Amercian Bible Ballentine Union

Frank Schell Ballentine (1859-1936) was a clergyman of the Protestant Episcopal Church serving parishes in Scranton, Pennsylvania when he produced this modern English version of the New Testament. In 1906 he left Scranton to take a position as rector at St. James Church in Perkiomen, Pennsylvania (now Evansburg). His habits and his teaching while at St. James have been described as unorthodox. Many in his congregation requested that he be removed, and in 1914 he was removed by the bishop of the diocese. He refused to leave his position, however, and was finally compelled to vacate the rectory by a secular court order. Afterwards he held no ministerial position, and began to publish books expressing radical ideas about the interpretation of the Bible, and advocating the metaphysical teachings of Mary Baker Eddy (founder of Christian Science), under the pen-name of Craig MacCameline.