Indubitably, one of the most widely know Bible translations is the King James Version and one of the most known Bibles is the Gutenberg Bible. While the names are known, do people understand the history and progression of Bible translation?
In the 1450's, Gutenberg used a moveable press to typeset the first printed Bible. He used manuscripts of the Latin Vulgate, a fourth century translation by a monk named Jerome. Prior to this, only the wealthy were able to afford handwritten manuscripts that often took a translater a year to produce. The first English language Bible, also a handwritten manuscript, was not produced until the 1380's when John Wycliffe, an Oxford professor and proponent of reforming the Catholic Church, translated the Latin Vulgate into English with the help of his followers. Over the course of the next 180 years, several English translations were produced: Tyndale's Bible, the Cloverdale Bible, Matthew's Bible, The Great Bible, The Geneva Bible, and the Bishop's Bible.
With so much infighting over the accuracy of Bible versions, King James I authorized a group of scholars to undertake a project to produce an accurate English translation. Beginning in 1604, forty seven scholars began an undertaking that would take more than six years. Using the Massorec texts and Textus Receptus, they produced the Bible which took on King James I's name. The project was completed in 1611 making this, 2011, the 400th birthday of the King James Bible.
While the King James Bible remains one of the most widely known and popular translations, new translations have continued to be produced. At least twelve other Bibles, some rather close and some revisionary, have been produced since 1611. (While researching information for this article, I ran across an online article which gave a timeline of Bible translations. For those who are interested, it is http://www.spanish-translation-help.com/bible-translation-history.html).
Some explanations for the needed revisions have been that the meanings of words change over the centuries. Translations have been produced which attempt to convey the same meaning but which use modern vernacular. While this can be true, it is also false in some translations. The Bible is clear to say that you should not add to or detract from the Word of God. In an effort to streamline, or perhaps truly meaning to change meanings, some translations have left out passages of scripture and made subtle changes to tenses. Others have used the wrong usage for a word....love, after all, is just love in English; yet, in Hebrew, there are eleven words for love and each cannot be translated to mean love in English to retain the same meaning. Additionally, Christian-based cults have produced their own versions of the Bible in an effort to change meanings to convey what they want their followers to believe. One passage I turn to is John 1:1. The verse must say, "In the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God and the word was God.". You will be able to recognize a cultish translation if it states, "In the beginning was the Word and the word was a God."
So, what makes for a good Bible? Drop by http://www.bellaonline.com/site/christianliterature and read my series of articles on Bible Translations. Additionally, we'll be featuring a future article, here on this blog, that explains the differences in Bible translations.
Blessings!
Wednesday, July 27, 2011
Friday, January 21, 2011
Vision, Goals and Boundaries
Do you ever feel beat down? Your world is spinning out of control. Your boss is complaining that "your head just doesn't seem to be in the game" while shoving more work onto you. You arrive home to find the kids are yelling and running through the house, your husband is asking "what's for dinner, honey" or better yet complaining "dinner's not ready yet?" while you stumble over the dog and attempt to put down your own brief case. No peace at home....no peace at work.
The scene is typical of most modern families. It's not much different if you're a single gal. You are still juggling deadlines and the demands of friends and family.
All too often, we take on too much and have hectic lives because we lack boundaries and a vision. One must first have the vision and goals, then, setting boundaries will become easier.
In Proverbs, the Bible says "without a vision the people will perish". There are countless verses that discuss setting up store houses rather than being a sluggard. People who set up their store houses had a vision for the future. They planned ahead.
Remember the story of Mary and Martha? Martha was busy running around while Mary took time to spend with Jesus. When Martha complained that Mary wasn't helping her, Jesus told her "Martha, Martha, you are anxious and troubled about many things, but one thing is necessary. Mary has chosen the good portion, which will not be taken away from her.” (Luke 10:41-42) Likewise, we spend our lives running around trying to take care of work, family, career, and other obligations. We fail to spend time with Jesus, we fail to bless others because we are too busy, and we often fail to accomplish our true goals in life because we have been blinded by the busyness of the day-to-day.
As 2010 was coming to a close, I heard more sighs of relief and hopeful expressions for 2011. Truth be told, unless you take the time to slow down, spend time with Jesus, prayerfully seek God's guidance for your life, and plan the vision, it won't matter if it is 2011, 2012, or 2015. You will grow older while running around "putting out fires".
Being busy is one way in which Satan stops you from spending time with Jesus. Busyness keeps us from daily devotion and Bible reading. It stops us from participating in outreaches. It also keeps us from fulfilling our God-given destiny.
I would encourage you to examine your life. What are the areas that keep you from God-time? What can you change?
Plant the vision by charting it out. Give yourself something to look at, trust the Lord to help guide and support you, and remember the following Bible passage from Psalms 37:23-24:
The scene is typical of most modern families. It's not much different if you're a single gal. You are still juggling deadlines and the demands of friends and family.
All too often, we take on too much and have hectic lives because we lack boundaries and a vision. One must first have the vision and goals, then, setting boundaries will become easier.
In Proverbs, the Bible says "without a vision the people will perish". There are countless verses that discuss setting up store houses rather than being a sluggard. People who set up their store houses had a vision for the future. They planned ahead.
Remember the story of Mary and Martha? Martha was busy running around while Mary took time to spend with Jesus. When Martha complained that Mary wasn't helping her, Jesus told her "Martha, Martha, you are anxious and troubled about many things, but one thing is necessary. Mary has chosen the good portion, which will not be taken away from her.” (Luke 10:41-42) Likewise, we spend our lives running around trying to take care of work, family, career, and other obligations. We fail to spend time with Jesus, we fail to bless others because we are too busy, and we often fail to accomplish our true goals in life because we have been blinded by the busyness of the day-to-day.
As 2010 was coming to a close, I heard more sighs of relief and hopeful expressions for 2011. Truth be told, unless you take the time to slow down, spend time with Jesus, prayerfully seek God's guidance for your life, and plan the vision, it won't matter if it is 2011, 2012, or 2015. You will grow older while running around "putting out fires".
Being busy is one way in which Satan stops you from spending time with Jesus. Busyness keeps us from daily devotion and Bible reading. It stops us from participating in outreaches. It also keeps us from fulfilling our God-given destiny.
I would encourage you to examine your life. What are the areas that keep you from God-time? What can you change?
Plant the vision by charting it out. Give yourself something to look at, trust the Lord to help guide and support you, and remember the following Bible passage from Psalms 37:23-24:
The steps of a man are established by the Lord,
when he delights in his way; though he fall, he
shall not be cast headlong, for the Lord upholds
his hand.
Thursday, September 23, 2010
Discern before buying!
Discern…discerning…discernment. You hear these words tossed around in church and read them in the Bible. What does it mean to be discerning, and how does it apply to literature? If you are discerning, you are perceptive, have keen insight, and can detect subtleties. When spoken of in the Bible and the Church, it means that you can apply Godly-principles to what you are seeing, hearing, and reading. To be discerning in literature means that you do not blindly accept facts just because the book was written by an alleged biblical scholar. People who are new to Christianity or who have yet to develop a strong biblical foundation might be tempted to accept what they are reading or hearing as fact, especially if the author or lecturer is widely acclaimed as an expert.
Let’s use Remembering The Parables: Using The Art of Memory to Remember Jesus’ Parables as an example of what to look for when you are discerning whether or not the book is based on a solid biblical foundation. When I was approached to review the book, the only information I knew was the publisher, the authors’ names and a brief description. I’ll admit, I didn’t really check it out prior to saying I’d review it. So, if you found the book in your local bookstore, what would raise red flags?
First, the back cover quotes Giordano Bruno. Bruno was a Dominican Friar who left the order to lecture against basic church beliefs, to declare Christianity irrational, and to proclaim anyone who believed the Bible was illiterate. He was sentenced as a heretic and burned at the stake. What if you didn’t know all of this? If you are unfamiliar with the authors and people quoted on the back of the book, what should you look for?
Read the table of contents. If everything still looks ok, read the introduction. Read the first chapter. Turn to the back of the book and look at the names of the people who were quoted. Remembering the Parables relies heavily on Dominic O’Brien, a British memory champion who peddles his program online and promises his quantum memory system will provide you with a limitless memory (hence the god-like ability to know everything). The majority of the alleged experts, though claiming to have religious backgrounds, spent many years teaching religion at secular institutions. Several were members of the Jesus Seminar. Adolph Julicher, a German scholar of the late 1800’s—early 1900s, taught that the Gospel of Mark contained a hidden message and that Jesus was a historical figure who never claimed to be the Messiah.
By doing this, you would have found Remembering the Parables included the Gnostic gospel of Thomas. Gnosticism is one of the original heresies of the church. Alleged experts have declared that it precedes the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. The Gospel of Thomas is not accepted by the Catholic Church or by Protestant Denominations. The majority of biblical scholars have declared it a collection of sayings which are based on Matthew, Mark, Luke and John, and which contains statements which cannot be attributable to Jesus. (apologeticsindex dot org has more information on the gospel of Thomas and the Jesus Seminar. Perform a site search by clicking on how to use and scrolling down toward the bottom of their page.) You would have also found that the book only included 30 parables that “experts” had agreed were valid. A book with a strong, biblical foundation would not question the legitimacy of any text contained within the Bible.
When in doubt, don’t purchase a book until you have had a chance to research the authors, quoted experts, and read some book reviews online.
Let’s use Remembering The Parables: Using The Art of Memory to Remember Jesus’ Parables as an example of what to look for when you are discerning whether or not the book is based on a solid biblical foundation. When I was approached to review the book, the only information I knew was the publisher, the authors’ names and a brief description. I’ll admit, I didn’t really check it out prior to saying I’d review it. So, if you found the book in your local bookstore, what would raise red flags?
First, the back cover quotes Giordano Bruno. Bruno was a Dominican Friar who left the order to lecture against basic church beliefs, to declare Christianity irrational, and to proclaim anyone who believed the Bible was illiterate. He was sentenced as a heretic and burned at the stake. What if you didn’t know all of this? If you are unfamiliar with the authors and people quoted on the back of the book, what should you look for?
Read the table of contents. If everything still looks ok, read the introduction. Read the first chapter. Turn to the back of the book and look at the names of the people who were quoted. Remembering the Parables relies heavily on Dominic O’Brien, a British memory champion who peddles his program online and promises his quantum memory system will provide you with a limitless memory (hence the god-like ability to know everything). The majority of the alleged experts, though claiming to have religious backgrounds, spent many years teaching religion at secular institutions. Several were members of the Jesus Seminar. Adolph Julicher, a German scholar of the late 1800’s—early 1900s, taught that the Gospel of Mark contained a hidden message and that Jesus was a historical figure who never claimed to be the Messiah.
By doing this, you would have found Remembering the Parables included the Gnostic gospel of Thomas. Gnosticism is one of the original heresies of the church. Alleged experts have declared that it precedes the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. The Gospel of Thomas is not accepted by the Catholic Church or by Protestant Denominations. The majority of biblical scholars have declared it a collection of sayings which are based on Matthew, Mark, Luke and John, and which contains statements which cannot be attributable to Jesus. (apologeticsindex dot org has more information on the gospel of Thomas and the Jesus Seminar. Perform a site search by clicking on how to use and scrolling down toward the bottom of their page.) You would have also found that the book only included 30 parables that “experts” had agreed were valid. A book with a strong, biblical foundation would not question the legitimacy of any text contained within the Bible.
When in doubt, don’t purchase a book until you have had a chance to research the authors, quoted experts, and read some book reviews online.
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