Bible Reading for Orthodox Christians

1. Bible Reading for Orthodox Christians It’s Good for You! Part I

2. Overview of the Series • Try to do this in four parts • Today: What is the Bible? • Next: Basic Avenues of Biblical Interpretation • Then: “Issues” That We Bring to Bible Study • Finally: How Then Should We Proceed • A Modest Proposal for Bible Study

3. Hyfalutin’ Term • Hermeneutics: “the science and methodology of interpretation, esp. the Bible” • American Heritage Dictionary

4. Presuppositions to this Study • I’m a Layman • No formal theological study • Advantages and disadvantages • There is a problem today with Bible Study • Two-fold Problem • We Orthodox don’t know much/enough about the Bible • And neither do most other Christians

5. Why a problem? • For Protestants • Sola Scriptura: central unifying principle • Luther’s three sola • Sola gratia • Sola fide • Sola Scriptura • Everything based on Bible • “Bible-believing Christians”

6. Why is this a Problem? • Luther insisted Bible is essentially transparent • Any sincere Christian can understand/explain • And would come up with same interpretation • Result • Emphasis on Bible Study • 33,000 different Christians sects (at last count) • Teaching opposing doctrines • Nature of salvation; Church; sacraments; ministries; • Mary; saints; Eschatology;

7. Why is this a Problem? • For Orthodox • Ill-equipped • To understand Orthodox dogma • To explain Orthodox dogma • To appreciate our Faith • To serve as missionaries • That outreach thing

8. Why don’t we read the Bible • Historic (part of our tradition---”little ‘t’”) • Levels of literacy • Availability of Bibles • Concerns of the hierarchy • Sense of Church = Scriptures • Liturgy • Icons

9. How Serious is the Problem? • Here’s one solution: • “No task is more important than for the church to take the Bible out of the hands of individual Christians in North America.” • Stanley Hauerwas, Methodist theologian & professor, Duke University.

10. Centrality of Scripture • For Catholics • Scripture & Oral Tradition • For the Orthodox • Centerpiece of Holy Tradition • For Protestants • Only Authority (sola Scriptura) • For the World • Book by which Christianity is evaluated/critiqued

11. So • To understand our own Faith • To outreach to other Christians • To evangelize among the non-believers • To defend the Faith from “the heathen” • WE NEED TO READ THE BIBLE!

12. What is the Bible? • Book of Science? • Book of history? • Book of Mythology? • Book of ethics/morality? • Book of God’s inerrant word (cf. Quran)? • As a “vicar of God?” • Context for Hauerwas’s comment

13. What is the Bible? • Greek Term: βιβλιος = record; document; book • Greek speaking Jews: applied to Hebrew Scriptures • Holy Scriptures: used by (all?) Christians • From Latin scribo---to write

14. What is the Bible? • Old Testament • Testamentum: will; (Vulgate mistranslates Greek) • Covenant best translation? • O.T. • Law (Torah); Prophets; Writings • Also includes history books (Joshua/Judges/Kings, etc.) • N.T. • Synoptic Gospels; Gospel of John; Acts; Epistles; Revelation

15. Where did bible Come From? • O.T. • Septuagint: Greek trans. of earlier texts • The Bible for the early Church • Masoretic Text (M.T.) Hebrew trans of 1st-2nd c. A.D. • Fewer books • Different trans. • Spurred in part by Church use of Septuagint

16. W. d. Bible c. f.? • N.T. • No writings by Our Lord • An oral society • Lord’s imminent return • Apostles provided living, oral witness • No need for a new religion • Does Paul know he’s starting the Bible?

17. The N.T. • Paul begins his written work in the ‘50s • Letters of encouragement/reproof/instruction to various communities • Gospels begin to appear in ‘60s • Apostles were dying • Church under persecution • In it for the long haul • Growing separateness from Jewish origins

18. The N.T. • By around A.D. 100: all books of N.T. written • But so were a bunch of other allegedly Christian texts • Histories/Doctrines/Prophecies/Apocalypses • Many purported to be written by “authorities” • Gospels of Mary; Philip; Thomas • Acts of Peter and Mary; of Pilate • Apocalypse of Peter • Some were mainstream; others taught weird stuff • Abhorrent Gospel of Basilides

19. An Authorized New Testament • Quasi-Gnostic heretic: Marcion of Rome (2nd c.) • Dualist • God of love vs. Jehovah • So • Rejects entire O.T. • Severely edits Luke; adds 10 Pauline epistles • In essence: starts the process • Was this authoritative Scripture?

20. An Authoritative N. T. • St. Irenaeus of Lyons (177-200) • 4 canonical Gospels • Muratorian Canon (c. 180) • Named for its discoverer (18th c. Fr. Muratori) • Churches around Rome? • Lists 4 Gospels; 13 Pauline epistles (no Hebrews); Jude; 1-2 John; and the Revelation. • Hebrews; 1-2 Peter; 3 John missing • Includes Wisdom of Solomon; Apocalypse of Peter

21. An Authoritative N.T. • By early 300s: Eusebius’s History of the Church • Provides status update • Recognized: Today’s N.T. minus • Disputed: James; Jude; 2 Peter; 2-3 John • Spurious (doubtful): Acts of Paul; Shepherd of Hermas; Revelation of Peter; Epistle of Barnabas; Didache; and Revelation of John • Clearly heretical: Gospels of Peter; Thomas; Matthias; Acts of Andrew; John; other apostles.

22. An Authoritative N.T. • St. Athanasius the Great (367) • Custom to write all his churches to announce Pascha (same date) • Includes list of books to be read in the churches • “in these [27 writings] alone the teaching of godliness is proclaimed. No one may add to them, and nothing may be taken away from them.”

23. An Authoritative N.T. • Within 50 years near universal acceptance • 382: Council in Rome • 397: Council in Carthage • A New Testament Canon • Where did it come from? • Simplest answer: From the Church; from the scholarship and debate and mistakes and prayer of the Church

24. The Christian Bible • Of course---Church did not attribute this prodigious, four centuries long work of scholarship to its own efforts alone. • But this leads us to the interpretation of these writings, which we will consider next time.