Teaching Sermon: The Christian Scriptures

Last month, Molly offered the first of two teaching sermons on the Christian Bible. She focused on the Hebrew Scriptures, and began by talking about the labels we use when referring to these sacred texts. The Hebrew Scriptures are better known in Christian circles as the Old Testament, and are sometimes referred to as the First Covenant. Like Molly, I don't use the label Old Testament because of its negative connotations. Instead, like many others, we refer to these sacred texts as the Hebrew Scriptures.  For me, this label is a helpful reminder that Jesus of Nazareth, in birth and death, was a practicing Jew; and that these sacred texts were the ones he learned, inwardly digested, and informed his teachings of God’s love and grace.

Today, I’ll offer the second teaching sermon on the Christian Bible, focusing on the Christian Scriptures. These sacred texts are better known in Christian circles as the New Testament, and are sometimes referred to as the Second Covenant. You’ll hear me use the label Christian Scriptures, as I am phasing out my use of the label New Testament, because of its implied superiority. Whether implicitly or explicitly, many of us were taught prejudicial ideas about the nature of God as depicted within the Christian Bible. 

It is fairly common to hear churchgoers of every denomination say something along the lines of:   “I don’t like the Old Testament. It is all about a God of wrath focused on a bunch of laws. I like the New Testament, which proclaims a God of love and grace.”  This prejudicial framework has its origins in the early second century, when the teachings of Marcion encouraged Christians to reject the God of the Hebrew Scriptures.* The early Church ultimately rejected Marcion’s teachings as heresy, as should we.  

In our tradition, we use the New Revised Standard Version of the Christian Bible, featuring twenty-seven pieces of early Christian writing. Many of us grew up believing these were all of the early Christian writings. In actuality, these are what early church leaders believed to be the best selection of those writings.**

So, let’s back up. Preceding any writing was the life of Jesus of Nazareth, whose teachings and actions were so extraordinary that a movement within Judaism was born. The story of Jesus’ life and teachings, his death and resurrection were shared by word of mouth, and in the subsequent years small bits were written down here and there. Roughly 13-16 years after Jesus’ death, Paul began to write letters to small communities of Jesus’ followers scattered throughout the Roman Empire.** Around the time Peter and Paul were killed and martyred, roughly 35-46 years after Jesus' death, the Gospel of Mark began to be written.**These are all first generation writings, and are often referred to as coming out of the apostolic tradition, because they were composed by those with a connection to Jesus or Paul; those who led some of the earliest churches.** These writings were shared liberally between communities, copying and sharing so the early Church might all grow in faith together. 

Roughly 50-70 years after Jesus’ death, the second generation of Christian writings began to be written.** These include Matthew, Luke, John, Acts, and letters written by followers of original apostles.** Often letters in this second generation were written in honor of the original apostles and Paul, bearing their name and giving them credit. 

This is one of the many reasons we might find Paul’s teachings contradictory. Different authors were composing them in his name with different understandings of the Jesus Movement, the nature of God, and what it means to be the Church. This was true for the vast majority of writings that were being written in the second and third generation, which often featured wildly different theologies. Some were letters, some were different books of acts, and there were several gospels. These include at least two infancy gospels imagining Jesus’ early childhood and youth, as well as the Gospel of Mary, portraying the important role of women in the early Church. 

Meanwhile the early Church was evolving from a movement within Judaism to its own distinct religion. It became important to determine which texts would be included in the Christian canon, which refers to the writings widely accepted as scripture.** The Christian Scriptures as we know them today were not fully determined until the early fifth century. The writings chosen were seen as compatible with apostolic tradition, while at the same time maintaining some breadth and diversity of opinion. Which is yet another reason for contradictory teachings. 

Some important things for us to remember about the Christian Scriptures:

1. First, the folks composing these early Christian writings could not have foreseen their writings would someday be read as sacred texts. Imagine if in 800 years, a letter Bishop Fisher sent to Saints James and Andrew in 2022 about what it means to be the Church today was added to some expanded version of the Christian Bible. 
2. Second, the writings as they are presented are not written in any kind of chronological order. 
   
3. Third, just because a book bears someone’s name, it does not mean they wrote that text. For example, the Gospel of Matthew is not believed to be written by Matthew, and the 1, 2, and 3 Letters to John are all anonymous.**

Alright - are you ready for a whirlwind tour of these twenty-seven writings? 
Here we go. 

Scholar Mark Allan Powell suggests thinking about the Christian Scriptures in seven categories:**

1. First, are the four Gospels. Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John - each offering their own version of Jesus’ life, ministry, death, and resurrection. We refer to Matthew, Mark, and Luke as the Synoptic Gospels because they ‘see together’ and more or less share the same basic plot.* John’s Gospel has many similarities to the synoptics, but has a high Christology, meaning Jesus repeatedly identifies himself as divine.***
   
2. Allan Powell identified the second category of Christian writings as The Book of Acts.** This book is believed to be written by the same author as the Gospel of Luke and it recounts the collective efforts of the twelves apostles as the early Church is born and begins to take shape. It also describes the conversion of Saul - Paul, who self-identifies as an apostle, and chronicles some of the apostles missionary travels. Throughout the text we witness the Jesus Movement grow from a group of faithful followers to a fast growing movement that spreads as far as Rome.  
   
3. The third category of Christian writings are Letters from Paul to churches.** There are nine of these - Romans, 1 & 2 Corinthians, Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, 1 & 2 Thessalonians. The names of the letters refer to geographical regions where the letters were sent. Some of these letters, such as possibly Ephesians, were circular letters sent to a number of churches, offering general teachings.**** While others addressed specific problems facing particular congregations, such as the case in 1 Corinthians, whose community needed to be reminded what it means to love one another. Because of this, it is incredibly important to always pay attention to the context when we read these letters today and apply the lessons to our own lives. We have to make sure we understand what the author was attempting to address. It’s also worth noting scholars can agree some of these were written by Paul himself, while the authorship of others is widely debated. 
   
4. Allan Powell identified the fourth category of Christian writings as Letters from Paul to individuals.** There are four of these - 1 & 2 Timothy, Titus, and Philemon, and these are named for the individuals they are sent to and offer ethical instruction.***** Some scholars believe Paul authored these himself, but most believe these were attributed to Paul written by the second and/or third generation of Christian writers. 
   
5. The fifth category of Christian writings is The Letter to the Hebrews.** It is unclear who wrote this unique letter, but given its emphasis on Jewish scripture and ritual, some scholars believe it was written to a group of Jewish Christians. 
   
6. Allan Powell identified the sixth category as Letters by Other People.**There are seven of these - James; 1 & 2 Peter; 1, 2, & 3 John; and Jude. Unlike the letters from Paul to individuals, these are named for the individuals who sent the letters. 
   
7. The final category of Christian writings is The Book of Revelation.** This text is a visionary experience as recounted by someone named John, and understandably is sometimes referred to as “The Apocalypse of John”.**It is so unlike other Christian Scriptures that this book can be daunting to readers. It tends to be read in one of three ways - historical, prophetic/predictive, and symbolic.****** 

Whew! We made it through. 

I would encourage us each to do some reflecting on our own experience with the Christian Bible. 

• What assumptions or beliefs do we carry about the Hebrew and Christian Scriptures? 
  
• How do those help and hinder our faith?
  
• Is there a section of Christian Scriptures you tend to avoid? What would it look like to read one of those this month? 

Amen. 

* Amy Jill-Levine and Marc Zvi Brettler in The Bible With and Without Jesus, pg 8, 14. 
** Mark Allan Powell in Introducing the New Testament, pg.41, 60, 61, 63, 64.
*** Jerome H Neyrey commentary in The New Oxford Annotated Bible New Revised Standard Version, pg. 1880. 
****Jennifer K. Berenson commentary in The New Oxford Annotated Bible New Revised Standard Version, pg. 2052. 
*****Margaret M. Mitchell  commentary in The New Oxford Annotated Bible New Revised Standard Version, pg. 2085. 
****** Jean-Pierre Ruiz  commentary in The New Oxford Annotated Bible New Revised Standard Version, pg. 2155.

As preached at The Episcopal Church of Saints James and Andrew in Greenfield, MA on October 30, 2022.