12 The Bible: The New Testament
The various books collected in the New Testament
represent a very unusual set of data.
There is no other moment of ancient history so well documented, no life
as fully reported as that of Jesus.
Even the Church, after these initial texts (everything in the New
Testament was written before A.D. 100), returns to normal near silence for at
least a century.
Jesus (the name is really Yeshua,
a form of Joshua) wrote nothing, like Socrates. Judging from the silence of the four
Gospels, he spent much of his life in unspectacular normality. Then, when he was about 30, he began to
speak out, reading the Hebrew Scriptures during the services in the synagogues
(Jewish church buildings) so that we may assume that he had studied Hebrew
somewhere. He began to travel and teach in the region of Galilee,
in the north quite a long way from Jerusalem, where the village people were
particularly devout Jews, often living very poor lives rather than mingle with
the pagan world. A group of men
and women (disciples) formed round him and followed him. Some had been influenced by his cousin John
the Baptist who had preached beside the Jordan but had then been imprisoned
and executed by Herod Antipas. His execution seems almost to have been the sign
for Jesus to start proclaiming in turn that the Kingdom of God was near.
Jesus is shown as a man with no house of his
own, of great kindness, which he showed by healing those who were sick
and crazy with despair, feeding those who hungered to see God's
love. At last, going up to
Jerusalem, he was seen as a threat by the powerful religious leaders
there. They had him executed by
the Romans some three years after he first began teaching in Galilee.
In the Gospels, Jesus is not shown founding a
church organization or a new religion. His concern is to renew the Jewish
understanding of God and the Law.
It is only after his death that the really new declaration comes:
"Jesus is Lord, Messiah." His followers, who had called Jesus
"Teacher," set out with the message of his Resurrection,
saying that he had been seen alive after his death, that his tomb was empty,
that he had been taken up into heaven and had sent the Holy Spirit as the sign
of God's enduring active presence with them.
The Jews had been looking for a Kingdom,
for the coming of the powerful Messianic King shown in Apocalyptic
writings. Now Jesus had
experienced weakness, failure and death, which was not what the Messiah was
expected to do. Yet the
"Gospel" (Good News; in Greek and Latin evangelium) arose out
of this. The death of Jesus became
the supreme victory of God's love.
Jesus was the Christ (Greek for Messiah, the
Anointed).
Very quickly the first believers found that
other people were interested in their message, not only Jews. The whole world seemed full of people
thirsting for an encounter between the divine and the human. The Jews had
divided the world into Jews and Gentiles, they believed that they had been
specially chosen by God. The first Christians realized that this division had
been superseded. Jesus had only spoken Aramaic, the first Christians used the
international Greek language.
The Letters (often called Epistles)
written by Paul are the oldest texts of the New Testament. Paul probably
never saw Jesus alive, and when he first heard about the people preaching his
resurrection, his reaction was hostile, he helped have them arrested. Paul (at that time called Saul), was a
Jewish scholar (Pharisee) from Tarsus who had studied under one of the
great teachers of the Law, Gamaliel.
On his way to Damascus to attack the Christians there he had a vision,
an experience of meeting the Risen Lord who identified himself to him with the
words "I am Jesus whom you are persecuting." From that moment, Paul
became a believer, and the main messenger of the Good News beyond the Jewish
cultural circle.
The Acts of the Apostles, composed by
Paul's companion Luke tells mainly his story, of Paul's missionary
service leading him ultimately from Jerusalem to Rome, where he was
killed. It is remarkable that this
main witness to Jesus as Christ had never seen him or heard him teach. The message of Paul, and the other
Apostles, was not so much that taught by Jesus in Galilee as the proclamation
that in Jesus the whole of humanity was being offered a new relationship with
God as their father. A strong
sense of universal brotherhood existed in the early community of the Christian
church, which was marked by a spirit of sharing and mutual care. From almost the first day, they used
the ordinary Greek language. One of their main words was agape,
a Greek word meaning love, to which Jesus's life had given a new
depth of meaning. In Latin, Jerome
trans¡©lated this word as caritas (which became in English
"charity") which is best expressed by the English "My
dear," remembering that something dear can only be had at great expense.
The original Latin 'carus, expensive' has just that double meaning.
The other followers of Jesus no doubt also went
out preaching the same message, but of their lives we know little or nothing. Even the most important of the Apostles,
Simon Peter (his name means Rock; Jesus gave it to him), is only a
shadow compared to Paul. Peter
could understand that non-Jews might want to believe in Jesus; it was Paul who
saw that they did not have to become Jews, that baptism and the fellowship of
the Church was enough. Thus while
numbers of Jews became Christian Jews, other Jews rejected them and attacked
them. Meanwhile, more and more
non-Jews found that they wanted to follow the Apostles' teaching about Jesus
who had sometimes called himself the Son of Man but who, as Christ, was
the Son of God. The word Christian was coined in Antioch as a
joke.
The division between Jews and Gentiles underlies
many of the letters of Paul, es¡©pecially the more difficult ones, such as that
to the Romans. Paul is having to
work out the theory to cover the facts, to see in a new way the relationship
between the Jewish Law (expressed in the 'Old' Testament) and the Gospel. The most important word for him in this
is freedom, and it sums up his own experience; freedom as opposed to slavery,
the holiness that the Old Testament demanded impossibly is now available as a free
gift (the original meaning of the word grace) of love offered to
all. For Paul as for John, love
and life are the same thing, and both have their roots in Christ. Paul's teaching about love is expressed
in that most famous chapter 13 of the first letter to the Corinthians, but his
concern for the unity of the Christian communities, as well as his intense
service of Christ, all are expressions of his vision of love.
The early Christians were in a complex
relationship with Time and History.
The Resurrection of Jesus was a radical challenge to any idea of continuum,
because death is normally the end of an individual's life and here it was
not. The Resurrection was seen as
a new reality. The Risen Lord
would not die again, his body seen with wounded hands and feet when he showed
himself to the disciples had not simply "come back to life" for a
while. Eternity and time
seemed now to coincide.
One possible answer was the Apocalyptic
imagery popular among the Jews; this would be the end of the world, all
history would soon cease and the Kingdom of God would be revealed to all for
ever. This is expressed in the New
Testament in the last book, called "Apocalypse" or
"Revelations", as well as in certain parts of the Gospels in Jesus's
teaching. Paul also seems to
expect that the End will soon come.
Only the End did not come, history went on, with
children being born and people dying. The Church grew larger and spread across
the Roman Empire. The years passed
and the old Apostles were killed or died or just disappeared from sight. The city of Jerusalem was captured and
destroyed by the Roman general (later emperor) Titus in 70. Several years
before this, the Jerusalem
Christians had fled the city, as the Jewish rejection of Rome and its culture
became increasingly fanatical. There was no longer a Church community in
Jerusalem able to point out the places where Jesus had died and been
buried. Out of this arose a need
for the four texts we call the Gospels, in order to preserve a clear picture of
the life of Jesus.
The
Four Gospels
Matthew, Mark, Luke, John, are the names given
traditionally to the writers of these four texts. Mark and Luke are both named in Paul's letters
and in the Acts of the Apostles as companions of Paul, they were not
Apostles, Luke at least was not even a Jew by birth, they had not seen Jesus,
probably. Matthew is
traditionally identified with Levi, a Jewish tax-gatherer who was called by
Jesus and whose life was changed; but it seems unlikely that the person
responsible for composing the Gospel bearing his name had ever seen and heard
Jesus. It is entirely based on previous written texts and received ideas about
him. John is shown as one of the disciples from the earliest days, the
brother of James, one of the sons of a fisherman called Zebedee; but it again
seems very unlikely that he himself
wrote the Gospel bearing his name, although it almost certainly derives from
his teaching.
Looking at the texts themselves, we find in each
Gospel the same basic structure. At the end of each is a detailed description
of the last few days of Jesus's life, his crucifixion and death. This is followed by an evocation of the
Resurrection, and is preceded by long chapters telling about his words and
deeds during the time of his "active ministry." Each Gospel begins
with mention of Jesus's visit to John the Baptist beside the Jordan. At the beginning of each Gospel except
Mark there is some kind of prelude, either portraying the birth of Jesus
(Matthew, Luke) or outlining the subject of the whole work (John).
The chapters describing Jesus's teaching and actions
combine descriptive narratives and "sayings", usually short, even
proverbial in style. Very quickly
Jesus is seen in conflict with the Jewish religious experts called Doctors,
Scribes, Pharisees, who hate him partly because he makes them look foolish in
debates.
Comparing the texts in detail, we realize that
Matthew, Luke, and Mark have exactly the same words in many places, although
sometimes sections are in a different order. Matthew and Luke have many sayings of Jesus not found in
Mark, and each of them has narratives and sayings not found anywhere else. But nowhere do we get the impression of
an eye-witness changing the other texts because his memory of the actual event
was different. Rather the
differences show writers reading existing texts, thinking about the idea of
Jesus they are trying to express, then adapting the earlier stories and
sayings. The Gospels are images of
the church's teaching about Jesus as Christ, not biographical memoirs of a long-dead
master.
Matthew, Mark and Luke are usually called the
"Synoptic Gospels" because they are so close to each other,
they agree word-for-word much of the time. The Gospel according to John is very different in its style
and contents. Where the Synoptics
have brief sayings and anecdotic stories, flashing from one to the other with
little linkage, John tells a few stories at length, usually beginning with an
action of Jesus which leads into a long explanation of its meaning, or a
discussion with the "Jews." Sometimes we find an event related in all
four Gospels, such as the Feeding of the Five Thousand, but John gives it
deeper meaning by linking it to
a
great sermon on the Bread of Life.
John tells only a few stories where the Synoptics heap up many.
Matthew
Long thought to be the first Gospel, the source
of the other Synoptics, (but almost certainly in fact depending on Mark)
Matthew's Gospel is the longest and the most strongly Jewish of all. It assumes
that its readers will know about Jewish customs. It is often similar to Paul in
its concerns and vision. It has a
clear structure:
1.
Infancy Narratives, with the familiar stories of the visit of the Wise
Men ("Three Kings") from the East, the Massacre of the Innocents
(children of Bethlehem) by Herod, the "Flight into Egypt." These
stories are clearly symbolic, each of them based on a passage from the Old
Testa¡©ment which Jesus is found to "fulfill."
2.
The Kingdom Appears: Jesus and John the Baptist, the temptations, the
first disciples, leading up to the marvellous "Sermon on the Mount"
(chapters 5-7) in which Jesus, like a new Moses, proclaims the freedom of the
Good News. This begins with the
"Beatitudes", (5:1-23), the eight promises that begin
"Blessed":
When
Jesus saw the crowds, he went up a mountain and sat down.
His
disciples came to him, and he began to teach them, saying:
"Blessed
are the poor in spirit for theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven.
Blessed
are those who moum, for they will be comforted.
Blessed
are the meek, for they will inherit the earth.
Blessed
are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness,
for they will be filled.
Blessed
are the merciful for they will be shown mercy.
Blessed
are the pure in heart, for they will see God.
Blessed
are the peacemakers, for they will be called the children of God.
Blessed
are those who are persecuted for righteousness' sake,
for
theirs is the kingdom of Heaven."
In the Sermon on the Mount, Mat¡©thew groups many
of the most radically "spiritual" of Jesus' sayings, including the
command to "turn the other cheek" (5:39), opposing the rigid Law with
a new humanity.
3.
The Saving Kingdom: Ten Miracles (chapters 8-9) show Jesus' healing
power, then he speaks of his Mission.
4.The
Mystery of the Kingdom: There is opposition and division (chapters 11-12),
then Jesus speaks in Parables (chapter 13) to express the hidden nature of the
Kingdom.
5. The
Disciples as the Kingdom: in Matthew (chapters 14-18), the Church is seen as
a living Community which is also a living parable of the Kingdom, expressed in
sharing and harmony.
6.
Judgement: In Matthew, more than any other Gospel, Jesus speaks the
language of Apocalypse when faced with the Jewish rejection of his message
(chapters 19-25). These chapters
are marked with urgency, not hatred.
They are far from soft sentimentality.
7.
The Passion (suffering and death) and Resurrection (Chapters
26-28).
Mark
For a long time, it was thought that Mark only
offered a simplified version of Matthew, with loss of order and no special
vision. This is not now
accepted. In the twentieth
century, with its taste for the fragmented, the rough-hewn, Mark is found more
interesting because often more suggestive and open. He also shows considerable doubt about the ability of the
disciples to understand and believe in Jesus ("Oh you of little
faith!" Jesus keeps exclaiming).
The author of this Gospel is probably the
creator of the literary form we call "Gospel"; before him the Church
had only collections of "sayings of Jesus" with little or no
narrative. In Mark we have
detailed descriptions and also explanations of the Jewish background that
suggest he was writing for a non-Jewish (gentile) church com¡©munity. Tradition points to Rome. The whole Gospel is structured on the
journey of Jesus towards his suffering and death which are a direct response to
his life. Mark, writing for non
Jews, does not stress the Christ / Messiah aspect; Jesus is "the Holy One
of God" and even "Son of God", as well as the suffering
"Son of Man." These terms are easier for ordinary people; yet Mark
stresses that Jesus was rejected, not understood, and that he even tried to
keep his identity a secret. This
may be in part a warning that Jesus's message is not to be under¡©stood apart
from his death and Resurrection.
The structure of Mark's account of Jesus' life
and sayings is quite simple:
1.
Jesus makes himself known (chapters 1-8:30) and people respond by faith or
rejection; conflict arises although he teaches using parables and performs
miracles.
2.
Jesus accepts suffering (chapters 8:31-16:8) by turning towards Jerusalem
although he "knows" what will happen.
The style of Mark is vivid and sober, he likes
to use the word "at once" to imply the dynamic power of the Gospel
life. Strangely, the Gospel ends
with no story of the disciples meeting with the Risen Lord. What seems to have been the original
end at 16:8 leaves the women full of doubt and fear at the message of the angel
in the empty tomb. Perhaps a final section was lost at a very early stage?
Later writers created a number of extra endings which they added to Mark, using
the other Gospels for inspiration.
Luke
From the very earliest witnesses we find a clear
opinion that this Gospel was written by the "Luke the beloved
physician" named by Paul in Colossians 4:14; he is reported to have been a
Syrian from Antioch, to have accompanied Paul on his journeys until his death
in Rome, after which Luke wrote his Gospel and also the Acts of the Apostles.
Luke was not a Jew, but his Greek style shows
how well he knew the Septuagint; he was educated and his Greek is poetic. His Gospel is based on Mark, whom he
follows closely, but corrects in many details. The saying of Jesus reported in Luke's chapters 9-18 are not
in Mark, the stories and parables found there are also mostly also found in
Matthew, but not grouped together there. This extra material that Matthew and
Luke seem to have added to Mark in different ways, mostly sayings of Jesus
without narrative, is usually called "Q" (German "Quelle"
meaning "source").
Luke sets out with a clear vision of his double
task: the Gospel traces the journey of Jesus from Galilee to Jerusalem, the
"Christ event" culminating in his death and Resurrection. For Luke, this climax in Jerusalem is a
turning-point in human history, as it shows God fulfilling his promises
"to Abraham and his descendants for ever." While it is an end, it
also marks a new beginning.
Therefore the second half of Luke's story, the Acts of the Apostles,
records the spread of the Gospel from Jerusalem to Rome. Rome is the symbol of "the whole
world", Luke's vision of the Risen Christ's presence in ongoing human
history is universal.
(1) The Prologue or the Infancy
Narratives, (chapters 1-2): telling in parallel the birth of John
the Baptist and that of Jesus, with the wonderful events preceding both. Luke is alone in relating the events
found in this section, with their rich Old Testament echoes. Mary, the mother of Jesus, plays an
essential role, as if Luke had listened to her recollections. She is shown as the ultimate faithful
representative or 'remnant' of Israel and at the same time the first believer
of the universal Christian Church, of which she is a symbolic prefiguration.
Luke even includes poetry, modelled in part on
Old Testament canticles such as the songs of Moses (Exodus 15) or Hannah (I
Samuel 2). Mary , Zechariah, the father of John the Baptist, and Simeon,
express the praises of God in lyrics that are still sung by many Christians in
their daily worship (songs often still called by their Latin names the
"Magnificat" (1:46-55), the "Benedictus" (1:68-79), and the
"Nunc dimittis" (2:29-32).
It is in Luke that the shepherds hear the story of Jesus's birth from
the angels and come to worship in the stable where the child is lying in a
manger.
At the end of the section, the 12-year-old Jesus
is found by his parents discussing with the teachers in the Temple at
Jerusalem; his ministry begins here.
The Temple plays a central role in the Prologue: first the birth of John
is announced to the unbelieving Zechariah there; then Simeon and Anna welcome
the new-born Jesus with songs and prophecy; finally Jesus aged 12 is shown
feeling at home there.
(2) The
journey : the whole of Luke's Gospel is organized as a journey away
from, then back toward, Jerusalem.
Jesus grows up and Luke begins the story of Jesus' public ministry with journeys
through Galilee (chapters 3 - 9:50). In this section, Luke follows
the pattern found in Mark, but removes those aspects of Jesus's words and
responses which might confuse educated non Jews, such as his "anger"
at the way his disciples are 'slow to believe'.
In Chapter 9 there comes a turning-point.
Jesus's words and deeds demand a response of faith; he feeds the 5000 and Peter
confesses "You are the Christ". Jesus is declared to be the Son by
the voice speaking from the cloud at his mysterious Transfiguration. Yet on
coming down from the mountain Jesus finds his disciples unable to heal a child;
his response is to express impatience with the unbelief of the whole
generation. Immediately after, he begins to speak of his coming death, which
the disciples cannot understand, and in verse 51 Luke says he 'resolutely' set
out for Jerusalem, clearly knowing what is to happen there. Faith and rejection
are shown to be the two poles of response to his person and his message.
(3) The Pilgrimage: Chapters 9:51-19:27
take us with Jesus from Galilee to Jerusalem. They include all the Q
material not in Mark.
(4) The Fulfillment: Chapter 19:28 show
Jesus going ahead of his disciples up to Jerusalem, where he 'purifies'
the Temple and speaks his final teaching in Chapter 21. These last days of
Jesus culminate in the last supper, and the agony in the garden. These are a prelude to his trial,
crucifixion and death, which are followed by stories of the his disciples'
encounters with the Risen Christ, ending with his Ascension into Heaven, leaving
his disciples with the mission to "preach the Good News to the whole
world." This is point where the Acts of the Apostles begins. It relates
the spread of the Gospel from Jerusalem (Ascension and Pentecost) to Rome.
Luke tells a number of stories not found in the
other Gospels. The Infancy
Narratives are very different in their style from what follows. Among the parables of Jesus,
that of the Good Samaritan (10:25-37), and that called "the Prodigal
Son" (15:11-32), really the parable of "the Forgiv¡©ing Father,"
are both only found in Luke, and are the most familiar as well as the most
universal of the parables. Among
the Resurrection appearances of Jesus, Luke's story of the journey to Emmaus
(24:13-35), where the unrecognized Lord instructs two sorrowful disciples, is
most meaningful for many. In each
of these passages we sense Luke's great narrative skill, his ability to select
those details which will speak to all, and his readiness to encapsulate
essential Gospel truths in stories developed from perhaps only a vague
suggestion in his sources (something
we
also find in John).
Luke's vision of humanity is central in
the social doctrine of the Christian church in the 20th century. In Luke, the Gospel is very clearly
intended in a special way for the poor and the weak; the rich are so corrupted
and distracted by their wealth, Jesus suggests, that unless they give it away
in helping the poor, they will not enter the Kingdom. Jesus in Luke stresses the need for concrete gestures of
mercy and kindness in daily life, rather than formal religious
obligations. Where Matthew has
long passages heralding the Apocalypse, Luke is obviously not at all convinced
that the world is about to come to an end. Luke is the evangelist of the active
"Christian Life", yet Jesus is shown escaping from the crowds,
seeking contemplation in silence and praying in quiet places.
Luke 1:46 - 55 The Magnificat (Song of Mary)
And
Mary said: "My soul glorifies
the Lord
and
my spirit rejoices in God my Savior,
for
he has been mindful of the humble state of his servant.
From
now all generations will call me
blessed,
for
the Mighty One has done great things for me‑‑ holy is his name.
His
mercy extends to those who fear him, from generation to generation.
He
has performed mighty deeds with his arm;
he
has scattered those who are proud in their inmost thoughts.
He
has brought down rulers from their thrones
but
has lifted up the humble.
He
has filled the hungry with good things
but
has sent the rich away empty.
He
has helped his servant Israel, remembering his mercy,
as
he promised to our fathers,
to
Abraham and his descendants for ever."
Luke 6:17 - 42 : Jesus Teaches
17 He went down with them and stood on a
level place. A large crowd of his disciples was there and a great number of people
from all over Judea, from Jerusalem, and from the coast of Tyre and Sidon,
18 who had come to hear him and to
be healed of their diseases. Those troubled by evil spirits were cured, 19 and the people all tried to touch him,
because power was coming from him and healing them all.
The Beatitudes
Looking at his disciples, he said:
"Blessed are you who are poor, for yours is
the kingdom of God.
Blessed are you who hunger now, for you will be
satisfied.
Blessed are you who weep now, for you will
laugh.
Blessed are you when men hate you, when they
exclude you and insult you and reject your name as evil, because of the Son of
Man.
"Rejoice in that day and leap for joy,
because great is your reward in heaven. For that is how their fathers treated
the prophets.
"But woe to you who are rich, for you have already received your
comfort.
Woe to you who are well fed now, for you will go
hungry.
Woe to you who laugh now, for you will mourn and
weep.
Woe to you when all men speak well of you, for
that is how their fathers treated
the false prophets.
"But I tell you who hear me: Love your enemies, do good
to those who hate you, bless those
who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you. If someone strikes you on one cheek, turn to him the other
also. If someone takes your cloak, do not stop him from taking your tunic. Give
to everyone who asks you, and if anyone takes what belongs to you, do not
demand it back. Do to others as
you would have them do to you.
"If you love those who love you, what
credit is that to you? Even sinners love those who love them. And if you do good to those who are
good to you, what credit is that to you? Even sinners do that. And if you lend to those from whom you
expect repayment, what credit is that to you? Even sinners lend to sinners,
expecting to be repaid in full.
But love your enemies, do good to them, and lend to them without
expecting to get anything back. Then your reward will be great, and you will be
sons of the Most High, because he is kind to the ungrateful and wicked.
Be
merciful, just as your Father is merciful. Do not judge, and you will not be
judged. Do not condemn, and you will not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be
forgiven. Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down,
shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap. For with the
measure you use, it will be measured to you."
Luke 9:18 - 36 : The
Confession of Peter
18 Once when Jesus was praying in private
and his disciples were with him, he asked them, "Who do the crowds say I
am?" 19 They replied, "Some say John the
Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others, that one of the prophets of long
ago has come back to life." 20
"But what about you?" he asked. "Who do you say I
am?" Peter answered, "The Christ of God." 21 Jesus strictly warned them not to tell
this
to
anyone. 22 And he said, "The
Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders, chief priests
and teachers of the law, and he must be killed and on the third day be raised
to life."
23
Then he said to them all: "If anyone would come after me, he must
deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. 24 For whoever wants to save his life will
lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will save it. 25 What good is it for a man to gain the
whole world, and yet lose or forfeit his very self?
26
If anyone is ashamed of me and my words, the Son of Man will be ashamed
of him when he comes in his glory and in the glory of the Father and of the
holy angels. 27 I tell you the
truth, some who are standing here will not taste death before they see the
kingdom of God."
The Transfiguration
28
About eight days after Jesus said this, he took Peter, John and James with him
and went up onto a mountain to pray. 29
As he was praying, the appearance of his face changed, and his clothes
became as bright as a flash of lightning. 30 Two men, Moses and Elijah, 31 appeared in glorious splendor, talking with Jesus. They spoke
about his departure, which he was about to bring to fulfillment at Jerusalem.
32
Peter and his companions were very sleepy, but when they became fully
awake, they saw his glory and the two men standing with him. 33 As the men were leaving Jesus, Peter
said to him, "Master, it is good for us to be here. Let us put up three shelters‑‑one for you, one for
Moses and one for Elijah." (He did not know what he was saying.) 34 While he was speaking, a cloud appeared
and enveloped them, and they were afraid as they entered the cloud. 35 A voice came from the cloud, saying,
"This is my Son, whom I have chosen; listen to him." 36 When the voice had spoken, they found
that Jesus was alone. The disciples kept this to themselves, and told no one at
that time what they had seen.
Luke 10:25 - 42 The Parable of the Good
Samaritan
25 On one occasion an expert in the law
stood up to test Jesus. "Teacher," he asked, "what must I do to
inherit eternal life?" 26
"What is written in the Law?" he replied. "How do you read
it?" 27 He answered:
"`Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and
with all your strength and with all your mind' ; and, `Love your neighbor as
yourself.' " 28 "You
have answered correctly," Jesus replied. "Do this and you will
live." 29 But he wanted to
justify himself, so he asked Jesus, "And who is my neighbor?"
30
In reply Jesus said: "A man was going down from Jerusalem to
Jericho, when he fell into the hands of robbers. They stripped him of his
clothes, beat him and went away, leaving him half dead. 31 A priest happened to be going down the
same road, and when he saw the man, he passed by on the other side. 32 So too, a Levite, when he came to the
place and saw him, passed by on the other side. 33 But a Samaritan, as he traveled, came where the man was; and
when he saw him, he took pity on him. 34
He went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he
put the man on his own donkey, took him to an inn and took care of him.
35
The next day he took out two silver coins and gave them to the
innkeeper. `Look after him,' he said, `and when I return, I will reimburse you
for any extra expense you may have.' 36
"Which of these three do you think was a neighbor to the man who
fell into the hands of robbers?" 37
The expert in the law replied, "The one who had mercy on him."
Jesus told him, "Go and do likewise."
38
As Jesus and his disciples were on their way, he came to a village where
a woman named Martha opened her home to him. 39 She had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord's feet
listening to what he said. 40 But
Martha was distracted by all the preparations that had to be made. She came to
him and asked, "Lord, don't you care that my sister has left me to do the
work by myself? Tell her to help me!" 41 "Martha, Martha," the Lord answered, "you are
worried and upset about many
things, 42 but only one
thing is needed. Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away
from her."
Luke 15:1 - 31
1
Now the tax collectors and "sinners" were all gathering around
to hear him. 2 But the Pharisees
and the teachers of the law muttered, "This man welcomes sinners and eats
with them." Then Jesus
told them this parable:
4
"Suppose one of you has a hundred sheep and loses one of them. Does
he not leave the ninety‑nine in the open country and go after the lost sheep
until he finds it? 5 And when he
finds it, he joyfully puts it on his shoulders 6 and goes home. Then he calls his friends and neighbors
together and says, `Rejoice with me; I have found my lost sheep.' 7 I tell you that in the same way there
will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety‑nine
righteous persons who do not need to repent.
8
"Or suppose a woman has ten silver coins and loses one. Does she
not light a lamp, sweep the house and search carefully until she finds it?
9 And when she finds it, she calls
her friends and neighbors together and says, `Rejoice with me; I have found my
lost coin.' 10 In the same way, I
tell you, there is rejoicing in the presence of the angels of God over one
sinner who repents."
The Parable of the Loving Father and the
Prodigal Son
11
Jesus continued: "There was a man who had two sons. 12 The younger one said to his father,
`Father, give me my share of the estate.' So he divided his property between
them. 13 "Not long after
that, the younger son got together all he had, set off for a distant country and
there squandered his wealth in wild living. 14 After he had spent everything, there was a severe famine in
that whole country, and he began to be in need. 15 So he went and hired himself out to a citizen of that
country, who sent him to his fields to feed pigs. 16 He longed to fill his stomach with the pods that the pigs
were eating, but no one gave him anything. 17 "When he came to his senses, he said, `How many of my
father's hired men have food to spare, and here I am starving to death! 18 I will set out and go back to my father
and say to him: Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. 19 I am no longer worthy to be called your
son; make me like one of your hired men.'
20
So he got up and went to his father. "But while he was still a long
way off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion for him; he ran to
his son, threw his arms around him and kissed him. 21 "The son said to him, `Father, I have sinned against
heaven and against you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son.' 22 "But the father said to his
servants, `Quick! Bring the best robe and put it on him. Put a ring on his
finger and sandals on his feet. 23
Bring the fattened calf and kill it. Let's have a feast and celebrate.
24 For this son of mine was dead
and is alive again; he was lost and is found.' So they began to celebrate.
25
"Meanwhile, the older son was in the field. When he came near the
house, he heard music and dancing. 26
So he called one of the servants and asked him what was going on.
27 `Your brother has come,' he
replied, `and your father has killed the fattened calf because he has him back
safe and sound.' 28 "The
older brother became angry and refused to go in. So his father went out and
pleaded with him. 29 But he
answered his father, `Look! All these years I've been slaving for you and never disobeyed your orders. Yet
you never gave me even a young goat so I could celebrate with my friends.
30 But when this son of yours who
has squandered your property with prostitutes comes home, you kill the fattened
calf for him!'
31
"`My son,' the father said, `you are always with me, and everything
I have is yours. 32 But we had to
celebrate and be glad, because this brother of yours was dead and is alive
again; he was lost and is found.'"
Luke 22:14 - 46; 23:32 - 47 Jesus' Last Hours
The Last Supper
14 When the hour came, Jesus and his
apostles reclined at the table. 15
And he said to them, "I have eagerly desired to eat this Passover
with you before I suffer. 16 For I
tell you, I will not eat it again until it finds fulfillment in the kingdom of
God." 17 After taking the
cup, he gave thanks and said, "Take this and divide it among you. 18 For I tell you I will not drink again
of the fruit of the vine until the kingdom of God comes." 19 And he took bread, gave thanks and
broke it, and gave it to them, saying, "This is my body given for you; do
this in remembrance of me."
20 In the same way, after
the supper he took the cup, saying, "This cup is the new covenant in my
blood, which is poured out for you. 21
But the hand of him who is going to betray me is with mine on the table.
22 The Son of Man will go as it
has been decreed, but woe to that man who betrays him." 23 They began to question among themselves which of them it
might be who would do this.
24 Also a dispute arose among them as to
which of them was considered to be greatest. 25 Jesus said to them, "The kings of the Gentiles lord it
over them; and those who exercise authority over them call themselves
Benefactors. 26 But you are not to
be like that. Instead, the greatest among you should be like the youngest, and
the one who rules like the one who serves. 27 For who is greater, the one who is at the table or the one
who serves? Is it not the one who is at the table? But I am among you as one
who serves.
The Agony in the Garden
39 Jesus went out as usual to the Mount of
Olives, and his disciples followed him. 40 On reaching the place, he said to them, "Pray that you
will not fall into
temptation." 41 He withdrew
about a stone's throw beyond them, knelt down and prayed, 42 "Father, if you are willing, take
this cup from me; yet not my will, but yours be done." 43 An angel from heaven appeared to him
and strengthened him. 44 And being
in anguish, he prayed more earnestly, and his sweat was like drops of blood
falling to the ground.45 When he
rose from prayer and went back to the disciples, he found them asleep,
exhausted from sorrow. 46
"Why are you sleeping? Get up and pray so that you will not fall into
temptation."
Jesus on Calvary
32 Two other men, both criminals, were
also led out with him to be executed. 33
When they came to the place called the Skull, there they crucified him,
along with the criminals‑‑one on his right, the other on his left. 34 Jesus said, "Father, forgive them,
for they do not know what they are doing." And they divided up his clothes
by casting lots. 35 The people
stood watching, and the rulers even sneered at him. They said, "He saved
others; let him save himself if he is the Christ of God, the Chosen One."
36 The soldiers also came up and
mocked him. They offered him wine vinegar 37 and said, "If you are the king of the Jews, save
yourself." 38 There was a
written notice above him, which read: THIS IS THE KING OF THE JEWS. 39 One of the criminals who hung there
hurled insults at him: "Aren't you the Christ? Save yourself and
us!" 40 But the other criminal rebuked him.
"Don't you fear God," he said, "since you are under the same
sentence? 41 We are punished
justly, for we are getting what our deeds deserve. But this man has done
nothing wrong." 42 Then he
said, "Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom." 43 Jesus answered him, "I tell you
the truth, today you will be with me in paradise."
44 It was now about the sixth hour, and
darkness came over the whole land until
the ninth hour, 45 for the
sun stopped shining. And the curtain of the temple was torn in two. 46 Jesus called out with a loud voice,
"Father, into your hands I commit my spirit." When he had said this,
he breathed his last. 47 The
centurion, seeing what had happened, praised God and said, "Surely this
was a righteous man."
Luke 24:13 - 35 The Resurrection : Emmaus
13 Now that same day two of them were
going to a village called Emmaus, about seven miles from Jerusalem. 14 They were talking with each other about
everything that had happened. 15
As they talked and discussed these things with each other, Jesus himself
came up and walked along with them; 16
but they were kept from recognizing him.
17
He asked them, "What are you discussing together as you walk
along?" They stood still, their faces downcast. 18 One of them,
named Cleopas, asked him, "Are you only a visitor to Jerusalem and do not
know the things that have happened there in these days?" 19 "What things?" he asked.
"About Jesus of Nazareth," they replied. "He was a prophet,
powerful in word and deed before God and all the people. 20 The chief priests and our rulers handed
him over to be sentenced to death, and they crucified him; 21 but we had hoped that he was the one
who was going to redeem Israel. And what is more, it is the third day since all
this took place. 22 In addition,
some of our women amazed us. They went to the tomb early this morning 23 but didn't find his body. They came and
told us that they had seen a vision of angels, who said he was alive. 24 Then some of our companions went to the
tomb and found it just as the women had said, but him they did not see."
25
He said to them, "How foolish you are, and how slow of heart to
believe all that the prophets have spoken! 26 Did not the Christ have to suffer these things and then
enter his glory?"
27 And beginning with Moses and all the
Prophets, he explained to them what was said in all the Scriptures concerning
himself.
28
As they approached the village to which they were going, Jesus acted as
if he were going farther. 29 But
they urged him strongly, "Stay with us, for it is nearly evening; the day
is almost over." So he went in to stay with them. 30 When he was at the table with them, he
took bread, gave thanks, broke it and began to give it to them. 31 Then their eyes were opened and they
recognized him, and he disappeared from their sight.
32
They asked each other, "Were not our hearts burning within us while
he talked with us on the road and opened the Scriptures to us?" 33 They got up and returned at once to
Jerusalem. There they found the Eleven and those with them, assembled
together 34 and saying, "It is true! The Lord
has risen and has appeared to Simon." 35 Then the two told what had happened on the way, and how
Jesus was recognized by them when he broke the bread.
John
The most deeply thoughtful of the Gospels, and
in its intensity the most poetic, John's Gospel is most remarkable for its use
of symbols. John does not follow
the style of the Synoptics, with their short, fragmented sayings, although he
may have known them. He takes a
few actions of Jesus and exploits them to illuminate the nature of Jesus by
developing the debates or the preaching which accompany them.
The relationship between the son of Zebedee and
the author of this Gospel, traditionally composed at Ephesus, is not clear. The Greek is simple, correct, but the
underlying thought is not Greek.
John uses words in a very particular way, exploiting their associations
to the full. Bread, water, light,
life, see, truth, know, believe, love are seemingly universal words, but they
are given essentially new meaning by John. Father, Son, Spirit, Word (Logos), I am, glory, commandment,
are equally important, and can only be fully understood by readers familiar
with the Old Testament.
Indeed, John's Gospel is full of the Old
Testament, and John was an Apostle among the Jews, but by the universality of
its imagery and message it can be read by all. Yet it demands explanation, more than any other Gospel, and
completion by contact with the church com¡©munity. At the same time, John is the key to deep understanding of
the Jesus shown in the other Gospels, he develops and explains things that are
only hinted at in them. For
example, the relationship between Jesus and God, or the meaning of the feeding
of the Five Thousand, or the parallels between Jesus and Moses, or the
relationship between the Kingdom of God and this present world. Without John's
stress on love in his Gospel and Letters, Christianity might have developed in
much more rigid ways.
The structure of John's Gospel is not always
clearly articulated:
1.
The New Beginning: This opening section begins with a Prologue:
In
the beginning was the Word (Logos),
and
the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
He
was in the beginning with God.
Through
him all things were made,
and
without him was nothing made that has been made.
In
him was life, and the life was the Light of men
The
light shines in the darkness,
but
the darkness has not comprehended it.
There
came a man who was sent from God; his name was John He came as a witness to
testify concerning that Light
so
that through him all might believe.
He
was not the Light he came to bear witness to the Light;
that
was the true Light that light¡©ens every one who comes into the world.
He
was in the world,
and
the world was made by him,
and
the world knew him not;
he
came to his own,
and
his own received him not.
Yet
to all who did receive him,
to
those who believed in his name,
he
gave power to become children of God;
they
were born, not of blood,
nor
of the will of the flesh,
nor
of the will of a man but of God.
And
the Word was made flesh and dwelt among us
and
we have seen his Glory,
Glory
of the Only Begotten of the Father,
full
of grace and truth.
This introduces the witness of John the Baptist
(chapter 1), then comes the Marriage at Cana, the 'Beginning of Signs' where
there is no more wine, and by the mere presence of Jesus water is changed to
wine; the Temple is purified (chapter 2), Jesus baptized by John, the Spirit
(chapter 3), the gift of Living Water (chapter 4).
2.
The Works of God: Healing (chapter 5), Feeding with the Bread of Life
(chapter 6), Light in darkness (chapter 7-8), Sight given to the blind (chapter
9), The Good Shepherd (chapter 10).
During this section, the op¡©position to Jesus grows, "the
Jews" reject him.
3.
Preparation for Glory: Jesus raises Lazarus, is anointed for death
(chapter
11), enters Jerusalem and is eagerly sought for by Greeks, rejected by Jews, he
foresees his death (chapter 12).
4.
The Hour of Glory: the public works are now finished, Jesus sits down
with his friends to eat the Last Supper; he washes their feet (chapter 13), he
comforts them by including them in his divine life (chapter 14), he expresses
this life in the image of the vine and the commandment to love one another as
he has loved them (chapter 15-16):
"As
the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Now remain in my love. If you
obey my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have obeyed my Father's
commands and remain in his love. I have told you this so that my joy may be in
you and that your joy may be complete.
My
command is this: Love each other as I have loved you. Greater love has no one
than this, that he lay down his life for his friends. You are my friends if you
do what I command. I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not
know his master's business. Instead, I have called you friends, for everything
that I learned from my Father I have made known to you. You did not choose me, but I chose you
and appointed you to go and bear fruit‑‑fruit that will last. Then the Father
will give you whatever you ask in my name. This is my command: Love each other.
Then
Jesus goes out into the garden and prays, offering his life to God and praying
for the unity of all who will believe (chapter 17).
"My
prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me
through their message, that all of
them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also
be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me. I have given them
the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one: I in them and
you in me. May they be brought to complete unity to let the world know that you
sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me.
"Father, I want those you have given me to
be with me where I am, and to see my glory, the glory you have given me because
you loved me before the creation of the world.
"Righteous
Father, though the world does not know you, I know you, and they know that you
have sent me. I have made you known to them, and will continue to make you
known in order that the love you have for me may be in them and that I myself
may be in them."
5.
The Glory: Jesus is arrested, tried and executed (chapters 18-19); risen
from the dead, he is seen by his disciples in ways which confirm his continuing
love for them (chapter 20-21).
The Acts of the Apostles
In Acts, Luke applies to the early history of
the Christian church the same techniques as he had used in his Gospel, telling
events in such a way as to bring out their symbolic, inner meaning, and
relating them to parts of the Old Testament. Acts is not a simple historical record. It is, however, one of the most
remarkable long travel documents of the period, and gives much information
about life in the Eastern parts of the Roman Empire.
The starting point is the coming of the Holy
Spirit into the church community on the day of the Jewish festival called
Pentecost, fifty days after Passover.
The uniting force in the Gospel was the person of Jesus, now "taken
up" into "heaven"; the unlocated Spirit acts in the same way,
guiding the church from within.
Historically, Luke was to be proved right in his rejection of imminent
eschatology (the end of the age) in favour of on-going history.
For Luke, the first, Jerusalem church community,
with its generosity and sharing, its eager gatherings of prayer and fellowship,
was the model for others to follow; characteristically, the Jerusalem church (chapters
2 and 4) is very attentive to the needs of the poor.
In the first part of Acts, especially, there are
long passages of apos¡©tolic preaching.
These sermons by Peter, especially, are centered on the proclamation of
Jesus as the Messiah in the Jewish context. The Jews either believe or reject this message, culminating
in the lynching of Stephen the first martyr (chapter 8) and the mission
to Samaria.
In chapter 9, Acts relates the conversion of
Paul in dramatic terms and his ministry begins just as, in chapter 10, Peter
becomes convinced by a vision that the Gospel is for all mankind, gentiles as
well as Jews. In chapter 12, there
is suspense when Peter is arrested, and the story of his mysterious release by
an angel is full of delightful details.
Chapters 13-14 tell of Paul's first missionary
journey, with few clear details.
Paul seems to have spent 13 years travelling in the time symbolized by
this story. The main point is to
show the different problems
faced
by Paul in preaching to Jews and to pagan gentiles (who are much more open, but
more inclined to wrong ideas).
This leads to chapter 15, the meeting ("Council") held in
Jerusalem at which the "great" apostles Peter and James are seen
approving the mission of Paul to the gentiles. Luke does not have room for the great theological debate
about the Law found in Paul's letters, he expresses its outcome in this narrative.
Paul then sets out again, in response to a
dream, and in chapter 16:10 the narrative suddenly changes into "we",
"From Troas we put out to sea and sailed straight for Samothrace."
Four times in Acts (here and in chapters 20, 21, 27) descriptions of journeys
use this form, implying that the narrator was with Paul. The most vivid moments come in chapter
27, the description of the shipwreck on Malta, one of the most gripping
narratives in the New Testament.
In chapter 17, Paul arrives in Athens, and is
shown trying rather unsuccessfully to adapt his message to the philosophy
majors of the University during his speeches, that to the Areopagus in
particular being based on the trial of Socrates. Luke probably realized that Athens, symbolizing Greek culture,
was a major symbol for something not yet achieved, the synthesis of the
Christian and the philosophical.
So too, in chapter 19, there is a symbolic conflict at Ephesus between
the Gospel and the old paganism.
From chapter 21, Paul sets out on his journey to
death, a structure paralleling Luke's Gospel. Paul is arrested after a riot in the Temple at Jerusalem; as
a Roman citizen he demands trial, but the story is told with many speeches in
which Paul is shown proclaiming the Gospel, even while he is being
lynched. In chapter 25, Paul
appeals to Rome, fearing that he will be sent back to Jerusalem and
killed. He continues to justify
himself, now before the highest authorities he can meet, as a peaceful citizen
who hopes for more from Rome than from Ierusalem.
After the episode of the shipwreck (chapter 27),
in the last chapter Luke brings Paul to the gates of Rome, accompanied by a
crowd of Christians come out to welcome him. His "prison" is a house he rented and he is shown
preaching to all. Luke does not
mention that during these two years Paul wrote the Letters to the Philippians,
to the Ephe¡©sians, to the Colossians, and to Philemon. There Luke stops his account. In actual fact, it seems that Paul was
released after two years, went to Spain, back to Crete and Greece, and was
finally put into a prison in Rome from which he wrote the second Letter to
Timothy, sure that his death was near.
The Epistles
Most of the Letters contained in the New
Testament are open letters written by Paul to the Christian churches in the cities
and areas he had visited: Rome, Corinth (2 letters), Galatia, Ephesus,
Philippi, Colossae, Thessalonica (2 letters). Other letters
are addressed to individuals: to Timothy (2 letters), Titus and
Philemon. They deal with many
different questions arising at the time he was writing, some very general, some
quite specific to that church or individual. There was no idea that they would be collected together, or
that they would still be read every day by Christians 2000 years later.
Within the Epistles, some of the most familiar
texts are: Romans chapter 8 (about the relationship of man and Christ by the
Spirit), I Corinthians 13 (the "Hymn to Charity"), and 15 (about the
Resur¡©rection), Philippians 2:1-11 (on Christ's self-emptying). Ephesians is the most densely poetic of
all Paul's writings.
Romans: The main
theme of this epistle, written by Paul in Corinth before leaving for Rome in
57-8, is the meaning of "Salvation", the relationship between faith
and God's justice, between God and us.
In a second section (chapters 12-15), Paul discusses the moral
consequences of his ideas. The
discovery of salvation as a pure gift of God's grace, and the need for each
person to respond by faith, made this the funda¡©mental text for the Reformers
of the 16th century, Luther in particular. It is not constructed logically, and is often difficult to
read. Especially hard are the
passages dealing with the Jewish people.
I
Corinthians: This epistle was written because Paul, in
Ephesus about 57, had heard of serious conflicts and divisions among the
Corinthian Christians. The main
themes of the letter are dictated by this situation, Paul discusses the various
problems that have arisen, (chapters 1-6), then tries to suggest some
solutions, both in detail and in general, as he moves towards a new vision of
what the Christian community is (chapters 11-14), and of the hope it lives by
because of Christ's Resurrection (chapter 15). The Hymn to Love of chapter 13 is the most well-known part
of any Epistle :
If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels,
but have not love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. If I have
the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I
have a faith that can move mountains, but have not love, I am noth¡©ing. If I
give all I possess to the poor and surrender my body to the flames, but have
not love, I gain nothing. Love is patient love is kind. Love does not envy, it does not boast
it is not proud. It is not rude,
it is not self-seeking, it is not easily an¡©gered, it keeps no record of
wrongs. Love does not delight in
evil but rejoices with the truth.
It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.
Love never fails. But where there are prophecies, they will cease; where there
are tongues, they will be stilled; where there is knowledge, it will pass
away. For we know in past and we
prophesy in part; but when the perfect comes, the imperfect disappears. When I was a child, I talked like a
child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man I put childish ways
behind me. Now we see as in a
glass, darkly; but then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall fully know, even as I am
fully known.
And now these three remain: faith, hope and
love. But the greatest of these is
love.
II
Corinthians: Perhaps the most emotional of all the epistles;
Paul is faced with a grave crisis of confidence and he tries to regain the
trust of the Corinthians by reminding them of his service in the church, his
past history and the past relationships they had. He mentions the needs of the church in Jerusalem, now in great
poverty and needing their help, but most of the letter is a personal challenge
to enemies who had destroyed his authority. It is intensely personal in tone and tells us much about
Paul himself. It reflects the
turmoil of journeys, visits, reports, frustrations, delays, that made up Paul's
life.
Galatians:
It
is not clear who these Galatians were; there was a province called Galatia in
Asia Minor, but it contained various peoples, not only the Celtic
Galatians. The people to whom Paul
is writing seem to be gentiles (not Jews) who have become Christians but who
have been told by some Jewish Christians that they should observe the Old Testa¡©ment
laws, and be circumcised. The
epistle is therefore about the rela¡©tionship between the Law of Moses and the
salvation given by Christ. This
epistle particularly celebrates the freedom which comes with faith in Christ;
in style, Paul is following the lessons he learned at school with the Rabbis,
and his arguments are not always easy to follow.
Ephesians: Not really a
letter at all, but a magnificent theological discourse incorporating many
phrases drawn from the young Church's worship, as well as from other letters by
Paul. It was almost certainly not
originally addressed to the Ephesians, or any particular church. It is often said that Paul may not be the
author. The main sections of the
text are prayer (chapters 1-3) and exhortation (chapters 4-6); the first part
especially offers a vision of the Christian "mystery" that represents
a vital step in the development of the doctrine of the Trinity (God is one, yet
the unity is a fellowship of love involving Father, Son and Spirit). Unity is also the moral theme of the
epistle, human unity linked to the establishment of Christ's kingdom.
Philippians: Probably
written at Rome in 61-3, while Paul was in pri¡©son. The main theme of the epistle, written to Macedonian
Christians, is joy and fellowship.
Fellowship (Greek koinonia) is relationship with God and with
other Christians, and joy is the result of union with Christ's suffering and
Resurrection. The hymn to
Christ in chapter 2:5-11 is particularly impressive. It sums up the nature of Christ's
coming into the world as a "self-emptying", as it struggles with the
paradox of his humiliation and his glory:
Let
that mind be in you which was in Christ Jesus,
Who,
being in very nature God,
did
not consider equality with God something to be grasped,
but
made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant,
being
made in human likeness.
And
being found in appearance as a man,
he
humbled himself and became obedient to death‑‑
even
death on a cross!
Therefore
God exalted him to the highest place
and
gave him the name that is above every name,
that
at the name of Jesus every knee should bow,
in
heaven and on earth and under the earth,
and
every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord,
to
the glory of God the Father.
Colossians: Also written
from prison, this Epistle is designed to warn the Christians of the (Turkish)
city of Colossae against certain false ideas being taught them by some Jews,
ideas involving dates and rules about food, as though such things could affect
salvation. Here Paul discusses
more fully than before his Christology, seeing in Jesus the cosmic fullness of
Wisdom by whom all things were made.
Salvation for the Christian is always collective, uniting the believer
with all who believe.
I
and II Thessalonians: Two sections of a single correspondence, written
from Corinth in 50-2. Timothy has
brought back news of the church in Thessalonica after a visit there, and Paul
is replying to two questions about the Second Coming (Parousia) of
Christ which they had sent to him.
The question of the date of the Parousia, unknown to all, was bothering
them, and the second letter was written to support what he had written in the
first. In both, Paul seems to
expect, or hope, that Christ will soon return in his realized kingdom.
I
and II Timothy, Titus: These are also called the Pastoral Epistles,
since the three letters deal with the way a pastor should live and teach in the
church. There is some possibility
that they were written for Paul by a secretary (Luke?), since the vocabulary is
very different from that found in the Pauline epistles. Here we find the beginnings of the
normal pastoral ministry of the church, modelled on that of Jewish
communities. In each local
assembly (ekklesia) there is a council of elders (Greek presbyteroi, from
which comes the word "priest") and a single episkopos (president
of a council, giving the English "bishop"). There are also diakonoi, deacons who serve the needs
of the community in concrete ways, especially helping those who are poor or
sick (the Greek root of "deacon" means "serve", as also
that of the Latin "minister").
Philemon:
Written
at the same time as Colossians, to an individual member of the church at
Colossae, Philemon, whose slave Onesimus ("useful") has run away and
has joined Paul. Paul has
persuaded him to return, but writes asking the master to let Onesimus go, so
that he can help Paul in his ministry.
It is possible that Onesimus later became the
bishop
of Ephesus.
Hebrews: Like
Ephesians, this is a theological work rather than a personal letter. It is influenced by the thought of the
Hellenistic Jewish thinker Philo of Alexandria. It is not certain that Paul was the author, and the
"Hebrews" of the title are not the non-Christian Jews. The contents show how Jesus is the
fulfillment of all that the Old Testament writes about the Temple sacrifices,
and contrasts the Old with the New, the Jerusalem Temple and the
"real" altar in Heaven; always the superiority of Christ is stressed,
and the argument leads into an exhortation to hope and endure (chapters 11-12).
James:
A
very Jewish text, full of homely wisdom on how to live a godly life, with
little of the Pauline theology of faith and grace, James being anxious that
Christians should put their love into practice. Pro¡©bably written by the James called "the brother of
the Lord" in Mark.
I
Peter: A
letter of encouragement, outlining the dignity of the Christian vocation for
those faced with persecution.
Probably written for Peter by a Greek-speaking secretary (Silvanus?).
II
Peter: A
letter written perhaps later, under the name of Peter but using the letter of
Jude as an inspiration. The main
question here is the delay in the return of Christ in his Parousia, implying
that this letter is one of the last texts of the New Testament to have been
written.
I,
II, III John: Close to the Gospel of John in style, though not always identical
in thought, the first letter is more general, theological and thoughtful. Its
climax is the amazing affirmation: "God is love". It is said that when John was a very
old man, he could only repeat: "God is love; we should love one
another."
Dear friends, let us love one another, for love
comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. Whoever
does not love does not know God, because God is love. This is how God showed
his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might
live through him.
This is love: not that we loved God, but that he
loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. Dear friends,
since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has ever seen
God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete
in us. We know that we live in him and he in us, because he has given us of his
Spirit. And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent his Son to be the
Savior of the world.
If anyone acknowledges that Jesus is the Son of
God, God lives in him and he in God.
And so we know and rely on the love God has for us. God is love. Whoever
lives in love lives in God, and God in him. In this way, love is made complete
among us so that we will have confidence on the day of judgment, because in
this world we are like him. There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives
out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made
perfect in love.
We love because he first loved us. If anyone
says, "I love God," yet hates his brother, he is a liar. For anyone
who does not love his brother, whom he has seen, cannot love God, whom he has
not seen. And he has given us this command: Whoever loves God must also love
his brother. (I John 4)
The
other two Johannine letters are private, more personal in style, although
addressed to communities rather than individuals.
Jude:
Written,
perhaps, by the brother of James, to warn a community of Jewish Christians
against certain "false teachers" in their midst.
Revelation
The Church has always claimed that the John who
names himself as the author of this last book was the same as the author of the
Gospel and Epistles; the great difference in style and language is then a
problem that remains unsolved. The roots of Revelation in the Jewish
Apocalyptic writings (Daniel and other writings not included in the
Bible) explain the special features of its style.
The main theme of this book, expressed in vivid
and confusing images of cosmic collapse and conflict, is the victory promised
to the Christians after their sufferings in this present world. It dramatizes the fact that Christ is
risen and taken up into glory while we are still here, struggling. It presents then, in the form of an
eschatological drama, (eschaton means the "last things":
death, judgement, heaven, hell) some ideas about the struggle in which God's
People are involved, and a declaration that the victory of Christ is the
victory of his church, although this victory is not yet complete as human
history continues.
One of the main themes of the Apocalypse is then
judgement. In John's Gospel
already, judgement was a matter of death and life, and it occurred whenever
people saw the Light, believed in the Truth, loved one another. The warfare described in Revelation
is then a traditional expression of this same reality; people judge themselves
by their choices. But these
choices have cosmic dimensions since God is God, while evil and revolt are
possible choices against him.
The "future" events shown here are
reflections of present realities, this is not a description of coming days in a
literal sense. The use of numerical symbolism and time schemes is an echo of Daniel
and others, it has intellectual and symbolic significance, it is not some kind
of magical doomsday forecast.
The great power of Revelation lies in the
evocative force of some of its images, which have inspired many artists. Mostly, the imagery of Apocalypse is
visual and dramatic; it may be cosmic (stars and sun) or mythical (dragons,
angels), liturgical (throne,
altar, incense) or symbolic (beasts full of eyes, a woman in birth-pains),
destructive (the four horses, plagues, war) or consoling (no more tears, the
heavenly Jeru¡©salem). The style is
always solemn and full of echoes of the poetic passages of the Old Testament.
1.
Introduction: Visions, encouragements and the Letters to the Seven
Churches. (chapters 1-3). In each
letter, encouragements and warnings mingle, introducing the theme of
uncertainty about the ultimate faithfulness of many believers.
2.
The Prophetic Drama
a)
Overture (chapters 4-5): the worship of God by all creation, the Lamb,
victory.
b)
Preludes (chapters 6-1 1): the Seven Seals (6-7), the Seven Trumpets
(8-9), the mystery of the Church in human history (10- II).
c)
The Struggle (chapters 12-20): The Dragon, the Woman and the Beasts
(12-13), the Lamb and the 144,000, the judgement of blessings and harvest (14),
the praise of the Lamb (15), the Seven Bowls (plagues) (16), the judgement of
Babylon (17), the fall of Babylon and the heavenly triumph (18-19), Satan is
overcome, the Millennium (thousand years) ends and Satan is released for a
time, the resur¡©rection of all (20).
d)
The New Creation (chapters 21-22): the new heavens and the new earth,
the end of tears in the final Consolation, the new Jerusalem coming down from
God like a bride for the Lamb, its beauty, appearance and size, its life. The end, final promises and warnings. "Maranatha" (Come Lord, the
Lord is coming).
English
Translations of the Bible
The influence of the Bible on a culture depends
on its availability. Throughout
the Middle Ages, church services, including the Bible readings, were
mostly in Latin, a language that ordinary people could not understand. With the rise of the populist movements
of the later 14th century, John Wycliffe and his followers were the
first to organize translations into English of the Latin Vulgate, in
1380-2. Their teachings were not
accepted by the church of the time, but the translations continued in use.
In 1525, the reformer Tyndal published a
translation of the New Testament based on Erasmus's edition of the Greek, and
in 1530 he published a translation of the Pentateuch (first five books of the
Old Testament) from the Hebrew.
The rest he left in manuscript when he was executed as a Lutheran
heretic in 1536. Tyndal's
translation served as the basis for the style and vocabulary of almost all
later translations until the 20th century, he himself used Wycliffite versions
as a guide.
Coverdale's Bible was published
in 1536, based on the Vulgate, on Luther's Bible, and on Tyndal. He was the first to put the non-Hebrew
books of the Old Testament in a separate section. This translation was unscholarly, but through it Tyndal's
style passed into common use in the years of Henry VIII's and Archbishop
Cranmer's early liturgical reform that led to the Books of Common Prayer of
1549 and 1552. At the end of the
20th century, the Church of England still often uses Coverdale's version of the
Psalms for singing in its services.
In 1539, a version of the Bible commonly called
the Great Bible appeared, combining Tyndal, Coverdale, and another
version, the Matthew. This was
authorized for use in church services and it continued in general use until
1568, 10 years after Elizabeth became queen. Almost at the same time, Taverner's Bible appeared,
which first used the word "parable". During this time, the Reformation spread to England in the
years of the child-king Edward VI (1547¡©53) and many editions of the Bible were
published before his older half sister Mary followed him and tried to put the
clock back.
While Mary Tudor tried to bring back the old Catholic
religion, many theologians escaped to Geneva, where they prepared the Geneva
Bible which was published in its final version in England in 1560, under
Elizabeth. This was the Bible
familiar to Shakespeare and it continued in general use until the Civil War
(1640). It was printed in clear
type, was quite small in size, and was the first English Bible with verse ¡©numbers. It had notes that expressed Calvinist
doctrines, and the Anglican bishops of Elizabeth did not like them. They therefore revised the Great Bible
into the Bishop's Bible of 1568, which was "authorized for use in
churches". It served as the
basis for the "King James' Bible" of 1611.
Catholic scholars, escaping persecution under
Elizabeth in France and Belgium, also made translations, of the New Testament
in 1582, the Rheims Version, from the Vulgate, but following the older
English versions in style. It also
influenced the 1611 revision. In
1610, catholic scholars at Douay published a translation of the Vulgate Old
Testament.
King James set up a commission of experts to
prepare an official translation, based on all previous ones. This was published in 1611, and became
known, for no special reason, as the Authorized Version. It remained in
use until the present century, though a Revised Version was made in the
late 19th century, followed by the American Standard Version in 1901
which was the basis for the Revised Standard Version of 1946-52. Since that, there have been innumerable
other translations made. The quotations used in this chapter are almost all
taken from the New International Version.