Vulgate for Dummies

"Hey there! So, let's talk about the word 'Vulgate'. Have you ever heard of it before? No worries if you haven't, I'm here to help you understand. Now, imagine you have a really old book, let's say it's a really, really old version of the Bible. Well, that super old version of the Bible is called the Vulgate. It was translated way back in the 4th century by a guy named Saint Jerome. The word 'Vulgate' itself comes from the Latin word 'vulgata', which means 'common' or 'popular'."

"But why is it called the Vulgate, you might ask? Great question! You see, back in Saint Jerome's time, the translations of the Bible were mostly in Greek, not Latin. And not many people understood Greek, only the well-educated folks. Saint Jerome believed that everyone should be able to read and understand the Bible, not just the fancy scholars. So, he took it upon himself to translate the Bible from its original languages into common Latin, hence the name 'Vulgate'."

"Now, let's talk a little more about what 'Vulgate' can mean. Apart from being the name of a specific old version of the Bible, 'Vulgate' is also used to refer to any widely accepted or authoritative version of a text. So, if we're talking about a popular or commonly used edition of a book, we can call it the Vulgate version. It's like the 'go-to' edition that most people would use or reference."

"To sum it all up, 'Vulgate' is a word that has two main meanings. It's the name of a really old version of the Bible translated into Latin by Saint Jerome, and it can also be used to refer to any widely accepted or authoritative version of a text. It's all about making things accessible and understandable to as many people as possible. So, what do you think? Does that make sense? Do you have any more questions about the word 'Vulgate'? I'm here to help!"