The Irish standard., 1913-09-13
IMPORTANT MISSION
OF ABBOT GAsQuET
Noted Benedictine Comes to Lecture
in America on Revision
of Latin Vulgate.
Most Critical and Sitting Revision
Undertaken in Scientific
Manner.
Novel Methods Used in Obtaining
Copies of Original Manu-
scripts.

Americans, in general, have not
been able to learn much of the revi-
sion of the Holy Bible going on with
in the committee rooms of the great
Benedictine College at Rome. A mere
word, now and then, has leaked out
about it. Learned and tireless men
have been at work for the last six
years, under Dom Gasquet's direction.
The world has been stirred up by re-
ports. small reports; but now, we are
to be given an opportunity to hear a
man, Of all men, best fitted to explain
the great purpose the Pope had in
calling together Dom Gasquet and his
committee of Benedictines. The task
is not a new one. It is an old one.
1t was often tried in the centuries
gone by and just as often abandoned
because the task which, at first sight,
seemed easy, turned out to be too
large for human powers then in the
worlds possession. In May, 1907, Pope
Plus x told the world he had made up
his mind to effect q most critical and
sitting revision of the Latin Bible, Of
ten referred to as the Vulgate. Such
| q revision had been demanded for a
long. tine-for centuries - but never
seemed 50 near accornp nplishment as It
{ ot.s
seems now. Now. for the first time
since st. Jerome made his revision,
/, towards the end of the fourth century,
the work has been undertaken and in
| Scientific and systematic way. Dom
Gasquet, now here, is singularly fitted
for the task. For years he has search
ed the archives Of England for man
uscripts. From such sources and 9TH
er rich continental resources Dom
Gasquet had produced his own great
works: Henry the Eighth" English
Monasteries," 1.-THE Eve of the Refor-
nation" and others. Not since New
mans day has England had such a
man as Dom Gasquet to do the work
J so long needed and so long demanded.
If the object of the commission was
clearly set forth in the charge made
1 by the Pope to the commission, it will
be set forth just as clearly before our
people by Dom Gasquet. The object
of the Pope and Of Dom Gasquet is
! to determine the wording of the text
! of st. Jerome's Latin translation of
the year 81.
Learned men tell us that st. Je-
rome was we'll fitted for the task CIV
en- him by Pope st. Damascus, and that
the manuscript at his disposal enabled
him to make an accurate Latin copy of
| the Bible. In those early days making
the copy Of book was great task,
as each letter had to be traced out or
painted by hand. The copyist fire.
quently added old readings, words and
phrases to st. Jerome's scholarly text.
Thus in time the new copies Of the
Vulgate were much like the ITALIA. a
pre- Jerome Latin edition of the Bible.
Cardinal Colonna, successor Of Pope
Gregory XIV, published Bible in
1892, that is known in history as the
Clementine Bible. When 1t came out
1t was not thought to be all that was
/, wanted, or all that a revision should
be. Scholars saw that some day the
entire work would have to be gone
over again, systematically and scien-
tifcally, If we were to have a Bible
such as the ages have been seeking:
To do the work of revising thorough
/ ly Dom Gasquet went at the work
with will and with a wonderful way
Of working. He sent Benedictine
scholars to search the archives and IL
braries Of Europe. Tirelessly these
men made their search. securing copies
Of 10000 pages Of biblical manu-
scripts. As the commission could not
borrow these manuscripts. and no man
on earth could get such valuable work
by buying. the commission struck up
on more modern and scientific way
!, Of gathering the manuscripts that had
hitherto obtained.
A large camera was rigged up, with
a rectangle prism attached to it's lens,
BY this method the picture Of man.
nscript is thrown directly upon q sem
q