Monday, June 28, 2010
Monday, June 7, 2010
"Whose sins you shall retain...."
“Whose sins you shall retain.....”
For Pentecost Sunday the Gospel reading was from John Chapter 20:
Barbara E. Reid in the| APRIL 5, 2009 edition of America magazine gave the following interpretation of John 20:23b.
“The second half of verse 23, usually translated “whose sins you retain are retained,” does not have the word sins in the Greek text. A better way to understand it is “anyone you hold fast is held fast.” The sense is that through processes of forgiveness and reconciliation, disciples of Jesus continue his mission of holding on to all, arms folded across our chests, clenching each hand tightly, so that none, especially the most vulnerable, are lost in the struggle.”
I received the following e-mail from a priest friend of mine:
Dave, I just read Barbara Reid's piece in the AMERICA of May 25 - June 1, 2009 - page 30. She comments on the Gospel for Pentecost (B), stating: In the second half of v.23 there is no word "sins" in the Greek text. It does not speak of retaining "sins" of others but of a Spirit-enabled power to retain every beloved one, just as Jesus did not let a single one be lost." This flies in the face of our mis-translated texts. Why is this not shouted from the housetops? It supports my stance that there is "universal salvation"!!
Since this was such a new interpretation for me, I wrote to the scripture scholar Barbara Reid and received the following response:
Dear David,
I'm glad you like the interpretation of John 20:23b. It is not my original interpretation. Sandra Schneiders advanced it in her essay in the collection dedicated to Raymond Brown, LIFE IN ABUNDANCE, edited by John Donahue (Liturgical Press, 2005), and before that, Josephine Massynbaerde Ford said something similar in her book, REDEEMER, FRIEND, AND MOTHER (Fortress Press, 1997).
Blessings,
Barbara
I also followed up with some research of my own on this passage John 20:23b. Here is what I discovered:
My research reveals:
1) KJV, Rheims Bible, Amplified Bible, NIV, NRSV, NAB, New American Standard bible all have "sins" in the second half.
2) Two interlinear translations do not have "sin" in the second half: "or whomever ye forgive the sins, they have been forgiven to them; of whomever ye hold, they have been held" (Zondervan Parallel N.T. in Greek and English).
"of whomever you forgive the sins they have been forgiven to them; of whomever you hold they have been held" (A new interlinear translation of the Greek New Testament United Bible Societies' Third, Corrected edition.)
In support of your interpretation both interlinear translations have a "; after the first part, thus separating the second part from it.
3) A Greek-English Lexicon of the N.T. (and other Early Christian Literature) translation of 4th revised and augmented edition of Walter Bauer's work.
under the Greek word krateo under the second meaning: hold–“a”. hold tina someone (fast) w. the hand, so that he cannot go away Ac. 3:11.
Lower down under “e” there are five meanings given, the fifth one ( Greek letter epsilon) retain tas amartias the sins J 20:23) In contradiction to this As Barbara Reid states however, "there is no word "sins" in the Greek text.
I love Barbara Reid's interpretation and I think it should be shouted from the roof tops as you suggest.
Nice to know that Jesus did not want a single one to be lost.
For Pentecost Sunday the Gospel reading was from John Chapter 20:
Barbara E. Reid in the| APRIL 5, 2009 edition of America magazine gave the following interpretation of John 20:23b.
“The second half of verse 23, usually translated “whose sins you retain are retained,” does not have the word sins in the Greek text. A better way to understand it is “anyone you hold fast is held fast.” The sense is that through processes of forgiveness and reconciliation, disciples of Jesus continue his mission of holding on to all, arms folded across our chests, clenching each hand tightly, so that none, especially the most vulnerable, are lost in the struggle.”
I received the following e-mail from a priest friend of mine:
Dave, I just read Barbara Reid's piece in the AMERICA of May 25 - June 1, 2009 - page 30. She comments on the Gospel for Pentecost (B), stating: In the second half of v.23 there is no word "sins" in the Greek text. It does not speak of retaining "sins" of others but of a Spirit-enabled power to retain every beloved one, just as Jesus did not let a single one be lost." This flies in the face of our mis-translated texts. Why is this not shouted from the housetops? It supports my stance that there is "universal salvation"!!
Since this was such a new interpretation for me, I wrote to the scripture scholar Barbara Reid and received the following response:
Dear David,
I'm glad you like the interpretation of John 20:23b. It is not my original interpretation. Sandra Schneiders advanced it in her essay in the collection dedicated to Raymond Brown, LIFE IN ABUNDANCE, edited by John Donahue (Liturgical Press, 2005), and before that, Josephine Massynbaerde Ford said something similar in her book, REDEEMER, FRIEND, AND MOTHER (Fortress Press, 1997).
Blessings,
Barbara
I also followed up with some research of my own on this passage John 20:23b. Here is what I discovered:
My research reveals:
1) KJV, Rheims Bible, Amplified Bible, NIV, NRSV, NAB, New American Standard bible all have "sins" in the second half.
2) Two interlinear translations do not have "sin" in the second half: "or whomever ye forgive the sins, they have been forgiven to them; of whomever ye hold, they have been held" (Zondervan Parallel N.T. in Greek and English).
"of whomever you forgive the sins they have been forgiven to them; of whomever you hold they have been held" (A new interlinear translation of the Greek New Testament United Bible Societies' Third, Corrected edition.)
In support of your interpretation both interlinear translations have a "; after the first part, thus separating the second part from it.
3) A Greek-English Lexicon of the N.T. (and other Early Christian Literature) translation of 4th revised and augmented edition of Walter Bauer's work.
under the Greek word krateo under the second meaning: hold–“a”. hold tina someone (fast) w. the hand, so that he cannot go away Ac. 3:11.
Lower down under “e” there are five meanings given, the fifth one ( Greek letter epsilon) retain tas amartias the sins J 20:23) In contradiction to this As Barbara Reid states however, "there is no word "sins" in the Greek text.
I love Barbara Reid's interpretation and I think it should be shouted from the roof tops as you suggest.
Nice to know that Jesus did not want a single one to be lost.
Wednesday, June 2, 2010
Jesus Garden Trip and Beyond!
He then went into an extended comparison of the four Gospel accounts reviewing how there was growing hostility to Jesus prior to the Agony in the Garden. Then he explored in detail the actual Garden accounts in the four Gospels.
His explanation of what happened goes pretty much like this: In chapter 11 of John's Gospel we are told that Lazarus is sick. The sisters Mary and Martha send a message to Jesus, "Lord, he whom you love is ill." Jesus delays for "two days longer in the place where he was. Then after this he said to the disciples, "Let us go to Judea again." The disciples remind him that the Jews "were just now trying to stone you...." He goes and we recall the story of the raising of Lazarus. After this however Jesus doesn't go into Jerusalem until the festival. He is greeted by the crowd with branches of palm trees and shouting. 12:14 "Jesus found a young donkey and sat on it."
Jesus knew he was a hunted man. At the Last Supper he knew that one would betray him. There he had an emotional farewell. He had to be living under extreme tension. After the Last Supper he leaves and crosses the brook Kidron and continues to Gethsemane. The trip from the city took him through the huge graveyard at night. Since it was the feast of Passover it would have been a night of the full moon. He walks through this graveyard at night. All this contributed to his coming death moving from his head to his heart. He had to stop and pull himself together. In Mark's one source the human Jesus breaks down. (With Mark's account there are two sources discerned. The second source waters down this experience, to coincide with the picture of Jesus as divine.)
Jesus is able to pull himself together, rally his apostles and confront his enemies. The enemies are coming from the city. He could have escaped. He had done so before (Luke 4:29-30 and certain references in John's Gospel) It would have been just a brief trip to Bethany where he had friends. He could have received food and water there for an escape into the desert. It was then just a short journey over the precipice of the hill to Jericho. The Jews didn't have an army. But this time Jesus is taken. He has a loyalty to his understanding of the Father's will that goes beyond the rational.
As Paul Harvey used to say, "And now you know the rest of the story."
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