The Rhemes New Testament; Being a full and particular Account of the Origins, Printing, and subsequent influences of the first Roman Catholic New Testament in English
San Francisco: The Book Club of California, 1990. Limited edition. Quarto (10 1/4 inches tall), original gray paper boards, red morocco spine with gilt title, original plain white paper dust wrapper with spine titled in ink. Fine. Item #1685
"THE RHEMES NEW TESTAMENT WAS AND REMAINS A VERY IMPORTANT STEP IN THE TRANSMISSION OF THE ENGLISH BIBLE TO OUR TIME"
Limited edition of Decherd Turner's engaging study of the Rheims Bible—the first Roman Catholic translation ("We translate this sacred book") of the New Testament into English. Printed in an edition of only 395 copies and issued as Publication 193 for the Book Club of California, this copy is bound with an original printed leaf from the 1582 first edition. A fine introduction to a pivotal edition in the history of the English Bible.
Lacking priests, the isolated English Catholics needed a vernacular Bible of their own to compete with their Protestant adversaries. The Rhemes New Testament, translated from the Latin Vulgate and printed by English Catholic exiles, was essentially the "tip of the spear" of the Catholic Reformation, arming the clandestine efforts of the missionary priests of the newly established Society of Jesus. Prepared by Decherd Turner (of the Humanities Research Center at the University of Texas, Austin), this history of the conception, printing, reception, and influence of the first Catholic New Testament in English is composed of five sections: 1. The Book, 2. The Preface, 3. People, 4. The Text, 5. Annotations, 6. The RNT Today.
The appearance of the Rhemes New Testament ignited Scriptural warfare among theologians of all stripes. Special focus is given to William Fulke's treatises attacking the Catholic New Testament. Ironically, what Fulke "did was to insure a wide reading of the Rhemes New Testament, a reading it would never have obtained otherwise." The text is illustrated with reproductions of the title page of the Rhemes New Testament (1582) and Fulke's The Text of the New Testament of Jesus Christ (1589). This copy is also graced with a tipped-in original printed leaf from the Second Epistle to the Thessalonians (Cha. III, pp.561-562), with the admonition: "that if any vvill not worke, neither let him eat." This particular leaf from 2 Thessalonians provides an extensive example of the combative "Annotations" footnoted throughout the text. Evidently, the leaves for this book had been in the possession of the Book Club of California for years, put aside for this "leaf book" by David Magee and not rediscovered until years after Magee's death. This copy includes the Book Club of California's original prospectus and an invitation to the reception marking the publication laid-in at the back. "The Two Hundredth Book" (Book Club of California 1993).
Price: $150.00