The Irish standard., 1908-01-11
ORIGIN OF THE DouAY BIBLE
Every Copy Of 1t Is Linked With suf.
ferinus,

The "Douay Bible" is the name COM
monty given to the translation Of the
Holy Scriptures current among Eng
fish at Douay, and only a part of it
was published there, while the version
now in use has been so seriously all
tered that it can scarcely be consid-
cred identical with that which first
went by the name of the Douay Bible.
After the accession of Queen Eliza
beth, she adopted measures which led
many Catholic bishops and clergy to
seek refuge in foreign parts. Among
these was one William Allen, a men,
Der of an old Lancashire family, Can
on of York, and doctor in theology at
Oxford; subsequently a. cardinal and
archbishop Of Mechlin. Allen passed
over to Louvain, where he formed a
friendship with one Vaudeville, a pro-
fessor in the university. These two
friends accompanied by Morgan Phil
fps, formerly provost Of Oriel, made a
journey to Rome. While on the road
the idea struck Allen of erecting a
college in foreign parts of English &C.
clesiastics, a project which his two
friends entered into with the utmost
enthusiasm. Soon afterwards, in 1862,
Vaudeville was summoned to Douay as
professor of canon and civil law in the
newly erected university. He was
hardly installed in his new office
when it struck him that Douay was
the very place for an English college,
and at his earnest invitation. Allen
took up his residence as professor of
theology. A small house purchased
by Morgan Philips was the origin of
the English college; ere long, old stu
dents of Oxford and Cambridge,
through France and the Low Countries
f1ocked to Douay. Philip H., king of
Spain. and Pope Gregory XIII. ex-
tended their protection Soon the COL
lege at Douay sent over scores of &C.
clesiastics to England, where, as SEM
mary priests the laws punished them
with death, and in fact many were
called to lay down their lives for their
religion. This house, subsequently en-
larged, remained in the possession of
the English till the period of the
French Revolution. 1t is now an ar
tillery barrack. On it's walls are still
visible the mutilated remains of the
armorial bearings of several old Eng
lish families who had contributed to
it's erection. Here it was that OCon-
nell studied as boy, and Alban But
Ter wrote his Lives of the Saints" by
which his name will be forever known.
Owing to political troubles it's men,
bers, a few years after it's foundation,
took refuge at Rheims. There they
set to work at an English version of
the Bible made from the Hebrew and
Greek texts. The divines chiefly con-
cerned in the translation of the New
Testament We're: Cardinal Allen
mentioned above), DIR. Gregory Mar
tin, In. Richard Bristow, and John
Reynolds. all Of them bred at the Uni
versity of Oxford. The publication
was delayed by lack of means, but
in 1882 the New Testament was pub
lished at Rheims, the Old, in 1609-1O
at Douay There was second edition
of the Old Testament in 1855, of the
New in 1921; fourth in 1888: a fifth
in 1888; a sixth in Liverpool in 1888;
in 1916 an edition of the whole Bible
appeared in Ireland, in which the
Rhemish notes and text were mainly
adopted for the New Testament; an
eighth edition of the Rhemish New
Testament, text and notes, was pub
lished by Protestants in New York in
1894.
The first Douay Bibles were pro-
scribed by English law. All copies
sent over were seized and destroyed
when discovered. 1t was smuggled in,
volume by volume. Booksellers and
others having it for sale were hanged
Cardinal Wiseman said that no Eng
fish Catholic could ever enter Douay
without tears. The desecrated college
and chapel recall the hundreds Of mar
tyrs who persisted in England. No
Catholic can look on the original Dou-
ay Bible without respect and awe. Ev-
cry copy is linked with sufferings,
perhaps with death, under the terrible
penal laws of England. Ireland and
Scotland. AS the persecution spread
over them all. it is scarcely possible
that there is a copy which was not
handled by some martyr or confessor,
who laid down his life or spent years
in dungeon for the faith.
Promises Of An American Cardinal.
Again there is talk of another
American Cardinal. The New York
World announces that in an interview