There are obviously many great things about NA28, but there are also some ongoing niggles. One thing I've come across recently is the situation with some of the "diamond" readings in the Catholic Epistles. These "diamond" readings are those where the editors could not decide between readings, and in the ECM2 the primary text line has both readings (although in some cases other readings are involved, the indecision in each case relates to two readings). For these readings the editors are saying, as I understand it, our use of the normal methods and our use of the CBGM have not been able to resolve the question as to which reading represents the initial text, so as a consequence the decision is left open.
So this is all fair enough within their parameters. The way the initial text is decided, and the way in which the CBGM is the product of these decisions at local stemma level, means that there are only two options: editorial unanimity or editorial impasse. There is no mechanism (as in the previous "Nestle" model) for a majority vote at points of uncertainty. In the ECM approach we are left with editorial impasse.
The NA28 approach is to leave the old text in place within the text (NA26&27, but in many cases reaching back to N1), mark it with a diamond (indicating that the editors leave the decision open), and use the same diamond marker in the apparatus to mark the second (equally viable) reading.
But here is the thing I can't understand. On a number of occasions the apparatus does not provide the manuscript evidence for the txt reading. I would have thought in situations of such uncertainty, when you are effectively leaving the reader to make his or her own judgement, you would always provide (in summary) the evidence for both (equally viable) readings. But that doesn't happen. In this mornings reading I came across four examples where there was no indication of the evidence in favour of the txt reading: 1 John 2.4 (whether or not to read OTI), 2.6 (whether or not to read OUTWS), 2.17 (whether or not to read AUTOU), 2.29 (whether to read EIDHTE or IDHTE). You can get a bit more info from NA27 (but only on 1 John 2.6).
There may be an explanation for this, but I have struggled to think of a good one. I would suggest that in the next revision for all diamond readings evidence from both options is provided in the apparatus.
So this is all fair enough within their parameters. The way the initial text is decided, and the way in which the CBGM is the product of these decisions at local stemma level, means that there are only two options: editorial unanimity or editorial impasse. There is no mechanism (as in the previous "Nestle" model) for a majority vote at points of uncertainty. In the ECM approach we are left with editorial impasse.
The NA28 approach is to leave the old text in place within the text (NA26&27, but in many cases reaching back to N1), mark it with a diamond (indicating that the editors leave the decision open), and use the same diamond marker in the apparatus to mark the second (equally viable) reading.
But here is the thing I can't understand. On a number of occasions the apparatus does not provide the manuscript evidence for the txt reading. I would have thought in situations of such uncertainty, when you are effectively leaving the reader to make his or her own judgement, you would always provide (in summary) the evidence for both (equally viable) readings. But that doesn't happen. In this mornings reading I came across four examples where there was no indication of the evidence in favour of the txt reading: 1 John 2.4 (whether or not to read OTI), 2.6 (whether or not to read OUTWS), 2.17 (whether or not to read AUTOU), 2.29 (whether to read EIDHTE or IDHTE). You can get a bit more info from NA27 (but only on 1 John 2.6).
There may be an explanation for this, but I have struggled to think of a good one. I would suggest that in the next revision for all diamond readings evidence from both options is provided in the apparatus.