I recently received a Knox Bible from Baronius Press for my birthday, and I must say, this is an absolutely beautiful book. I'm extremely impressed with the binding and the typeset. My friend Travis, who gave me the Bible, however, has some minor complaints about the translation of the Psalms as prose poems and the general lack of book introductions and footnotes.
For Catholics accustomed to the NABRE, the rather spartan feel of most other Bibles in terms of study aids can present quite a culture shock. Because I was raised in a Protestant tradition, the exact opposite is true for me. I tend to get distracted by commentaries to the point where I'm reading footnotes more than the actual text itself! That's why I prefer my Bibles rather bare—just God's Word, with as little frills and thrills as possible.
In my opinion, a good, everyday use or family Bible shouldn't contain any study aids developed from a historical critical perspective. That kind of commentary quickly becomes dated as scholarly views shift. Holy Scripture shouldn't be like some sort of "iWord Portable" that you have to update every few years, which is one of my biggest pet peeves about the NABRE and several other modern versions. I think in-Bible study aids should be limited mainly to doctrinal explanations.
What's your opinion?
I have to agree that I don't think that the printed Bible should contain commentary that is of an historical critical perspective. Personally, I don't think that they should contain any commentary because it is both distracting and can introduce bias (in the case of scholarly interpretation rather than official doctrinal).
ReplyDeleteBut as you mentioned, the biggest issue is the changing of culture (how we will interpret the commentary) and increases in understanding. Publishing a smaller book each year (with an under $10 price tag) would be great in providing commentary that contains official teaching of the Church as well as providing historical perspective for some periods. Re-publishing every year only those things that are new (brand new or new understanding) with an entire re-vamp every decade (to adjust for cultural shift) would allow for your family Bible to remain relevant (at least until a new translation) so you can spend more money on a durable version instead of a paperback to save money.
On a slight tangential topic, Song of Songs in children's Bibles is usually interesting.
"Oh, let him hold my hand and smile at me--his cologne smells great!"
DeleteYes, SoS in children's Bibles is highly amusing.