Ignatius Bible: Revised Standard Version - Second Catholic Edition

They say the best bible is the one you find yourself reading the most. This compact bible has been great for carrying around and traveling. Below I added a few pros and cons of this bible. Pros: - The Bible is definitely compact, making it great for packing into a bag in comparison to a standard sized bible. - The print size is pretty standard without any difficulty reading. I have had previous compact bibles with significantly small print, too small for my liking. This one is nice and easily readable. - The RSV CE is a great translation for the Bible. Much like translations like the ESV, the RSV takes a literal translation approach, rather than a dynamic translation used in NABRE used in the liturgical mass. While I enjoy the NABRE, the RSV makes for a great study bible to reference. I personally use the Bible while listening to Fr. Mike Schmitz’s Bible in a Year podcast. While the podcast from Ascension uses their Great Adventure Bible RSV 2nd Catholic Edition, this one follows with minor differences. The 2nd edition uses some more modern language in books like the Psalms, such as “you,” whereas this version uses some old English language such as “thy.” - This is a beautiful bible that would make for a nice gift or a personal bible. While I’m not a big fan of imitation leather, the cover is a beautiful color, and the zipper is a nice addition. The zipper makes this bible a bit more durable when packing into a bag, and the zipper pull has a nice miraculous medal. The edges of the paper are golden lined which always adds a nice touch. - The price is great for what you get. When looking around for a good personal bible, I considered the Great Adventure bible from Ascension Press. While that one is a great choice, the Bible is $60, while this one is nearly a third of the price. Cons: - The one thing I don’t enjoy about this bible is the lack of section headings over the passages of scripture. This is one of the ways Ignatius uses to keep a compact size for the Bible. Rather than section headings, the Bible contains break lines between sections of scripture to identify different passages. A minor complaint, but something to consider when looking at this bible. - There aren’t many appendix notes, which is expectable for a compact bible. If you are looking for a bible with a lot of references for studying like the Great Adventure bible, this one doesn’t really have much. There are some notes in the end appendix, as well as some dogmatic notes and popular prayers which is a nice addition. Since it is advertised as a compact bible rather than a study bible, I would not really consider this a negative, but again something to consider when looking at this bible. Overall I think this is bible is great and a great choice that I would recommend buying.

I have to give this edition of the Bible 5 stars. I bought this so I would have a small Bible to take with me to work, and I'm impressed. Translation: This Bible uses the RSV-CE (Revised Standard Version - Catholic Edition). In short, the RSV is a new translation first published in 1952 with the aim of creating a more readable translation of the Bible from the King James Version (KJV) while preserving some of the literary greatest of the KJV. What resulted was a very readable, yet still poetic version of the Bible. In 1966 a Catholic version was added, including the deuterocanonical book (known by most protestants as the apocrypha, of doubtful origin, texts present in the historic Christian Septuagint Greek version of the Old Testament but not in the current canon of Jewish Scripture) and a more traditional translation of Isiah 7.14 (changing "young woman" back to "virgin"). Unlike the New American Bible (NAB), Maccabees is placed at the end of the Old Testament as in the Vulgate and the Douay–Rheims, presumably because it was written after the other books. The NAB places Maccabees after Ester, closer to the other historical books. This translation is both easy to read and faithful to the literary tradition of English Bibles, keeping the translation choices used by most Christians for hundreds of years. It is superior in it's readability to the Challoner revision of the Douay–Rheims Bible from 1752 and is less "sterilized" than the New American Bible (NAB). Be advised this is not the version used at Mass or the Liturgy of the Hours, ICEL (International Commision on English in the Liturgy). The Mass in the USA uses a highly edited version of the NAB and the LOTH uses the Grail psalter. That being said this translation is still an excellent one for study. It has comparably fewer notes than the NAB, which is both a pro and a con. A con as more notes would help to contextualize the content, a pro as some of the NAB notes are from rather dated revisionist scholarship from the 70s, Extra-scriptural content: As this is a compact version, it does not have much by the way of "extras". There are no maps, few essays, only an introduction and Dei Verbum (Vatican II document on Sacred Scripture). If you are looking for a Bible with maps of Israel/Palestine or the route of Exodus, you should consider the normal edition of this Bible, the compact edition, being compact, contains little more than the text. It does have a family register in the front, which I found superfluous for what I consider a more utility Bible, this is not the kind of Bible you want as a family heirloom. It has no pictures or illustrations. It does contain a weights and measures conversion chart in the front. Unlike the normal version of this Bible, there is no picture on the front. Binding: This is where this particular edition shines. It's a little bigger than a paperback novel, and a lot thinner. Think Moleskin journal, it fits in my back pocket. The cover is leather and surrounds the pages on the sides and has a zipper that you can use to zip up the cover. It has gold gilt pages worth of the Word of God. It does not contain a ribbon page marker. I can't make up my mind if the Miraculous Medal zipper pull is gold colored plastic or gold painted base medal. It's print is very small, so be warned. Pros: Size: I see many people complaining about the size of the Bible and the size of the print. This is because it's a compact edition. Amazon needs to fix it's title, it's a Compact Edition. "Burgundy, Zipper Duradera" refers to the binding, the picture clearly shows it's a compact edition and Amazon should say this on it's title or description. Do not buy this if you have trouble reading small print, it's a waste of your money. If you have good eyes and need a portable Bible (say if you're a priest who is on the go, or a business man who wants something to fit in his laptop bag, or a soldier needing something to take with him) it's perfect. If you are a 65 year old who needs a magnifying glass to read the paper, don't bother, buy a large print version instead. zipper: The zipper is great, it help you keep your book marks in place when on the go. This is a Bible I can drop in my backpack and go. Cons: zipper pull: It looks cheap. Time will tell, but I'm worried it's going to fall off, it doesn't feel very sturdy. This isn't entierly fair, it hasn't fallen off yet, but I'm a little worried, but time will tell. Presentation section: It wastes about 6 leafs of space on a glossy presentation/family history section. I can understand a single page presentation section, this could be a gift. The family register makes no sense for a Bible this size. No one is going to use this as their family Bible, it's a utility Bible for reading on the go. This space would be better used on maps. Maps: or lack there of. Again, they should have ditched the family register for some maps. No ribbon marker: The description says there is a ribbon marker, there is not. It could really use a ribbon marker to keep your place, right now I'm using a Holy Card. My concern is the card likes to fall out and as it's such a small version, the spine doesn't separate from the cover to allow me to put in a ribbon marker. Use a non-glossy bookmark/holy card. This isn't a con, but it's advertised as having a beautiful box. It's box is functional, but it's not something you would keep. Not that it matters as this is a travel-sized bible! who keeps it in a box!

A very nice compact bible!! The fact that the case zippers closed is nice, as that will protect the bible from dust, weather, etc. It seems like a good quality bible. The text is obviously on the smaller side, but it is readable even by my 62yo eyes, as long as I have good, direct lighting. The bible also includes the Church document "Dei Verbum," and a Miraculous Medal on the zipper pull.

The large print makes for easy reading, although I would prefer white paper to the cream color (more contrast for old eyes). The RSV 2CE is a good, literal translation, no archaic English, easy to read. I would prefer to maintain the various names of God in the old testament instead of the use of "Lord", it seems more personal to me, like addressing a friend by name, not title or job description. This is my daily reading bible. If I have a question about the meaning, I can reference one of my various study bibles or my Greek/English Septuagint or New Testament. Other wise the study bibles are a distraction and I end up arguing with the notes if I think they left something out, concentrate on another aspect of the text, or worse. The size is not a factor; since I'm retired, I don't need a small, portable bible to carry around. If you need a Catholic study bible (and if you are a serious student of the bible, you do) consider: the Great Adventure Bible, Didache Study Bible, Ignatius Study Bible, or Jerusalem Study Bible (my favorite but out of print, buy used) depending on your needs and temperament. Consider more than one study bible for additional perspectives. This is my personal bible for old age, prayer, and reflection. Through the scripture I hear the voice of my Heavenly Father.

I LOVE THIS BIBLE!!

This bible is easy to read but is a very large in volume. If I purchased it again I would purchase the old and new testements in seperate volumes.

The Ignatius Catholic Bible RSV (Revised Standard Version) in the Compact Zippered format is the best portable bible I've found. Here's why I highly recommend it over other portable/compact versions: - Ideal size: The bible is 5" wide x 6.5" tall x 1" thick... Very easy to carry in a hand, briefcase, purse, or backpack. I love the size because it's neither too large to tote around, nor too small to hold comfortably. - Nice cover/binding: the cover is made of brown stitched leather with a zippered perimeter and a stitched binding that ensures the pages will stay put for a long time. The cover is just thick enough to offer good protection/durability without compromising the portability. The metal zipper feels sufficiently durable and is equipped with a nice metal pull that makes it easy to open and close. An un-zippered version of this bible is also available, but if you plan to carry it in a briefcase, purse, or backpack, I strongly recommend the zippered version to protect the (very thin) pages. - Nice print: the text is small, but crisp and very readable, in a clean-looking serif font. (Of course, if you have poor eyesight, a small-print compact bible is definitely not for you.) The pages are extremely thin to reduce heft, but thick and bright enough that there is very little "bleed through" of the text on the opposite side of each page. To prevent tearing, you will need to handle the pages carefully and avoid writing on them; however, the paper is certainly durable enough to stand up to casual page turning. - Clean format: There are chapter headings and verse numbers, but no embedded footnotes; instead, all explanatory notes are relegated to the end of each (Old/New) Testament section. Only a few brief translation notes appear at the end of each page. This yields a smooth, uncluttered reading experience that I really like. However, this layout would be less than ideal for rigorous bible study/discussion groups and other situations in which the reader might prefer the detail and quicker access of footnotes. - Excellent translation: I think this is the best Catholic-approved translation currently available. It is more accurate than the Douay-Rheims, more traditional- and poetic-sounding than the New American Bible (NAB), and free of the "inclusive language" that mars the New Revised Standard Version (NRSV). Although I still prefer the poetic richness of the Douay-Rheims and King James (KJV) versions, the RSV translation is more accurate (better scholarly standards applied to older, more authoritative manuscripts) and most people will find it much easier to read because it updates obsolete language (thee/ye --> you, etc.). At the same time, it remains much more poetic/traditional than the New American Bible, which has been "modernized" to the point that it sounds too casual to my ear. Also, I have nothing against inclusive language and gender fairness in contemporary society, but I don't believe politically-correct concerns are a sufficient reason to actively modify scripture and distort the real politics of the historical cultures recorded in the bible. There is a difference between translation and revision. I welcome expanded roles for women in the church, but I don't approve of altering Holy Scripture merely to assuage political concerns. Several scholars who worked on the NRSV felt the same way, but they were overruled and forced to adopt the inclusive language. - Great price: Seriously, $20 is a bargain for a portable, nicely-printed, nicely-bound, excellently-translated bible. To qualify for Super Saver Shipping, I recommend also purchasing a set of bible indexing tabs. I bought the "Bible Indexing Tabs Great Adventure" set from Ascension Press for $6.95 and found them perfectly adequate... a full set of color-coded Catholic bible tabs printed on thin but durable adhesive material. The tabs fit inside the zippered enclosure and make it much easier to locate specific books and passages quickly. - Extra features: Besides the Holy Scriptures... the bible includes a series of introductory pages with space for (1) a formal presentation page in case the bible is given as a gift (fill in the names of the giver, recipient, and date); (2) spaces to record of the owner's baptism, first communion, confirmation, and marriage; (3) and spaces to record the "family history": names and birthdates for the owner's parents, siblings, grandparents, children, and grandchildren. After these, you will find a Foreword, an Introduction, and the "Dogmatic Constitution on Divine revelation, Dei Verbum, 18 November 1965." In the very back, you will also find "Prayers and Devotions of The Catholic Faith". Nice! CONS? None really, but this bible would be perfect if it also included a nice ribbon bookmark. Since it doesn't, you'll need to buy or make one of your own. No big deal. [UPDATE 6/4/2012: The only issue I've had with this bible since ordering it months ago and reading it regularly is that the little zipper pull tab has come off three times. Each time, it was fairly easy to loop it back onto the chain link and gently squeeze the link shut with a pliers again. Not a big deal. Other than that, I love this bible. The print is so small it is a little challenging to read in very low light, but that's to be expected from such a compact edition. Add a clip-on reading light and reading it in bed is simple and delightful.]

I will admit I have more bibles than I need and in different translations. As a practicing Catholic. I have come to love the RSV 2CE for its formal translation and it’s beautiful almost poetic writing at times. I enjoy this translation over the NAB. I also find it is an easier translation to spend hours reading. This Bible is extremely beautiful. The gold lettering and artwork on the cover and the gold foil page edges contrast the blue leather so nicely. This is a large Bible and is heavy so not ideal for reading in bed but great for in a chair. The pages have a yellow cream coloration that I absolutely love. It takes away the glare and as mentioned I can spend hours reading without eye strain. The type is bold and large. Very large and it did take getting used to but now I love it. Margins are perfect and double column. Only critique is that I wish the Bible had intro pages to each book and more foot notes. However, given the size and weight I can understand. I cannot say enough good about this Bible in terms of reliability, beauty, craftsmanship and just wonderful translation.