There was a surprise in a recent MB Herald (April 2012) in the form of a review of a new Bible version called The Voice New Testament (by Ecclesia Bible Society). The Crosscurrents crtique, called New Translation Hits Some High Notes,
seemed to base its criteria on personal preference and layout more than
on who the voices are behind this retelling of Scripture. Although
there was some hesitancy to give The Voice a full stamp of approval, the
reviewers pointed out its many positive points: it reads as a play,
makes dialogue acceptable, simplifies stories, is helpful, gives the
occasional “aha!” moment, and fills a niche (somewhere between the NLT
and The Message). They then concluded that it is “certainly a useful
translation for newcomers or alongside other more standard versions,”
giving it 3 1/2 stars out of 5.
But here’s what the MB Herald has not told its readers about The Voice:
Unfortunately, the project turns out to be an emerging church creation, thus the foundation of it is marred from the beginning. Because mysticism, New Age ideology, and a return to Rome, are the building blocks of the emerging church, The Voice is going to be a spiritually dangerous conduit for adherents. Some of the emergent leaders involved in the project are Chris Seay (project founder), Brian McLaren, Lauren Winner, Leonard Sweet, and Blue Like Jazz author, Donald Miller.
Of monumental concern is Brian McLaren’s contribution to The Voice
and his work on improving the books of Luke and Acts. It’s not
surprising that McLaren’s approach to God’s written Word is so
lighthearted that he thinks it is a production of man and therefore is
open for upgrading. As he wrote in one of his many controversial books:
“Scripture is something God had ‘let be,’ and so it is at once God’s creation and the creation of the dozens of people and communities and cultures who produced it.” (Brian McLaren, A Generous Orthodoxy, p. 162) Continue at Menno-Lite
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