Wide As the Waters: The Story of the English Bible and the Revolution It Inspired

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Summary: The Translators Brought Us Liberty
Review: There is a famous Italian proverb, "Traduttore, traditore," which means, "The translator is a traitor." It is generally taken to mean that someone who translates a work betrays the work itself, as a translation cannot sufficiently convey the original. But in the case of the Bible, translation has been regarded literally as a betrayal, a betrayal against religious or civic authority that might result in the most severe of punishments. In _Wide as the Waters: The Story of the English Bible and the Revolution It Inspired_ (Simon & Schuster) Benson Bobrick tells about the dangers of this particular betrayal as the Bible was launched by various attempts over the centuries into English. The popes and monarchs were right to be worried about putting the Bible into the vernacular.

The right of the individual to make private religious inquiry may be said to have started with John Wycliffe, who was involved in translating the Bible in 1380. His work was suppressed and condemned as heretical. The offended and unforgiving church dug up his bones forty years after he died and burned them. The father of the English Bible as we know it is William Tyndale. He was a child prodigy in languages and "singularly addicted to the study of the scriptures." Influenced by the Humanists and by Luther, and taking advantage of the advent of printing by movable type, he wanted lay-people themselves to see the "process, order, and meaning of the text." He was hounded into Europe, and Henry VIII put watches on English ports to ensure his dangerous book did not sully their shores. Tyndale lived a hunted life in Europe, was betrayed and captured in Antwerp, tried for heresy, and strangled and burned.

Bobrick, of course, explains much about the formation of the King James Version by fifty distinguished scholars, and he gives examples of the evolution of the Bible, with the KJV shining admirably in comparison to its predecessors. Although the story of how we came to have an English Bible is a fascinating one, Bobrick's main thesis is that a popular Bible changed the way everyone regarded kings, popes, and governments. Removed from the clutches of the clergy, the Bible became the instruction for any individual who cared to take it up and interpret it in any manner. It was not necessarily that the Bible had instruction in liberty, but being able to read it freely was a token of the importance of liberty; it wasn't especially important whether reading the Bible turned readers into Christians. Those who upheld the individual reading of scripture were those who promoted freedom of the press and who saw the conscience of the individual as the authority in all things. They thereby reduced the authority of clergy and kings. Those who could read the Bible themselves began to cite its many examples of bad kings and religious leaders when making comparisons to contemporaries. The read-it-yourself Bible was a blow for individual conscience, one which brought on a constitutional crisis in Britain and eventually spurred independence for the United States. Bobrick's well-researched and persuasive book shows that all of us, believers or not, are in debt to those who thought the Bible ought to be in everyone's hands.

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Summary: WHETHER YOU ACCEPT THE BIBLE OR NOT, A GREAT BOOK
Review: Whether you believe the Bible or not, Wide As the Waters is a fascinating study of the history of a book that changed the world as we know it today.

Not an overtly religious book, this study provides a unbiased look at the historical events that swirled in England as the Bible was introduced there in English and shows how the Bible and debates regarding it and its origins helped shape views regarding modern ethics, politics and law.

Don't let the subject be a deterrent. Wide as the Waters is well written and a concise, fast and enjoyable read. Regardless of your personal beliefs, this book will provide a better understanding of the modern world and the impact that these times had on it.

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Summary: Interesting Look at the Creation of the Bible in English
Review: Wide as the Waters (The Story of the English Bible and the Revolution It Inspired), by Benson Bobrick, tells the three century story of the translantion of the Bible in English from Wycliffe to the King James version. It is a fascinating journey full of both noble and horrible characters and, generally, violent and restless times as, eventually, all of society is changed and many traditions are uprooted forever. The author builds a case (only partially successful) for the English translation of the Bible as one of the main progenitors for this revolutionary time, as opposed to merely a product of this time period. This chicken and egg argument, though, should not distract the reader from the pleasure of soaking into this slice of history. The book does flag somewhat in the last quarter as the creation of the King James bible does not have the drama of some of the story that has gone before (particulary the Wycliffe and, later, the Henry VIII bibles). An interesting piece of pop and religious history.

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Summary: Wide As The Waters Fills One's Thirst for English Verse
Review: WIDE AS THE WATERS answers so many questions about history of English Bible and it's tremendous influence on Western culture including representative democracy. It has a great story for all evangelistic Christians and how Holy Scripture became available to all people. The struggle was surprisingly long, hard, and filled with violence and tribulation for all involved, commoners and royalty. It is told in story form yet based on comprehensive scholarly historic research.

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Summary: Perseverance through Great Difficulties
Review: Wide as the Waters is the fascinating story of the struggle to produce a Bible in the English language during the Reformation era. Short biographies of John Wycliffe, William Tyndale, Miles Coverdale, et.al. are impressive because they show the strength and determination these men had. They were literally taking their lives in their hands when they dared to challenge the official Church's doctrinal line. Parallel translations included in the text demonstrate how profound doctrinal differences between Catholic and Protestant could develop over the translation (or mistranslation) of a word or two. Bobrick provides some fascinating material on the men who worked on the various translations, not only those already well known but also on the hitherto almost anonymous, such as the committee members who created the Authorized or King James Version of 1611.

As the struggle for an English Bible continued, the notion of challenging the Official Version of things spread from religious to governmental matters, and the push to reform the English Church led to the push to reform English government. That, in turn, led to the American push to end English control over the colonies. That insight alone makes the book well worth the price.