Bible Versions/Translations

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What is the most highly recommended version of the Bible for Catholics?
 
Depends who’s doing the recommending. 😉

If you’d like an older translation which still has the “thees” and “thous,” I’d personally recommend the Challoner Douay-Rheims (DRV). If you want something with more modern English, the Revised Standard Version, Catholic Edition (RSV-CE) is pretty good, and is used on the Vatican’s Bible study website “Bibliaclerus”.

Anything with “New” in the title is likely to have a politically correct bent. The Vatican deemed the original New American Bible (NAB) unfit for liturgical use, but a revised version of the text is used for the English Lectionary, and there’s also a revised version (different from the liturgical version) for personal use. I haven’t looked at it, so I can’t give a review.
 
Ad_Orientem said:
Depends who’s doing the recommending. 😉

If you’d like an older translation which still has the “thees” and “thous,” I’d personally recommend the Challoner Douay-Rheims (DRV). If you want something with more modern English, the Revised Standard Version, Catholic Edition (RSV-CE) is pretty good, and is used on the Vatican’s Bible study website “Bibliaclerus”.

Anything with “New” in the title is likely to have a politically correct bent. The Vatican deemed the original New American Bible (NAB) unfit for liturgical use, but a revised version of the text is used for the English Lectionary, and there’s also a revised version (different from the liturgical version) for personal use. I haven’t looked at it, so I can’t give a review.
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Speaking only of text, there is little difference. The criticism for the NAB was the footnotes, not the text.

That being said, I prefer the New Jerusalem for personal and devotional reading;RSVCE for study (because it is most commonly referenced in Catholic commentaries); and NAB for Mass Readings…If I’m doing serious studying, I do a comparison between DRV, RSVCE, NABRE, JPS, Interlinear Hebrew and Greek/English, and others, with various commentaries, the CCC, and writings of the Fathers of the Church.
 
My picks:

Douay-Rheims
Confraternity
Knox
RSV (either 1 or 2 ed)
Jerusalem (1966)
 
srfnolen said:
What is the most highly recommended version of the Bible for Catholics?
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When I finished RCIA, I was given a Catholic Bible anyway. We all were. It’s “The New Revised Standard Version”.

So I’d suggest you find out if they’re going to give you a Catholic Bible first, and if they are, then use that. Mine is on my desk between me and my computer screen right now.

The Douay-Rheims you’ve seen others refer to is the Catholic Church what the King James is to the English speaking Protestant world. I wouldn’t rush into buying one, unless you’re going to do serious Bible study, comparing translations for example.

I don’t get hung up on Bible versions, and I’ve got no reason to go out buying more. But if someone is into deep Bible study, then maybe several verisions might be warranted.
 
srfnolen said:
What is the “Ignatius” Bible?
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The Ignatius Bible is so called because it’s a Bible that’s published by Ignatius Press. More specifically, it’s the Revised Standard Version - **Second **Catholic Edition.

I’ve done a fair bit of research in trying to answer, for myself, your original question about Catholic Bible translations. Here are some general thoughts:
  • Bible translations of all sorts exist on a spectrum. On one extreme, you have the highly literal, which tries to be as much of a one-to-one, word-for-word translation as possible, but which consequently can be hard to read, and even awkward. On the other extreme, you have the highly literary, which communicates the ideas behind the words, and which is easier to read, but which consequently is less precise, even approaching paraphrase levels. (Paraphrases are, of course, not translations per se.) Finding a Bible translation in the middle of these extremes is usually standard advice. You want something readable but precise.
  • Technically speaking, a literal translation is called a formal equivalence translation; a literary translation is called a dynamic equivalence translation.
  • Obviously, we Catholics want a translation of the Bible which includes the whole of Scripture, so we want a version which includes the Deuterocanon.
  • Likewise, we want a Bible that is based on the most accurate textual traditions. An accurate Biblical textual tradition is a group or family of copies of Scripture, existing in a certain language, which, as far as we can tell, best reflect the original documents they are copies of.
Here are some personal opinions on various translations available to Catholics:
  • Douay-Rheims: A translation of the Clementina Vulgate. On the one hand, it can be quite beautiful and stately in its language. It’s also very literal, and very traditional. On the other hand, the major drawback is that it suffers, especially in the Deuterocanon, because the Latin textual tradition that it comes from probably does not accurately reflect the original autographs of certain books. This is just a fancy way of saying that books like Tobit, for example, are quite **different **in the Latin than they are in the Greek, and that in those places, the Latin is most likely wrong.
  • Knox Bible: A translation of the Vulgate done by Msgr. Ronald Knox, although he supplemented, in certain places, the Vulgate with Hebrew and Greek textual traditions. The major drawback of this Bible is that it is a dynamic equivalence translation: Knox’s personal style and emphasis permeate the work. Moreover, it is currently printed in precisely one form, which contains certain typographical errors, and which I personally find to be difficult to read because of its cramped text and font.
  • **New American Bible: **Has problematic notes, but is both a dynamic and formal equivalence translation, although I find it wooden and really bland. Contains inclusive language: the desire to play down references to gender in the original works, i.e., “brothers” becomes “brothers and sisters;” “son” can become “child.” Inclusive language has also been called feminist language.
  • **New Revised Standard Version: **Contains inclusive language. Otherwise quite good.
  • **Jerusalem Bible: **Dynamic equivalence. My understanding is that it’s also an English translation of a French translation. Mother Angelica loves it.
  • New Jerusalem Bible: Dynamic equivalence with inclusive language.
Finally:
  • Revised Standard Version, first and second editions: frankly, these two translations are the only two I’m completely comfortable with. They are good translations, both precise and readable, ultimately rooted in the King James Version; they reflect extremely up-to-date textual traditions very well; they contain no inclusive language; they are both commonly used in various official ways, such as in the English translation of the Catechism of the Catholic Church. (The **New **Revised Standard Version is also quoted in that work.)
Three major difference between the First and Second editions of the RSV-CE:
Now, I have to apologize for this massive post. If you’ve read this far, then thank you!

But one last thing:

I would recommend a brand new edition of the RSV-2CE: The Didache Bible, which includes not only the wonderful RSV translation, but also includes commentary based on the Catechism. You can read more about it here: ignatius.com/Products/DBIB-H/the-didache-bible-with-commentaries–based-on-the-catechism-of-the-catholic-church.aspx

You can see images of it here: catholicbiblesblog.com/2015/01/first-look-didache-bible.html

The Didache Bible, in my opinion, is probably going to be your best bet for an awesome translation coupled with an awesome, HIGHLY orthodox, one-volume commentary on Scripture.
 
I concur on the choice of ‘The Didache Bible’ (MTF and Ignatius Press) as one of the best overall Catholic Study Bibles!
 
Now, let’s turn to a preferred Bible for children from age 10 through young adult. Any ideas?
 
The main “Catholic” Bibles are:

-The Douai-Rheims: This is the original “Old English” Bible, predating even the KJV. It was also pretty much the only English-language Catholic Bible up until the 60’s, so it’s heavily steeped in Catholic tradition. The archaic language makes for a very beautiful reading. The big problem with it is that it’s a translation of the Latin Vulgate, rather than the Greek/Hebrew originals. In other words, it’s a translation of a translation. The text however is surprisingly accurate despite this.
-The Revised Standard Version (RSV): This is the Bible that’s generally regarded as the most literal translation that doesn’t sacrifice readability. Because of this it’s become the standard Bible for scholars and university classes, and is a big favorite amongst Catholics. Just make sure that you pick up the Catholic edition and not the Protestant one. There is a newer version of the RSV called the New Revised Standard Version or NRSV. Some of the features of it include updated vocabulary, based on more.recent discoveries such as the Dead Sea Scrolls, and a new typeface. However, because it uses gender-neuteral language it’s generally regarded as being inferior to the original. Ignatius Press publishes a version updated to NRSV standards without the problematic language called the RSV Second Catholic Edition. This would be my personal recommendation.
-The New American Bible (NAB): This is the Bible.used in the US lectionary and LOTH. Well, technically it’s not the same, but as far as laymen are concerned it pretty much is; I won’t get into the details of this, as the information is already available elsewhere. It’s also the standard Bible for RCIA classes. The main advantage as well as disadvantage is that, if I remember correctly, it was designed to be at an eigth grade reading level. Because of this, the text can feel pretty dumbed-down at times, but that’s also precisely what many people like about it. A big advantage is that it has very extensive footnotes; in fact, most Catholic “Study Bibles” on the market are simply rebranded NABs. Most all NABs available today are from an updated version called the NABRE; there isn’t really a reason to get the original when the updated version is so widely available.
-The New Jerusalem Bible (NJB): This is the Bible you’ll hear Mother Angelica reading on EWTN. It’s also the Bible used for the lectionary and LOTH in the UK (again: not exactly, but I won’t get into the details here). This comes in two versions: A reader’s version with abbreviated footnotes, and a full version with more extensive ones. One big caveat people have with the NJB is that it uses the divine name Yaweh instead of “Lord”. CTS publishes a version of the NJB with this issue fixed.

If you.really want to.get in depth, there are also study bibles:
-The Navarre Bible, based on the RSV, is excellent: the footnotes often take up more space than the text itself. The problem is that it isn’t exactly marketed at the budget shopper: You can expect to pay $200+ for the complete set.
-The Ignatius Study Bible, based on the RSV-CE II, is excellent as well, and is relatively affordable. The problem is that it’s still a work in progress, with currently only the NT and a select few OT books available.
-Haydock’s Douai-Rheims commentary is well known for its quality.and particularly for its extensive quoting of the Church Fathers; however, it’s very dated and is becoming increasingly difficult to find. It’s also moderately expensive, at around $100.
Most other study bibles are simply rebranded NABs.

Hope this helps.
 
New Jerusalem Bible (NJB) - I consider it the best because the translation keeps the beautiful poetic language and context of the original Hebrew and Greek. It may not be as easy to find as the the other versions.

New Revised Standard Version (NRSV) - If you do any Scripture scholarship/study, many professors tend to favor this translation.
 
RSV --tis the one used largely for English Translations of Church Documents.

Get the RSV CE
 
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