Spotlight on the Navarre Bible

According to happycatholic.org, what is “like having faithful Catholic experts and scholars sitting next to me to shed light on Holy Scripture?”  The Navarre Bible!  Reading the Navarre Bible is the most commentary-rich Catholic Bible.  The Navarre Bible is extremely unique in its history, commentary, and text.

The History of the Navarre Bible

The project to create the Navarre Bible was initiated by St. Josemaria Escriva, founder of Opus Dei, and was completed by the faculty at the University of Navarre.  The entirety of the Navarre Bible has been published in 19 separate volumes which are: The Pentateuch, Joshua-Kings, Chronicles to Maccabees, Wisdom Books, Psalms and Song of Solomon, Major Prophets, Minor Prophets, St. Matthew, St. Mark, St. Luke, St. John, Acts of the Apostles, Romans and Galatians, Corinthians, Captivity Letters, Thessalonians, Hebrews, Catholic Letters, and Revelation.

The Commentary of the Navarre Bible

The commentary of the Navarre Bible is very extensive which makes the Navarre Bible ideal for anyone wishing to better understand Holy Scripture.  The commentaries usually take up around half of each page! Furthermore, each book of the Bible is prefaced with a detailed introduction addressing everything from authorship to style.  The professors at the University of Navarre pulled from spiritual writers, Doctors of the Church, Fathers of the Church, and Church documents in order to create the most extensive and detailed Biblical commentary imaginable.  This is why the writer at happycatholic.org feels the way he or she does.

The Text of the Navarre Bible

The actual text of the Navarre Bible is not only the RSV Catholic Bible translation but also the Latin Vulgate.  This way, if you know some Latin, you can read the English side-by-side with the Latin text of the Catholic Bible.  Some smaller Navarre Bibles do not include the Latin or as extensive commentary in order to fit the entire New Testament into one book.

As you can see, the Navarre Bible is one of the greatest Catholic study Bibles if not the greatest.  Any household or person would benefit from having the complete Navarre Bible Set (it is personally one of my goals to have the whole thing at some point).  If you want to get more out of Scripture, then the Navarre Bible is perfect.  Do you have a copy of the Navarre Bible?  If so, how has it affected your life?