Weekly Knox: The Devil

"It isn't true that there had to be a devil.  According to Catholic theology, the devils were created good and were meant by God to be good; only he determined to create them as beings having a moral power of choice; and it is not possible, not conceivable, I mean, to give a person the power of choice without making it possible for him to choose wrong.  God didn't create a "state of bad and good"; he created,...a possibility of bad and good, by placing some of his creatures, whether angels or men doesn't matter, in a condition in which they could choose for themselves.  There is a particular kind of thing, namely right-choosing, which God himself couldn't have put into the world he was creating without introducing the possibility of evil." -Off the Record

Cambridge NRSV's Back in Stock

Cambridge University Press is known for produce high quality Bibles.  For Catholics, their edition of the NRSV Reference Bible w/ Apocrypha is one of the nicest on the market.  It had been out of print for the past year or so, but recently it has be re-printed.  I have been told by those who have purchased this edition that it has a slightly different look and feel than some of the previous printings.  (I own the previous two.)  From what I have heard, the font is bolder, the paper is decently thick, and the French Moroccan leather is better than the previous two editions.  If I am able to acquire a reveiw copy, I'll try to do a review.  Here is a review I did of the previous edition, which I consider one of my best Bibles along with the Baronius Knox.

Here is the description:

An NRSV reference edition complete with Apocrypha, for serious bible study.

This edition of the NRSV includes the Apocryphal/ Deuterocanonical Books, placed in between the Old and New Testaments.

The Bible is attractively laid out, with generous-sized type and line spacing, set in two columns neatly divided by cross- references. There are discreet section headings to break up the text and translators’ footnotes to explain textual reconstructions and variant readings

At the back of the Bible is a section comprising a glossary, maps, and tables of weights, measures and values. The glossary points to where names and places appear in the text, and includes lists of the miracles and parables as recounted in each of the Gospels.

The Bible is beautifully produced, equipped with ribbon markers and finished with head and tailbands. The pages have gilt edges and the Bible is fully sewn and bound in French Morocco leather.

> cross-references

> glossary with lists of miracles and parables

> maps relating to the Bible and Apocrypha

FEATURES OF EDITION

> Bible paper

> gilt edges

> ribbon markers

> presentation page

> cross-references

> glossary

> 15 colour maps

Dei Verbum at 50 (Paragraph 22)

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.

22. Easy access to Sacred Scripture should be provided for all the Christian faithful. That is why the Church from the very beginning accepted as her own that very ancient Greek translation of the Old Testament which is called the septuagint; and she has always given a place of honor to other Eastern translations and Latin ones especially the Latin translation known as the vulgate. But since the word of God should be accessible at all times, the Church by her authority and with maternal concern sees to it that suitable and correct translations are made into different languages, especially from the original texts of the sacred books. And should the opportunity arise and the Church authorities approve, if these translations are produced in cooperation with the separated brethren as well, all Christians will be able to use them.

Knox vs. The Message: Jeremiah 31:7-9

30th Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year B)

Knox:
Rejoice, the Lord says, at Jacob’s triumph, the proudest of nations greet with a glad cry; loud echo your songs of praise, Deliverance, Lord, for thy people, for the remnant of Israel! From the north country, from the very ends of earth, I mean to gather them and bring them home; blind men and lame, pregnant women and women brought to bed, so great the muster at their home-coming. Weeping they shall come, and I, moved to pity, will bring them to their journey’s end; from mountain stream to mountain stream I will lead them, by a straight road where there is no stumbling; I, Israel, thy father again, and thou, Ephraim, my first-born son.


The Message:

Oh yes, God says so:

“Shout for joy at the top of your lungs for Jacob!

Announce the good news to the number-one nation!

Raise cheers! Sing praises. Say,

‘God has saved his people,

saved the core of Israel.’

“Watch what comes next:

“I’ll bring my people back

from the north country

And gather them up from the ends of the earth,

gather those who’ve gone blind

And those who are lame and limping,

gather pregnant women,

Even the mothers whose birth pangs have started,

bring them all back, a huge crowd!

“Watch them come! They’ll come weeping for joy

as I take their hands and lead them,

Lead them to fresh flowing brooks,

lead them along smooth, uncluttered paths.

Yes, it’s because I’m Israel’s Father

and Ephraim’s my firstborn son!"

Questions from a Reader

I got a copy of the '91 NOAB NRSV on ebay. It's the 'special Cokesbury edition' with thumb indexes. It's great! Almost new quality, no markings. The only thing is, and I knew this when I bought it, it has the original owner's name deeply embossed on the front cover. 

So here's a question for you or your readers: what's the best way to remove or cover up an embossing on a bible cover? I'm thinking of getting a stick on engraved name plate to put over it.

Second question: Putting my name on a bible seems a bit presumptious to me. Got any ideas for a short name or scripture snippet to use instead? (Ie 'Holy Bible' but that's a little boring.)

Thanks!

Weekly Knox: Children

"Our Lord warns us that we cannot enter the kingdom of heaven except as children.  What is the use of encouraging children to grow older, if the grand lesson of life is, after all, to learn to be as young as they?" -University and Anglican Sermons

OBOY: Thank You Pope Francis

A couple days back I posted an introduction Pope Francis wrote for the German edition of the YouCat Bible.  There were many great things he said in this introduction, but none more striking to me than what he wrote at the very beginning:

"If you could see my Bible, you would not be particularly impressed. What—that’s the Pope’s Bible? Such an old, worn-out book!  You could buy me a new one for $1,000, but I would not want it. I love my old Bible, which has accompanied me half my life. It has been with me in my times of joy and times of tears. It is my most precious treasure. I live out of it, and I wouldn’t give anything in the world for it."

When I read these words from the Holy Father, my mind immediately went back to the whole One Bible, One Year (OBOY) challenge.  It reminded me that I hadn't posted about how I was doing recently, so, now seems to be a good time to give you an update.  I also felt confirmed in partaking in this experiment.

Back when I started, I made a commitment to sticking with the NRSV translation.  Although there have been times during the past year when I have "flirted", a tad, with my beloved Knox bible, I can honestly say that I have stuck to the NRSV throughout this year.  (In a perfect world my Knox Bible would be "the one" but there are too many situations where it is simply not practical.  But oh how I do love that Bible!). What has it been like?  Well, after having spent 3/4 of the year with it, I am even more certain that the NRSV does a remarkable job of being useful in almost every situation.  It is literary, accurate, well-annotated, ecumenical, and just plain feels right to me when I read from it.  (If you would like to read more about why I prefer the NRSV, here is a link to a prior post.)  This does not mean, just to be clear, that I refrain from looking at other translations for study and work purposes.  I, of course, need to as part of my job.  Yes, there are many good translations out there, but the NRSV is the one I choose.

I also decided to use two editions of the NRSV: 1) NOAB NRSV '91, for use with study and teaching; 2) The Harper NRSV compact, for daily reading.  Throughout this year, I have been faithful to the NOAB for studying and teaching.  I still think it is an amazing edition, with concise and useful annotations and references, along with a generous print and margin.  I like this edition so much that it will likely be the next candidate for a rebind, since the cover is wearing out a tad.  (Remember, I purchased it used a couple years back.)   In regards to my daily reading Bible, some of you will remember that I had the Harper compact NRSV rebound.  One might think that means it has remained my daily reading bible this year, but it hasn't.  Another NRSV has come in (and out, and back in) to my life that I simply can't put down.  I first received it back in February from my friend Jason.  It is the Oxford NRSV (anglicized) Pocket Edition with Apocrypha in blue calfskin leather.  I cannot really explain to you why I have taken to this Bible, but I simply enjoy the feel and look of it.  it lays open flat, comes with three ribbons (which were added by Jason), and just has a remarkable feel to it.  It is simply a reading bible, with no annotations or maps.  Yet, like my Knox Bible, I have just grown to really love reading from it.  I have recently started a 90 Day New Testament reading plan, which I am doing with this Bible.  It has been great.  

So, there is where I am at.  How about you?  I know there are at least a couple of you still out there!  The comments by Pope Francis above have only solidified my desire to have one of those 50 year old Bibles that I wouldn't trade anything for.  This bible would serve as a companion, one which has been read and loved over a long period of time, accompanying me on my journey to the Lord.  Yet, this journey has to start somewhere. For me, I am feeling ever so confident that my journey began in 2015.  How about you?