New Bibles

[Alistair]

Is anyone familiar with the "One New Man Bible" and "The Voice Bible" and can comment on their usefulness and merits, and how they could work in an Accordance workflow if they were available as modules?

 

Thanks

[Lorinda H. M. Hoover]

I have a hard copy of The Voice. It's very readable, much more akin to modern fiction. It's a more interesting, more pleasant read than a more formal translations. It's really more of a paraphrase than a translation. As I understand it, translators translated a book or chapter, and then sent the translation to professional writers who worked on "improving" the style, in what became a collaborative process. Lots of words and phrases were added to the text, both to make it flow better and to explain things that "original" readers would have understood. All the additions are in italic print.

 

I was intrigued by the concepts behind the translation. I've not been quite as enamored with it now that I'm using it. I think more has been added than is strictly necessary. But I have to keep in mind that its target audience are folks who haven't read the Bible much. I don't think it is a good translation to use as a primary text, but it's an excellent choice as a supplemental translation.

 

All the dialog sections are set out like a screen play, with the various speakers clearly identified, making a dramatic reading/reader's theater presentation of the text very easy. I've gotten permission from the publishers to use it for the basis of our Sunday School Christmas program this year, and I think it's a great option for something like that.

 

I'd love to see it in Accordance, but the developers would have to do careful work to 1) keep the italics and 2) keep the screenplay format.

[Alistair]

Thanks Lorinda, that's very helpful.