Monday, May 15, 2017

The Message Canvas Bible

c/o The Message Canvas 

The Message Canvas Bible is a fantastic resource for those interested in purchasing a journaling/coloring bible.  At this time, it is only available in the original The Message translation, minus the deuterocanonicals. I decided to purchase a copy a few months ago.  It is wonderfully produced and the illustrations are so lovingly rendered that the text begs to be interacted with.  I have also come to use The Message translation daily in my prayers and duting times of practicing lectio divina.  I love the fact that it is rendered in such a different way from the majority of other translations.

I have owned a number of journaling bibles over the years, yet I can honestly say that it is this one that has quickly become my favorite.  The one I previously owned was the now out-of-print NRSV Notetakers Bible which included the deuteros.  The fine folks at NavPress have created a helpful website with additional prints and opportunities to show-off one's creativity.  I even printed off one of their prints for Ezekiel 34 and used it for an extended prayer experience for my high school students last week.  It was well received.

Hopefully there will be a full Catholic edition one day.  However, until then, this edition of The Message Canvas Bible will be used often.

5 comments:

Unknown said...

Another one of them journal Bibles, eh? I do really like the illustrations though. And the cover looks pretty. I suppose it could be a poor man's St. John's. XD

Biblical Catholic said...

Maybe I just have poor taste, but I kind of like the simple line drawings in the margins of the first edition of the Good News Bible. When I bought the Catholic Edition of that a few years ago, I was disappointed that for some reason they removed the drawings.

Mark D. said...

What I'd like to see is a Catholic edition of The Message with notes -- like a Catholic "Life Application Bible" sort of thing. The Message is a perfect translation/paraphrase for that sort of thing, and I think it would fill a real need in the Catholic Bible marketplace. We've got the NABRE with its academically-oriented notes and introductions that, while valuable and reflective of modern scholarship (and no, I'm not a hater of the NABRE notes in this regard), they tend to be dry and lacking in application guidance for the reader. The notes could also provide a venue to provide a slightly more accurate reading of the text when The Message goes off track (as every translation does). Just a thought.

Jerry Mc Kenna said...

The look is lovely. Not my style today, but if I was a teenager I would probably like it.

Erap10 said...

Lol that would be great.