Awesome it is how things happen!

Yesterday I got a very "offended" response to a comment I had posted quite some time ago, blasting my preference for the Joao Ferreira de Almeida translation into Portuguese from the Textus Receptus, that Mr. Almeida had managed to undertake as what turned out to be a life-long project for him.

I did not know many of the particulars I have just mentioned above, but it was this comment that prompted that I investigate! Incredible how this identically mirrors the way in which I came to learn about King James, which was through a similar derogatory response to a comment I had posted on Resist Net (Debate branching into the KJV on ResistNet.com).

Although the Roman Catholic Church had sought to kill King James (THE GUN-POWDER PLOT!!), they almost achieved this regarding Mr. Almeida, who had actually been sentenced to death for his "heresy!" Ironical is the fact he had been so when in Goa, which is where I was born, when it was part of Portuguese India! Of course, of his name I had never heard until I began my search for a King James Bible equivalent in Portuguese to send to my brother in Brazil!

Amazing, too, that these two "took charge" of their lives at such a young age: King James at the tender age of 12 (Another King after God's own Heart!), and Mr. Almeida at the "more mature" age of 14, when he sailed away from Portugal!

Another INCREDIBLE coincidence is that, JUST AS THERE ARE COUNTERFEIT KING JAMES BIBLES, there are ALSO COUNTERFEIT Joao Ferreira de Almeida Bibles. Here I see another "coincidence": both these bibles each bear the names associated with them!

Just one more "coincidence" by which I am amused: Mr. Almeida died on the island of Java, Indonesia, to which he'd gone as a missionary and Bible translator!

It also needs to be emphasized that corruption of Mr. Almeida's translation began even during his lifetime! The "RC Church" would not conform to it, whose "permission" seemed to be needed at the time. Unlike King James, he did not have the clout nor the resources to publish it himself!

The following is extracted from Wikipedia, in English.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jo%C3%A3o_Ferreira_de_Almeida

I will post the Portuguese version in my next post.
My interjections within brackets in bold blue print!

João Ferreira de Almeida

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João Ferreira Annes de Almeida
Born	1628 Torres de Tavares, Portugal
Died	1691
Nationality	Portuguese
Occupation	Dutch Reformed Pastor
Known for	Bible translator
Religion	Protestant

João Ferreira Annes de Almeida (1628–1691) was a Portuguese Protestant pastor; the eponymous Bible translation he began also goes by his name.
Ferreira de Almeida, born in Torres de Tavares, Portugal, is best known for his translation of the Bible into Portuguese, which he began at the age of 16, and continued translating until his death. He translated the New Testament completely and most books of the Old Testament (Hebrew Scripture). The translation was completed by his friend, Jacob op den Akker.
He was a Dutch Reformed pastor and worked with churches in Java (at the time a Dutch colony; modern-day Indonesia), and also preached in Goa on the Indian subcontinent (at the time a Portuguese colony, now part of India). Ferreira de Almeida died in Batavia, Java. Little is known his life; the majority of facts come from the preface of his Bible translation [1].

The following paragraph taken from Wikipedia in Portuguese about Mr. Almeida:

Anos iniciais (Early years)

Filho de pais católicos, João Ferreira de Almeida nasceu na localidade de Torre de Tavares, concelho de Mangualde, em Portugal. Ficou órfão ainda em criança e veio a ser criado na cidade de Lisboa por um tio que era membro de uma ordem religiosa. Pouco se sabe sobre a infância e início da adolescência de Almeida, mas afirma-se que teria recebido uma excelente educação visando a sua entrada no sacerdócio. Não se sabe o que teria levado Almeida a sair de Portugal mas talvez isso se devesse à forte influência exercida pela Inquisição em Portugal. Viajou para a Holanda e, aos 14 anos, embarcou para a Ásia, passando pela Batavia (actual Jacarta), na ilha de Java, Indonésia. Naquela época, a Batávia era o centro administrativo da Companhia Holandesa das Índias Orientais, no sudeste da Ásia.

TRANSLATION:

[As the son of Catholic parents, Joao Ferreira de Almeida was born in Torre de Tavares, Mangualde County, in Portugal. He was orphaned when very young, and came to be raised in Lisbon by an uncle who was a member of a religious order. Little is known about his early years, although it is said that he would have received an excellent education given it was presumed he'd enter the priesthood. Neither is it known what would have made Almeida leave Portugal, but perhaps for the influence of the Inquisition being exercised then in Portugal. He traveled to Holland, and at 14, he embarked to Asia, going by Batavia (actual Jakarta), on the island of Java, Indonesia. At that time, Batavia was the administrative center of the East Indies Dutch Company (?), in southeast Asia.]

Bible Translation

Ferreira de Almeida's translation of the Bible is most closely associated with Portuguese-speaking Protestants and is the most commonly used translation by Portuguese-speaking Protestant Evangelicals, particularly in Brazil. His work is the source of many Bible versions, like the Edição Revista e Corrigida (Revised and Corrected Edition, published in 1948, is an update of other editions), the Edição Revista e Atualizada (Revised and Updated Edition, most based in newer manuscripts), published by Brazilian Bible Society and Portuguese Bible Society, [CORRUPTED VERSIONS!] Almeida Corrigida e Fiel (Almeida Corrected and Faithful), by Trinitarian Bible Society of Brazil, [to be the ONLY originating from the Textus Receptus, just as the King James Bible is!] and Edição Contemporânea de Almeida (Almeida's Contemporary Edition), by Editora Vida. [the counterfeits to have corrupted the original, just as the "New" King James, etc.].

The main principle of translation used by Ferreira de Almeida was that of formal equivalence (following the syntax of the original text in the target language), and he utilized the Textus Receptus as textual basis. His Portuguese style is described as "classical and erudite" [Ha Ha! Sound familiar?!] [2]; the Brazilian Bible Society states that Ferreira de Almedia sought to reflect both the form, style, and language register of the original texts in his translation. [these to be corrupt agencies, similar to the American Bible Society, which have come up with several versions in Brazil bearing his name!].

Editions

First edition of the New Testament, in 1681.
Second edition of the New Testament, in 1693.
Third edition of the New Testament, in 1711.
A Biblia Sagrada. contendo o Velho e o Novo Testamento (The Holy Bible with the Old and New Testament) - 1821, 1848, 1850
1911
Ferreira de Almeida Atualizada (1948)