NASHVILLE, TN – The print format of the new complete Common English Bible (http://CommonEnglishBible.com @CommonEngBible – http://twitter.com/CommonEngBible), four years in the making, has arrived early at its central distribution center in Nashville, TN.
While the New Testament was released last August, and the digital version of the entire Bible just debuted on 20 platforms, this is the first time the complete Common English Bible is available in print. Originally expected this fall, the paperback edition is shipping to stores now. Six other editions, including one with the Apocrypha, will be available in August.
“The Common English Bible is the result of collaboration between opposites: scholars working with average readers; conservatives working with liberals; teens working with retirees; men working with women; many denominations and many ethnicities coming together around the common goal of creating a translation that unites rather than divides, with the ultimate goal of mutually accomplishing God’s overall work in the world,” says Paul Franklyn, associate publisher.
Combining scholarly accuracy with vivid language, the Common English Bible is the work of 120 biblical scholars from 24 denominations in American, African, Asian, European, and Latino communities, representing such academic institutions as Asbury Theological Seminary, Azusa Pacific University, Bethel Seminary, Denver Seminary, Princeton Theological Seminary, Seattle Pacific University, Wheaton College, Yale University, and many others. They translated the Bible into English directly from the original Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek texts.
Additionally, more than 500 readers in 77 groups field-tested the translation. Every verse was read aloud in the reading groups, where potentially confusing passages were identified. The translators considered the groups' responses and, where necessary, reworked those passages to clarify in English their meaning from the original languages. More than 700 people worked jointly to bring the Common English Bible to fruition; and thanks to the Internet and today’s technology it was completed in less than four years.
Photo: Paul Franklyn, associate publisher, reviews the first copies of the first print editions of the Common English Bible, as they arrived early from the printer last week.
Photo: Paul Franklyn, associate publisher, “showing off” the first printed copies of the new Common English Bible.
Visit CommonEnglishBible.com to see comparison translations, learn about the translators, get free downloads, and more.
The Common English Bible is a denomination-neutral Bible sponsored by the Common English Bible Committee, an alliance of five publishers that serve the general market, as well as the Disciples of Christ (Chalice Press), Presbyterian Church (Westminster John Knox Press), Episcopal Church (Church Publishing Inc.), United Church of Christ (Pilgrim Press), and United Methodist Church (Abingdon Press).
To schedule an interview with Paul Franklyn, contact Diane Morrow, dmorrow@tbbmedia.com or 800.927.1517.