Jerusalem Bible

The Jerusalem Bible was the first major postwar English Catholic Bible translated from the original languages with broad literary ambition. Covering the complete Catholic Bible, it was rendered from Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek, though its notes and editorial model were influenced by the French Bible de Jérusalem, produced by the Dominican scholars of the École Biblique in Jerusalem, which stands as its predecessor and base. Appearing in the years following the Second Vatican Council, when Catholic translation moved away from reliance on the Latin Vulgate, it is best categorized as a fresh translation carrying French-Jerusalem influence, with a translation philosophy that is literary and moderately dynamic. Among its distinctive features, it is famously noted that J. R. R. Tolkien contributed to Jonah and consulted on matters of style, though he did not serve as a general translator. It was widely adopted for liturgical and study use in English-speaking Catholic circles.