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The Words of Jesus in Our Gospels: A Catholic Response to Fundamentalism
1 SOFTCOVER BOOK
152 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1979
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September 14, 2024
A THEOLOGY TEACHER PROPOSES AN ALTERNATIVE WAY OF INTERPRETING JESUS' WORDS
At the time this book was published in 1979, Stanley B. Marrow taught at the Weston School of Theology (Jesuit) in Massachussetts. He has written other books such as 'Paul for Today's Church: A Commentary on First Corinthians,' 'Paul: His Letters and His Theology: An Introduction to Paul's Epistles,' 'Speaking the Word Fearlessly: Boldness in the New Testament,' etc.
He wrote in the Introduction, "This little volume is intended as an aid to the examination of one specific but fundamental tenet of the Christian faith: that the Bible is the word of God... the object of the examination if further limited to ... the four Gospels... It is meant to be an aid for the increasing numbers of Christians who, amid the crises that face them and their church, find their past religious education inadequate." (Pg. 1)
He points out, "The sayings of the Lord were not listened to nor remembered as one might remember magical formulae. The people ... listened to them as ordinary human beings listened to other human beings... not as tape recorders but as intelligent human beings ... exercising judgment and preference. We have no reason to believe that the audience of Jesus was any less creative or any more immune from error and misunderstanding than any other." (Pg. 9)
He adds, "Indeed, a reading of the New Testament leaves one with the distinct impression that Jesus of Nazareth was not particularly concerned to leave behind him an exact record of his discourses or instructions or revelations." (Pg. 14)
He observes, "the New Testament authors quote the Greek translation of the Old Testament whenever they quote the Scriptures. Consequently, the debate on whether this Greek translation is inspired is by no means a dead issue even for Christians... if one is to hold for a direct and literal inspiration of the word of God, one is logic bound to extend the divine action to cover the translators as well as the prophets and evangelists. The Catholic Church is not the only Christian church to have reached that conclusion in its history." (Pg. 20-21)
He asks, "How to you read the Lukan account of the institution of the Lord's Supper 'literally and inerrantly'? What, in the final analysis, were the very words of Jesus at the Last Supper? Which, if any, were not his own words but later additions by zealous and well-meaning Christians?" (Pg. 36) Later, he states, "An ecclesiastical institution could, of course, settle the dispute authoritatively by saying this or that is the only true interpretation. But even the Roman Catholic Church... has been extremely slow and reluctant to define the meaning of such specific biblical texts." (Pg. 39)
This is a thought-provoking interpretation, that will be of considerable interest to Catholics (and other Christians) of the more "liberal" or "progressive" sort.
At the time this book was published in 1979, Stanley B. Marrow taught at the Weston School of Theology (Jesuit) in Massachussetts. He has written other books such as 'Paul for Today's Church: A Commentary on First Corinthians,' 'Paul: His Letters and His Theology: An Introduction to Paul's Epistles,' 'Speaking the Word Fearlessly: Boldness in the New Testament,' etc.
He wrote in the Introduction, "This little volume is intended as an aid to the examination of one specific but fundamental tenet of the Christian faith: that the Bible is the word of God... the object of the examination if further limited to ... the four Gospels... It is meant to be an aid for the increasing numbers of Christians who, amid the crises that face them and their church, find their past religious education inadequate." (Pg. 1)
He points out, "The sayings of the Lord were not listened to nor remembered as one might remember magical formulae. The people ... listened to them as ordinary human beings listened to other human beings... not as tape recorders but as intelligent human beings ... exercising judgment and preference. We have no reason to believe that the audience of Jesus was any less creative or any more immune from error and misunderstanding than any other." (Pg. 9)
He adds, "Indeed, a reading of the New Testament leaves one with the distinct impression that Jesus of Nazareth was not particularly concerned to leave behind him an exact record of his discourses or instructions or revelations." (Pg. 14)
He observes, "the New Testament authors quote the Greek translation of the Old Testament whenever they quote the Scriptures. Consequently, the debate on whether this Greek translation is inspired is by no means a dead issue even for Christians... if one is to hold for a direct and literal inspiration of the word of God, one is logic bound to extend the divine action to cover the translators as well as the prophets and evangelists. The Catholic Church is not the only Christian church to have reached that conclusion in its history." (Pg. 20-21)
He asks, "How to you read the Lukan account of the institution of the Lord's Supper 'literally and inerrantly'? What, in the final analysis, were the very words of Jesus at the Last Supper? Which, if any, were not his own words but later additions by zealous and well-meaning Christians?" (Pg. 36) Later, he states, "An ecclesiastical institution could, of course, settle the dispute authoritatively by saying this or that is the only true interpretation. But even the Roman Catholic Church... has been extremely slow and reluctant to define the meaning of such specific biblical texts." (Pg. 39)
This is a thought-provoking interpretation, that will be of considerable interest to Catholics (and other Christians) of the more "liberal" or "progressive" sort.
Displaying 1 of 1 review