Didache Bible

I'm not Catholic, but I'll help out with a vote.

On a sidenote, maybe you guys could help recommend me a good high-level single volume (or cheap multi-volume) Catholic commentary or Study Bible? My library is a bit lacking in that area. I do have A Catholic Commentary on Holy Scripture and Haydock's Catholic Bible Commentary. Is there any good "bang for your buck" resources for this?

Pickings are a bit slim, but the Ignatius Catholic Study Bible: The New Testament (2010) is quite good for a study Bible. Very little of the corresponding OT material is available in Logos unfortunately, mostly because much of it has yet to be published by Ignatius Press. The NT volume is quite affordable.

The Navarre Bible: New Testament  (2008) is a good single-volume NT commentary that draws upon Catholic tradition. The price is not great, but OK for what you get. It is a revision to a multi-volume commentary published in the late 20th century that also included OT volumes, all of which are available in Logos in different permutations. That/those set(s) are good resources, but probably cost more than you're looking to shell out.

There are two editions of a Collegeville Bible Commentary from Liturgical Press, covering the entire Catholic canon in one or two volumes: the original was published in 1989; the "New" edition was published in 2009 (NT) and 2015 (OT). Some books are revised more than others in the "New" edition. These both cover a lot of ground at fairly low prices, but they're pretty lightweight, and tend to provide summary and background info moreso than insight. In their favor: they do provide commentary on the deuterocanonical books, which don't get much ink. If you're tempted by the price, you might want to check out some sample pages or even buy one of the single-book volumes @ $6 to see if it provides enough "bang" for your "buck".

MJ. Smith said:

This work is spearheaded by recent converts who still show traces of Protestant culture. It is very useful for Catholics who recognize this, but I prefer to recommend to Protestants resources that are firmly set in the Catholic mind set.

This Bible is highly regarded in Catholic circles. It is one of few publications these days to receive a nihil obstat and imprimatur. To quote, "The nihil obstat and imprimatur are official declarations that a book or pamphlet is free of doctrinal or moral error. No implication is contained therein that those who have granted the nihil obstat and imprimatur agree with the contents, opinions, or statements expressed." Quite a number of well-regarded study bibles and commentaries do not get these 'seals' for their adherence to correctness.

The "convert" who is the editor of the Bible is Dr. Scott Hahn, and he has a Catholic theological record that matches anyone. He has been awarded the Father Michael Scanlan, T.O.R., Chair of Biblical Theology and the New Evangelization at Franciscan University of Steubenville, where he has taught since 1990, and is the founder and president of the Saint Paul Center for Biblical Theology. From 2005 to 2011, Dr. Hahn held the Pope Benedict XVI Chair of Biblical Theology and Liturgical Proclamation at St. Vincent Seminary in Latrobe, Pa. And in 2014, Francis Cardinal George appointed Hahn to the newly established McEssy Distinguished Visiting Professorship in Biblical Theology at Mundelein Seminary in Chicago. 

HIs numerous books have been widely acclaimed and the ratings are high, if you look him up. I have read number of his works, I think The Lamb's Supper, available in Verbum/Logos, is a must read and is often cited by many in its explanation of the Roman Mass and its early Christian ties to scripture, particularly the Book of Revelation. I have also read "Kinship by Covenant: A Biblical Theological Analysis of Covenant Types and Texts in the Old and New Testaments", a book that was his doctoral dissertation. It is also in Logos. He does a masterful job as one of the few scholars who have dissected Holy scripture from the expansion of God's covenants with his people - starting with Adam and Eve, and eventually expanding to a covenant with universal humanity.

I could go on and on about his record, reputation, and the quality of his writings, imho you really can't go wrong with anything Dr. Hahn touches. I can't ever remember anyone accusing him of not being fairly set in the Catholic mind set.

MJ. Smith said:

Don Awalt said:

I can't ever remember anyone accusing him of not being fairly set in the Catholic mind set.

You clearly don't know the same set of priests that I do. And I have another convert author friend who worked with Scott Hahn for several years. I have nearly all his work and stand by my comment based specifically on my reading of it. I suspect where we differ, given your response, is different understandings of the term "mindset" by which I mean "world view" not theology. Being an excellent Catholic scholar does not require a Catholic mindset.

You can voice your opinion, I can voice mine. We disagree. I am glad you stand by your opinion. 

However, I wish you would respect that I have a different opinion than you do. I clearly stated my response was my opinion. I was offering reasons and data for why my opinion is what it is to the OP. I thought having some substantiation might be more useful. Yet you reply with phrases like, "You clearly don't know...".  You have no idea what I know or don't know, so please keep your comments from becoming personal.

And for the record, local priests weren't even in the group I considered. My opinion was based on theologians, academics, clergy-theologians, professional apologists, and publishers in their comments on Dr. Hahn. In my opinion, they are a trustworthy group whose opinions are relevant to an evaluation of the job an editor did with a new Bible. As for my understanding of the word mindset, I am not sure how you even came to that insight into what I am thinking since all I said on 'mindset' was, "I can't ever remember anyone accusing him of not being fairly set in the Catholic mind set." 

If you wish to amplify your opinion with some specifics, I am sure the OP and others would enjoy reading some diverse thoughts and views. I for one was disappointed you didn't offer specifics to substantiate your opinion. 

Don Awalt said:

I can't ever remember anyone accusing him of not being fairly set in the Catholic mind set.

I obviously can't account for everybody who might have ever had a beef with Dr. Hahn, but I do know there has been internal criticism of him among some Catholic intellectuals for his embrace of a view of Revelation he calls Prima Scriptura. He published an essay in 1993 (he had entered the Catholic Church in 1986) in which he staked out a position which elevates Scripture above Tradition and Magisterium in the sense that Scripture alone is inspired, whereas all three of the proverbial stool legs share the charism of infallibility. Some people have interpreted this as vestigial Protestantism.

Some Protestant bodies use the same term to describe their view of Revelation in an attenuated version of Sola Scriptura, which undoubtedly has hindered the reception of Hahn's use of the term, although the Protestants certainly do not hold Hahn's view on Tradition and Magisterium. As far as I know, Hahn still uses the term, and the position he holds is hardly alien to Catholicism: just for starters, Aquinas held it pretty explicitly, even if he didn't use the term (which is an obvious response to Sola Scriptura).

Needless to say, Hahn is as Catholic as St. Augustine was after his conversion, if perhaps not quite his theological equal! One would be hard pressed to find a non-Catholic theologian or Biblical scholar who thought Hahn was anything short of a hard-core Catholic. But around the dinner table, food fights occasionally break out...

I have not used my free trial for Verbum Cloud which includes MacEvilly's commentary set, would this commentary set be something that work for me? It also comes in an $18 legacy pack, is it worth that? Alternatively, is there anything in the VC subscriptions that would tickle my fancy? Or considering I have most of the "basics" aka filler that comes with a lot of the starter-bronze packages, I can get some starter-bronze packages for reasonable prices, if that makes any difference in factor. Catholic study Bible does not come in any packages though.