Most Rev. Steven Lopes, Chairman of the USCCB Committee of Divine Worship, announced a few moments ago, at the USCCB annual meeting in Baltimore, that the liturgical edition of the revised New American Bible will be renamed the Catholic American Bible. It will be published on February 10th, 2027 along with the even more recently Vatican-confirmed revised Liturgy of the Hours. February 10th, 2027 is Ash Wednesday.
Like the new name for the bible.solves the problem of the nabrere, lol. So thT also means the first volume of the LOTH should be available then. Time for a belated Christmas present!
As announced by Bishop Lopes, the first volume of the LOTH to be published will be volume 2, Lent-Easter, for use as of February 10, 2027.
WOW THAT WAS QUICK!
I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t disappointed in both the new name and the 15 month wait until it’s released. That said, I”m glad they didn’t create a monstrosity of an acronym by adding to NABRE
2027?
Think of the steps involved. First we had to prepare the files for publication. That couldn’t happen until we had the confirmation. Those files were completed last week. They have to be set for publication. Auxiliary materials need to be updated. Design work must be completed. Then the publisher has to do their internal review. We have to review proofs. (Do you know how long it takes to proofread a Bible????) We usually have to review a second version of proofs as well. Only then can they go to a printer. Even the simplest versions are likely to take at least 4 weeks on press. More complex formats can take 8 weeks or more. Since most printers are outside the US and Canada, the books then go on a ship to cross an ocean, wait to be unloaded, and then delivered to warehouses where they can be shipped to retailers and individuals. Less than 15 months is ambitious.
Ascension has released a page on the translation:
https://ascensionpress.com/pages/the-catholic-american-bible
I see they’re tripling down on the “American” branding, and now making its Catholic affiliation more overt. Well, good on them. Anyway, time to spend the next year writing as many “CAB” name jokes as possible!
First you must hail a cab. 😉
Me: Honey I’m going to sit by the fire and enjoy my CAB
Wife: I thought you said you were going to cut back on drinking
Me: I’m talking about the new update to the New American Bible Revised Edition, silly; not wine!
Or:
Husband: “Honey I’m going to sit by the fire and enjoy my CAB.”
Wife: “I’m just so thrilled that you’re so serious about the Bible!”
Husband: **coyly uncorks the Paso Robles**
I just received the email from Ascension Press as well. I’m so impatient about this. I was hoping for 2026.
Thereby cementing it forever as a translation all non-Catholics will avoid.
So much for “if these translations are produced in cooperation with the separated brethren as well, all Christians will be able to use them.” (DV 22)
https://www.vatican.va/archive/hist_councils/ii_vatican_council/documents/vat-ii_const_19651118_dei-verbum_en.html
Fortress Catholicus remains unbreached!
“Thereby cementing it forever as a translation all non-Catholics will avoid.”
Non-Catholics don’t buy Catholic Bibles anyway; most aren’t even aware that “Catholic Bible” is a thing that actually exists. This is why, despite being the most widely read Bible in the United States, the NAB has never appeared in even the top 100 best-selling Bibles in the “Evangelical Bible Sellers Association” list.
And any bookstore that carries Catholic Bibles will be segregated in a section labeled “Catholic Bibles”
Protestants never touched the New American Bible anyway. I didn’t even know it existed until I looked into Catholicism.
At least we aren’t stacking adjectives too high yet. It should be several decades before a New Revised Catholic American Bible, Second Updated Edition (NRCAB-2ue) comes out.
Ehh… We have the whole Tyndale line as common texts among all Christians, and a Catholic liturgical translation isn’t directly for anyone else besides Mass-attending Catholics.
Aw, but it’s 2027 :/
They had a nice, friendly acronym in NABRE. Shame to chuck it.
I do have some leftover Love Your NABRE buttons.
Too bad they didn’t revise the Old Testament. Ecclesiastes translation is rather meh
I strongly dislike labeling a Bible version / translation as being “American.” Something about it just seems off. It seems both “jingoistic” and “provincial.” I was hoping they would eliminate that from the new title. The Bible is too sacred to carry a name associated with a particular country.
Totally agree. Seems a little tone-deaf in this era of rising Christian Nationalism and Catholic Dominionism.
I would have gone with something like the Bible for Catholics in English (BCE).
Will the CAB have the same book introductions and footnotes as the NABRE? If so, I will not buy it. The NABRE book introductions are particularly troubling, as they present modern theories regarding late composition of and authorship as “fact.” The footnotes also are troubling, as they take an overly critical-historical approach that at this point is very “dated.”
Someone above posted a link to the announcement on Ascension’s site. The FAQ for what will be different between the CAB and NABRE says “The CAB features a modified version of the Old Testament from the NABRE, with the Book of Psalms replaced by the Abbey Psalms and Canticles alongside a new introduction and notes, a newly revised New Testament, and appendices to both the Old and New Testaments containing the Abbey Psalms and Canticles.”
I saw a talk months ago from Dr. Mary Healy, who was on the review board for the translation, and she said there would be new notes, though it was hard to gauge to what extent (all notes or just revising a few overly critical takes).
I agree with you. The NAB was my first Bible because it was the one we had to use in Catholic elementary school. The notes were extremely confusing as a kid, and if I have kids someday, I am going to be vigilant on which Bible I give them. That said I am pretty optimistic. I have too many handwritten notes in my RSV2CE to part with it as my main Bible, but still excited for the CAB.
Yeah I really hope not. I hope the Bishops are convinced that it’s very disliked.
The name “Catholic American Bible” offers them a fresh start for future revisions: either the “New Catholic American Bible” or the “Revised Catholic American Bible.” And on and on.
Just a couple of thoughts regarding the comments so far:
– Publishing a book of this size takes time. And while I know many have been waiting on this since 2015, Ash Wednesday 2027 isn’t an unreasonable date for a text that only recently got its full approval. And lets keep in mind that at least one of these publisher, Ascension, is also doing the Liturgy of the Hours. I would hate for there to be any publishing errors occur due to rushing these out. I am sure on their part the publishers need the time to complete these projects. This is a massive undertaking.
-I don’t mind the name at all. I think it both acknowledges the past while also looking forward towards a new era for this translation, which will now be largely identical in an actual printed edition as well as the lectionary and LoTH. This is an important moment for the Church in the US. Many have been waiting for this for decades, and we are only a little over a year away from this being a reality.
-In regards to “American” being in the title. Look, that is the reality of what it is. And it will largely be an American bible translation, used in the American Catholic liturgy. All the other Bishops conferences have moved on and made their decisions on what they are going with, whether that be the NRSV, ESV, or RNJB. That ship has sailed.
Ascension Press has announced that it will publish a premium edition of the CAB. I assume it will be the Great Adventure format.
Incredibly excited by this! Glad to see Ascension is already on the list as a publisher, I imagine WoF and CBP may also get involved…
Ideally we will see a wide range of formats like readers or study bibles, and also hopefully in multiple sizes and premium ranges.
I would love to have a “gift” sized CAB for travel and a larger edition for home study both in some form of a reader’s version that is premium.
Just for clarification in regards to what Ascension Press has announced. They have said that they will be both “publishing paperback, leatherlike, large print, premium, and digital editions of the Catholic American Bible” and in a separate FAQ “Yes, Ascension is planning to offer an edition of the popular Great Adventure Catholic Bible with the Catholic American Bible translation.”
So, there will hopefully be many quality editions of the CAB available beginning in 2027. Very good news indeed, particularly for those who have been pining for a premium edition of the NAB(RE).
OSV will also be publishing the CAB:
https://www.osvnews.com/new-english-version-of-bible-to-be-called-the-catholic-american-bible/?fbclid=IwY2xjawOBwQFleHRuA2FlbQIxMQBzcnRjBmFwcF9pZBAyMjIwMzkxNzg4MjAwODkyAAEezHDTAalty0yNyiDlphtUAtwYK8QtRxfRsVn–q310yAxCtWd8Fx0awregi0_aem_Cye0_As-7NTsoDd-0ZV25w