Bernard Orchard

After graduating, Orchard taught initially at a preparatory school before in 1932 taking the monastic habit at Downside Abbey, adopting the name Bernard; he was subsequently ordained as a priest in 1939.

At Downside he both taught at the school, served as choirmaster and began his career as a biblical scholar under the tutelage of Abbots John Chapman and Christopher Butler.

From 1943 he took advantage of the influence of Divino afflante Spiritu, the encyclical of Pope Pius XII, to embark upon A Catholic Commentary on Holy Scripture, eventually published in 1951.

[citation needed] After completing his biblical commentary in 1951, and in addition to his headmaster's duties, Orchard embarked with Reginald C. Fuller, his erstwhile fellow Ealing Priory pupil, on producing a new translation of the Bible, suitable for both liturgical and academic use, which was published in 1967.

He participated in the establishment in 1969 and was the second General Secretary (1970–1972) of the World Catholic Federation and, displaying the same vigour evident in his revival of St Benedict's School, organised and financed a series of international conferences on the Gospels.