A grievous example of translational hari-kari

I must confess that my intention for the Anglican Daily Prayer blog was to offer, as often as possible, original meditations on the lessons of the day. However, I have found this particularly challenging given the limited amount of time I have to get each day's meditation posted in a timely manner. Consequently, I have found myself, more often than not, falling back on classic and contemporary devotional readings or reflections from the Church Fathers. This is a task made considerably easier during Lent when I can usually find a reading appropriate for the season which doesn't have to be directly connected with the day's lessons.

Today, I selected an excerpt from Christus Veritas by William Temple published in the anthology, A Time to Turn: Anglican Readings for Lent and Easter, compiled by Christopher L. Webber. Temple, a prolific writer and theologian, served as Archbishop of Canterbury from 1942 until his untimely death in 1944. Christus Veritas, a 285-page essay, was written in 1924 when Temple was merely the Bishop of Manchester. Considering those historical circumstances, it would be safe to assume then-Bishop Temple used the Authorized (King James) Version or some similar translation for his Scriptural citations. I can't see him using some watered down "modern English" translation or paraphrase, as such novelties did not exist at the time. I was quite taken aback, then, when a familiar quote from Psalm 8 (vv. 3, 4) was rendered, "When I look at your heavens, the work of our fingers, the moon and the stars that you have established; what are human beings that you are mindful of them, mortals that you care for them?" 

Temple's original text did indeed use the King James translation, "When I consider Thy heavens, even the works of Thy fingers, the moon and the stars that Thou hast ordained—what is man, that Thou art mindful of him?" The modernized text in the Webber anthology is from the New Revised Standard Version and is one of its most grievous examples of translational hari-kari in the name of "inclusiveness." The writer of Hebrews cites this very passage in relation to the Incarnation.

For it was not to angels that God subjected the world to come, of which we are speaking. It has been testified somewhere,

“What is man, that you are mindful of him,
or the son of man, that you care for him?
You made him for a little while lower than the angels;
you have crowned him with glory and honor,
putting everything in subjection under his feet.”

Now in putting everything in subjection to him, he left nothing outside his control. At present, we do not yet see everything in subjection to him. But we see him who for a little while was made lower than the angels, namely Jesus, crowned with glory and honor because of the suffering of death, so that by the grace of God he might taste death for everyone.

For it was fitting that he, for whom and by whom all things exist, in bringing many sons to glory, should make the founder of their salvation perfect through suffering. For he who sanctifies and those who are sanctified all have one source. That is why he is not ashamed to call them brothers, saying,

“I will tell of your name to my brothers;
in the midst of the congregation I will sing your praise.”

And again,

“I will put my trust in him.”

And again,

“Behold, I and the children God has given me.”

Since therefore the children share in flesh and blood, he himself likewise partook of the same things, that through death he might destroy the one who has the power of death, that is, the devil, and deliver all those who through fear of death were subject to lifelong slavery. For surely it is not angels that he helps, but he helps the offspring of Abraham. Therefore he had to be made like his brothers in every respect, so that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in the service of God, to make propitiation for the sins of the people. For because he himself has suffered when tempted, he is able to help those who are being tempted.

(Hebrews 2:5-18 ESV)

The emasculation of the text, rendering the singular "man" as "human beings" and "son of man" as "mortals," has serious theological and Christological implications. Clearly the writer of Hebrews understood the Psalmist to be foreseeing the coming of the Messiah. "Man" and "son of man" referred to a specific Person, not "human beings" and "mortals" in general.

Ironically, the selection from Temple's work is all about embracing the holiness and majesty of a God who is both transcendent and immanent. It is precisely these attributes of God which are de-emphasized or lost entirely when the fleeting sensitivities of "human beings" and "mortals" are allowed to become the primary concern of modern translators.