103: Introduction to Scripture 1

The New Testament:An Introductory Overview

Session 1

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Deacon Dana McCarthy

Phone: 352-750-9875

Email: deacondana@centurylink.net

Your Instructor

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This seminar offers only an overview, a brief introduction to the New Testament

We will address the development, content (canon), and major themes of the New Testament

We will also reflect on some key scriptural passages as an introduction to these great themes

And throughout our study we will reflect on Jesus Christ who reveals the fullness of God’s saving action in our midst

Seminar Description

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To appreciate the New Testament as the Word of God

To understand the NT canon and the authorship of NT books

To understand how the NT literary forms present God’s Word

To become familiar with NT books, looking more closely at several books

To become familiar with Jesus’ message as proclaimed in the Gospels and restated and emphasized by the authors of the NT Letters

Seminar Objectives

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Our Calling: Proclaim the

Gospel

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Proclaim the Gospel

As a result of Jesus’ missionary mandate evangelization becomes the Church’s primary mission

We must, then, study Scripture as a source inseparable from the Christian message

“Go into all the world; and proclaim the Gospel to every creature.” [Mk 16:15]

“Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you…” [Mt 28:19-20]

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It is our duty to continue Jesus’ ministry. In a sense we become God’s Word made flesh today

Through Sacred Scripture we hear God’s call to go forth as the first disciples did to prepare the world for the reign of God

"No one has ever seen God. The only Son, God, who is at the Father’s side, has revealed him" [Jn 1:18 ].

Studying Sacred Scripture

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“Ignorance of Scripture is ignorance of Christ” - St. Jerome (331-420 A.D.)

St. Jerome, Father and Doctor of the Church, and our first, great biblical scholar, insisted that ignorance of Scripture is ignorance of Christ.

Jerome knew that, as Christians, we can never come to know and love Jesus – the Living Word of God Incarnate – unless we also know and love Sacred Scripture –the Living Word of God Inspired.

St. Jerome on Sacred Scripture

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The Bible is Sacred (Holy) “Religion” derives from the Latin,

religare – “to bind together”

For Christians and Jews, our belief is not a man-contrived religious construct on how best to approach God; rather, it is a Revelation by God Himself through which He speaks to us [Heb 1:1-4]

Both Old and New Testaments reveal history from God’s perspective. It is the gift of God’s Revelation to us, and is, therefore, holy or sacred.

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The Word of God

"The force and power in the Word of God is so great that it remains the support and energy of the Church, the strength of faith for the faithful, the food of the soul, the pure and perennial source of spiritual life" – [Dei Verbum, 21]

Christianity is God’s revelation of the Word, not a religion of a book!

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God’s Word in human words

Divine & Human

Simultaneous divine and human authorship

Human writers were "true authors" of Scripture, but because they wrote under the Holy Spirit’s inspiration, God is also Scripture’s true author

Those divinely revealed realities, contained and presented in Sacred Scripture, were committed to writing under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit [Dei Verbum, 11]

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"Were not our hearts burning within us while He spoke to us on the way and opened the Scriptures to us?" [Lk 24:32]

Open Your Bible to Luke’s Gospel, 24:13-35

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This, then, is your challenge: to let Jesus light within you a “burning desire” to know Him through your study of the Sacred Scripture.

When you read the Bible prayerfully and regularly you will experience a walk with Jesus on your own road to Emmaus, a journey in which God reveals His will for you.

Your JourneyThrough SacredScripture

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Getting the Message“Every happening, great or small, is a miracle by which God speaks to us, and the art of life is to get the message.” – Malcolm Muggeridge

The disciples on the road to Emmaus came to understand that God never stops pursuing us

Every person we encounter, every suffering we endure, every situation in which we find ourselves is an opportunity God uses to pursue us

The study of Sacred Scripture is one of those life-changing opportunities; it demands a response

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Why are you here tonight?

Take a moment, and with the person(s) sitting near you, discuss briefly (2 min) what is God’s will for you? (In other words, what is God is asking of you. What is your calling?)

103: Introduction to Scripture 16

New Testament Canon & Language

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The New Testament Recounts…The story of Jesus as told in the four Gospels

Jesus’ founding of the Church, described in the Gospels and manifested in the Acts of the Apostles

The meaning of the new and everlasting Covenant in Christ – the fulfillment of all that precedes

The first New Testament books were written c. 45 A.D., perhaps a dozen years after the death of Christ. Paul’s letters date from 52 to 68 A.D.

For over 300 years, the Gospels and Epistles were read aloud to congregations gathered on the first day of the week for divine liturgy.

By the end of the fourth century, local councils and papal decrees defined the canon; i.e., the books included in Sacred Scripture

Writing and Compilation of the NewTestament

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Canon of Sacred Scripture

Refers to those texts considered by the Church to be sacred or inspired

Until the Reformation there was little need to define the canon since it was generally accepted throughout Western Christendom

Official Catholic canon set definitively by Council of Trent in 1546

But prior to Trent the Church had long held only the current canon as inspired

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New Testament Canon (27 Books)

The New Testament consists of 27 books

Four Gospels– Good News of Jesus Christ– Kingdom of God

Acts of the Apostles – The early Church after

Ascension

Letters– Reflections on the meaning of

the Christian message

Revelation – Message of hope, ultimate

triumph, justice

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New Testament Canon (27 Books)

GospelsMatthewMarkLukeJohn

Acts of the Apostles

Catholic LettersJames1 & 2 Peter1, 2 & 3 JohnJude

Revelation

A total of 27 NT books in both the Catholic and Protestant Bibles

Pauline LettersRomans1 & 2 CorinthiansGalatiansEphesiansPhilippiansColossians 1 & 2 Thessalonians1 & 2 TimothyTitusPhilemon

Hebrews

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New Testament Language 4th Century BC - Alexander

made Greek official language

63 BC Roman Pompey made Latin official language – Greek more common

Four common languages during the 1st century AD: Hebrew, Aramaic, Greek and Latin

Jesus taught in Aramaic

NT written during 1st Century and composed in Greek (and Hebrew or Aramaic?)

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God’s RevelationGod reveals Himself and His plan for us through different means:

Scripture (the Bible)

Tradition (especially the liturgy of the Church - the Mass and the sacraments)

The Magisterium (the Church's teachings; its dogmas and creeds; the deposit of faith)

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God’s Revelation

The Holy Spirit is at work through all three channels. He inspires Scripture, animates the Church's living Tradition, and guarantees the teaching of the Church's Magisterium (Catechism, 81-82).

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Christ, the FulfillmentOld Testament “Types” of Jesus Christ fulfilled in the New Testament:

The New Adam

The New Noah

The Seed of Abraham

The New Moses

The New David

We will address these in later sessions

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Jesus Christ: God’s Ultimate Revelation

Goodness of Creation & Presence of God [Jn 1:3; Col 1:16]

Incarnation, Life, Death and Burial

Resurrection and Ascension

Pentecost and Body of Christ

Trinitarian Life: Father, Son and Holy Spirit

The Word is a Person: Jesus Christ. He is God's "final word" on everything

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Through Jesus, God has revealed everything He wanted to reveal to us about who He is and what He intends for our lives

The Word Incarnate takes on the weakness of human nature, becoming like us in all things except sin [Phil 2:5-11]

The Word of God Inspired expressed in every way like human language [Dei Verbum 12]

"The Sacred Scriptures contain the Word of God, and, because they are inspired, they are truly the Word of God." [Dei Verbum 24]

The Word in the Word of God

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A Simple Question

What do you know about the New Testament?

___________

In your small groups, take a few minutes to write down as many answers as you can.

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New Testament as Covenant

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1. Land Promise

(Gn 15)

1. Three-fold Promise to

Abraham

2. Royal Dynasty

Promise (Gn 17)

3. Worldwide Blessing

Promise (Gn 22)

2. Promise upgraded

to Covenants

3. Covenants

fulfilled in Moses,

David and Jesus

MosesMosaic Covenant - Ex 24

Deuteronomic Covenant

(with Moses) – Dt 29

DavidDavidic Covenant

2 Sam 7

JesusNew Covenant in Jesus

Christ – Mk 14

Abraham

Gn 12:1-3

Covenantal Structure of Salvation History

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God’s Covenants with His PeopleThe covenants of the Old Testament provide an outline for reading the Bible. Know and understand them to gain a working knowledge of the "plot" of the Bible.

Mediator:

Role:

Form:

Adam

Husband

Marriage

Noah

Father

Family

Abraham

Chief

Tribe

Moses

Judge

Nation

David

King

Kingdom

Jesus

Royal

Priesthood

Catholic

Church

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Why Old & New Covenants?

The Blood of the Old and New Covenants [We will cover this in more detail later]

Christ and His cross, are the "hinge" between the Old and the New Testaments

All the Old Testament covenants that God made find their fulfillment - their full meaning and purpose -in Jesus, in His New Covenant

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Fulfillment of God’s Word

With the New Testament, Christ fulfills all of history in Himself

The world is transformed when He arrives – time and history are taken up into the eternal

The New Covenant, sealed in eternity, will never get “old,” since Christ has shattered the boundaries of time

"The New Testament is concealed in the Old, and the Old Testament is revealed in the New." - St. Augustine

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The New Testament (Covenant)? The Old Testament describes the

covenants God made with His People to prepare the world for His New Covenant

The New Testament, then, is the fulfillment of the Old Testament; it presents us with a New (and final) Covenant, God’s promise of redemption and eternal life through Jesus Christ.

We cannot separate the New Covenant from the Eucharist

Open Your Bible to Jeremiah 31:31 and Luke 22:14-23

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New Covenant Instituted

Instituted by Jesus Last Supper: "This cup that

is poured out for you is the new covenant in my blood." [Lk 22:20; 1 Cor 11:25]

The Letter to the Hebrews calls Jesus "the mediator of the new covenant" [Heb 9:15; 12:24; see also Heb 8:1-13]

Paul speaks of Christian leaders as "ministers of a new covenant" [2 Cor 3:6]

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Old and New CovenantsThere is also strong continuity between the Old and New Testaments

I am – God with us – Love of God –Living Water

Jesus fulfills and reveals the meaning of the OT

NT reveals Mystery of the Word made flesh

Jesus reveals true path to the Father

Jesus fulfills the Old Testament

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The Gospels

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Gospel of Jesus Christ

Gospel, from OE gospell (good news); Greek eu-angellos & Latin evangelium(good message)

The Gospel is news, and good news

The Gospel was first preached, so it is not a book or 4 books

The 4 written Gospels fulfill prophecy of the 4 living creatures [Ez 1; Rev 4] – angelic beings representing the 4 evangelists

4 symbolizes completeness, to all 4 audiences: Jews (Mt); Mk (Romans); Lk Gentiles); Jn (all humanity)

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The Four Gospels 4 Gospels in NT canon: Matthew,

Mark, Luke, John

Written in light of Jesus’ resurrection – the faith that Jesus continues to live in the community

Oral tradition likely preceded writing of Gospels

Was each Gospel written for a specific community, or did the Holy Spirit inspire the writing of each for all time? Or both?

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The Four Gospels Four Gospels – historical

reliability – unique in antiquity

Contradictions minor: numbers; order of events; compression of events; quotations not identical; Jesus’ words and interpretation not always evident

All four center of Jesus Christ

Present Him as human and divine

His work as words and deeds, power and love

Death and Resurrection - Keys

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The Four Gospels Begin no later than John the

Baptist and end no earlier than the Resurrection

Written by eyewitnesses or those who interviewed them

Each evangelist claims ownership, and supported by long held tradition and even textual evidence [See Jn 21:20-25]

Supported also by the Early Church Fathers, many only a generation away

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Gospels & EvangelistsInspired authors depict Jesus

Through their writing

From personal experience, other witnesses, oral tradition and communication

Likely written to specific communities

Church has always taught that the Gospels are historically accurate

“To compose the books, God chose certain men who, all the while He employed them in this task, made full use of their powers and faculties so that, though He acted in them and by them, it was as true authors that they consigned to writing whatever He wanted written, and no more” [Dei Verbum, 11].

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Synoptic GospelsMatthew, Mark, & Luke

Synoptic from Greek “view together” or with “one eye”

Christ’s public life connected with the preaching of John the Baptist

Set largely in Galilee

Each a series of small accounts

Much parallelism and agreement

Verbal agreement – translated from Hebrew or Aramaic?

Rooted in personal witness and common oral traditions

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Synoptic Similarities Views of Jesus and his ministry

Present Jesus through miracles, parables, discourses (teaching)

Content▪ 80% of Mark in Matthew ▪ 50% of Mark in Matthew and Luke▪ 80% of Matthew in Mark or Luke▪ 57% of Luke is in Matthew or Mark

OrderJohn the Baptist; Baptism; Temptation; Controversies in Galilee; Choice of disciples; Journey to Jerusalem; Passion; Resurrection

Detail

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The Synoptic Problem: Who’s On First Early Church Fathers & Scholars

✓ Matthew first,

✓ Did Mark use Matthew and Luke, or did Luke used Matthew and Mark?

Some 19th & 20th Century scholarship

✓ Mark first

✓ Q source – sayings of Jesus

✓ Luke & Matthew used Mark and Q

New scholarship

✓ Generally supports early Church

✓ Possibly written first in Hebrew

✓ All Gospels written earlier than thought

✓ Differences? Different authors

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The Synoptic Problem: It’s God’s Story God is ultimately responsible for the

Gospel, inspired by the Holy Spirit

Because a passage was not written as we think it should have been written is not grounds to charge that the Bible contradicts itself

God knows what was best for the people and the situation at a given time

We don’t fully understand why God chooses to include or exclude certain facts

The answers ultimately rest with Him, so we approach Sacred Scripture in faith

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Why Four Gospels?See the Gospels in their historical context (Acts):

Church was Jewish at first; then persecutions caused the Christians to scatter to various parts of Palestine and other countries

The Gospel was then carried to the Greeks at Antioch

It then was preached through Asia Minor and Macedonia, and on to Greece and Rome

The Gospel was taken to the uttermost parts of the earth

At each of these new steps in the progress of Christianity a written Gospel seems historically necessary. These might well be the historical situations that gave rise to our four Gospels.

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Historicity of the Gospels

According to the Pontifical Biblical Commission (1964):

The Good News was passed on orally at first, and later written down

Not long after many attempted “to draw up a narrative” [Lk 1:1] of the events connected with the Lord Jesus

The sacred authors, each using an approach suited to his specific purpose, recorded the teachings of Jesus in the four Gospels for the benefit of the churches

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Historicity of the Gospels Church teaching is emphatic that the Gospels

are historically accurate documents.

The apostles were filled with the Holy Spirit when they preached the Good News

The Gospels were written under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, who preserved their authors from every error

“Holy Mother Church … continues to hold, that the four Gospels just named, whose historical character the Church unhesitatingly asserts, faithfully hand on what Jesus Christ, really did and taught …” [Dei Verbum, 19]

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Historicity of the Gospels – Early Church “We have come to know the economy of salvation only through those who have transmitted the Gospel to us. First, they preached this Gospel. Then later, following the will of God, they transmitted it to us in the Scriptures so that it would be the pillar and mainstay of our faith. It cannot be said that they preached before they had acquired perfect knowledge. Some dare to make this statement, boasting that they can improve on the apostles. But in reality, after our Lord had risen from the dead and they had received the power of the Spirit from above, they were filled with all gifts and had perfect knowledge. So they set out for the ends of the earth, preaching about God’s goodness to us and announcing heavenly peace to men, each and every one of them possessed God’s Gospel” [St. Irenaeus, Against the Heresies, c. 180 A.D.]

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Historicity of the Gospels The historical character of the Gospels is centered on Apostolic Tradition, specifically the three stages by which the life of Jesus has come down to us:

The historical life and teaching of Jesus, and His interpretation of the salvific significance of what He did and taught

The Preaching of the Apostles, who were guided to all truth by the Holy Spirit

The Evangelists, who wrote down the truth which God, for the sake of our salvation, wished to see included in Sacred Scripture