Lost in Translation

At a recent ecumenical event, the following translation of the 23rd Psalm was used. It comes from the New American Bible.

The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want.
In verdant pastures he gives me repose;
Beside restful waters he leads me;
he refreshes my soul.
He guides me in right paths
for his name's sake.
Even though I walk in the dark valley
I fear no evil; for you are at my side
With your rod and your staff
that give me courage.
You spread the table before me
in the sight of my foes;
You anoint my head with oil;
my cup overflows.
Only goodness and kindness follow me
all the days of my life;
And I shall dwell in the house of the LORD
for years to come.

As I was organizing the paperwork, I kept looking at that last line and blinking. For years to come? Years to come?

I don't know about you, but I'd like forever. Period. And I shall dwell in the house of the Lord forever.

I have no concept of what forever is like. I've sat through some long and boring things. I been to some great events I hoped wouldn't end. I was in labor for a dang long time, but it wasn't forever. It wasn't even years.

If I had heard this translation for most of my life, it would likely be the one to give me comfort. I'd probably see little difference between "years to come" and "forever". However, having grown up with "forever"- anything other than that exact time concept seems like, well, short-changing my expectations. (Of which I have none, except maybe fried chicken and singing, but not at the same time.)

Bible translations are interesting because 85% of them are essentially based on a handful of manuscripts, but also reflect the theological, political and social positions of the translators. I lean toward the New Revised Standard myself because I think it's a fairly good translation. However, I know that there are alterations to the text to be in keeping with current social thought. Toward more inclusive language, The NRSV tends to use "friends" where the Greek says "brothers". Somedays I'm bothered by this, other days not so much.

I also like Eugene Peterson's The Message for his turns of phrase and ways of expression. I think the New International Verson and the New American Standard Bible also provide fairly accurate translation, combined with readability.

Some people choose Bibles because of what they grew up with in church or because of what they think they "should" be reading. Some people have more mundane (!) concerns like font size, columns or no columns, words of Jesus in red, footnotes or the space for one's own notes.

Even with a translation you enjoy, we often still have preferences of the heart and mind for certain passages. The little Southern Baptist girl still inside me recites, "For God so loved the world that He sent his only begotten Son that whosoever believeth in him shalt not perish, but have everlasting life." Yet for 10 years I've used Bibles that read, "For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life."

In general, I would say the main thing is to have a Bible that you like to read, that's accessible to you. That's the first hurdle to Bible-reading.

As for Psalm 23, I think the following will be the translation I prefer for years to come. :)

The LORD is my shepherd;

I shall not want.

2 He makes me to lie down in green pastures;

He leads me beside the still waters.

3 He restores my soul;

He leads me in the paths of righteousness

For His name’s sake.

4 Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,

I will fear no evil;

For You are with me;

Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.

5 You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies;

You anoint my head with oil;

My cup runs over.

6 Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me

All the days of my life;

And I will dwell in the house of the LORD

Forever.

Religious Holidays in Anchorage

You may have read in the Anchorage Daily News about a new policy regarding certain religious holidays and the scheduling of school activities. If not, a link to the article is here . The new rules do not mean that school will be out on these new holiday inclusions, but that the Anchorage School District will avoid scheduling activities, like sporting events, on these days. The new list includes Passover, Rosh Hashanah , Yom Kippur , Eid al - Fitr and Eid al - Adha . They are added to a list which includes New Year's, Orthodox Christmas and Easter, Good Friday, Easter, Thanksgiving Day and Christmas. The new holidays may be unfamiliar to some: Passover is a Jewish celebration, in the springtime, that commemorates the events in Egypt that led up to the Exodus. The name of the holiday comes specifically from the fact that the angel of death "passed over" the houses of the Israelites during the plague which killed the eldest sons of the Egyptians. Passover is a holiday

Latibule

I like words and I recently discovered Save the Words , a website which allows you to adopt words that have faded from the English lexicon and are endanger of being dropped from the Oxford English Dictionary. When you adopt a word, you agree to use it in conversation and writing in an attempt to re-introduce said word back into regular usage. It is exactly as geeky as it sounds. And I love it. A latibule is a hiding place. Use it in a sentence, please. After my son goes to bed, I pull out the good chocolate from my latibule and have a "mommy moment". The perfect latibule was just behind the northwest corner of the barn, where one had a clear view during "Kick the Can". She tucked the movie stub into an old chocolate box, her latibule for sentimental souvenirs. I like the sound of latibule, though I think I would spend more time defining it and defending myself than actually using it. Come to think of it, I'm not really sure how often I use the

When the Body of Christ is Fat

Bitmoji Julia enjoys tea Within a very short amount of time, two people whom I love were called "fat ass". One of these slurs occurred in the church building and the other occurred in the same building and within the context of worship. Both incidents were the result of a person with already impaired judgment lashing out at the person who was in front of them, perceiving them to be unhelpful or denying aid or service. Regardless of the "why", the reality is that the name was uncalled for, hurtful, and aimed to be a deep cut. The reality is that a person who is under the influence of legal or illegal substances and often displays impaired judgment can still tell that body shaming- comments about shape, appearance, or size- is a way to lash out at someone who is frustrating you. That means those words and that way of using them are deeply rooted in our culture. An additional truth is that when we, as a congregation, attempted to console and listen to those who h

Faith, Grace, and Hope

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