Are modern Bible translations always better? A Catholic linguist praises St. Jerome’s Vulgate

Saint Jerome Writing, a painting by Caravaggio, dated to 1605–06. / Credit: Public domain CNA Staff, Sep 30, 2025 / 04:00 am (CNA). Most people know that St. Jerome — whose feast day the Catholic Church celebrates on Sept. 30 — is famous for translating the entire Bible into Latin in the fourth century A.D., creating a widely read edition later known as the Vulgate. But fewer people probably realize how groundbreaking — and how enduring — Jerome’s work truly is. The Vulgate…