New Translations of Scripture

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If a person wanted to commission a new translation of Sacred Scripture, who might they contact to contract such work and how much do you suppose it would cost?
 
Hi JMJ,

To get a translation for public use, he should contact the Heads of the Scripture Departments of some 6 to 10 Catholic universities in English-speaking countries, gather them in a meeting and ask them to prepare a plan for the work and the people who should be involved in it. They should recommend an internationally recognized Scripture scholar to supervise the work. He should also contact some recognized authors of good English literature to vet the work for literary value.

As the saying goes, problems will come up of themselves and be solved as you go along. You should set aside perhaps five to two dollars not including publication. The whole thing will take eight to twelve years.

Or you could go to school, get postgraduate degrees in Greek, Hebrew, Latin, Aramaic, perhaps Syriac and of course scripture. And do you own translation for private use. Time would be about the same. Cost, depending on the university, would be about $200, 000.

Or again, if you could persuade some professor at one of the Unviersities to do the work for you, which I doubt, it could cost you anywhere from $500,000 to $2,000, 000. Get a plan and a written contract done by a good lawyer.

Good luck

Verbum
 
Right, you’d have to find a committed group of people to undertake the task, and you’d have to convince them of the need for doing this.

I’ve taken a verse from scripture and put the various translation side by side. You will see a lot of creativity to avoid plagiarizing an existing translation. This is one of the chief obstacles, to avoid copyright infringement.

I believe that is why more modern translations sound a little “off” because they are playing the game to avoid plagiarism and copyright infringment.

That is why it may be easier to create a paraphrased translation, since there is less sense of obligation to a close translation of the text.

But, you will see by comparing translations, that THAT is the chief dilemma, to come up with a unique wording that avoids the two issues stated. $2 M might be understating the cost. It might take 15 or 20 years to finish the task.
 
Considering the multiple translations on the shelves now. Why would you need a new one?
 
I’ve completed my translation of the Bible from the Latin Vulgate into English. The project took just over 5 years. I’m the sole translator and editor. Costs were minimal: several hundred dollars for Latin Bibles and other resources, plus a computer, and my time.
If a person wanted to commission a new translation of Sacred Scripture, who might they contact to contract such work and how much do you suppose it would cost?
I’m assuming that you are the person who wishes to commission a new translation, and that you are not a Biblical scholar, theologian, or expert in any Biblical language. It does not make sense for you to commission a translation and to be in charge of a group of qualified persons; you should not be directing them, since they are knowledgeable and you are not. I doubt that any group of scholars would be willing to work under your direction for any price.

No one paid the scholars who worked on the original Douai Rhemes Bible, and no one paid the scholars who worked on the Challoner revision of the same.
 
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