Spanish Bible translation to be discussed by bishops - Nation - Brief Article

National Catholic Reporter, May 10, 2002

The U.S. bishops' Administrative Committee has approved formation of an ad hoc committee to formally explore the possibilities of a new Spanish Bible translation with the Latin American bishops' council and the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops.

The U.S. bishops estimate that the translation would take 10 years and cost $1 million. The translation would be from the original biblical languages.

The Latin American bishops' council plans to present the idea at its May 2003 general assembly.

Supporters of the idea say it would help unify the Spanish-speaking Catholics in the hemisphere, standardize the use of Bible quotes in catechetical and liturgical materials, and provide revenue through royalties and sales.

Anticipated difficulties include variations in Spanish terminology from country to country, different cultural and social situations throughout the region that influence understanding and application of sacred scripture, and finding a large enough group of biblical scholars with the time for the huge translating task.

Currently, several Spanish Bible translations are used in the hemisphere but none with the official approval of all the bishops' conferences in the Americas. Under church norms, each national bishops' conference is autonomous in choosing which Bible translations are used officially in its country.

There are about 330 million Spanish-speaking people in the hemisphere. More than 300 million are Catholics.

A Spanish-language Bible done completely in the Western Hemisphere would be a new source of income for the Latin American bishops' council. Currently, all Spanish Bibles officially used in the hemisphere are published by editorial houses in Spain.