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HERMANEUTICS is the science and art of biblical interpretation. Correct Bible interpretation should answer the question,"How can I understand what this particular passage means?"

As rules govern its use, hermeneutics is a science. Knowing the rules proves not enough, hermeneutics also is an art.

Learn and practice using the rules.

Interpretation of the Bible proves not a minor issue, but a battleground for souls. Bible study is not a favored human task, according to the evil one. Neither is prayer and worship.

Study of scripture teaches us Jesus. Yet devotional studies must result from a serious examination of scripture.

St. Paul prayed that the Colossians might be "filled with the knowledge of His(God, not Paul's)will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding @(Col. 1:9).

"Context" proves the main rule of biblical interpretation. Let a passage speak for itself within the context of the paragraph, chapter, or book. Doing so, we avoid the majority of interpretation errors.

Too often, bias and subjectivity colors exegesis. We approach a passage thinking we already understand it, reading our own meaning into the text, called eisegesis.

But interpreting Scriptures exactly requires listening to the text, drawing meaning from the passage itself. This is called exegesis. What is saying?

Defining a text by it and the surrounding verses allows us to interpreting the Bible properly. Watching context carefully and by letting the passage speak for itself do we give scripture proper context.

In one writer's perspective, four key words assist the process--observation, interpretation, evaluation and application. Observation queries, ADo I understand the facts in these verses? What is the context prior to and succeeding this text?

What are the word meanings? Understand the general flow of the discussion; the cultural background?

Before tackling the text=s theological meaning, clear up all factual problems possible .

InterpretationB=determine the author=s meaning in his own proverbial context (settings, audience, mood, lesson to be taught, problem to be resolved, fundamental right to be achieved, evil to be avoided, situation to be remedied, object to be achieved, substantive justice)?

Empathize with the scripture's original audience. What does the passage actually say? Context helps define the meaning of the scripture?

For example, what does scripture mean when it says,"There is no God"(Psalms 53:1)? Context shows this statement is made by a fool. What does Paul mean when he says Jesus will return like "a thief in the night"(1 Thess. 5:2)? Context shows it means His coming will be sudden.

Never forget whose letters we are reading. They come from God Himself. They speak for themselves. We must be honest, have integrity. Guesswork cannot be on the same level as the words of God. All Scripture is God breathed 2 Timothy 3:16.

Remember scripture interpretations encompasses a) Hyperbola-- an exaggeration used for effect or overstatement;

b)Metaphor.
c)Anthropomorphism
and
d) Parables.

Dark passages of scripture must be in light of clearer ones and or teachings. Scripture interprets scripture.

AND ANOTHER VIEW...

A...that there is not one proper bible interpretational methodology that everyone agrees upon. Hermeneutics is a science in so much that it attempts to interpret the bible.

Biblical interpretation itself is a creative act and not just a trans-position of meaning from an ancient to a more modern context. Consequently, transpositions intended to reproduce the exact meaning of a biblical text have resulted in substantial changes in a text's meaning over time.

In most cases, dogmatic theologians have literally used hermeneutics to validate their biased interpretation of scripture. For hermeneutics are as relevant to dogma as they are to scripture.

In that respect, as dogmas change, interpretations may change to support those particular dogmas.

The approaches to hermeneutics are varied as well. For there is no one universally recognized method used in hermeneutics.

Methods vary from one theologian to another and largely depends of the degree of importance attached to various resources. Some use the "method of correlation" and phenomenology(describing the structures of experience as they present themselves to ones consciousness-without regard for any theory, or deduction from any other discipline or belief).

Others use the method of "rigorous logical argument," which holds as its premise that the bible is the logical expression of God to a sinful world based on its message of incarnation and atonement.

However, others still(including Tertullian)denied that hermeneutics, as applied to theology, cannot be conceived as a rational system based on the belief that the human experience of god reveals discontinuities and paradoxes.

Sill others base their application of hermeneutics on the bible alone. Which calls for the bible to prove its theological positions. Even utilizing that method, there are differences in interpretive applications.

Some use a literal interpretative application. Others use allegorical phraseology based hermeneutics as their means of interpreting the bible.

So as we can see, there is no one "proper" method of interpretation. What you may call twisting the scripture is another person's or denomination's divine revelation.

In that respect, one should not be so quick to dismiss another's interpretation of scripture. Unless of course, one believes that they are the sole authority on interpreting scripture. Matthew 5:21-22(NASB)

21 You have heard that the ancients were told, You shall not commit murder and Whoever commits murder shall be liable to the court.

22 But I say to you that everyone who is angry with is brother shall be guilty before the court; and whoever says to his brother, You good-for-nothing, shall be guilty before the supreme court; and whoever says, You fool, shall be guilty enough to go into the fiery hell.

The question became, Is anger as bad as murder? Of course not. Common sense tells us that, if nothing else. But the text does not actually same they are the same.

It says the law against murder is not fully obeyed by mere outward obedience, but by maintaining the proper attitude of not being angry, which in turn prohibits the outward act of murder. A

BIBLE INTERPRETATIONS

St. Peter (in a passage) warns us not to personally interpret God's message (prophecy) in Scripture.

The Church being "men moved by the Holy Spirit" can only rightfully serve at this capacity: .But know this first of all, that no prophecy of Scripture is a matter of one's own interpretation; for no prophecy was ever made by an act of human will, but men moved by the Holy Spirit spoke from God. [2 Pet 1:20-21]

Another Church function is to explain Bible passages. St. Peter warns about teachings in Scripture that are difficult to understand:

A... as also in all his (St. Paul's) letters, speaking in them of these things, in which are some things hard to understand, which the untaught and unstable distort, as they do also the rest of the Scriptures, to their own destruction.@ [2 Pet 3:15-16]

Disciples had to constantly explain the Scriptures. St. Philip explains the Book of Isaiah to the Ethiopian Eunuch in Acts 8:30-31. Church functions include interpreting the Bible:

Scripture:$Mark 12:10 $Luke 4:21 $Luke 22:37 $John 2:22 $John 7:38 $John 7:42 $John 10:35 $John 13:18 $John 17:12 $John 19:24 $John 19:28 $John 19:36 $John 19:37 $John 20:9 $Acts 1:16 $Acts 8:32 $Acts 8:35 $Romans 4:3 $Romans 9:17 $Romans 10:11 $Romans 11:2 $Galatians 3:8 $Galatians 3:22 $Galatians 4:30 $1 Timothy 4:13 $1 Timothy 5:18 $2 Timothy 3:16 $James 2:8 $James 2:23 $James 4:5 $1 Peter 2:6 $2 Peter 1:20

Even though the Bible is the inerrant Word of God, it is not the only guiding rule of faith. Both the Bible and Apostolic Tradition are the Word of God. Both are important sources for the Faith.

The Catholic Church being the Church founded by Christ preserves both from corruption and uses both to teach God's Word with guidance from the Holy Spirit (Matt 28:16-20; John 16:12-15).

Finally everything that Jesus and the Apostles did and taught was not recorded in the Bible. St. John closed his Gospel with :

ABut there are also many other things which Jesus did; were every one of them to be written, I suppose that the world itself could not contain the books that would be written.@ [John 21:25, RSV; see 20:30] or his last two Epistles with these verses: 2 John 12 and 3 John 13-14.

Jesus in Mark 7:5-13 or Matt. 15:1-9 does not condemn all traditions but those corrupted by the Pharisees. Unlike the human traditions of the Pharisees, Apostolic

Tradition is God's Word spoken through the Apostles, not recorded in the Bible. The Church as promised by Christ (Matt 16:18-19, see front panel; Matt 18:17-18) preserves and teaches the Apostolic Tradition. This Church is the pillar and support of the truth, as is written:

TRADITION (APOSTOLIC) Apostolic Tradition: Matthew 15:2 "Why do your disciples transgress the tradition of the elders? For they do not wash their hands when they eat."

Matthew 15:3 He answered them, "And why do you transgress the commandment of God for the sake of your tradition? Matthew 15:6 So, for the sake of your tradition, you have made void the word of God.

Mark 7:3 (For the Pharisees, and all the Jews, do not eat unless they wash their hands, observing the tradition of the elders; Mark 7:5 And the Pharisees and the scribes asked him, "Why do your disciples not live according to the tradition of the elders, but eat with hands defiled?"

Mark 7:8 You leave the commandment of God, and hold fast the tradition of men." Mark 7:9 And he said to them, "You have a fine way of rejecting the commandment of God, in order to keep your tradition! Mark 7:13 thus making void the word of God through your tradition which you hand on.

And many such things you do."Colossians 2:8 See to it that no one makes a prey of you by philosophy and empty deceit, according to human tradition, according to the elemental spirits of the universe, and not according to Christ.

2 Thessalonians 3:6 Now we command you, brethren, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you keep away from any brother who is living in idleness and not in accord with the tradition that you received from us.

Some Christians claim No need for a Church as guardian of the truth, since the Bible is the sole rule of faith. To prove their position they usually cite:

... and that from childhood you have known the sacred writings which are able to give you the wisdom that leads to salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus.

All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness; that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work. [2 Tim 3:15-17, NASB]

On closer examination it becomes apparent that these verses really do not teach on the sufficiency of the Bible. Verse 17 (especially when verse 14 is ignored) seems to imply the sufficiency of Scripture "for every good work," but no connection is made to salvation, a key part of the faith.

Verse 15 connects the importance of sacred writings to salvation, but these writings are those that Timothy knew since childhood, i.e. Old Testament only.

Even though verse 16 enumerates the great utility of "All Scripture" for teaching the faith, still no sufficiency is implied. A glass of water is profitable for health, but not sufficient, since air and food are also needed to live.

It is ironic that in 2 Tim 3:14, Timothy is told: "continue in the things you have learned ...knowing from whom you have learned them." This verse strongly suggests Apostolic Tradition. In the same letter, Timothy is informed on how to pass on Christ's teachings:

...things which you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses, these entrust to faithful men, who will be able to teach others also. [2 Tim 2:2] (Griot tradition in African and other First World cultures).

St. Paul actually commands the Thessalonian Christians to hold fast to the Traditions taught by the Apostles, both oral and written:

So then brethren, stand firm and hold to the traditions which you were taught, whether by word of mouth or by letter from us. [2 Thess 2:15; see 1 Cor 11:2]

REVELATION $2 Samuel 7:27 $Habakkuk 2:19 $Luke 2:32 $Romans 16:25 $1 Corinthians 14:6 $1 Corinthians 14:26 $1 Corinthians 14:30 $Galatians 1:12 $Galatians 2:2 $Ephesians 1:17 $Ephesians 3:3 $1 Peter 1:7 $1 Peter 1:13 $Revelation 1:1

14. "Those who belong to Christ through faith and Baptism must confess their baptismal faith before men.[Cf. Mt 10:32 ; Rom 10:9 .] First therefore the Catechism expounds REVELATION, by which God addresses and gives himself to man, and the faith by which man responds to God (Section One).

26. "We begin our profession of faith by saying: 'I believe' or 'We believe'. Before expounding the Church's faith, as confessed in the Creed, celebrated in the liturgy and lived in observance of God's commandments and in prayer, we must first ask what 'to believe' means.

Faith is man's response to God, who reveals himself and gives himself to man, at the same time bringing man a superabundant light as he searches for the ultimate meaning of his life.

Thus we shall consider first that search (Chapter One), then the divine REVELATION by which God comes to meet man (Chapter Two), and finally the response of faith (Chapter Three)."

35. "Man's faculties make him capable of coming to a knowledge of the existence of a personal God. But for man to be able to enter into real intimacy with him, God willed both to reveal himself to man, and to give him the grace of being able to welcome this REVELATION in faith.(so) The proofs of God's existence, however, can predispose one to faith and help one to see that faith is not opposed to reason. "

36. "'Our holy mother, the Church, holds and teaches that God, the first principle and last end of all things, can be known with certainty from the created world by the natural light of human reason.'[Vatican Council I, Dei Filius 2: DS 3004 cf. 3026; Vatican Council II, Dei Verbum 6.]

Without this capacity, man would not be able to welcome God's REVELATION. Man has this capacity because he is created 'in the image of God'.[Cf. Gen 1:27 .]"

38. "This is why man stands in need of being enlightened by God's REVELATION, not only about those things that exceed his understanding, but also 'about those religious and moral truths which of themselves are not beyond the grasp of human reason, so that even in the present condition of the human race, they can be known by all men with ease, with firm certainty and with no admixture of error'. [Pius XII, Humani generis 561: DS 3876; cf. Dei Filius 2: DS 3005; DV 6; St. Thomas Aquinas, S Th I, I, I.]"

50. "By natural reason man can know God with certainty, on the basis of his works. But there is another order of knowledge, which man cannot possibly arrive at by his own powers: the order of divine REVELATION.[Cf. Dei Filius DS 3015.]

53. "The divine plan of REVELATION is realized simultaneously 'by deeds and words which are intrinsically bound up with each other'[DV 2.] and shed light on each another. It involves a specific divine pedagogy: God communicates himself to man gradually. He prepares him to welcome by stages the supernatural REVELATION that is to culminate in the person and mission of the incarnate Word, Jesus Christ.

66. "'The Christian economy, therefore, since it is the new and definitive Covenant, will never pass away; and no new public REVELATION is to be expected before the glorious manifestation of our Lord Jesus Christ.'[DV 4; cf. 1 Tim 6:14 ; Titus 2:13 .]

Yet even if REVELATION is already complete, it has not been made completely explicit; it remains for Christian faith gradually to grasp its full significance over the course of the centuries."

67. "Throughout the ages, there have been so-called 'private' revelations, some of which have been recognized by the authority of the Church. They do not belong, however, to the deposit of faith.

It is not their role to improve or complete Christ's definitive REVELATION, but to help live more fully by it in a certain period of history. Guided by the Magisterium of the Church, the senses fidelium knows how to discern and welcome in these revelations whatever constitutes an authentic call of Christ or his saints to the Church.

Christian faith cannot accept 'revelations' that claim to surpass or correct the REVELATION of which Christ is the fulfilment, as is the case in certain nonchristian religions and also in certain recent sects which base themselves on such 'revelations'."

82. "As a result the Church, to whom the transmission and interpretation of REVELATION is entrusted, 'does not derive her certainty about all revealed truths from the holy Scriptures alone. Both Scripture and Tradition must be accepted and honored with equal sentiments of devotion and reverence.'[DV 9.]"

99. "Thanks to its supernatural sense of faith, the People of God as a whole never ceases to welcome, to penetrate more deeply and to live more fully from the gift of divine REVELATION. "

120. "It was by the apostolic Tradition that the Church discerned which writings are to be included in the list of the sacred books.[Cf. DV 8 # 3.]

This complete list is called the canon of Scripture. It includes 46 books for the Old Testament (45 if we count Jeremiah and Lamentations as one) and 27 for the New.[Cf. DS 179; 1334-1336; 1501-1504.]

The Old Testament: Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy, Joshua, Judges, Ruth, 1 and 2 Samuel, 1 and 2 Kings, 1 and 2 Chronicles, Ezra and Nehemiah, Tobit, Judith, Esther, 1 and 2 Maccabees, Job, Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, the Song of Songs, the Wisdom of Solomon, Sirach (Ecclesiasticus), Isaiah, Jeremiah, Lamentations, Baruch, Ezekiel, Daniel, Hosea, Joel, Amos, Obadiah, Jonah, Micah, Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah, Haggai, Zachariah and Malachi.

The New Testament: the Gospels according to Matthew, Mark, Luke and John, the Acts of the Apostles, the Letters of St. Paul to the Romans, 1 and 2 Corinthians, Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, 1 and 2 Thessalonians, 1 and 2 Timothy, Titus, Philemon, the Letter to the Hebrews, the Letters of James, 1 and 2 Peter, 1, 2 and 3 John, and Jude, and REVELATION (the Apocalypse). "

143. "By faith, man completely submits his intellect and his will to God.[Cf. DV 5.] With his whole being man gives his assent to God the revealer. Sacred Scripture calls this human response to God, the author of REVELATION, 'the obedience of faith'.[Cf. Rom 1:5 ; Rom 16:26 ."

30. "'Let the hearts of those who seek the LORD rejoice.'[Ps 105:3 .] Although man can forget God or reject him, He never ceases to call every man to seek him, so as to find life and happiness.

But this search for God demands of man every effort of intellect, a sound will, 'an upright heart', as well as the witness of others who teach him to seek God. You are great, O Lord, and greatly to be praised: great is your power and your wisdom is without measure.

And man, so small a part of your creation, wants to PRAISE you: this man, though clothed with mortality and bearing the evidence of sin and the proof that you withstand the proud.

Despite everything, man, though but a small a part of your creation, wants to PRAISE you. You yourself encourage him to delight in your PRAISE, for you have made us for yourself, and our heart is restless until it rests in you.[St. Augustine, Conf. I, I, I: PL 32,

Remember, Philip, the Apostle, told the Holy Spirit to catch a certain carriage transporting the Abyssinian (Ethiopian) official of Queen Candace. He was reading, Isaiah), but which o ne?. Even the Egyptians have an ancient translation.

(Remember, our tradition of this writer, an all Orthodoxy-Russian, Armenian, Greek, Syrio-Egypto contain a few extra books: the Wisdom book of Sirach, among them. Kings(some, 1-4 Kings) (and how many readers have actually heard of 1 and 2 Paralipomenon) may not be divided exactly as is, for example, the English, King James Bible is.(The Finnish and German translations may differ)

Our Psalms may be(depending on the year) numbered ,one offset from others. And our (all Christianity) commandments differ in form and manner from that of the Torah. This is the reason for the problem of quotes.

FROM THE AFRICAN TRADITION LATIN RITE

But TEST EVERYTHING, discern. And we wish it was our knowledge, but alas, not. Most is stuff we learned in Catechism, purported sayings of Jesus in apocryphal sources, or from the Saints(to people not of our tradition, "saint" means "friend of God) like St. Augustine, black African Bishop of the 3d or 4th century.

Much of it is from the Ethiopian Coptic treasury of faith. So it's not I "but the Christ"... As indicated before, being born in the South, constantly heard,(50s &60s)"you blacks ain't blah, blah, blah.." So a lot of it had to be looked up!

Backgrounder for the African theologians Tertullian and Origen on the Trinity

This power and disposition of the Divine Intelligence is set forth also in the Scripture under the Wisdom; for what can be better entitled to the ne of Wisdom than the Reason or the Word of God? Listen therefore to Wisdom herself, constituted in the character of the Second Person (Tertullian, Against Praxeas 6).

Tertullian goes on to quote Proverbs 8, the most frequently cited text in which wisdom is personified as a separate person from the Creator:

The Lord created me at the beginning of his work, the first of his acts of old. Ages ago I was set up, at the first, before the beginning of the earth. When there were no depths I was brought forth, when there were no springs abounding with water.

Before the mountains had been shaped, before the hills, I was brought forth; before he had made earth with its fields, or the first of the dust of the world.

When he established the heavens, I was there, when he drew a circle on the face of the deep, when he made firm the skies above, when he established the fountains of the deep, when he assigned to the sea its limit, so that the waters might not transgress his command, when he marked out the foundations of the earth, then I was beside him, like a master workman; and I was daily his delight, rejoicing before him always (Proverbs 8:22-).

Although the Arians seized upon the word Acreated@ in verse 22 as evidence that the Logos was a creature, and hence had a beginning, orthodox exegesis of the passage took Acreated@ to mean begotten from eternity). The Son came from the Father but was preexistent, as the remaining verses show stressing the existence of wisdom before anything that was created.

Justin interpreted this passage to mean that the one begotten was Aanother in number@ than the one who begets, and Tertullian asserted this distinction between the Logos and the Father based on the se passage.

Origen used this scripture to argue against Sabellianism, in which the Father, Son and Holy Spirit are not distinct persons but merely different modes of God.5 Behind all the Christological polemics centering on this little verse was the shared assumption that the figure of wisdom in the wisdom books was, in fact, the Logos.

.... Tertullian reasons that since all judgment has been given to the Son (John 5:22), Aall@ necessarily means without regard for time. Judgment in the Old Testament therefore was also the work of the Son:

It is the Son, therefore, who has been from the beginning administering judgment, throwing down the haughty tower, and dividing the tongues, punishing the whole world the violence of waters, raining upon Sodom and Gomorrah fire and brimstone, as the Lord from the Lord.

For He it was at all times who came down to hold converse with men, from Ad on to the patriarchs and the prophets, in vision, in dreams , in mirror, in dark saying (Against Praxeas 16).

Tertullian calls these manifestations "rehearsals" for the coming of Jesus. It is not that God needed to rehearse how to communicate with man.

Rather, mankind needed to be prepared for the Incarnation, Athat we might the more readily believe that the Son of God had come down into the world, if we knew that in times past also something similar had been done@ (Against Praxeas 16).

Tertullian mentions God speaking with Ad in the garden, God instructing Noah to build the ark, and the fourth man in the fiery furnace as other instances of the Second Person manifesting Himself.

For those wishing serious scholarship on the subject(rather than untruths)...from the Eastern (African )side... http://pharos.bu.edu/cn http://www.frtadrosmalaty.org http://www.netspace.net.au/~copt http://www.coptic-history.org http://www.stmarkcoccleveland.org http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/06774a.htm http://www.encyclopedia.com/articles/09659.html from the Western Branch (which includes links to the Eastern, African Oriental and Orthodox) www.alapdre.net www. ChristusRex.org Fair Use 17 U.S.C. 107 for those in the African Diaspora

From a sermon by Augustine, bishop, friend of God.

Let Us Sing to the Lord a Song of Love

Sing to the Lord a new song; his praise is in the assembly of the saints. We are urged to sing a new song to the Lord, as new men who have learned a new song. A song is a thing of joy; more profoundly, it is a thing of love. Anyone, therefore, who has learned to love the new life has learned to sing a new song, and the new song reminds us of our new life.

The new man, the new song, the new covenant, all belong to the one kingdom of God, and so the new man will sing a new song and will belong to the new covenant. There is not one who does not love something, but the question is, what to love. The psalms do not tell us not to love, but to choose the object of our love. But how can we choose unless we are first chosen? We cannot love unless someone has loved us first. Listen to the apostle John: We love him, because he first loved us.

The source of man's love for God can only be found in the fact that God loved him first. He has given us himself as the object of our love, and he has also given us its source. What this source is you may learn more clearly from the apostle Paul who tells us: The love of God has been poured into our hearts.

This love is not something we generate ourselves; it comes to us through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us. Since we have such an assurance, then, let us love God with the love he has given us. As John tells us more fully: God is love, and whoever dwells in love dwells in God, and God in him. It is not enough to say: Love is from God. Which of us would dare to pronounce the words of Scripture: God is love? He alone could say it who knew what it was to have God dwelling within him. God offers us a short route to the possession of himself. He cries out: Love me and you will have me for you would be unable to love me if you did not possess me already. My dear brothers and sons, fruit of the true faith and holy seed of heaven, all you who have been born again in Christ and whose life is from above, listen to me; or rather, listen to the Holy Spirit saying through me: Sing to the Lord a new song. Look, you tell me, I am singing. Yes indeed, you are singing; you are singing clearly, I can hear you. But make sure that your life does not contradict your words. Sing with your voices, your hearts, your lips and your lives: Sing to the Lord a new song.' Now it is your unquestioned desire to sing of him whom you love, but you ask me how to sing his praises. You have heard the words: Sing to the Lord a new song, and you wish to know what praises to sing. The answer is: His praise is in the assembly of the saints; it is in the singers themselves.

If you desire to praise him, then live what you express. Live good lives, and you yourselves will be his praise.

hermeneutics: The science of biblical interpretation and criticism, particularly seeking to understand a text as part of a cultural and historical context.

Our BibleCAfrican Bishops and Doctors St. Augustine and St. Anthanasius set the Books

While Our Lord and Saviour, Yeshus, Jesus, the Christ lived, Jews maintained no consolidated accepted canon or list of those writings regarded as sacred scripture.

The PentateuchCGenesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy were known and revered. Copies of the law or Torah , the writings or Ketubim, and the prophets or Nebrim circulated widely in loose papyrus-scroll form. (Papyrus was a form of paper).

But Christianity and the expulsion of the Jews from Palestine precipitated Jewish religious leaders to determine what would and wouldn=t be included in the now necessary Aaccepted Hebrew list of Holy Scriptures.

A similar effort had previously occurred in Africa in Alexandria. Sent fro Jerusalem, 70 to 72 Jewish scholars translated what constituted the then Old Testament. According to legend, the work was aimed at Greek speaking, non-Hebrew reading Jews of Khemet (Egypt). Some place the time during the reign of Ptolemy II Philadelphius, 285-246 BC.

Later called the Septuagint from LXX-70 in GreekCthe work became the first >vernacular version of the Jewish bible.@ Vernacular means the common people could read it.

Jews met again after 70 AD to formally revise their Scriptures. What were later to be called Protestants in the West would later accept the effort as the Aoriginal definitive canon of the Old Testament@.

Remember, the African Church had no part in the so-called Western Church reformation.

No books after Ezra were included, as the Jews thought prophecy stopped with him. The new assembly deemed the Alexandrian Septuagint Ainaccurate and false.@ Because of the now apocryphal books that were included.

Rabbi Judah the Patriarch, also called the Prince (135-220 AD), further codified the law or Mishnah Gemara.

Nevertheless, the Universal Faith (Catholic) said the Septuagint books belonged. Their use was well established in the Eastern Oriental, and Western Church by the 4th century.

Under the African Bishop St. Augustine=s influence, 27 biblical books were confirmed as true or canonical during the African Synod (religious meeting) of 419 AD.

Previous precedent had been set at other meetings, also held in Africa at Hippo in 393 AD, and at Carthage in 397 AD. African provinces collectively became the first churches to have fixed a 27 book New Testament.

The African Bishop St. Anthanasius lists the complete work in his Paschal Epistle.

AThese are the sources of salvation, for the thirsty may drink deeply of the words to be found here. In these alone is the doctrine of piety recorded. Let no one add to them, or take anything away from them.@

But take away they did. During the Western Protestant Reformation, Abible translations were manipulated to fit doctrines.@

To annul his marriage with Catherine of Aragon, the daughter of Spanish monarchs Ferdinand and Isabel, King Henry VIII of England clashed with the head of the Western ChurchCthe successor of St. peter, called the Pope. (Note: Technically, there is more than one il papa pope (but not in the Western church), he being a successor of the 12 Apostles.

Patriarchs, Metropolitans, and Chief priests-bishops of other areas where individual apostles set up headquarters or Asees@ can be considered Chief Archbishops/Priests in their respective regions, or popes.

This has been a sticking point among many of the European derivative faithsCbut we speak to educate primarily those of the historical and geological African Diaspora.

Our Lord, Jesus Christ set up one Holy,Catholic, and Apostolic church, sending disciples out initially two by two.

It was man who split the institution. We caution others, and we try to not get hung up on the word Roman, because the Latin Rite headquarters many years was not located in the Eternal City. In the future, it may not be.

Yet, as this writer follows the Latin rite. Thus, his leader--the successor to St. Peter-- is considered first amongst equals, yet bearing in mind Matthew, Nathaniel, Philip, Jude, and even John Mark evangelized Africa. Jesus lived there.

The Coptic branch of the universal faith have their own chief priest or Pope.)

Continuing, English ABluff King Hal,@ as King Henry was known decided to form his own Church. One of his immediate successors commissioned the version of scriptures which bears his name, The King James Bible. Printed in 1611, it became widely used by the Church of England, now called the Anglican or Episcopalian (especially in America).

(Editor=s note:It may be of some interest to note that while Nordic, Aryan, Anglo Saxon, Europe left the Church, Spanish Conquistadors were cruelly laying the ground work for another continent which would become and remain 85% members of the Universal Faith (Catholic).

Many of the Chapters appearing in the ACatholic@ bible at the time were called by Protestants pseudepigrapical or falsely titled Apocrypha--those books not found in the Jewish and Protestant lists of the Old TestamentCincluded 1 and 2 Esdras (3 and 4 Esdras), Tobit, Judith, wisdom, Sirach (Ecclesiasticus), Baruch, with Jeremiah=s letter, 1 and 2 Maccabees, additions to Daniel and sections of Esther, and the prayer of Menasseh.

(Protestants call deuterocanonical books apocryphal. To Catholics, apocryphal books are those other than deuterocanonical, such as the Book of James). Later Protestants would term these books Alost.@ And as separated in one of the leaders of the European Protestant reformation--the former Augustinian priest , Martin Luther=s edition of 1535, Awere not held equal to the sacred scriptures, but useful and good for reading.@ They were shunted between the Old and New Testament

John Lightfoot, a power European Portestant religious leader, objected in 1643, feeling the placment Amight give the false impression the books formed a link between the old and New Testament.@

In the Protestant Westminster Confession, AApocrypha not being of divine inspiration are not part of the canon of Scripture and therefore are of no authority in the Church of God, not to be in any otherwise approved (sic) or made use of than other human writings.@

Obviously, that is not how we of the African root, Latin Rite see it! Early in the African Church, African bishops St. Augustine, and St. Anthanasius told us what books were included in Sacred Scripture.

Of course we of the Universal FaithCmembers of the one Holy Catholic, and Apostolic ChurchCfeel all the books, as approved by the African Doctors of the Church and Bishops Anthanasius and Augustine are of Divine inspiration.

(For more information search the Hermaneutics and links sites listed above).

EVERYTHING IS NOT IN THE BIBLE--ACCORDING TO THE BIBLE Now we have indicated Yeshua, Our Lord and Saviour Jesus, the Christ grew up during the so -called Awonder bread years in Africa. We have known our ancestors (among the first to read and write), were nevertheless a griot peope-having oral tradition, listening to revelation.

We of the Universal Faith, members of the one, Holy Catholic, and apostloic faith, find that authority is not Sola Scripture(a Caucasion, European heritaged invention of those wanting to reform the Western Church).

We of African heritaged, griot tradition, know that Scripture, Sacred Tradtion, and Revelation play a partBall working together, and none of it in contradistinction to Scripture...to provide truths of Our Lord and His Church, and His Way.

Since we had time on our hands to do a little research, please find citations (in the bible) showing Scripture is not by itself, the sole authority. (But of course, it is human nature, to try to distinguish, explain away, and ignore,eh?)

Not everything is in the Bible Jn 21:25 25 There are also many other things that Jesus did, but if these were to be described individually, I do not think the whole world would contain the books that would be written.

Paul speaks of oral tradition as authoritative 2 Thess 2:15; 15 Therefore, brothers, stand firm and hold fast to the traditions that you were taught, either by an oral statement or by a letter of ours. 8 8 Reference to an oral statement and a letter (2 Thes 2:2) and the content here, including a formula of conclusion (cf 1 Cor 16:13; Gal 5:1), suggest that 2 Thes 2:1-15 or even 2 Thes 2:1-17 are to be taken as a literary unit, notwithstanding the incidental thanksgiving formula in 2 Thes 2:13.

2 Tim 2:2; 1 1 So you, my child, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. 2 And what you heard from me through many witnesses entrust to faithful people who will have the ability to teach others as well. 1 [1-7] This passage manifests a characteristic deep concern for safeguarding the faith and faithfully transmitting it through trustworthy people (2 Tim 2:1-2; cf 2 Tim 1:14; 1 Tim 6:20; Titus 1:9). Comparisons to the soldier's detachment, the athlete's sportsmanship, and the farmer's arduous work as the price of recompense (2 Tim 2:4-6) emphasize the need of singleness of purpose in preaching the word, even at the cost of hardship, for the sake of Christ (2 Tim 2:3).

1 Cor 11:2; 2 1 I praise you because you remember me in everything and hold fast to the traditions, just as I handed them on to you.

1 [11:2-14:40] This section of the letter is devoted to regulation of conduct at the liturgy. The problems Paul handles have to do with the dress of women in the assembly (1 Cor 11:3-16), improprieties in the celebration of community meals (1 Cor 11:17-34), and the use of charisms or spiritual gifts (1 Cor 12:1-14:40). The statement in 1 Cor 11:2 introduces all of these discussions, but applies more appropriately to the second (cf the mention of praise in 1 Cor 11:17 and of tradition in 1 Cor 11:23).

1 Thess 2:13 13 And for this reason we too give thanks to God unceasingly, that,in receiving the word of God from hearing us, you received not a human word but, as it truly is, the word of God, which is now atwork in you who believe.

Early Christians followed apostolic tradition Acts 2:42

42 8 They devoted themselves to the teaching of the apostles and to the communal life, to the breaking of the bread and to the prayers. 8 [42-47] The first of three summary passages (along with Acts 4:32-37; 5:12-16) that outline, somewhat idyllically, the chief characteristics of the Jerusalem community: adherence to the teachings of the Twelve and the centering of its religious life in the eucharistic liturgy (Acts 2:42); a system of distribution of goods that led wealthier Christians to sell their possessions when the needs of the community's poor required it (Acts 2:44 and the note on Acts 4:32-37); and continued attendance at the temple, since in this initial stage there was little or no thought of any dividing line between Christianity and Judaism (Acts 2:46).

Specific references where Jesus speaks or is quoted as revealing truth which is not in Scripture Matt 2:23; 23 "Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, you hypocrites. You pay tithes 12 of mint and dill and cummin, and have neglected the weightier things of the law: judgment and mercy and fidelity. (But) these you should have done, without neglecting the others.

12 The Mosaic law ordered tithing of the produce of the land (Lev 27:30; Deut 14:22-23), and the scribal tradition is said here to have extended this law to even the smallest herbs. The practice is criticized not in itself but because it shows the Pharisees' preoccupation with matters of less importance while they neglect the weightier things of the law.

Acts 20:35; 35 In every way I have shown you that by hard work of that sort we must help the weak, and keep in mind the words of the Lord Jesus who himself said, 'It is more blessed to give than to receive.'"

James 4:5

Or do you suppose that the scripture speaks without meaning when it says, "The spirit that he has made to dwell in us tends toward jealousy"? 4

4 The meaning of this saying is difficult because the author of Jas cites, probably from memory, a passage that is not in any extant manuscript of the Bible. Other translations of the text with a completely different meaning are possible: "The Spirit that he (God) made to dwell in us yearns (for us) jealously," or, "He (God) yearns jealously for the spirit that he has made to dwell in us." If this last translation is correct, the author perhaps had in mind an apocryphal religious text that echoes the idea that God is zealous for his creatures; cf Exodus 20:5; Deut 4:24; Zech 8:2.

The great commission by Christ was to preach not to write Matt 28:19; 20 19 Go, therefore, 12 and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. 13 And behold, I am with you always, until the end of the age." 12 Therefore: since universal power belongs to the risen Jesus (Matthew 28:18), he gives the eleven a mission that is universal. They are to make disciples of all nations. While all nations is understood by some scholars as referring only to all Gentiles, it is probable that it included the Jews as well. Baptizing them: baptism is the means of entrance into the community of the risen one, the Church. In the name of the Father . . . holy Spirit: this is perhaps the clearest expression in the New Testament of trinitarian belief. It may have been the baptismal formula of Matthew's church, but primarily it designates the effect of baptism, the union of the one baptized with the Father, Son, and holy Spirit. 13 All that I have commanded you: the moral teaching found in this gospel, preeminently that of the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5-7). The commandments of Jesus are the standard of Christian conduct, not the Mosaic law as such, even though some of the Mosaic commandments have now been invested with the authority of Jesus. Behold, I am with you always: the promise of Jesus' real though invisible presence echoes the name Emmanuel given to him in the infancy narrative; see the note on Matthew 1:23. End of the age: see the notes on Matthew 13:39 and Matthew 24:3.

Sola Fide (Faith Alone) Martin Luther, wanting to avoid the responsibility of doing good works, promoted the idea of faith alone as a means of salvation. The Church has always taught that faith, hope, and love (charity) are required for salvation. The only time the expression "faith alone" is mentioned in the bible is in James 2:24, where the author says Abraham was NOT saved by faith alone.

What good is faith without works?

Jas 2:14-26 Must avoid sin Heb 10:26 "Earning" forgiveness Jas 5:20

Must do will of God Lk 6:46; Mt 7:21; Mt 19:16-21; 1Tim 5:8 Paul disciplines himself to avoid losing salvation 1Cor 9:27 Works have merit Phil 2:12; 2 Cor 5:10; Rom 2:6; Mt 25:32-46; Gal 6:6-10

Keep commandments 1Jn 2:3-4; 1Jn 3:24; 1Jn 5:3 Brothers of Jesus? Traditional Christianity held that Jesus is Mary's only son. The references to Jesus' brothers refers to other family members, and in some cases to his disciples.

 Mary wife of Cleophas and sister of the Virgin Mary (Jn 19:25) is the mother of James and Joseph (Mk 15:47; Mt 27:56) who are called the "brothers of Jesus" (Mk 6:3).

 Acts 1:12-15 Apostles, Mary, some women and Jesus' brothers number about 120. That is a lot of brothers.

 Gen 14:14 Lot, Abraham's nephew (Gen 11:26-28), described as Abraham's brother (KJV).

 Gen 29:15 Laban, Jacob's uncle, calls Jacob his brother (KJV).  John 19:26-27 Jesus gives care of Mary to John, not one of his brothers.

 Zechariah 12:10 Predicts the Messiah will be an only child.

Statues/Images

God commands images to be made Ex 25:18-22; Num 21:8-9

Solomon builds his temple with statues and images

1 Kings 6:23-29; 35; 7:29

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http://www.blackcatholicchicago.org/000916_liturgylinks.html Chicago Liturgy Links
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