THURSDAY, MAY 30. 1963
MEDFOHD MAIL TRIBUNE, MEDFORD. OREGON
Religion in America
12 A
odern Translations Valuable
For Understanding of Bible
By LOUIS CASSELS
UPI Correspondent
The King James version of
the Bible, which was trans
lated in lfill A.D., has never
been rivalled for poetic beau
ty and majesty of expression.
From a purely literary view
point, it towers over all mod
ern translations as Shake
speare does over a TV script.
But more than 1,000 Eng
lish words and phrase used
in the Bible have undergone
significant changes of mean
ing since the King James was
published 352 years ago.
Thai's why many people
feel that a good modern trans
lation is essential for anyone
who plans to read the Bible
seriously.
Which modern translation
you choose is a matter of taste.
The chief contenders for pub
lic and scholarly favor are
the lieviscd Standard Version
and the New English Bible.
The Revised Standard Ver
sion is essentially a re-write
and up dating of the old King
James, using the same sen
tence structures but substitut
ing contemporary for archaic
English words where neces
sary to make the original
Biologist Speaks
At Chamber Lunch
Ashland - Howard Prairie
is still the best lake for fishing
this year, according to Ed
Schwartz, Grants Pass, resi
dent biologist with the slate
game commission, who spoke
before the Ashland Chamber
of Commerce Tuesday.
Fishing at Hyatt lake has
been only fair, he said, al
though the size of the fish
caught there has been larger
than average.
Willow Creek lake was
good on opening week end
but has been slumping off
somewhat since, Schwartz
said. On the opening week
end, many fisherman caught
their limits by 10 a.m.
Fish lake has been on and
off, he added.
The opening of atrcam fish
ing season last week end did
not turn out as well as hoped,
Schwartz said. There were
some trout in the Applegate
river above the Ruch area,
but the main Rogue itself was
only fair. The Illinois river
was good only in spots.
Prisoner Provided
With Chauffeur Service
Ontario, Callf.-IUP-George
W. Lund, 45, was charged
Wednesday with picking up
four unemployment checks to
taling $03 while confined to
Jail and having the police
chief drive him to the unem
ployment office to get them.
"He said his wife was
bringing somo papers there
for him Id sign," said Police
Chief Herbert W. Swinney.
"He didn't say ho was going
to get money."
meaning plear. It Is available
in a vast variety of editions.
One of the finest, for serious
reading and study purposes,
is the new Oxford Annotated
Bible (Oxford University
Press. $7. Bo), which has help
ful footnotes on every page.
Still Being Translated
Hie Old Testament portion
of the new English Bible is
still being translated, and
won't be available for some
years yet. Th New 'I eslument
portion has been a best-seller
since March, 1061. It is an
entirely fresh translation of
the original Greek into con
temporary, idiomatic English.
While it lacks literary grace
at many points, it hits the
reader right between the eyes
as a message addressed to him
in his own everyday tongue.
Those who have ceased to get
any real impact out of over
ly - familiar passs-.es of the
King James will have the
feeling that they are reading
the Bible for the first time.
Where you begin reading Is
at least as important as the
choice of a translation. Many
people make the mistake of
trying to read the Bible
straight through from begin
ning to end, as If it were an
ordinary book or novel. If
you do that, you are apt to
get "bogged down in the be-
gats" when you reach the dull
and endless gencaologics of
the Old Testament.
It Is more accurate to think
of the Bible as a whole 11
brary of books, written at
various times over a span of
1.500 years. These books dif
fer enormously fen literary
style, historical value and spir
itual depth. Except in a very
broad sense, they do not tell
a consecutive narrative, so
there's no need to "begin at
the beginning" and plow
straight through.
Begin In Middle
Instead, you can begin In
the middle, with the part of
the Bible which to Christians
is the most important and ex
citing news ever reported
upon earth - the story of
Jesus Christ.
'The Bible is a book about
God; It tells what He did
for men, especially In Jesus
Christ His son," says Prof.
Floyd V. Fllson of McCormlck
Technological Seminary.
Read the whole Bible by all
means, but get to the heart
of the biblical message at the
start."
Prof. Filfon recommends
beginning with the New Tes
tament book,! of Luke and
Acts. They were written by
the same author, and although
they arc now separated in the
Bible, it is clear that they
were originally intended to
go together, for i!:cy tell a
single, connected story.
The first part-the Gospel
according lo St. Luke - is the
story of Christ's life, death
and resurrection, written es
pecially for a Gentile audi
ence by a man who seems to
have been a very careful re
porter with an eye for vivid
detail and a gift for poetic
expression.
In the Acts of the Apostles,
the same writer tells how the
Christian church came Into
being under the awesome im
pact of the resurrection, and
traces its spread throughout
the Roman Empire, with par
ticular attention to the mis
sionary voyages of the Apostle
Paul, with whom Luke trav
elled extensively.
Proceed To St. John
After reading Luke-Acts,
you may want to proceed to
the Gospel according to St.
John. Here you'll find less
concern with events and say
ings, more emphasis on mean
ing and significance. T'o over
simplify, you might say that
Luke is the reporter who tells
you what Jesus did and said,
while John is the theologian
who tells who Jesus was and
why He came.
St. Paul's letters could well
come next - especially those
addressed to the young
churches at Corinth and
Rome. After that you can fin
ish the other Gospels and
Epistles of the New Testament
in almost any order that ap
peals to you.
Eventually, you'll want to
read the whole Old Testa
ment, for Christianity cannot
be truly comprehended with
out a thorough acquaintance
with the Jewish scriptures
which Jesus said he came
"not to destroy but to fulfill."
But it may be best to ease
your way into the Old Testa
ment by reading first the
book of Psalms - the great
est collection of devotional
poetry the world has ever
known.
After the Psalms, try Isai
ah, the noblest and most mov
ing of the Hebrew books of
"prophecy." Then, when you
are well acquainted with the
sublime heights to which the
children of Israel are destined
to move in their knowledge
of God, you can go back to
Genesis and begin tracing the
early story of this remark
able group who were chosen
by God for a special role as
llght-bearors to mankind.
Chose Good Commentary
Whatever sequence you fol
low, you will find far more
meaning In the Bible if you
read it in connection with a
good commentary. Before be
ginning to read any book of
the Bible, find out from the
commentary what scholars
have discovered about its
date and authorship, and the
historical circumstances under
which it was written. This
background information will
enable you to understand
many otherwise-baffling pas
sages.
There are dozens of Bible
commentaries on the market,
One new and relatively inex-
pensive one - volume com
mentary which has already
found wide favor among Bi
ble scholars is Harper's Bible
Commentary (Harper & Roe,
$5 05).
Two other valuable refer
ence works that are available
in inexpensive paperback edi
tions are A Theological
Word Book of the Bible"
(MacMlllan, $1.95) and "The
Modern Reader's Bible Atlas"
(Association Press Reflection
Rooks, $1.50).
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