Scripture Versions
   
Versions of Scripture for liturgical and school use  

The Bishops' Conference of England and Wales has approved four translations of Scripture for liturgical use.

The predominant translation currently used in the liturgy is the Jerusalem Bible (JB) except for the psalms for which the Grail Psalms are used. Note that the approved liturgical version is the original 1966 Jerusalem Bible (JB), not the more recent 1985 New Jerusalem Bible (NJB) or 2018 Revised New Jerusalem Bible (RNJB).

The first lectionary (produced in 1966 for England and Wales, and Scotland) used the Revised Standard Version (RSV) and this translation continues to be an approved alternative to the JB.

For the past few years, the bishops of England and Wales have been considering using the New Revised Standard Version (NRSV) in a Catholic edition which was to be known as the Bede Bible. At their Low Week meeting at Easter 2016, they made the decision to abandon this project. The new lectionary will use the Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition (RSVCE) - a revision of the RSV translation already approved for liturgical use.

The Good News Bible (GNB) is approved for use in children's liturgies.

There is no official Lectionary for Masses with Children in the UK. The United States Catholic Bishops' Conference has published a Lectionary which provides readings for Sundays, feast days and weekdays using the 1995 Contemporary English Version (CEV) translation of the Bible. This Lectionary is an excellent resource for schools.
Lectionary for Masses with Children (1997)


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Guidance on using Scripture in schools  

In choosing which Scripture translation to use in school liturgies and assemblies, the main consideration should be one of intelligibility.

Paraphrases of Scripture should be avoided as much as possible.

 
Links to online texts  

JB
Jerusalem Bible
This online version is set out verse by verse and so needs some editing for use in Mass booklets; but it is the only online version.

RSV
Revised Standard Version

RSV(CE)
Revised Standard Version (Catholic Edition)

GNB
Good News Bible
Also known as the Good News Translation (GNT) or Today's English Version (TEV).

The Grail Psalms
The Grail translation of the psalms is not available online. The printed edition is available from Amazon.