Reading the Bible for themselves and in their own language had been a priority for the Waldensians since the very beginning of their movement in the 12th century. Thus, it is not surprising that Waldensians played a role in the translation of the Bible into French. This landmark work, named after its translator Robert Olivétan, was called the “Olivétan Bible.”
While everyone recognizes the significance of this work, especially as it intersects with the history of the broader Reformation, there is less consensus about the details surrounding its creation. For instance, traditional lore credits the reformer, Guillaume Farel, with a major role in the translation’s genesis. However, there is no direct evidence that Farel was deeply involved. Out of respect for both history and tradition, both views are presented below.
The traditional view suggests that in the fall of 1532 the French Huguenot pastor, Guillaume Farel, met with the Waldensian itinerant pastors at their annual synod meeting held that year at Chanforan in the remote Alpine valley of Angrogna. For the previous two years the Waldensians had been in conversation with Swiss Reformed theologians regarding their beliefs and practices. The fiery and persuasive Farel was sent to the Synod meeting to encourage the Waldensians to join the Swiss Reformed movement. They voted in the majority to join. Then Farel presented a challenge to those present to underwrite the cost of a translation of the Bible into French. The Waldensians accepted the challenge even though the cost to translate and print the translation even though the cost was 800 Gold Ecus, (the equivalent of 28,000 days of labor, (an incredible financial commitment for an impoverished people). Returning to Geneva, Farel commissioned Robert Olivétan, a biblical scholar and older cousin of John Calvin, to develop the translation. Olivétan had studied Greek and Hebrew in Paris. He later studied theology with Martin Bucer. Olivétan worked tirelessly on his task and the first French translation of the whole Bible went to press in the winter of 1535. John Calvin wrote the preface. Sadly, due to the cost, the Waldensian congregations could not afford to purchase the new translation. In 1560, Calvin’s own translation, the Geneva Bible was printed. It became the definitive version within the Reformed movement.
The view that can actually be documented historically presents the story this way: A letter from “Adam” to the Reformer Guillaume Farel in November 1532 describes raising money to translate the Bible into a parallel-column Latin-French edition. The project appears to have originated especially with the reformer Antoine Saunier, the barbe Martin Gonin, the translator Pierre Robert Olivétan, and the Neuchâtel printer Pierre de Vingle. The Waldensians contributed, via Martin Gonin, 500 “gold pieces” to the project–a very large sum. Olivétan’s Bible was completed in 1535 and published as a text in French only. It was compiled with reference to Hebrew and Greek texts, though much of Olivétan’s version resembled that of the earlier French translations by Jacques Lefèvre d’Étaples. While the Bible was an important achievement, its large folio format and the French language deterred the Waldensians from acquiring it for their own use. In 1561, after the death of the printer Pierre de Vingle, the printer’s remaining books were sold to repay the “800 écus” which the “good people” had paid for printing the Bible. Meanwhile John Calvin had, in 1546, revised Olivétan’s translation for the use of Geneva. Further editions appeared in 1553, 1560, and a more fully revised edition in 1588.