Newark evening star and Newark advertiser. [volume] (Newark, N.J.) 1909-1916, 1913-10-20
GASQUET TELLS OF
VULGATE REVISION
Noted English Scholar Explains
Reasons for Vatican Work
on the Latin Bible.
LOCAL AUDIENCE HEARS
ADDRESS AT PROCTOR'S
Monsignor WheIan Presides
and Prof. j. c. Monaghan
Introduces PapaI Envoy.


England, president of the commission
appointed by Pope Plus X. six years
ago to begin the work preparatory to
a revision of the Latin text of the
Bible, lectured at Proctor's Theatre
here last night. He explained the rea-
sons for the revision of the document
that was compiled by st. Jerome, in
the fourth century, and which he as
serted is the sole standard authority
of it's kind. He also told of the diff
culties experienced by the commission
of Benedictine monks monks in
handling a task of such magnitude
and the necessity for scrupulous care
in translation from the manuscripts
now in existence.
Monsignor Whelan presided at the
meeting, which was under the au-
spices of the local councils of the
knights of Columbus. The chairman
of the arrangements committee was
Board of Works Commissioner
Charles P. Gillen. An excellent musi-
cal and vocal entertainment was also
part of the program.
Lauded by Monaghan.
In a preliminary address the work
of Abbot Gasquet was told by Pro-
lessor James C. Monaghan, formerly
of the faculty of the University of
Wisconsin, recipient of the Laetare
medal of 1908, and for several years
chief of the consular report division
of the Bureau of Commerce and
Labor DIR. Monaghan is now con-
nected with the national board of the
knights of Columbus and told how
that order arranged for Abbot Gas
quet to visit the principal cities of the
United States in his effort to raise
funds to carry out the Vulgate re-
vision.
DR.. Monaghan, in eulogizing the
speaker, said that he would rather
place a rose in the abbots hand
while he is alive than fill the theatre
DEATH The sentiment was warmly
applauded by the audience. DR..
Monaghan went on to refer to the
abbot as the "emissary of the white
shepherd at Rome" and designated
the Vulgate revision as movement
in search of absolute truth.
In praising the work of Abbot Cas-
quet, Dr. Monaghan related a num-
Der of humorous anecdotes to Illus
trate his various points.
Abbot Gasquet was introduced by
Monsignor Whelan as "one of the
greatest leaders in English litera-
ture since the time of new
man." The abbot, after thanking
Monsignor Whelan and Dr. Mona
CHAN for saying such nice things
about him, settled down to explain
the work of revising the Bible, de-
claring that the main object of the
commission was to obtain the pure
text of the Scripture as written by
st. Jerome.
No Originals Exist.
49,
period of ST. Jerome existing at pres
ent, declared the abbot. it is the COM
missions work to collect copies of
the Bibles and Scriptural manuscript
eXtant. To illustrate how inaccur-
ACHES had crept into the work of
copying in the early days he quoted
paragraph in one Bible, which
reads:
after the straw had failed the
Egyptians rebelled when they were
sent out in search of straw
1t does rot require an enlightened
mind to see that it is quite improb-
able that these men were sent out
for straw after the straw crop had
failed" said the abbot. after care
full research work we found that
there had been an error in copying.
The mistake appears slight, as many
of them do, but improper copying,
pdilSludtlOll dlld Olutt lllIBS nave
made the work of revising the Latin
vulgate very difficult undertaking.
We found that the paragraph in
question should have read:
After straw had failed the Egyp-
tians rebelled when they were sent
out to search for reeds in place of
straw"
you see the three words, reeds
in place had been omitted by the
OF - a ha oh
is hut one example of the numerous
errors which we are trying to ferret
out"
Strange enough, the abbot said, a
French archeologist twenty years ago
fslbstantiated this part of the Scrip
lures by excavations in ancient build
ings of Egypt.
Continuing the abbot said:
SO clear is the importance of OBJ
tanning the pure text of st. Jerome
that it is considered by the most
competent authorities that the text
probably would be found to afford
better basis for the true text of
the Greek Septuagint Version than
any Greek manuscripts now extant.
To recover this text is the scope OF
the present commission
by the close of the year, 1907,
commission had assembled in Rome
20 discuss the best method of carry
Ing out the wishes of the Pope. From
the first it was obvious that the
work would be both long and costly.
The Holy Father desired that the
best methods should be employed re-
CARELESS of expense. He made him
self from the first responsible for all
necessary expenses, but he trusted
that the Catholic world would soon
recognize the Importance of this pro-
ject for religion, and would support
it by their contributions. In this eX-
pectation the Pope has not been dis
appointed and up to the present
there has been Forthcoming sufficient
means to carry on the work. Now
however, a new need has arisen
which obliges me to make wider
appeal to the Catholic world.
so far we have been most occu-
pied with the collection of material,
and with the collation. of the existing
manuscript with the present Latin
text To facilitate this, at the outset
it became necessary to print an
edition of this text, with large mar
gin for the purpose of noting the
various variants. In fact the print
occupied only one third part of the
paper. This entailed great expense
but its use. and, indeed, necessity,
has been obvious from the first to all
who are occupied in the work.
The collation. made upon these
sheets are returned to Rome when
finished, and are bound into volumes.
Already this collection forms a large
library, which is daily increasing on
the shelves of our commission room.
But beyond this it was determined
that it was imperative to secure per-
: ct accuracy, to have Photographic
epies made of practically all the
aneient texts used in the revision.
his also entailed a great expenditure