Unit 2, Assignment 3 & 4 – “How the Bible came to be written and it’s Authority” (due Dec. 28)

A prayer for the New Year:

We thank you, Father, Lord of all time, for the gifts of food, warmth and company, for your love and the protection of our homes, and, in all that this New Year may hold, for the friendship of Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen.

How the Bible came to be written
The New Testament is a collection of works, and as such written by many different authors. The traditional view is that all the books were written by Apostles or disciples working under their direction
But really; the only books for which there are solid consensuses are seven of the Pauline epistles, which are universally regarded as written by Paul, and the book of Hebrews, which is regarded as anonymous.

The problems with knowing who really wrote ancient works like those in the New Testament can be demonstrated by looking at its four gospels:
Because of the many similarities between Matthew, Mark, and Luke, they are often referred to as the Synoptic Gospels ("seeing-together"). The Gospel of John, in contrast, contains much unique narrative and dialogue and is considered to be different in its emphasis from the other three gospels. The question of how the similarities between the synoptic gospels arose is known as the “synoptic problem”. How material from each gospel was introduced to other gospels brings up significant problems in assigning authorship. Was each written by one individual, the four simply relaying in their own words the events of Jesus' life they themselves witnessed? Was there a first author and gospel whose work substantially contributed to the later gospels? Was each gospel written over a relatively short or long period of time? Was each gospel written by only one person?
The dominant view among critical scholars, called “the Two-Source Hypothesis”, is that both Matthew and Luke used the Gospel of Mark and another common source, known as the "Q Source", from Quelle, the German word for "source". The nature and even existence of Q is speculative. Most Q scholars believe that it was a single written document, while a few say that "Q" was actually a number of documents or oral traditions. No information about its author, if it existed, can be obtained from the resources currently available and, indeed, little or any direct biographical information about their authors is assumed to be traceable. This is just one example of how difficult it is to know who wrote such old documents.

According to tradition, the earliest of the books in the New Testament were the letters of Paul, and the last books to be written are those attributed to John, who is traditionally said to have lived to a very old age, perhaps dying as late as year 100.

The process of canonization
The process of canonization, gathering the books to a Bible, was complex and lengthy. It was characterized by a compilation of books that Christians found inspiring in worship and teaching, relevant to the historical situations in which they lived, and consonant with the Old Testament.
Many believe that the New Testament canon was summarily decided in large, bureaucratic Church council meetings, but this is not true; rather it developed very slowly over many centuries.
In the first three centuries of the Christian Church, Early Christianity, there seems to have been no New Testament canon that was universally recognized.

The oldest clear witness of Mark, Matthew, Luke, and John being the only legitimate gospels was written c. year 180. It was a claim made by Bishop Irenaeus who writes: "It is not possible that the Gospels can be either more or fewer in number than they are. For, since there are four zones of the world in which we live, and four principal winds, while the Church is scattered throughout all the world, and the “pillar and ground” of the Church is the Gospel and the spirit of life; it is fitting that she should have four pillars, breathing out immortality on every side, and vivifying men afresh."
At least, then, the books considered to be authoritative included the four gospels and many of the letters of Paul.
The New Testament canon as it is now was first listed by St. Athanasius, Bishop of Alexandria, in 367.

Authority of the Bible
All Christian groups respect the New Testament, but they differ in their understanding of the nature, extent, and relevance of its authority. How much authority one gives to the New Testament often depend on how you look at inspiration; the role of God in the formation of the New Testament. Generally, the greater one believes the role of God to be in writing the New Testament, the more one accepts the doctrine that the Bible is never wrong.
Most Christians believe that the Scriptures are both human and divine in origin: humans wrote them, but their source is God, the Holy Spirit, who governed the writers.

Among Anglicans, as among most Christian Churches, you can find both people who read the Bible literally (taking every word as true – God did create the world in six days) and people who read the Bible symbolically (meaning for example that the six days of creation could be symbols for six long time periods).

Anglicans believe in the authority of the Bible as the medium through which God by the Spirit communicates his word in the Church and so enables people to respond with understanding and faith. The Scriptures in the Bible are "uniquely inspired witness to divine revelation", and "the primary norm for Christian faith and life". The Bible, however, must be translated, read, and understood, and its meaning grasped through a continuing process of interpretation. Since the seventeenth century, Anglicans say that the Bible is to be understood and read in the light of "tradition" and "reason". Tradition refers to the ongoing Spirit-guided life of the Church which receives, and interprets again, God's message. “Reason" means simply the human being's capacity to symbolize, and so to order, share and communicate experience.
So; the Bible is the first authority. But, for it to be relevant, you must translate it to your situation today and the life of the church today.

Questions:
What is the Synoptic problem?
Explain the Anglican view on the authority of the Bible.

Unit 2, Assignment 2 – “New Testament” (due Dec. 21)

A prayer to start with:

O God of Peace, you fill our hearts with hope at every Christmas time, for we remember again that this is the world that you love. May that hope, peace and joy fill our hearts this Christmas. Amen.

The New Testament, sometimes called the Greek Testament or Greek Scriptures, and sometimes also New Covenant which is the literal translation of the Greek, is the name given to the final portion of the Christian Bible. It was written by various authors after year 45 AD and before year 140 AD. Its books were gradually collected into a single volume over a period of several centuries. The New Testament is more or less the root of the Christian religion, which has played a major role in shaping modern Western morality and culture.
The common languages spoken by both Jews and Gentiles in the holy land at the time of Jesus were Aramaic, an old form of Greek called Koinee, and to a limited extent a dialect of Hebrew. However, the original text of the New Testament was most likely written in Greek, in the dialect in 1st-century Roman provinces of the Eastern Mediterranean, and has since been widely translated into other languages

Books of the New Testament:

Matthew
Mark
Luke
John
Acts
Romans
1 Corinthians
2 Corinthians
Galatians
Ephesians
Philippians
Colossians
1 Thessalonians
2 Thessalonians
1 Timothy
2 Timothy
Titus
Philemon
Hebrews
James
1 Peter
2 Peter
1 John
2 John
3 John
Jude
Revelation

The New Testament are twenty-seven separate works: they consist of the four narratives of Jesus Christ's ministry, called "Gospels"; a narrative of the Apostles’ ministries, which is also a sequel to the third Gospel; twenty-one early letters, commonly called "epistles" in Biblical context, which were written by various authors and consisted mostly of Christian counsel and instruction; and an Apocalyptic prophecy, which is also technically the twenty-second epistle.

The Gospels
Each of the Gospels tells the story of Jesus Christ. The traditional author is listed after each Gospel name below. Modern scholarship differs on precisely by whom, when, or in what original form the various gospels were written.

The Gospel of Matthew, traditionally believed to be written by the Apostle Matthew, son of Alphaeus.

The Gospel of Mark, traditionally believed to be written by Mark, who wrote down the recollections of the Apostle Simon Peter.

The Gospel of Luke, traditionally believed to be written by Luke, a companion of Paul of Tarsus.
The Gospel of John, traditionally believed to be written by the Apostle John, son of Zebedee.

Acts
The book of Acts, also called Acts of the Apostles or Acts of the Holy Spirit, is the story of the Apostles' ministry after Christ's death, which is also a sequel to the third Gospel. Examining style, use of words and other evidence, modern scholarship generally think that Acts and the Gospel of Luke have the same author.
Acts tells the story of the Early Christian church, with particular emphasis on the ministry of the Twelve Apostles and of Paul of Tarsus. The early chapters, set in Jerusalem, discuss Jesus' Resurrection, his Ascension, the Day of Pentecost, and the start of the Twelve Apostles' ministry. The later chapters discuss Paul's conversion, his ministry, and finally his arrest and imprisonment and trip to Rome.

Pauline Epistles
Paul of Tarsus (born around year 10, died around year 65), 'the Apostle to the Gentiles' was, together with Simon Peter, the most important of Early Christian missionaries. Unlike the Twelve Apostles, Paul did not know Jesus in life; he was Roman and used to persecute Christians but came to faith through a vision of the resurrected Jesus. According to Acts, his conversion was on the Road to Damascus.
More of the New Testament is attributed to Paul than to any other author. The Pauline epistles are the thirteen or fourteen letters to different congregations in the New Testament traditionally believed to have been written by the apostle Paul. Among them are some of the earliest Christian documents. They provide an insight into the beliefs and controversies of formative Christianity and, as part of the canon of the New Testament, they have also been, and continue to be, hugely influential in Christian theology and ethics. They consist mostly of moral counsel and behavioral instruction, though they do include other elements as well. Paul appears to have dictated his epistles to scribes and often only wrote a hello by his own hand. The Pauline Epistles are:

Epistle to the Romans
First Epistle to the Corinthians
Second Epistle to the Corinthians
Epistle to the Galatians
Epistle to the Ephesians
Epistle to the Philippians
Epistle to the Colossians
First Epistle to the Thessalonians
Second Epistle to the Thessalonians
First Epistle to Timothy
Second Epistle to Timothy
Epistle to Titus
Epistle to Philemon
Epistle to the Hebrews

General Epistles
The General or Catholic Epistles are those written to the church at large (Catholic in this sense simply means universal).

Epistle of James, traditionally believed to be written by James, brother of Jesus and Jude Thomas.
First Epistle of Peter, traditionally believed to be written by the Apostle Simon, called Peter.
Second Epistle of Peter, also by the Apostle Simon, called Peter.
First Epistle of John, traditionally believed to be written by the Apostle John, son of Zebedee.
Second Epistle of John, also by the Apostle John, son of Zebedee.
Third Epistle of John, also Apostle John, son of Zebedee.
Epistle of Jude, traditionally believed to be written by Jude Thomas, brother of Jesus and James.

Prophecy
The final book of the New Testament has had one of the most profound impacts on Christian theology of the whole work. The Book of Revelation, also called Revelation to John or Apocalypse of John is the last book of the New Testament in the Bible. It is the only biblical book that is wholly composed of apocalyptic literature. The book is frequently called "Book of Revelations" or simply "Revelations"; however, the title found on some of the earliest manuscripts is "The Apocalypse/Revelation of John". The first sentence of the book, The Revelation of Jesus Christ ... unto his servant John, is also sometimes used as a title.
After a short introduction, it contains an account of the author, who identifies himself as John, and of two visions that he received on the isle of Patmos. The first vision, related by one speaking with "a great voice, as of a trumpet", are statements addressed to the seven churches of Asia. The second vision comprising the rest of the book begins with "a door … opened in heaven" and describes the end of the world—involving the final rebellion by Satan at Armageddon, God's final defeat of Satan, and the restoration of peace to the world.
Revelation is considered one of the most controversial and difficult books of the Bible, with many diverse interpretations of the meanings of the various names and events in the account.

Questions:
When and in what language was the New Testament written?
What does “epistle” mean?
What do you know about Paul of Tarsus? (feel free to read more on http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paul_of_Tarsus)

Unit 2, Assignment 1 - "the Old Testament" (due Dec. 14)

It's Advent and Christmas is soon here! Before you start reading take a while for this Advent prayer:

"Come, Lord Jesus, come as King. Rule in our hearts, come as love. Rule in our minds, come as peace. Rule in our actions, come as power. Rule in our days, come as joy. Rule in our darkness, come as light.Rule in our bodies, come as health. Rule in our labours, come as hope.
Your Kingdom come among us!
Amen."

The Bible is the single most important book in the history of the Western world, and it continues to be a bestseller. First we will look at the Old Testament, also called the Hebrew Bible. It is a holy scripture for three of the world's great religions, Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. Full of rich tales, shining heroes, and even more colorful villains, it has inspired some of the world's greatest works of art, music and literature. But it is also a deeply religious book and can speak to one's heart, stirring the imagination and the soul.

If you are in the Jewish tradition, the Old Testament is the collection of sacred writings from ancient Israel and is called the Hebrew Bible, as it is written in the Hebrew language, or Hebrew Scriptures, or Written Torah (to distinguish it from the Oral Torah of the rabbis). If you are in the Christian tradition, the Hebrew Bible is called the Old Testament--old because Christians view it as the essential introduction to the New Testament. Some people have suggested the use of Older Testament or First Testament in order to avoid any suggestion that it is out of date. The Hebrew Bible and the Old Testament may contain the same collection of books depending on which Christian Bible you are using, though the order of individual books may differ.

The Hebrew Bible is one book, as it is typically bound as a single volume. At the same time, it is a collection of books--a library of twenty-four originally separate works. In fact, the term Bible comes from the Greek ta biblia which means "the books." The individual books came from many different authors who wrote over a span of one thousand years or more. They were gathered together and included in a single work we call the Hebrew Bible. The Jewish community that gave rise to the Hebrew Bible divided the various books into three collections: the Law, the Prophets, and the Writings.

A final authoritative collection of books is called a canon. This means that other books were available but were not chosen. The biblical canon institutionalizes the choices that were made. There were, in fact, many more Jewish writings, written in both Hebrew and Greek.

Traditionally Jews and Christians have traced the origin of the Bible to God. Using human agents, God "inscripturated" his word for humankind. Many groups and individuals were responsible for handing down the material contained in the Old Testament and for giving the individual books their final shape. Most remain nameless to this day. Even the books of identifiable prophets such as Isaiah and Amos were not entirely written by those men. The books are collections of their sayings, which anonymous editors gathered together.Much of the material that eventually was included in the Hebrew Bible started out as folktales, songs, and religious liturgies. The common people inherited these stories and passed them on from one generation to the next by word of mouth. Oral tradition, as it is called, was the source of many of the stories that have survived about Israel's ancestors and early history. Priests and highly trained scribes, typically employed by the king, were the only ones able to read and write. They were responsible for gathering materials from oral and written sources, organizing them, and compiling them into books. Probably the earliest that any books were written down was around 950 B.C. during the reign of Solomon, the king of Israel at its golden age.
The Hebrew Bible took centuries to shape. After individual books were completed, they were joined into collections of books until we finally got the version that we have today.

Questions:

Now, I’m sure that you have heard some of the stories or about some of the heroes in the Old Testament. Do you remember any of them? If so; name them.

The most known part of the collection of Law in the Old Testament are the ten commandments. Do you know any of them by heart?
You can check them out in your Bible in the book of Exodus, chapter 20.