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To: null and void
A question for faithful FReepers: If you could only pass down one version of the Bible, which version would you select? Why that version?

Weighing in as a Catholic here:

For me, I would pass down my Bible translation of preference, which is the Revised Standard Version, Second Catholic Edition (RSV2CE). This translation has a long and venerable lineage, beginning with the Protestant King James Version, then the Approved Version, then the original RSV, which was an update in the 1950's which used better original manuscripts for accuracy, plus getting rid of most of the archaic language (it still contains a few "thees" and "thous" and "casteth outs", etc.). With the revisions in the Catholic editions, it has gotten rid of (or at least relegating to footnotes) a lot of problematic translations that made a lot of Protestants reject the original RSV because it was too "liberal." The final result is a more literal, readable, and accurate Bible that retains a lot of the beauty of the original King James. It isn't perfect, of course, but no Bible translation is.

The main reasons I would pass this version on is because (a) the aforementioned accuracy and beauty of the text; (b) as a Catholic, it is important to me to have the 7 books (and parts of two others) that do not appear in non-Catholic Bibles; (c) it is a good alternative to have in contrast to other Catholic Bibles which I find a little "squishy"; and finally (d) unless someone has real reading comprehension problems, I believe you should give people the most accurate version of the biblical text available without going to the extreme of being "wooden" and unreadable.

13 posted on 03/16/2025 10:10:39 AM PDT by fidelis (Ecce Crucem Domini! Fugite partes adversae! Vicit Leo de tribu Juda, Radix David! Alleluia!)
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To: fidelis

Wow! Excellent!


14 posted on 03/16/2025 10:40:09 AM PDT by null and void (Americans are a people increasingly separated by our connectivity. H/T MortMan)
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