Common Translation Bible

Definition and Meaning

The Common Translation Bible (Gongdong Beonyeok Seongseo), commonly shortened to the "Common Translation" (Gongdong Beonyeok), is a Korean Bible translated jointly by Catholics and Protestants. The name reflects its character as a translation produced by different confessions working together. Catholic and Protestant scholars formed a joint translation committee and translated from the Hebrew and Greek originals, and the Korean Bible Society published the result. A distinctive feature is its standardized spelling of proper names, intended for common use by both churches. Another distinctive feature is its rendering of the name of God as "Haneunim" (하느님) rather than "Hananim" (하나님).

Historical Background

After the Second Vatican Council in the 1960s, dialogue and cooperation between the Catholic Church and Protestant churches increased. This movement is known as the ecumenical movement. Internationally, the Holy See and the United Bible Societies agreed on guidelines for interconfessional cooperation in Bible translation, and the Korean Common Translation project began in the late 1960s as part of this broader movement.

• 1971: The New Testament was published first.
• 1977: The complete Bible, including the Old Testament, was released at Easter.

Participants in the translation reportedly included Father Seon Jong-wan on the Catholic side and the Rev. Moon Ik-hwan on the Protestant side. The translation followed a "dynamic equivalence" approach, which conveys the meaning of the original in contemporary Korean rather than rendering the source text word for word. As a result, it has been praised for its accessible and natural style but also criticized for departing from the original text.

Certain books, called the "deuterocanonical books" by Catholics and the "Apocrypha" by Protestants, were included in the Catholic edition. Churches differ in how they regard the status of these books, depending on their understanding of the canon.

Use in Korean Churches

• Catholic Church: For many years the Common Translation was used in the Mass and in catechesis. After the Catholic Bishops' Conference of Korea published its new translation, Seonggyeong (The Holy Bible), in 2005, the Church adopted that version instead.
• The Anglican Church of Korea and the Korean Orthodox Church: Both are reported to have used the Common Translation in worship and education.
• Most Protestant denominations: These have used the Korean Revised Version and later the New Korean Revised Version as their Bible for worship. Consequently, the Common Translation has not been widely used in Protestant pulpits. Commonly cited reasons include resistance to the "Haneunim" rendering, the inclusion of the Apocrypha, and the translation approach.

Among Protestants today, the Common Translation is used mainly as a reference when comparing several translations in personal devotion or Bible study. It is often mentioned alongside the Revised New Korean Standard Version as an easy-to-read Korean Bible.