Jeffrey A. Miller, assistant professor of English at Montclair (N.J.) State University, found more than he bargained for while visiting a rare books library at Cambridge (England) University. Miller acquainted himself with pages of a notebook that had belonged to Samuel Ward, a 17th-century biblical scholar. When he returned home, he discovered the notebook held draft portions of the most enduring English translation of the Bible: the King James Version, which was published in 1611 and named for the newly ascended monarch. The draft is the first of the KJV that can be attributed to a particular translator.
The most honest church festival day
One blustery Ash Wednesday, some pastor colleagues and I went downtown to distribute “ashes on the go.” We spread on sidewalks that ran along towering office buildings and bustling restaurants, dressed in clergy wear…