The New American Bible Revised Edition (NABRE) is an English-language Catholic translation of the

Bible The Bible (from Koine Greek , , 'the books') is a collection of religious texts or scriptures that are held to be sacred in Christianity, Judaism, Samaritanism, and many other religions. The Bible is an anthologya compilation of texts ...

, the first major update in 20 years to the New American Bible (NAB), which was translated by members of the

Catholic Biblical Association The Catholic Biblical Association of America (CBA) is an American learned society dedicated to the academic study of the Bible. The suggestion to form a permanent association of biblical scholars was made at the beginning of 1936 at a meeting in ...

and originally published in 1970. Released on March 9, 2011, the NABRE consists of the 1986 revision of the NAB

New Testament The New Testament grc, Ἡ Καινὴ Διαθήκη, transl. ; la, Novum Testamentum. (NT) is the second division of the Christian biblical canon. It discusses the teachings and person of Jesus, as well as events in first-century Chri ...

with a fully revised Old Testament approved by the

United States Conference of Catholic Bishops The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) is the episcopal conference of the Catholic Church in the United States. Founded in 1966 as the joint National Conference of Catholic Bishops (NCCB) and United States Catholic Conference (US ...

in 2010. Approved for private use and study by Catholics, the NABRE has not received approval for

Catholic The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

liturgical use. Although the revised Lectionary based on the original New American Bible is still the sole translation approved for use at

Mass Mass is an intrinsic property of a body. It was traditionally believed to be related to the quantity of matter in a physical body, until the discovery of the atom and particle physics. It was found that different atoms and different eleme ...

in the

diocese In church governance, a diocese or bishopric is the ecclesiastical district under the jurisdiction of a bishop. History In the later organization of the Roman Empire, the increasingly subdivided provinces were administratively associa ...

s of the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

, the NABRE

is currently being revised so that

American Catholics With 23 percent of the United States' population , the Catholic Church is the country's second largest religious grouping, after Protestantism, and the country's largest single church or Christian denomination where Protestantism is divided in ...

can read the same

Bible translation The Bible has been translated into many languages from the biblical languages of Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek. all of the Bible has been translated into 724 languages, the New Testament has been translated into an additional 1,617 languages, and ...

in personal study and devotion that they hear in Mass. The use of NABRE has received strong criticism from conservative Catholics in the United States.

Scriptural sources

New Testament sources are predominantly "UBS3" and "NA26," as further explained below: :''Sourcing'': "The Greek text followed in this translation is that of the third edition of ''

The Greek New Testament The New Testament grc, Ἡ Καινὴ Διαθήκη, transl. ; la, Novum Testamentum. (NT) is the second division of the Christian biblical canon. It discusses the teachings and person of Jesus, as well as events in first-century Christ ...

'', edited by Kurt Aland,

Matthew Black Rev Matthew Black (3 September 1908, Kilmarnock – 2 October 1994, St Andrews) was a Scottish minister and biblical scholar. He was the first editor of the journal, ''New Testament Studies''. Life He was born in Kilmarnock the son of James Blac ...

, Carlo Martini,

Bruce Metzger Bruce Manning Metzger (February 9, 1914 – February 13, 2007) was an American biblical scholar, Bible translator and textual critic who was a longtime professor at Princeton Theological Seminary and Bible editor who served on the board of the ...

, and Allen Wikgren, and published by the

United Bible Societies The United Bible Societies (UBS) is a global fellowship of around 150 Bible Societies operating in more than 240 countries and territories. It has working hubs in England, Singapore, Nairobi and Miami. The headquarters are located in Swindon, Eng ...

in 1975 (''UBS3''). The same text, with a different critical apparatus and variations in punctuation and typography, was published as the twenty-sixth edition of the Nestle-Aland '' Novum Testamentum Graece'' (''NA26'') in 1979 by the

Deutsche Bibelgesellschaft The Deutsche Bibelgesellschaft ("German Bible Society") is a religious foundation regulated by public law. It is involved in publishing and in spreading the message of the Bible. The Society publishes the Bible in the original languages and in ...

, Stuttgart. This edition has also been consulted. When variant readings occur, the translation, with few exceptions, follows the reading that was placed in the text of these Greek editions, though the occurrence of the principal variants is pointed out in the notes." :''Old Testament Citations'': "...Insofar as possible, the translation of such Old Testament citations agrees with that of The New American Bible Old Testament whenever the underlying

Greek Greek may refer to: Greece Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group. *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family. **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor ...

agrees with the

Hebrew Hebrew (; ; ) is a Northwest Semitic language of the Afroasiatic language family. Historically, it is one of the spoken languages of the Israelites and their longest-surviving descendants, the Jews and Samaritans. It was largely preserved ...

(or, in some cases, the

Aramaic The Aramaic languages, short Aramaic ( syc, ܐܪܡܝܐ, Arāmāyā; oar, 𐤀𐤓𐤌𐤉𐤀; arc, 𐡀𐡓𐡌𐡉𐡀; tmr, אֲרָמִית), are a language family containing many varieties (languages and dialects) that originated in ...

or Greek) text from which the Old Testament translation was made. But citations in the New Testament frequently follow the

Septuagint The Greek Old Testament, or Septuagint (, ; from the la, septuaginta, lit=seventy; often abbreviated ''70''; in Roman numerals, LXX), is the earliest extant Greek translation of books from the Hebrew Bible. It includes several books beyond ...

or some other version, or were made from memory, hence, in many cases the translation in the New Testament passage will not agree with what appears in the Old Testament. Some of these cases are explained in the notes." Old Testament major sources come by way of the New American Bible; specifically

Biblia Hebraica Stuttgartensia The Biblia Hebraica Stuttgartensia, abbreviated as BHS or rarely BH4, is an edition of the Masoretic Text of the Hebrew Bible as preserved in the Leningrad Codex, and supplemented by masoretic and text-critical notes. It is the fourth edition in ...

, the

and the

Dead Sea Scrolls The Dead Sea Scrolls (also the Qumran Caves Scrolls) are ancient Jewish and Hebrew religious manuscripts discovered between 1946 and 1956 at the Qumran Caves in what was then Mandatory Palestine, near Ein Feshkha in the West Bank, on the ...

. Other source details, such as

Codex Sinaiticus The Codex Sinaiticus ( Shelfmark: London, British Library, Add MS 43725), designated by siglum [Aleph] or 01 (in the Gregory-Aland numbering of New Testament manuscripts), δ 2 (in the von Soden numbering of New Testament manuscript ...

, are as described below: :"Where the Old Testament translation supposes the received text—Hebrew, Aramaic, or Greek, as the case may be—ordinarily contained in the best-known editions, as the original or the oldest extant form, no additional remarks are necessary. Where the translators have departed from those received texts, e.g., by following the

rather than the

Masoretic text The Masoretic Text (MT or 𝕸; he, נֻסָּח הַמָּסוֹרָה, Nūssāḥ Hammāsōrā, lit. 'Text of the Tradition') is the authoritative Hebrew and Aramaic text of the 24 books of the Hebrew Bible (Tanakh) in Rabbinic Judaism. ...

, accepting a reading of what is judged to be a better textual tradition, as from a Qumran manuscript, or by emending a reading apparently corrupted in transmission, such changes are recorded in the revised edition of the Textual Notes on the New American Bible. Additional information on the textual tradition for some books may be found in the introduction to the book in the same Textual Notes. :"In particular, important manuscripts from Cave 4 of Qumran, as well as the most useful recensions of the

, have been consulted in the preparation of 1 and 2 Samuel. Fragments of the lost Book of Tobit in Aramaic and in Hebrew, recovered from Cave 4 of Qumran, are in substantial agreement with the Sinaiticus Greek recension used for the translation of this book. The lost original Hebrew text of

1 Maccabees The First Book of Maccabees, also known as First Maccabees (written in shorthand as 1 Maccabees or 1 Macc.), is a book written in Hebrew by an anonymousRappaport, U., ''47. 1 Maccabees'' in Barton, J. and Muddiman, J. (2001)The Oxford Bible Comme ...

is replaced by its oldest extant form in Greek. Judith,

2 Maccabees 2 Maccabees, el, Μακκαβαίων Β´, translit=Makkabaíōn 2 also known as the Second Book of Maccabees, Second Maccabees, and abbreviated as 2 Macc., is a deuterocanonical book which recounts the persecution of Jews under King Antiochus I ...

, and parts of

Esther Esther is the eponymous heroine of the Book of Esther. In the Achaemenid Empire, the Persian king Ahasuerus seeks a new wife after his queen, Vashti, is deposed for disobeying him. Hadassah, a Jewess who goes by the name of Esther, is chosen ...

are also translated from the Greek. The translation of The Wisdom of Ben Sira is based on the original Hebrew as far as it is preserved, with corrections from the ancient versions; otherwise, the Greek of the Septuagint is followed. In the

Book of Baruch The Book of Baruch is a deuterocanonical book of the Bible, used in most Christian traditions, such as Catholic and Orthodox churches. In Judaism and Protestant Christianity, it is considered not to be part of the canon, with the Protestant B ...

the basic text is the Greek of the Septuagint, with some readings derived from an underlying Hebrew form no longer extant. In the deuterocanonical sections of Daniel (3:24–90; 13:1–14:42), the basic text is the Greek text of so-called

Theodotion Theodotion (; grc-gre, Θεοδοτίων, ''gen''.: Θεοδοτίωνος; died c. 200) was a Hellenistic Jewish scholar, perhaps working in Ephesus, who in c. 150 CE translated the Hebrew Bible into Greek. Whether he was revising the Septua ...

, occasionally revised according to the Greek text of the Septuagint."

Reasons for revision

In a press statement, the

USCCB The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) is the episcopal conference of the Catholic Church in the United States. Founded in 1966 as the joint National Conference of Catholic Bishops (NCCB) and United States Catholic Conference (US ...

cited three reasons for the necessity of revising the Old Testament. The new translation: #Aims to utilize modern scholastic advances in biblical study and adapt to changes in linguistics in order to render a more accurate translation in contemporary English. #Takes advantage of recently discovered ancient manuscripts like the

which provide better access to the historical textual tradition. #Uses the best manuscript-translating traditions available in order to translate more literally and accurately than previous translations. The press statement says that the New American Bible Revised Edition will in many ways be a more literal translation than the original New American Bible. The

Psalms The Book of Psalms ( or ; he, תְּהִלִּים, , lit. "praises"), also known as the Psalms, or the Psalter, is the first book of the ("Writings"), the third section of the Tanakh, and a book of the Old Testament. The title is derived ...

, in particular, received special attention to provide a smooth, rhythmic translation which both retains the concrete imagery of the original Hebrew and also provides for easy singing or recitation.

Old Testament

In August 1990, the

passed a resolution urging revision of the Old Testament of the New American Bible. In November 2008, the Old Testament (including footnotes and introductions) was approved by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops. However, they would not allow it to be published with the 1991

. A final revision of the NAB Psalter was undertaken using suggestions vetted by the Subcommittee for the Translation of Scripture Text and stricter conformity to ''

Liturgiam Authenticam ''Liturgiam authenticam'' (titled: ''De usu linguarum popularium in libris liturgiae Romanae edendis'') is an instruction of the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments, dated 28 March 2001. This instruction included ...

''.

Psalms

The first revision of the Psalms in 1991 was rejected for liturgical use by the

Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments it, Dicastero per il Culto Divino e la Disciplina dei Sacramenti , type = Dicastery , seal = Coat of arms Holy See.svg , seal_size = 100px , seal_caption = Coat of arms of the Holy See , logo = , p ...

at the Vatican because of the extensive application of

gender-neutral language Gender-neutral language or gender-inclusive language is language that avoids bias towards a particular sex or gender. In English, this includes use of nouns that are not gender-specific to refer to roles or professions, formation of phrases in a c ...

in the text. The newly revised Psalms found in the ''New American Bible Revised Edition'' follow the guidelines of ''

'', a document issued by the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments. Throughout the new translation of the Psalms, the use of gender-neutral language has been limited and appropriate gender-specific pronouns used in conjunction with the original Hebrew.

Changes to vocabulary

One of the more important changes found in the New American Bible Revised Edition is the substitution of various words and phrases for language which carries a modern connotation which is quite different from the original suggested meanings. Examples include changing "cereal" to "grain" and "booty" to "plunder."

Examples

Similarly, "holocaust" has been changed to "burnt offering". The word "holocaust" in modern English has become used almost exclusively to refer to the genocide of the Jewish people during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

. In order to capture the biblical meaning, the translators chose the phrase "burnt offering" to replace "holocaust" throughout the text in reference to sacrifices made to God.

Sample changes

Gender-neutral language

In general,

is language that is formulated to specifically include women by avoiding generic masculine forms such as he/him/men/man. The New American Bible Revised Edition has translated all references to human beings using gender-neutral words or phrases because male pronouns are sometimes understood in North American English to be gender-specific. Gender-neutral language is the rule except where the use of gender-neutral language would create awkward phrasing. One of the most common concerns among some Catholics awaiting the release of the New American Bible Revised Edition was whether or not the Bible would be translated with so-called "horizontal" and/or "vertical" non-gendered language. Modern liturgy and Bible scholars make a distinction between "horizontal" non-gendered language—those words and phrases that refer to relationships between human beings—and "vertical" non-gendered language—words and phrases that denote the relationship between human beings and God. Some Protestants and Catholics find neither form of gender-neutral editing acceptable. Vatican norms for translation of the Bible include that, "The translation of scripture should faithfully reflect the Word of God in the original human languages, without 'correction' or 'improvement' in service of modern sensitivities", and do not support adjusting the Bible to be in line with public sentiment.

Horizontal gender-neutral language

As it relates to Bible translations, "horizontal" gender-neutral language translates gender-specific pronouns and words like "man" and "mankind" to gender-neutral pronouns such as the grammatically controversial

singular they Singular ''they'', along with its inflected or derivative forms, ''them'', ''their'', ''theirs'' and ''themselves'' (or ''themself''), is a gender-neutral third-person pronoun. It typically occurs with an unspecified antecedent, in sentenc ...

or "you" for "he." Other examples are "people" for "men" and "brothers & sisters" for "brethren." Thus, a particular passage in scripture might be rendered with gender-neutral language to avoid any sense that the teaching in the passage is for men only, rather than for men and women alike. According to a press backgrounder released by the

, the New American Bible Revised Edition "reflects the original meaning of the texts. Much of the original material, especially in the narrative books, was gender specific and remains so."

Vertical gender-neutral language

Whereas horizontal non-gendered language is generally viewed as an understandable adaptation in light of modern gender sensitivity, "vertical" neutral language—any pronoun or referent to the Christian God—is considered a break from both tradition and Christian revelation. Catholic bishops in the United States have made it clear that any gender-neutral language in reference to any of the three persons of the Holy Trinity—Father, Son, or Holy Spirit—is unacceptable. According to the USCCB, "traditional masculine language for God...belongs to the deposit of divine revelation and may not be replaced

ith gender-neutral or feminine language The Ith () is a ridge in Germany's Central Uplands which is up to 439 m high. It lies about 40 km southwest of Hanover and, at 22 kilometres, is the longest line of crags in North Germany. Geography Location The Ith is immediatel ...

" This is so especially in light of the Church's ancient tradition, and of the teaching regarding Jesus Christ's incarnation as a specifically male person. The

stated in its press backgrounder that "all references to God retain the traditional use of masculine pronouns" in the New American Bible Revised Edition.

Completion and use

In January 2011, the

announced that the fourth edition of the NAB would be published on March 9 of that year.USCCB news release: "Revised Edition of New American Bible Approved for Publication, Will Be Available in Variety of Formats March 9", January 6, 201

/ref> To be known as the "New American Bible, Revised Edition" or NABRE, the fourth edition of the NAB includes the newly revised Old Testament and re-revised Psalms, and the revised New Testament from the 1986 second edition. While the NABRE represents a revision of the NAB towards conformity towards ''

'', there have not been any announced plans to use the NABRE for the lectionary in the United States. The USCCB announced the approval is for "private use and study" while Masses will continue to use a lectionary taken from "an earlier, modified version of the NAB translation." Among press coverage on the release of the New American Bible Revised Edition on March 9, 2011 were interviews on local news channels, national news coverage by

NPR National Public Radio (NPR, stylized in all lowercase) is an American privately and state funded nonprofit media organization headquartered in Washington, D.C., with its NPR West headquarters in Culver City, California. It differs from other ...

and

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American English-language commercial broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a division of Comcast, its headquarters are l ...

, as well as a variety of articles by online journals and publications.

Future editions

In 2012, the

"announced a plan to revise the New Testament of the New American Bible Revised Edition so a single version can be used for individual prayer, catechesis and liturgy." After they developed a plan and budget for the revision project, work began in 2013 with the creation of an editorial board made up of five people from the

(CBA). The revision is now underway and, after the necessary approvals from the Bishops and the

Vatican Vatican may refer to: Vatican City, the city-state ruled by the pope in Rome, including St. Peter's Basilica, Sistine Chapel, Vatican Museum The Holy See * The Holy See, the governing body of the Catholic Church and sovereign entity recognized ...

, is expected to be done around 2025.

Licensed publishers

American Bible Society American Bible Society is a U.S.-based Christian nonprofit headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. As the American member organization of United Bible Societies, it supports global Bible translation, production, distribution, literacy, engage ...

* Anselm Academic * Autom * Catholic Book Publishing (Saint Joseph Edition) *

Easton Press Easton Press, a division of MBI, Inc., based in Norwalk, Connecticut, is a publisher specializing in premium leather-bound books. In addition to canonical classics, religion, poetry and art books, they publish a selection of science fiction ...

* Fireside * JustWord * Little Rock Scripture Study *

Liturgical Press Saint John's Abbey is a Benedictine monastery in Collegeville Township, Minnesota, United States, affiliated with the American-Cassinese Congregation. The abbey was established following the arrival in the area of monks from Saint Vincent Arch ...

* Midwest Theological Forum * Our Sunday Visitor *

Oxford University Press Oxford University Press (OUP) is the university press of the University of Oxford. It is the largest university press in the world, and its printing history dates back to the 1480s. Having been officially granted the legal right to print books ...

Royal Royal may refer to: People * Royal (name), a list of people with either the surname or given name * A member of a royal family Places United States * Royal, Arkansas, an unincorporated community * Royal, Illinois, a village * Royal, Iowa, a ...

* Saint Benedict Press * Saint Mary’s Press * Soul-Centered Enterprises * YouVersion

References

External links

* Meet the 'New' New American Bibl

* Q&A About the NABR

* U.S. Catholic Church Rolls Out New Bible Translatio

* Why do we need a new translation? The Bible hasn't changed, has it

*NAB New Testament Revision Projec
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