Today we celebrate Sunday of the Word of God, but how did the Bible, and
more particularly the New Testament, get to be put together? We might find it
surprising to discover that the four Gospels were put together in the first
century, but some years after Christ ascended into heaven, although debate goes
on and on as to when exactly each Gospel might have been written. We do
know that a lot of teaching was given orally, passed on by word of mouth. If
this sounds like Chinese Whispers, then let me stop you. The fact that the
message of Jesus was given to a community of people means that if someone
got something wrong, others would pull the person up and say, “That’s not how
it happened. The message we received is this...” There were also in the
Christian community other Gospels going around, some with various
corruptions. If you look at the letters of St John in the New Testament, he
warns fellow believers against those who are going off at tangents, like those
who said that Jesus was God but only appeared to be human. The Church had
that message and had to both deepen its understanding of it, and also guard it
against false ideas from either Judaism or pagan religions. It also meant that
the Church later had to make the decision of which Gospels to put into the New
Testament and which ones to leave out. If we look at the four Gospels, we see
a unified picture, painted if you like by four different artists, whilst some of the
heretical Gospels present a vary different image.
One of the things they’ve tried to do with the new translation of the Scriptures
that we are using is to stick more closely to the original text. Sometimes, in
translations, it’s decided to put things in a different way to make them more
understandable, or to change the style a bit. One of the examples you might
have already spotted is the use of the word “and”. In English, or at least British
English, a list normally has a comma after each item, and the last one is
preceded with “and”. For example: fish, chips and mushy peas. You’ll spot in
the new Lectionary that they’ve left in a lot of the “and”s, which would give us
fish and chips and mushy peas. What this new translation does is it brings
across into English the author’s style of each book of the Bible, rather than
tidying it up or rearranging things a bit.
So, one of the things that we have at the start of St Luke’s Gospel is his
introduction, detailing the research he has gone into to ensure the accuracy of
the message. One thing we probably wouldn’t notice though, it his change of
style. To reassure the reader, his introduction is written in sophisticated Greek,
showing he is someone of intelligence and learning, and then moves into the
style and idiom of books in the Old Testament like Genesis, Judges and
Samuel, to convey the message that Christ now fulfils what was written in
those books. Today we still have stylistic clues indicating what kind of
document we are starting to read. For example, if something begins with: I,
George Spencer, herby bequeath my property, land and financial assets, then it
requires quite a different approach to if a book begins with: Once upon a time,
there was a little dog.
There is so much depth to the Scriptures, and there is always more to discover!
We also, though, need to watch out for certain forms of scholarship that begin
from the idea that God doesn’t exist and Jesus was only a man, and therefore
present a very secularised understanding. You can’t always believe everything
scholars put forward or you see on TV.
Now a slight change of emphasis – the Scriptures are not just a text to be
studied like any other ancient document – that would rather miss the point.
Luke writes:
“it seemed good to me also, having followed all things closely for some time
past, to write an orderly account for you, most excellent Theophilus, so that you
may have certainty concerning the things you have been taught.”
Who was Theophilus? “[M]ost excellent” was a form of address for governors
and nobility. The name “Theophilus” means beloved of God. The Scriptures
are addressed to us, too, as beloved of God. They are not just for the head, but
also for the heart, as a vehicle for us to meet Jesus. In fact I read of someone a
few years ago who put his conversion down to reading St John’s Gospel and
encountering Christ there.
The Scriptures are worthy of belief. Their message and their authorship is
guaranteed by the Church, and have been carefully selected, so that we may
know the truth and the truth may set us free.
Curious about exploring things further? If you would like to ask further questions about the topics raised in these homilies (or maybe think it wasn’t explained too well!), please feel free to e-mail Fr Michael at stjoseph.thame@rcaob.org.uk