Kindergarten through 12th-graders in the Diocese of Steubenville “Ask the Bishop,” Jeffrey M. Monforton. Q: Why is the Catholic Bible so different from any other Bible? This is a very good question, for we are quite aware either by visiting a bookstore or “surfing the Net” that there are many translations of Sacred Scripture in the market, not to mention there are many English translations of the Bible. We must remember, first of all, that the Catholic Church has had the Bible and all of its books and letters ever since the beginning when God revealed his Word to the various writers who penned his words. In the beginning a number of the books and letters were in Hebrew and Greek. Fortunately, a great translator in St. Jerome provided us with the first Bible in having all of the books and letters in the same language; namely, Latin. We call this Bible the Vulgate. Following this translation, however, we know, over the course of the centuries that eventually other translations were rendered of the Bible, especially in the common tongue of various cultures and nations. This is where the problem arises. One of the principal roles of the bishops, namely, the successors of the Apostles is to guard the true translation of Sacred Scripture in all its meaning. This is what we call protecting the Deposit of Faith. In doing so, we bishops entrust others in assisting us in painstakingly translating the Bible into the common tongue of the peoples we serve in the respective countries and dioceses. In other words, the competency of the faithful translation of the Inspired Word of God, that is, the Bible, falls under the authority of the successors of the Apostles. Jesus, through his very words, provided us with that mandate when he said to St. Peter, “How he governs on earth will also apply to heaven.” We know that there are a number of English bibles out there that differ partially, if not greatly, to the Catholic translation. Oftentimes, the...
Posted on: Sat, 14 Jun 2014 18:40:14 +0000
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