Bible Topics

There is no doubt the term "Jews" has a pejorative meaning in most contexts. The use in John's Gospel was the one stated and commonly used by the Israelites at that time. The term, Israelite, was the generic name as Israeli is today. The Jews were the "Judaei" or the tribe of Juda who governed the south of Palestine and especially Jerusalem. They were hated by the rest of Israel because of their superiority complex and control of all the temple donations and tithes that had to be paid 3 times a year. If there was any fighting in wars, the "Judaei" were automatically the officers and the rest were the foot soldiers.

Hence it would be a distortion of John's picture of Jesus to remove the word (Jews) because of the present day slant. An introductory note to the Gospel should suffice to put the picture in focus.

The most basic point is the notion of the Church. Jesus clearly taught only two qualities were necessary. It was to be holy and go everywhere. These two qualities are also the only two mentioned in one Didache and the Apostles Creed. The notions of one and Apostolic did not come in until the Great Schism in the 11th century or the Reformation in the 16th.

The word "Ekklesia" (Qahal) is an active word and emphasizes that the "elders" are "gathering" the flock wherever they go. The notion of top heavy structure and hierarchy were not envisioned or started in Apostolic times.

Jesus Christ is a man to admire, listen to and accept. He had strong convictions about life on the daily level. He was quick to express his ideas and he liked to accept a challenge and debate. His ideas are needed in today's world.

You asked, last night, when all this imposed (church) structure was started. It covered several years. We know that the age of persecution ended in 313 AD. Before that, the life of the Christians was too "iffy" to make a lot of plans. St. Ireneus was a disciple of St. Polycarp who was a convert & disciple of John the Apostle. Ireneus did a lot of writing which is all extant in the Migne collection of the Patres.

By the year 380 AD, the Latin tongues had replaced the Greek and the Bible translations were unnumbered and ranked from poor to miserable. St. Jerome was an outstanding scholar in Greek, Hebrew and Latin. Pope Damasus I ordered Jerome to make an accurate translation of the whole Bible into Latin. He completed the work and presented it to Damasus in 384. It was a masterpiece.

Instead of making the translation official, he let the priests of Rome use it and comment. These men started to read and were incensed that Jerome changed or dropped so much "garbage." They wrote their texts right into the copies again. Damasus was so "scared" he said not a word and gave no approval to the work of Jerome.

From 384 to 1563, the Latin text, now called the Vulgate, went from miserable to the bottom. Finally, at the Council of Trent in 1563, the Vulgate as it was then read became the official text of the Roman church. If the originals did not agree, they were wrong.

In 1942, Bea finally sneaked a copy of the encyclical "Divino Afflante Spiritu" (DAS) under the pen of Pius XII and he signed it. Pius XII was amazed when he later read the letter but it was official and he was afraid to retract. Finally, the original languages of the Bible came to the fore.

The new approach to the Bible began but many Scripture profs were afraid to change their approach.

I started my formal study of Sacred Scripture (SS) in Oc-oc in 1943. I did not even hear of the encyclical letter, DAS, until 1948 in Washington at C.U. (Catholic University). Fortunately, I got immersed with great teachers: Pat Skehan, Roland Murphy, Lou Hartman, Ed Arbez, and Mike Guenthaner. Then I went to Rome and had Lyonnet, Bonsierven, Dyson and Vogt.

I came back to Oc-oc and started to teach what I had learned and had one "hassle" after another with Coyle in Dogma and Boucher in SS. After 3 years, they left me alone but expected any day to see me boiled in oil.

In 1954, I started the program for the Norbertines in DePere and the priests in Milwaukee. From that time, I continued to gain ground, credibility and acceptance except from the CSsR faculty in Oc-oc.

It was a long road which has reached a summit in the work I have now written. I have now answered questions that were smothered in the time of Jerome. Now I can sail on.

There are several key ideas that form a springboard for all the others.

The first and most basic is a notion of Christ which makes him a real man, highly talented, moved profoundly by the hypocrisy and chicanery of the leaders in society at the time, and filled with a sense of urgency to do something about the situation.

He was well aware that he had to act fast because his total opposition to the leaders would mean persecution and death in a short while. He was scared of this and worried about it all his life. The regular power of miracles was a seal of approval from God that all could see. However, this power was quickly closed off because the church was to grow by harmony and peace it established in society.

As I listened to the discussion of Science and Creationism, I personally would hold that the whole book of Genesis is folklore and myth. The first edition of the Old Testament in existence is the Yahwist. This comes from the time of Solomon, 10th century BC. I think this is the first time the Israelites were developed enough to ask questions about their origins.

They had some oral traditions that had been handed down but not written history. So they made up the names Abram, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Israel and wrote the stories. The Egypt story is basically true. They were a group of slaves in Egypt in the "heyday" of the Pharaohs. All the other stories about plagues, etc., were the effects of the storytellers and natural phenomena of Egypt. The dividing of the Reed Sea is a natural effect of the Sirocco, even today. The Moses story would be part fact and part fiction. The fact would be the knowledge of the desert possessed by a nomad chieftain. The fiction would be all the added details of burning bushes, etc.

Their "history" starts with the settling in Israel and the founding of the Kingdom and then the Prophets. All these facts were set down with a flourish but it was the Elohist editors who brought the mystic balloon to the ground.

Mankind through science is to control, manage and develop the universe and bring it to perfection. The more the scientists learn about the inner working of things, the more this development takes place. The main focus of the Bible account is that all this has to be learned and developed for the good and growth of all people.

The Old Testament was written in bits and snatches. The oldest part of the Old Testament (OT) is a couple of verses in Genesis. Then with the arrival of Solomon, the real editing of the OT began. This was 10th century BC. First, there was the Yahwist edition (J) in the 10th century BC. Then came the Elohist (E) in the 9th century. The Yahwist-Elohist (J-E) were combined at the same time. With Isaiah I, in the 8th–7th century, J-E took over and the prophets entered the picture. In the 7th century, under the influence of Jeremiah and Baruch, we get the Deuteronomic and then, J-E-D. After the Exile, in the 6th and 5th century, come the Priestly edition and the J-E-D-P.

The text was handed on without much adding or changing until the Greek scholars came into the picture. The LXX (Septuagint) translation was made by some group and the variants of the editions were swallowed up in the Greek translation. The last books of the Apocalyptic tradition were written in Greek, such as Wisdom of Solomon and many of the Psalms.

The Greek language carried over into New Testament times and only the original Matthew was written in Aramaic or popular Hebrew. Greek fell into disuse and Latin became the common language by 300 AD. In 380 AD, Jerome was commissioned by Pope Damasus I to translate the whole Bible into Latin.

Jerome finished the work in 384 AD and gave it to the Pope. The translation was excellent and immediately rejected by priests and teachers because faulty translations had been corrected or dropped. Damasus was afraid to make Jerome's translation official. The Latin text was butchered until 1563 with the Council of Trent. Then the current Vulgate was made official and took precedence over the Greek and Hebrew. The result was chaotic for "true" theology.

Finally, in the 19th century, the German school of Tubingen under Dibelius and Bultmann began to move to the original Hebrew and Greek. They were Protestants so all this work was suspect and rejected out of hand by Roman authorities. In any conflict between Latin and the original languages, the Latin took precedence.

Tubingen was open-minded and invited Catholic scholars. The Dominicans responded and established the L'Ecole Biblique in Jerusalem with LaGrange in the late 1800's. They worked well with Tubingen and were thus suspect by Rome.

In 1909, the Pontifical Biblical Institute was established in Rome and given to the Jesuits who had no scholars at the time. However, they quickly developed great men. Among them was the German Bea. He had been to Tubingen often and respected Dibelius and Bultmann and they respected him. However, the original languages were suspect by Roman authority until 1942 when Divini Afflante Spiriti (DAS) and the underhanded way that Bea got Pius XII to sign it.

Then in 1947, the Qumran scrolls were found and our present Biblical era was off and running. I came into the graduate program of Semitic Studies at Catholic U. in 1945.

To answer your question, the various traditions of the OT can be easily seen only in the original Hebrew. They were clearly known and taught at Tubingen in the 19th century. They were rejected by Catholic theologians as protestant propaganda. The Dominicans (O.P.) school in Jerusalem worked from the originals from its foundations but the degrees from the L'Ecole Biblique were not recognized by Rome until about 1960. Then they were tolerated only. DeVaux was told he would have to get a degree from the Pontifical Biblical Institute (PIB) if he wanted to teach in any Catholic University. M.J. Lagrange was never declared a heretic but there was a strong whisper in Rome. For years, the Revue Biblique (magazine) was not on the shelves of the Vatican Library.

There's a lot more but this is enough for today's note.

I'll continue into the New Testament, from yesterday. For centuries, Paul got most of the attention. His writings were almost all "moralist" which was the style of the "church teachers." The Gospels were seen as simplistic stories that were read for a few minutes in the liturgy and then something else was talked about.

The approach was always the Concordance of all four (gospels) in an effort to fit details into a preconceived time line. It was like taking four masterpieces of four different artists, mashing them all together, and then saying we have a work of art. Actually, we have destroyed all four. This is what the concordance of the Gospels did and this was the only way the Gospels were studied until the 50's. In fact, many Scripture profs were still doing the "harmony" and "life of Christ" style in the late 60's.

This is one of the reasons why my commentaries are vital. Each Gospel story is a separate unit. Each comes from a different tradition and stresses a completely different aspect of Christian living.

The Letter of Peter is a perfect introduction or outline to Mark. The letter of John is an intro to John. The letter to the Hebrews develops a couple of Johannine ideas and is from the same source. The letter of James is a strong parallel for Matthew.

The oldest tradition (in OT writings) is the Yahwist (J) which dates back to the time of Solomon — 10th century B.C.

The time of Solomon was the era of the first real scholarship and writing. Prior to that time, especially in the time of Saul and David, everything was war of aggression and mopping up. Some of the Psalms date from the time of David because he was the Gene Autry (cowboy) of the military camps. He would be responsible for the brutal war songs and a few of the pious shepherd lyrics.

The next big influence on the OT would be Elijah and then Isaiah I, Jeremiah, Ezra, Isaiah II & III, Nehemiah, and then the Wisdom writers. These people were all trying to save the people or save a remnant. The influence of the Greek philosophers came in the last 2.5 centuries B.C. This influence brought about a whole new editing of everything that preceded and an intellectual struggle against the Greek approach to life.

The New Testament (NT) was written in Greek. The only exception is the original Matthew which was written in Aramaic or popular Hebrew. The Greek of the NT is the "Koine" or common Greek of the street. It is not the classical Greek of Plato or Aristotle. It is the Greek of the common people.

Paul wrote his letters first — 50–65 AD. Mark wrote his Gospel next — 65–70 AD. Matthew and Luke wrote their Gospels next — 80–90 AD. John wrote his Gospel last — 90–100 AD. The Acts of the Apostles was written by Luke as a sequel to his Gospel. The Book of Revelation was written by John as a sequel to his Gospel.

The NT was written in a time of great persecution. The Romans were destroying Jerusalem and the Temple. The Christians were being persecuted by both the Romans and the Jews. The NT was written to encourage the Christians to hold on and not give up.

The Sermon on the Mount in Matthew is a collection of the sayings of Jesus. It is not a sermon that Jesus gave on one occasion. It is a collection of sayings that were gathered together by Matthew and placed in the context of a sermon. The same is true of the Sermon on the Plain in Luke.

The Beatitudes are the introduction to the Sermon on the Mount. They are a description of the ideal Christian. They are not a list of rules to follow. They are a description of the person who has accepted the Kingdom of God and is living in it.

The Beatitudes are not a list of virtues. They are a description of the person who is living in the Kingdom of God. The person who is poor in spirit is the person who has accepted the Kingdom of God and is living in it. The person who mourns is the person who is grieving over the state of the world and is working to change it.

The parables of Jesus are the most important part of his teaching. They are the heart of his message. They are the way he communicated the Kingdom of God to the people of his time.

The parables are not allegories. They are not stories with a hidden meaning. They are stories that make one point and make it powerfully. The parable of the Prodigal Son is not an allegory about the history of Israel. It is a story about the love of God for the sinner.

The parables are not moral tales. They are not stories that teach a moral lesson. They are stories that reveal the nature of God and the nature of the Kingdom of God. The parable of the Good Samaritan is not a moral tale about helping your neighbor. It is a story about the nature of God who loves all people regardless of their race or religion.

The miracles of Jesus are signs of the Kingdom of God. They are not proofs of his divinity. They are signs that the Kingdom of God is present in the world. The healing of the sick is a sign that the Kingdom of God brings wholeness and health. The feeding of the multitude is a sign that the Kingdom of God brings abundance and plenty.

The miracles are not violations of the laws of nature. They are the fulfillment of the laws of nature. The laws of nature are the laws of God. When God acts in the world, he acts in accordance with his own laws. The miracles are the fullest expression of the laws of nature.

The resurrection of Jesus is the ultimate miracle. It is the sign that the Kingdom of God has conquered death. It is the sign that the Kingdom of God is the final reality. It is the sign that the Kingdom of God is the destiny of all creation.

The Gospel of John is the most theological of the four Gospels. It was written last and reflects the most developed theology of the early church. It was written to a community that had been expelled from the synagogue and was struggling to define its identity.

The prologue of John is a hymn to the Word of God. It is a statement of the theology of the Gospel. The Word of God is the creative power of God. The Word of God is the wisdom of God. The Word of God became flesh in Jesus of Nazareth.

The "I am" sayings of Jesus in John are a reflection of the name of God in the Old Testament. When God revealed himself to Moses, he said "I am who I am." The "I am" sayings of Jesus are a claim to share in the divine nature. They are not a claim to be God in the sense of the Father. They are a claim to share in the divine life and power.

The Letters of Paul are the oldest writings in the New Testament. They were written between 50 and 65 AD. They were written to specific communities that Paul had founded or visited. They were written to address specific problems that had arisen in those communities.

Paul's theology is centered on the death and resurrection of Jesus. He sees the death of Jesus as the ultimate act of love. He sees the resurrection of Jesus as the ultimate act of power. He sees the death and resurrection of Jesus as the foundation of the Christian life.

Paul's ethics flow from his theology. Because Jesus died for all, all are equal before God. Because Jesus rose from the dead, all are called to a new life. Because Jesus is Lord, all are called to serve one another in love.

The Book of Revelation is the most misunderstood book in the New Testament. It is not a prediction of the end of the world. It is a message of hope to a community that is being persecuted. It uses the symbolic language of apocalyptic literature to convey its message.

The number 666 is not the number of a future antichrist. It is the number of the Roman Emperor Nero who was persecuting the Christians at the time. The beast from the sea is the Roman Empire. The beast from the land is the Roman imperial cult.

The message of Revelation is that God is in control of history. No matter how powerful the forces of evil may seem, God will ultimately triumph. The community of faith is called to hold on and not give up. The victory of God is certain.

The Psalms are the prayer book of the Bible. They cover the full range of human experience — joy and sorrow, praise and lament, confidence and doubt. They are the prayers of a people who believed that God was present in all of life.

The Psalms were used in the worship of the Temple. They were sung by the Levites and the people. They were the hymns of ancient Israel. They became the hymns of the early church and they remain the hymns of the church today.

The Psalms teach us how to pray. They teach us that we can bring everything to God — our joys and our sorrows, our hopes and our fears, our praise and our complaints. They teach us that God is big enough to handle all of it.

The Wisdom literature of the Old Testament is a treasure that is often overlooked. The books of Proverbs, Job, Ecclesiastes, Sirach, and the Wisdom of Solomon contain some of the most profound reflections on the human condition in all of ancient literature.

The Wisdom writers were not primarily concerned with history or prophecy. They were concerned with the everyday experience of life. They asked the hard questions: Why do the righteous suffer? What is the meaning of life? How should we live?

The answer of the Wisdom writers is that true wisdom begins with the fear of the Lord. This does not mean terror or dread. It means a profound reverence for God and a recognition that God is the source of all wisdom and all life.

As I come to the end of this section of my journal, I am struck by how much there is still to learn and to write. The Bible is an inexhaustible source of wisdom and insight. Every time I return to it, I find something new.

The work of my life has been to make the Bible accessible to ordinary people. I have tried to cut through the layers of tradition and interpretation that have obscured the original message. I have tried to let the text speak for itself.

I am grateful for the teachers who shaped my understanding — Skehan, Murphy, Hartman, Lyonnet, Bonsierven. I am grateful for the communities that received my teaching with openness and enthusiasm. And I am grateful to God who has given me the health and the energy to continue this work into my seventies.

The journey continues.