The Jerusalem Bible from Desclée de Brouwer changed the word "man" ("hombre") to "person" ("persona") in its most recent Spanish edition.
The classic appeal of Jesus to His disciples in Matthew 4:19 to become "fishers of men" has been changed to the more gender-neutral "fishers of persons," Catholic News Agency reported.
The Jerusalem Bible is an English translation of the Catholic Bible that was first published in 1966. It comprises seven more books considered extra-biblical outside of the Catholic Church, in addition to the 66 books of the Protestant Bible. Unlike the Latin Vulgate, the Jerusalem Bible was first printed in French in 1956 and maintains to be based on the original Hebrew and Greek manuscripts.
The revision was prompted by "fidelity to the original text," not by social pressure or trend, according to Javier Gogeaskoetxea, general director of the Desclée De Brouwer publishing house. The Jerusalem Biblical and Archaeological School, not the publisher, made the choice, according to Gogeaskoetxea. The school is affiliated with the Dominicans, a Catholic religious order.
He realized that the translation was being used to 'polemicize' by using 'inclusive' terminology. He argued that the Greek word is neither man nor woman, so if they're to put "man," it would be aligned to the original text. According to Gogeaskoetxea, the original Greek language does not mention gender for "Anthropos," hence the translation reflects this.
The Greek word "Anthropos" which means "man," appeared more than 500 times in the New Testament, including several times when Jesus refers to Himself as the "Son of Man."
Priests Air Disagreement To Changes
"The translation as 'people' has its challenges," Father Jesús Silva, Patristic Theology graduate and a priest writer wrote on Twitter. Silva noted that Jesus wasn't referring to humans alone but He also called to evangelize the angels of God.
As the Royal Academy of the Spanish Language describes it as a "rational being," the priest wondered if an "intelligent alien" exists, it would be unclear if the name "human" can be applied to them. He said the idea of human individuals is similarly ambiguous until this is established.
It was because "human persons" is such a broad phrase, Silva explained. To prevent misconceptions that arise with words like 'person,' 'human being,' or 'human earthling,' we may translate the word 'Anthropos' as man,' which includes all of the above,' thereby following the principle of language economy.
The Diocese of Cuenca's Fe. Antonio Mara Domenech Guillén seems to concur with Silva's view. "It doesn't seem right to me," Cuenca wrote, "but I believe it has the value that we accord it; if we read Holy Scripture every day, we would have understood long ago that the Jerusalem Bible translation is not the best alternative.
The Jerusalem Bible - now known as the New Jerusalem Bible - has become the most commonly used Roman Catholic Bible outside of the United States after its English translation was thoroughly updated in 1985.
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