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MONDAY, NOVEMBER 23, 2009

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|NEXT STORY »

Top-Selling US Bible Due for Translation Update in 2011

Translators promise to revisit TNIV's gender-neutral revisions

By Nick McMaster| Posted Sep 1, 09 6:30 PM CDT|

(Newser) – The New International Version of the Bible will get an update in 2011 as scholars adapt translations to contemporary English usage, USA Today reports. The top-selling Bible translation in North America has not been updated for 25 years, with a proposed 1997 edition scuttled after provoking a contentious debate among religious scholars over the use of gender-neutral language.

The “inclusive language” approach, which sees phrases like “sons of God”—not specifically masculine in the original—changed to “children of God,” was released as the Today’s NIV, or T-NIV. Despite the new title, the translation was still highly controversial, and will be taken out of print when the new NIV is released. The translation team promises to review every gender-related decision and submit revisions for public comment.

[Images (1)]

[Quotes (1)]

Seminarian Joseph Toledo holds his bible during the morning mass at the Redemptoris Mater Archdiocesan Missionary Seminary in Denver. (AP Photo)

« Prev« Prev | Next »Next » Slideshow

We'll make sure we get it right this time. We failed to make the case for revisions ... freezing the NIV was also a mistake.
- Keith Danby, Biblica

« Prev« Prev | Next »Next » Slideshow

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38 comments

VIEWING:

DarkFrancis
Sep 1, 09 7:18 PM CDT

"In the beginning was the Word and the word was probably 'HYDROGEN...'"? -Carl Sagan. Or..."In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. We used to think it took about a week, but science has shown us that the development of the universe, evolution and abiogenesis took place over a considerably longer period of time...we apologise for the oversight...now, on with the story..." Reply

| 0 minutes ago

Forderon
Sep 1, 09 7:20 PM CDT

"The top-selling Bible translation in North America has not been updated for 25 years". Funny, it hasn't been right for thousands of years either. Reply

IN RESPONSE:

pilotman
Sep 1, 09 7:27 PM CDT

you would know.

-8

| 0 minutes ago

rajanKazhmin
Sep 1, 09 7:26 PM CDT

Will it finally come with a disclaimer? "This material should not be taken literally or seriously, by any reader, at any time, for any reason, whatsoever." Reply

| 0 minutes ago

Robert_Dada
Sep 1, 09 7:28 PM CDT

It's a worthless piece of crap. Reply

IN RESPONSE:

newzjunkie
Sep 1, 09 7:46 PM CDT

So why the need to respond to every story about the bible, God or Christians?

-3

IN RESPONSE:

Robert_Dada
Sep 1, 09 8:26 PM CDT

Because of its negative impact on reason and rationality.

IN RESPONSE:

rajanKazhmin
Sep 1, 09 8:41 PM CDT

Science and reason must be defended!

IN RESPONSE:

DJM420
Sep 1, 09 11:19 PM CDT

hiro nakamura!

IN RESPONSE:

wwwonderer
Sep 2, 09 11:21 AM CDT

RD, I wouldn't say it's completely worthless. There are some good stories that can convey issues many humans deal with: honesty, sacrifice, trust, betrayal, etc. I think one can get SOME good lessons from some of those stories. On that note, Star Wars has some good stories about conformity, diversity, acceptance, etc. I DON'T BELIEVE IN WOOKIES, THOUGH. I agree MOST of what people get from the Bible is for some PERSON's own selfish gain and WAY TOO MANY lives have be extinguished because of religion, or more importantly, for not CONFORMING to religion. Yes, rational, login and reason rule the day, and religion has no interest in facts or the discovery of facts. But let's not say it's completely worthless.

| 0 minutes ago

Mia
Sep 1, 09 8:22 PM CDT

It is a good book. Maybe it should not be taken so literally. Reply

| 0 minutes ago

justme
Sep 1, 09 8:25 PM CDT

Wingz, A few people just need to bash religion. That is the nature of Atheism. It is a militant anti-religious belief. This is in contrast to agnostics who don't believe but don't feel threatened if I do. Reply

-5

IN RESPONSE:

rajanKazhmin
Sep 1, 09 8:45 PM CDT

Not so much, justme. Atheists are just fighting for their freedom FROM religion. Christians are the ones shoving their way of life down everyone's throat. Just look at the schools in Texas.

IN RESPONSE:

rajanKazhmin
Sep 1, 09 8:49 PM CDT

Also, I don't feel threatened by people that believe. I feel threatened by the larger religious organizations who are working their way into the government and school systems. The everyday church goer is not the problem. It's this movement and twisted idea that we live in a Christian nation. It is as dangerous as it is idiotic.

IN RESPONSE:

shonangreg
Sep 1, 09 9:35 PM CDT

justme, wrong. atheism is the lack of belief in a god -- period. Atheists have many different beliefs. You cannot really generalize about atheists. Some are angry about religion and its cancerous-like growth. Others don't really care. Agnostics are a different matter.

IN RESPONSE:

Forderon
Sep 1, 09 9:37 PM CDT

Militant? That's funny. Have there been any wars fought in the name of atheism. Have there been any genocides or murders committed based on atheism? The word "militant" is amusing to me here. It's like how feminists and gays are called "militant" just because they threaten male superiority.

IN RESPONSE:

DJM420
Sep 1, 09 11:20 PM CDT

everything rajan said..but with my wit and charm (teehee)

IN RESPONSE:

yeah
Sep 2, 09 2:13 PM CDT

Actually, atheists are people who do not believe in a divine power. Agnostics are people who do not believe there is enough evidence to make a decision about god(s) existence of non-existence. Anti-theists are the ones who are trying to spread their belief that divine power is harmful and should be stopped.

| 0 minutes ago

BlahBlahBlah
Sep 1, 09 9:33 PM CDT

I have an idea, blank pages. That would be about a useful. Reply

IN RESPONSE:

DJM420
Sep 1, 09 11:22 PM CDT

they (believers-laughable) pretty much mold it to their liking anyway, so why not!

| 0 minutes ago

Spudsy
Sep 1, 09 9:49 PM CDT

Wait, anyone can rewrite the Bible? So it is "The Word of God and Lenny Down in Copywriting:"? Reply

| 0 minutes ago

methusos
Sep 1, 09 10:54 PM CDT

Gotta love (agape) the Godless idiots on this site. The NIV is as Godless as you people because it has more errors than the King James. Scripture4all.org Reply

-1

IN RESPONSE:

Realist
Sep 2, 09 10:49 AM CDT

"Godless idiots" - that's an oxymoron if ever I heard one!

| 0 minutes ago

paul123
Sep 1, 09 10:56 PM CDT

For those who care, the best versions in my opinion are King James and "The Message". Reply

| 0 minutes ago

GenuineJames
Sep 2, 09 12:08 AM CDT

Forderon, Are you that ignorant and history deficient? How can you ask whether any murders or genocides have been committed in the name of Atheism. How about Mao Zedong? Or maybe Joseph Stalin's genocide? Those two alone slaughtered $20million people with atheism as their chief philosophy. Drop the one-sided ideology and go back to school. Reply

| 0 minutes ago

oldgoat
Sep 2, 09 2:47 AM CDT

Considering all the different bibles and holy books in the world how can anybody say that their's is the right one? How many times has it been rewritten and each time how much of the meanings have been altered even just a little bit? Reply

IN RESPONSE:

newsrmandan
Sep 2, 09 12:42 PM CDT

There is more credible evidence that the words in the Bible are the words in the original manuscripts that it makes no real sense to doubt it. Do we doubt that Dante wrote "inferno" but the actual physical evidence is quite small compared to that of the individual books of the Bible. We don't have any full books of the bible dating back to the original writers (as of yet) but the fragments of copies of the originals we do have and they are very very clearly the same. So why doubt. Its just not able to be denied. Its not reasonable.

| 0 minutes ago

wwwonderer
Sep 2, 09 11:27 AM CDT

Spudsy, oldgoat, these are very good questions. the Bible is supposed to be the LITERAL WORD OF GOD!!! How can ANY translation take place? And does God want his word(s) being edited? Hmmm. Seems like you can't take His name in vane, make any graven images, but you can apparently reword His message(s). I would be careful. God made it pretty clear that those that don't do as He wishes are going to get a beatdown. Reply

| 0 minutes ago

schmidtkoff
Sep 2, 09 12:01 PM CDT

research david brower: "I thought it would be useful to do an exercise in perspective relating to time. Squeeze the age of the Earth, four and a half billion years, into the Six Days of Creation for an instant replay. Creation begins Sunday midnight. No life until about Tuesday noon. Life comes aboard, with more and more species, more variety, more genetic variability. Millions upon millions of species come aboard, and millions leave. By Saturday morning at seven, there’s enough chlorophyll so that fossil fuels begin to form. At four o’clock in the afternoon, the great reptiles are onstage; at nine o’clock that night they’re hauled off. But they had a five hour run...." Nothing like us appears until three or four minutes before midnight, depending on whose facts you like better. No Homo sapiens until a half minute before midnight. We got along as hunter-gatherers pretty well, but the population couldn’t have been very big; for those of you concerned about how many hunter-gatherers the Earth can sustain, the range I’ve heard is between five and twenty-five million people.... Reply

| 0 minutes ago

newsrmandan
Sep 2, 09 12:20 PM CDT

Why are there atheist if its true that their is no God? For the majority of the posters who hate the idea of an all knowing God, does your hatred of him make God non-existent. Who are you to make God non-existent by the power of some feeble unsound reason and logic not to mention (evolutionary creativity) The beauty of God is that while you may hate him He is willing to love you call you and turn you into the most God loving person your family and friends have ever known. And He does this just like it says for his own Glory. So be careful you may have to eat your words. But as in many cases you will be glad to do so. Reply

IN RESPONSE:

Realist
Sep 2, 09 12:42 PM CDT

I don't think most atheists hate the idea of an 'all-knowing god' - rather they simply cannot let go of rationality to the degree that 'believers' can. You can't make god non-existent by reason and logic anymore than reason and logic proves that god doesn't exist - like that green elephant that hovers above your head, that's only visible to you but moves when you look up!

| 0 minutes ago

newsrmandan
Sep 2, 09 4:14 PM CDT

is it un-rational for me to see the world and wonder how did this get here? Pick up a bible and have it explained to me. Does the bible have to explain the intricacies of modern scientific knowledge to be true? We accept the truths in scriptures by faith and explore how by science. You may accept the "truthes" of another system by rationality but you put your faith in the "fact" that all this happened by random chance over eons of time and you brazenly accuse me/us of suspending rationality? If my elephant it green yours is yours is see through making it harder to detect. Reply

-1

IN RESPONSE:

rajanKazhmin
Sep 2, 09 6:38 PM CDT

It is not at all irrational to wonder how things got the way they are. However, the idea that belief in science is equal to belief in religion is flat out wrong to say the least. Science is based on evidence that is tested and proven. Your computer does not work because you believe it does. It works because of hundreds of years of scientific discoveries.

| 0 minutes ago

cognitivefilter
Sep 2, 09 7:34 PM CDT

what's a good argument against gender neutral language. i'll be waiting. Reply

IN RESPONSE:

newsrmandan
Sep 3, 09 1:34 AM CDT

@rajankaz..... belief in religion is not equal to belief in science thats true. I was just making the point that science is used in a way that is in direct conflict with the Bible. Both can't be true. Thats a "scientifically" proven fact. Either God spoke this world into existence or chance did and any thing me or you do or believe has no real consequence. Kill whoever you want rape steal do drugs use DDT and drive a hummer to your hearts content because it matters not after you're dead you become worm food. The only price you pay is while you're alive and life really has no meaning. @cognitivefilter.... God is a spirit and does not have a body like men. So in that sense God is neither male or female, but for whatever reason anytime God expresses himself He does so in the Masculine form. The writers of the Bible, do not equivocate on that. The best argumen is Jesus, he as God in the flesh was male.

| 0 minutes ago

doingtherightthing
Sep 3, 09 1:25 AM CDT

the bible is the inspiration of God. The manuscripts are the words of God translated into the king James by His prophets and Christ. Those who believe in God, believe in the old testament. Those who believe in God and his son Christ have both the father and the son in the new testament...... There is no partiality in Gods word.....God is the truth, and Christ is the way and man will always disappoint........the beginning is to read Prov1:7. This is the start of salvation and understanding.......... Atheists need not apply. Agnostic's time to step up and take a stand "read the word". Christians time to review and get back into the word. Jews allow God to instruct you in the knowledge of His son Christ who is the living word.........it all starts with God............ Reply

IN RESPONSE:

Snarfeh
Sep 3, 09 6:36 PM CDT

@hypethang - Jesus loves you...but I'm his favorite.

| 0 minutes ago

Snarfeh
Sep 3, 09 6:42 PM CDT

"as scholars adapt translations to contemporary English usage" - AEAP wuz da word up BION. TGG GRWG. Word. - and the link for translation: http://www.webopedia.com/quick_ref/textmessageabbreviations.asp Reply

| 0 minutes ago

View all 38 comments »

gender • Christianity • study • religion • gender politics • translation • Bible • controversy • New International Version • T-NIV

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Top-Selling US Bible Due for Translation Update in 2011