DOUAI BIBLE. – English Catholic translation of Holy Scripture, made between 1578 and 1610.

During the reign of Elizabeth (1558-1603) the biblical texts were continually used by Protestant polemicists against the Church. There were no Catholic versions in current English for the use of the public; the medieval one was antiquated, and the recent versions (Tyndale, Coverdale, the Geneva and Bishops' Bibles) were Protestant. In 1578 Dr. Gregory Martin, with the help of the future Cardinal Allen, and of Thomas Worthington, Richard Bristowe, John Reynolds and others, began a translation, based on the Vulgate. The New Testament was published at Reims in 1582; for this reason it is often called The Rheims Testament (subsequent editions: 1600, 1621, 1633, 1728, 1788, 1803); the Old Testament at Douai in 1609. The whole Bible came out in 2 vols. in 4to in 1609-10.

This version is good, accurate and learned, but it is too Latinizing and of unwieldy format. The Anglican authorised version (1611) owes much to it, as many non-Catholics today admit. Allen (v.) supplied the marginal notes of the Rheims Testament; a learned preface explained the reason for the work.

The name Douai Bible is now generally given, but wrongly, to the new version composed by Challoner (v.) in 1749-52 (various later editions), much more fluent, of convenient format, much closer in style to the Anglican authorised of 1611. The other Catholic versions, by Carpenter (1783), Troy (1791), Haydock (1811-12), Murray (1835), Denvir (1836), Kenrick (1849-50), had little circulation; but Challoner's remained the classic Catholic Bible in the English language, until the version of Msgr. Knox was published (1945 ff.). Both enjoy the full approval and encouragement of the episcopate.

Bibliography2 works

BIBL.: J. G. Carleton, The part of Rheims in the making of the english Bible, Oxford 1902; B. Ward, Donny Bible, in Cath.Enc., V, p. 140 f.

Enrico G. Rope

@incollection{ec4_douai_bibbia_di, author = {Rope, Enrico}, title = {Douai, bibbia di}, booktitle = {Enciclopedia Cattolica}, volume = {IV}, pages = {1914--1915}, note = {Cited by column}, publisher = {Ente per l’Enciclopedia Cattolica e per il Libro Cattolico}, address = {Città del Vaticano}, year = {1950}, url = {https://azioneromana.com/article/douai-bibbia-di} }

One of some 20,000 entries brought back from the twelve printed volumes (1948–54). Spotted something? Help us improve it.

About this entry