Gender-neutral pronouns used in new Bible

NASHVILLE, Tenn. – In the old translation of the world’s most popular Bible, John the Evangelist declares: “If anyone says, ‘I love God,’ yet hates his brother, he is a liar.” Make that “brother or sister” in a new translation that includes more gender-neutral language and is drawing criticism from some conservatives who argue the changes can alter the theological message.

The 2011 translation of the New International Version Bible, or NIV, does not change pronouns referring to God, who remains “He” and “the Father.” But it does aim to avoid using “he” or “him” as the default reference to an unspecified person.

The NIV translation comes from an independent group of biblical scholars that has been meeting yearly since 1965 to discuss advances in biblical scholarship and changes in English usage.

Before the new translation even hit stores, it drew opposition from the Council on Biblical Manhood and Womanhood. The council would not endorse the new version because the changes alter “the theological direction and meaning of the text,” according to a statement.

At issue is how to translate pronouns that apply to both genders in the ancient Greek and Hebrew texts.

Translators commissioned an extensive study of the way modern English writers and speakers convey gender inclusiveness. According to the notes on the Committee on Bible Translation’s website, “The gender-neutral pronoun ‘they’ (‘them’/‘their’) is by far the most common way that English-language speakers and writers today refer back to singular antecedents such as ‘whoever,’ ‘anyone,’ ‘somebody,’ ‘a person,’ ‘no one,’ and the like.”