Knox vs. The Message: Second Sunday of Advent (Mark 1:1-8)

I am going to continue this series of comparing one of the Sunday readings from the lectionary, using the Knox Bible and The Message.  While done in different ways, I think both Knox and Peterson desired to make the Bible more accessible to the average reader.  Let's see if they were successful. 

Knox:
The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God.  It is written in the prophecy of Isaias, Behold, I am sending before thee that angel of mine who is to prepare thy way for thy coming;  there is a voice of one crying in the wilderness, Prepare the way of the Lord, straighten out his paths. And so it was that John appeared in the wilderness baptizing, announcing a baptism whereby men repented, to have their sins forgiven.  And all the country of Judaea and all those who dwelt in Jerusalem went out to see him, and he baptized them in the river Jordan, while they confessed their sins.  John was clothed with a garment of camel’s hair, and had a leather girdle about his loins, and he ate locusts and wild honey.  And thus he preached, One is to come after me who is mightier than I, so that I am not worthy to bend down and untie the strap of his shoes.  I have baptized you with water; he will baptize you with the Holy Ghost.

The Message:

The good news of Jesus Christ—the Message!—begins here, following to the letter the scroll of the prophet Isaiah.

Watch closely: I’m sending my preacher ahead of you;
He’ll make the road smooth for you.
Thunder in the desert!
Prepare for God’s arrival!
Make the road smooth and straight!

John the Baptizer appeared in the wild, preaching a baptism of life-change that leads to forgiveness of sins. People thronged to him from Judea and Jerusalem and, as they confessed their sins, were baptized by him in the Jordan River into a changed life. John wore a camel-hair habit, tied at the waist with a leather belt. He ate locusts and wild field honey.

As he preached he said, “The real action comes next: The star in this drama, to whom I’m a mere stagehand, will change your life. I’m baptizing you here in the river, turning your old life in for a kingdom life. His baptism—a holy baptism by the Holy Spirit—will change you from the inside out.”

All is Calm. All is Bright.

Didache Bible January 2015?

Thanks to Brian for pointing this out, but it appears that the hardback edition of the Didache Bible will be published in January now.  This is according to the the Ignatius site. There is still no listing on the Amazon site, nor is there any indication when the bonded leather edition will be published.  

Your Thoughts?

An Appeal: In Soft Garments (Final Update)

Hello friends.  I don't typically make an appeal on this blog, since I like to keep it focused on all things Catholic Bibles.  As some of you know, I teach theology at Catholic high school, Bishop Foley Catholic in Madison Heights, MI.  One of the classes I teach is called Catholic Apologetics.  I have offered this course for the past two years and a number of graduates have emailed me letting me know how much they appreciated taking the class now that they are in college.  For the past two years, I have relied on various articles that I have made copies of, along with our short, yet helpful, textbook Beginning Apologetics.  I have always desired an additional book to help supplement the resources that I have always used, particularly in the area of apologetics with atheists.  After spending a number of months investigating which book might work best, I have settled on Msgr. Ronald Knox's In Soft Garments.  Recently republished by Ignatius Press, this volume contains a number of Knox's conferences to Oxford University students during the 20's and 30's.  Ignatius Press describes this book in this way:

When the Holy See gave general permission for Catholics to study again at Oxford and Cambridge, the stipulation was made that lectures be offered to provide support for their faith, as Catholics would be a minority in a rather hostile atmosphere. In the days when C. S. Lewis and J. R. R. Tolkien trod the greens of Oxford, those lectures were provided by the wise and witty Msgr. Ronald Knox, himself a convert to the Catholic Church.

Erudite and profound, Monsignor Knox not only helped keep the Catholic students aflame with faith, but also led many lapsed Catholics and non-Catholics into the Church. His writings continue to provide inspiration and instruction to all those confronting questions of life and faith.

Some of the best talks by Knox are gathered in this volume. "If God Exists", "The Unholiness of the Church" and "Unselfishness in Marriage" are but a few of the topics he deftly discussed in a manner as entertaining and pertinent now as when they were first given at Oxford in the 1920s and 30s.

It is a fine book, I believe, which is both readable and will prove helpful to my students in this subject.  However, the school where I work at is not large, which means our budget is quite small as well.  I have a copy or two of this book, but would like to provide a classroom set for my students.

That is where you come in, if you choose to help out.  I have set up an Amazon.com (baby) registry which contains one item: In Soft Garments.  I am looking to obtain around 30 copies of this book.  If you are willing to help me out in this, I would be most appreciative.  While I cannot offer any amazing gifts, I do promise that anyone who donates will be included in my family's Sunday rosary for 2015.

I thank you for your consideration.  If you are willing to help, you can follow the following link: Registry.  (Make sure to choose my address for shipping!)


UPDATE 1:
We are already close to half way there, so thank you to all who have contributed.  I honestly didn't expect to be at this point in less than a day.  Also, it appears that we have purchased all of the initial Amazon.com stock of In Soft Garments, but you should be able to continue ordering.  The site notes: "In stock but may require an extra 1-2 days to process".

UPDATE 2:
So, it seems that Amazon has completely sold out of its stock of In Soft Garments.  So, if you are still willing to help out, I would advise two options:

1) Purchase one of the used or new copies from the Amazon marketplace.  If you could let me know that you did this, that would be helpful, since I am not sure it will take that book off the registry count.

2) You can go to Ignatius Press and purchase directly from the publisher.  Here is the link.  The price is almost identical.  If you do it this way, please email me, mccorm45(at)yahoo(dot)com, to let me know how many copies and in order to get my address.

Again, thank you for your consideration!  

UPDATE 3:
We are over the half way point, with 17 editions of In Soft Garments being purchased. Thank you to all who contributed.  At this point, it appears that all of the stock at Amazon.com has been purchased.  You can still get it through the Marketplace if you choose.  I also recommend ordering it directly from Ignatius Press.  As I mentioned above, the price is almost identical.  If you do it this way, please email me, mccorm45(at)yahoo(dot)com, to let me know how many copies and in order to get my address for shipping.  Thank you, thank you, thank you!

FINAL UPDATE:
Through your generosity, I have reached the goal of 30 copies of In Soft Garments for use in my high school apologetics class.  I cannot begin to express how appreciative I am to all of you who have contributed to this appeal.  So, from the bottom of my heart, thank you!  I hope to post in future weeks some images as the books come in.  By the way, In Soft Garments is a fantastic book, one which I highly recommend.  

If you were planning to contribute but haven't yet, I will certainly accept additional copies.  As a teacher, I appreciate having extra copies on hand if necessary.

Thank you!

Knox Contest Winner

Congrats to the winner Tommy O, who was randomly chosen out of all the entries.  Tommy O, you have one week to contact me via email, mccorm45(at)yahoo(dot)com, to let me know your name and address.

Thanks to all who entered!

Knox vs. The Message: First Sunday of Advent (Mark 13:33-37)

I am going to do a comparison of one of the Sunday readings from the lectionary, using the Knox Bible and The Message.  If you think this might be of some interest (or at least amusing) let me know.  While done in different ways, I think both Knox and Peterson desired to make the Bible more accessible to the average reader.  Let's see if they were successful.  

Knox:
Look well to it; watch and pray; you do not know when the time is to come.  It is as if a man going on his travels had left his house, entrusting authority to his servants, each of them to do his own work, and enjoining the door-keeper to watch. Be on the watch, then, since you do not know when the master of the house is coming, at twilight, or midnight, or cock-crow, or dawn; if not, he may come suddenly, and find you asleep.  And what I say to you, I say to all, Watch.


The Message
Jesus said to his disciples: “Keep a sharp lookout, for you don’t know the timetable. It’s like a man who takes a trip, leaving home and putting his servants in charge, each assigned a task, and commanding the gatekeeper to stand watch. So, stay at your post, watching. You have no idea when the homeowner is returning, whether evening, midnight, cockcrow, or morning. You don’t want him showing up unannounced, with you asleep on the job. I say it to you, and I’m saying it to all: Stay at your post. Keep watch.”