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On the other hand, this would be to lose much of the flavor and meaning of the originals.Īs our communal, and my own personal, sensitivity grew in the years after the writing of “You Are Near,” we came to understand that speaking the name “Yahweh” out loud was not in keeping with our long Christian tradition, and was, in fact, offensive to Jewish sisters and brothers. It is not without hesitation that this accurate form has been used, and no doubt those who may care to use this translation of the Psalms can substitute the traditional “the Lord”. It is in the Psalms especially that the use of the divine name Yahweh may seem unacceptable – though indeed the still stranger form Yah is in constant use in the acclamation Hallelu-Yah (Praise Yah!). It might be interesting for your bloggers to read what the Editor’s Forward in the JB says about their decision: It was certainly not a frivolous decision on their part. The JB team of translators decided to use the name “Yahweh” whenever the tetragrammaton YHWH appeared in the original Hebrew text.
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And, like you, I turned to the JB translation in considering Biblical texts my compositions. I first learned to pray the Psalms from the Jerusalem Bible. The translation was modern, in the best sense of that word, and attempted to be true to the poetic character of the Biblical songs, especially the Psalms. It was the long-awaited project of some of the world’s most respected scripture scholars. When I entered the Jesuit novitiate in 1966, the Jerusalem Bible had just been published. I do remember beginning it while on retreat and working on it for several months before I was satisfied.
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I’m afraid there’s no special story behind it. I wrote this piece in 1970, as a very young man. And, as is evident on your website, much of it has been centered around my song, “You Are Near.” I suppose I should receive that as a compliment. There certainly has been a flurry of discussion arising from the recent directive from the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments.