do as he says, the door is open.
No sooner were these words out of Peter’s mouth than the Holy Spirit came on the listeners. The believing Jews who had come with Peter couldn’t believe it, couldn’t believe that the gift of the Holy Spirit was poured out on “outsider” non-Jews, but there it was—they heard them speaking in tongues, heard them praising God.
Then Peter said, “Do I hear any objections to baptizing these friends with water? They’ve received the Holy Spirit exactly as we did.” Hearing no objections, he ordered that they be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ.
Then they asked Peter to stay on for a few days.


Psalm 98
Sing to God a brand-new song. He’s made a world of wonders!
He rolled up his sleeves,
He set things right.
God made history with salvation, He showed the world what he could do.
He remembered to love us, a bonus
To his dear family, Israel—indefatigable love.
The whole earth comes to attention.
Look—God’s work of salvation!
Shout your praises to God, everybody! Let loose and sing! Strike up the band!


1 John 4: 7-10
My beloved friends, let us continue to love each other since love comes from God. Everyone who loves is born of God and experiences a relationship with God. The person who refuses to love doesn’t know the first thing about God, because God is love—so you can’t know him if you don’t love. This is how God showed his love for us: God sent his only Son into the world so we might live through him. This is the kind of love we are talking about—not that we once upon a time loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as a sacrifice to clear away our sins and the damage they’ve done to our relationship with God.


John 15:9-17
Jesus said: “I’ve loved you the way my Father has loved me. Make yourselves at home in my love. If you keep my commands, you’ll remain intimately at home in my love. That’s what I’ve done—kept my Father’s commands and made myself at home in his love.
“I’ve told you these things for a purpose: that my joy might be your joy, and your joy wholly mature. This is my command: Love one another the way I loved you. This is the very best way to love. Put your life on the line for your friends. You are my friends when you do the things I command you. I’m no longer calling you servants because servants don’t understand what their master is thinking and planning. No, I’ve named you friends because I’ve let you in on everything I’ve heard from the Father.
“You didn’t choose me, remember; I chose you, and put you in the world to bear fruit, fruit that won’t spoil. As fruit bearers, whatever you ask the Father in relation to me, he gives you.
“But remember the root command: Love one another."

Friday, May 8, 2015

Didache NABRE (Leather) First Look

Here are a few pictures of the Didache NABRE (Leather) Edition I received today.  I love the page layout, which is quite readable and full of information.  They really did a great job getting both the NABRE and CCC annotations onto each page, without any real loss of readability.  (It is almost 500 pages bigger!)  The CCC annotations are adjusted to the translation differences found in the NABRE.  The size, while certainly big, is not nearly as big as I thought it might be.  My only complaint is with the bonded leather cover, which is a hardcover.  It is not advertised as being a hardcover, but as some of our commentators have mentioned over the past few days, it is definitely a bonded leather over boards.  May be a good candidate for a rebind.