The Bible Translation Imbroglio

Academic Journal of Educational Sciences, 2019

This article proposes new method in Bible interpretation by comparing translation products of Bible which are reflected in many different languages. This writing is also a result of a research which found that comprehending Bible does not demand only its original languages (Hebrew and Greek), however, national languages and local ones may also be used to explore the meaning carried in the Bible by comparing them. The content of this piece of writing provides two main techniques in the new method of Bible comprehension. They are grammatical comparison of languages and historical context as a confirmation. At first, texts of Bible in different languages (the writer uses English, Indonesian, and Kupang Malay text) are compared on each level of the language (word, clause, sentence, and figurative language) to portray the grand idea of the texts; and the next is confirming it to the historical context of the text. This new method contributes to the development of hermeneutics more specifically in Biblical exegesis. Furthermore, this new concept will raise local languages into the higher level, meaning that local languages will be widely used in Bible comprehension with national language of readers and original languages of Bible. This help keep the existence of local wisdom including languages.

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means-for example, electronic, photocopy, recording-without the prior written permission of the publisher. The only exception is brief quotations in printed reviews. cover illustration: St. Jerome in His Study, by Albrecht Dürer

Serie Monografica De Ciencia Das Religioes Coleccao Pensar a Religiao, 2013

For most of the last half of the twentieth century the tendency was to think of Bible translations in terms of a binary opposition between literal or idiomatic, or, in other words, dynamic equivalence versus formal equivalence. Further academic discussion and, especially, the development of the whole academic field of translation studies has led to the problematizing of such a simple dichotomy and to much broader analyses of translation work and products including sociological, cultural, economic, rhetorical and ideological factors. In this essay we will first give an overview of developments in contemporary approaches to Bible translation around the world in the past few decades and then consider some recent translations of the Bible into the Portuguese language and how they relate to some of the themes and issues discussed in the first part of this essay.

One is led to believe that two distinct types of modern translation of the Hebrew Bible exist: scholarly translations included in critical commentaries, and translations prepared for believing communities, Christian and Jewish. In practice, however, the two types of translation are now rather similar in outlook and their features need to be scrutinized. Scholarly translations included in most critical commentaries are eclectic, that is, their point of departure is MT, but they also draw much on all other textual sources and include emendations when the known textual sources do not yield a satisfactory reading. In a way, these translations present critical editions of the Hebrew Bible, since they reflect the critical selection process of the available textual evidence. These translations claim to reflect the Urtext of the biblical books, even if this term is usually not used explicitly in the description of the translation. The only difference between these translations and a critical edition of the texts in the original languages is that they are worded in a modern language and usually lack a critical apparatus defending the text-critical choices. The publication of these eclectic scholarly translations reflects a remarkable development. While there is virtually no existing reconstruction of the Urtext of the complete Bible in Hebrew (although the original text of several individual books and chapters has been reconstructed), 1 such reconstructions do exist in translation. These 1 The following studies (arranged chronologically) present a partial or complete reconstruction of (parts of) biblical books: J. Meinhold, Die Jesajaerzählungen Jesaja 36–39

2014

In the missionary expansion of Christianity, Scripture translations have served as the main catalyst even if they have sometimes been taken for granted. From a historical perspective, it can rightly be argued that Christianity owes its very being to translations. This paper addresses this issue through a threefold working hypothesis: Is there anything going on in translation theory? Are recent translation theories significantly different form that of E.A. Nida? Can Bible translation in Africa contribute anything to translation study? These questions will be dealt with in the second part of this paper. However, the first part of the paper is devoted to the historical background of Bible translation practices. After presenting a working definition of Scripture translation, this part will explore the origin, development and interpretative role of Scripture translations.

Journal For the Study of Religions and Ideologies, 2011

Acta Theologica, 2004

An overview of recent developments of the discipline which deals with the activity of translation, as well as the implications for Bible translation, is presented. Starting off with a discussion of the disciplinary nature of translation studies, an overview of some developments emphasising the source text, the process of translation, the reception of the translated text, and the cultural-social bound character of translation, is offered. Since the early eighties there has been a tendency within translation studies to move away from the normative and prescriptive approaches to translation and to adopt a descriptive approach towards the study of translated literature. Descriptive translation theorists attempt to account not only for textual strategies in the translated text, but also for the way in which the translation functions in the target cultural system. The implications that these recent theoretical developments have for Bible translation practice and criticism of Bible translations are arrived at in the last instance.

2007

La Bibbia e il libro piu tradotto di tutti i tempi. History of Bible Translation si propone di ricostruire la storia delle traduzioni di quest’opera dalle origini ai giorni nostri attraverso un approccio di tipo interdisciplinare, che non affronti la questione esclusivamente da un punto di vista metodologico, ma anche sotto il profilo teologico, linguistico e culturale. Obiettivo di questo studio e tracciare un percorso possibile - a partire dalle traduzioni - del documento biblico, e comprendere le implicazioni presenti e future di un lavoro di questo tipo.