I recently contacted the Conference of Catholic Bishops of India (CCBI) to inquire about the changes made to the English Standard Version (ESV) and New Living Translation (NLT) to create the new Catholic editions. I received the following cordial response from Nigel Fernandes, CEO of ATC Publishers, which published both Catholic editions. Nigel cleared me to share his response with all of you. Many thanks to him!
As regards your query about the information on the changes that were made to the ESV-CE and NLT-CE texts during the review process, I am extremely sorry that at this point in time, we are not in a position to provide the same. It was a policy decision taken by all the stake holders involved with the project that we could consider the same at a later date.
One of the reasons was that even during the release and subsequently, both the translations have evoked a lot of interest across the globe and consequently several requests for clarifications on the reasoning for the changes effected etc. have come in. It has been time consuming to respond to the many queries that have come in from different quarters, as many of them do not end with only an explanation given by us but call for further many rounds of clarifications.
However, I also wish to say that we are all aware that it is only fair that interested Bible Scholars, Readers, Reviewers etc and especially people like you who promote awareness on Bible translations and Bible study, genuinely need to know the changes effected for valid reasons. So I wish to assure you that as soon as we decide to publish the changes made to the translations, we will share it with you.
We are grateful for your interest in the translations and for building awareness on the same.
With every good wish,
Nigel.
Any information on the ESVCE getting published in the USA???
I have not heard any rumblings about it yet.
Looks like Dynamic Catholic is publishing a leather bound, single column RSV-CE.
https://www.amazon.com/Bible-Revised-Standard-Version-Catholic/dp/1635820006
Oh, very interesting! Does anyone have a copy of the RSV-CE New Testament that was released by Dynamic Catholic last year? It is also single column, but I haven’t seen any photos of the typesetting.
I had received a copy of the Dynamic Catholic RSV-CE New Testament. Two formats, paperback and leatherette. Both versions seem to be intended for widespread use and publication. The paperback, from the Dynamic Catholic site, is “free” (with a $5.95 shipping charge). The leatherette retails for $24.95. The leatherette cover is rather “rubbery”, and both editions have thick paper (more like thin construction paper). The effort, as noted, is for wide distribution, so no “Bible yoga” for these editions!
I don’t see a means to post photos in the Comment box, thus the absence of such.
There is no news as to a solid publication date. Amazon, Barnes and Noble and others have varied dates (mostly July or August 2018). No news at all (yet) on the Dynamic Catholic website.
Thanks for the additional details, James. If you’d like to share some photos, feel free to email them to me (marc at catholicbibletalk.com), and I’ll put them up in a new blog post. I’d be very interested to see what the typesetting looks like. I like the idea of using thick paper also.
Hi Marc & James:
I also have the paperback NT. I think it might me a newer edition than the one James has. Mine has white paper, a bit thin, but very smooth and of good quality. Now I have other titles from DC that have yellowish, thin construction paper like pages. These were value books purchased in bulk by my parish as gifts for lent and Christmas. Maybe there are 2 printings of the NT…?
Anyway, my copy is pretty thin considering the size of the font and generous line spacing. It is about 1/2” thick. I have some pictures I am going to try and email you, Marc, so you can see the layout and font. One thing I hope for on the new addition is a sewn binding. The softcover is glued. James, is your premium edition of the NT sewn or glued….?
Jonny,
My edition is glued, Yet, there is an added fact, not mentioned previously. I received my edition “gratis” from Dynamic Catholic. This (perhaps) might be the reason why it appears to be of “lower quality”.
In any case, it is wonderful that this edition was published, and the forthcoming complete Bible is to be published. Within (perhaps) a six – nine month span, there may be two “new” Catholic editions published. The Dynamic Catholic RSV-CE and the Revised New Jerusalem Bible. It is rare that Catholics have a bit of a “flood” [ok, maybe a rapid flow] of Bible editions being published.
Latest from Dynamic Catholic [Mirianna Sternhagen] (June 25, 2018):
Thank you for your email and for your interest in our Mission! As for a more specific release date, we are planning to have the Bible in the warehouse by mid-August. The formatting will be Soft Cover and Premium, similar to the New Testament which we currently carry in paperback and leatherette.