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The Epistles of Saint Paul and the Other from the Gospels

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The Epistles of Saint Paul and the Other from the Gospels THE EPIS T LES BOOK OF READINGS FO R T HE LI T U R GY ACCO R DING T O T HE tr ADI T ION OF T HE SY R O -AN T IOCHENE MA R ONI T E CHU R CH Concordat cum originali: Reverend Chorbishop Michael J. Kail Director of Liturgy Eparchy of Our Lady of Lebanon Published by the authority of His Excellency Robert J. Shaheen, Bishop Eparchy of Our Lady of Lebanon New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright 1989. Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America This introduction is based on the Arabic original, but does not include information which is specific only to the Arabic translation of the lectionary. The introduction also refers to “introductions” to the readings which have not been included in the English translation of the lectionary. This current volume has been prepared using the NRSV translation. The traditional Maronite Divine Liturgy contains two scriptural readings: one taken from the epistles of Saint Paul and the other from the gospels. In the first attempt at reforming the Lectionary, in 1993, it was expanded to include scriptural readings from other books in the New Testament. One of the new features of this current translation is the new choice of Scriptural readings. After numerous meetings to establish parameters and fundamentals of the Maronite Liturgical year, the Liturgical and Writings Committees distributed the scriptural readings in the following manner. The first scriptural readings on Sundays and Feast Days are taken exclusively from the epistles of Saint Paul, while the weekday readings are taken from other books of the New Testament (excluding the gospels), as well as from the epistles of Saint Paul. The second reading is always taken from one of the four gospels. The com- mittees also decided to keep the traditional scriptural readings for Sundays and Feasts, while reorganizing the liturgical year in a new way. The traditional readings are retained in the new lectionary for the Seasons of Announcement, the Glorious Birth, the Sundays and weekdays of Great Lent and Passion Week. For the other seasons of the liturgical year, Epiphany, Glorious Resurrection, Pentecost and Holy Cross, the read- ings are organized in a new way. Thus, each Sunday has its particular scriptural reading within an overall plan established for the entire liturgical year. For the weekday readings, the liturgical committee based its choice of scriptural readings, for the most part, on a principle of continuous reading, choosing readings consistent with those of the previous Sunday. The committee also preserved the traditional scriptural read- ings for the feasts of saints and general memorials. In summary, the revised lectionary for the Maronite Divine Liturgy contains numerous new features. The most important of which are the new Arabic translation, the new choices of scriptural readings for certain sections of the liturgical year, the introductions and explanations, table of contents and a calendar of feasts and memorials. Due to the importance of the Scriptures within the Divine Liturgy and its fundamental relationship to the Eucharistic celebration, a few questions are answered below, in an effort to enrich the understanding of this new lectionary. 1. What is the relationship between the Holy Scriptures and the Eucharistic celebration? An essential relationship exists between the Eucharistic celebration, which is the memorial of the death and resurrection of the Lord, and the proclamation of the Holy Scriptures in the assembly gathered to celebrate the Eucharist. The Holy Scriptures are the history of salvation, from the beginning to the end – creation, the covenant, the incarnation, the redeeming death and resurrection, and the foretelling of the second coming. The Eucharistic celebration lives out as mystery and reality what is proclaimed in the Scriptures. The Holy Scriptures recount the story and the Eucharistic celebration is its realization. The Eucharistic prayer is one of thanksgiving to God for the economy of salvation, and the Scriptures are the proclamation of this salvific plan of God. The Eucharist is the work of the Holy Spirit within the Church, overshadowing and consecrating the offerings and sanctifying the congregation which presents them. The Holy Scriptures are the work of the same Holy Spirit, inspiring those who composed them and those who interpret and explain them today. Finally, both the Eucharist and the Holy Scriptures are the spiritual nourishment of the Church, given within and to the community. Neither can be understood except within 3 and through the Church. It is not by mere chance that the two principle parts of the Divine Liturgy, the first revolving around the Scriptures and the second around the Eucharist, are similar in meaning and content. From the beginning, the Church joined the proclamation of the Scriptures to the celebration of the Eucharist in one assembly, the Divine Liturgy, still celebrated in the same way today. Early Christians did not celebrate the Divine Liturgy without proclaiming the Scriptures. In the middle of the second century, Justin Martyr wrote a description of the Divine Liturgy: “They read the memoirs of the apostles and the books of the prophets, as long as time permits. Then, when the reader has ceased, the priest presiding over the congregation preaches, teaches and exhorts to the imitation of these good things. Afterwards, bread and wine and water are brought; prayers of thanksgiving are offered… then communion.” There is a connection between this form of prayer and the original Paschal feast. The Jews, after reading the book of Exodus and listening to the way their ancestors were freed from the bonds of slavery in Egypt and how they crossed into the Promised Land through the Sinai Desert and a description of the proper manner in which to eat the Paschal lamb, then partook of the traditional meal. In the same way, Jesus and his disciples celebrated the Last Supper, instituting the Mystery of the Eucharist. Following his commandment, the early Christian com- munity continued to celebrate the Eucharist, the living memorial of the death and resurrection of the Lord, as we continue to do today. Therefore, the relationship between the proclamation of the Scriptures and the Eucharist goes back to the Last Supper. To summarize, the Eucharist and the Sacred Scriptures renew and sanctify the community. Both are the work of the Holy Spirit. The Eucharist ties the members of the community to one another. The Scriptures are most effectively proclaimed within the community, as they are given to the community by God and cannot be understood except within and through the Church. For these and other reasons, the Eucharist and the Scriptures are joined into one service for the single goal of renewing and living out the Mystery of salvation, in order for the Kingdom of the Lord to come. 2. Why are the readings within the Liturgy taken only from Saint Paul’s letters and the gospels? To better address this question, it is necessary to return to the history of the use of Scripture within the Maronite Divine Liturgy. In the first period, the first Christian millennium, the Maronite Church did not have a particular lectionary. However, some readings were chosen out of the Old and New Testaments for proclamation on Sundays and Feasts. Furthermore, the daily celebration of the Divine Liturgy is new to the Maronite Church, dating only to the 18th century, at which point the Church had to select daily read- ings. In the first millennium, scriptural readings were chosen for the celebration of the Divine Mysteries on great feasts, Sundays, and the memorial of some saints; the Rabbula Gospels, from 586 AD, provides proof of this. In the text of the Scripture, the name of the feast or Sunday on which it was to be read was inserted. In the twelfth or thirteenth century, an index was added to the Rabbula Gospels, showing the feast days and Sundays and their corresponding readings. It is clear from studying the texts of other Eastern and Syriac Churches that the Maronites used to proclaim readings from both the Old and New Testaments. In the second period, from the year 1000 AD to 1592 AD (the year in which the first edition of the Divine Liturgy was printed), the Maronites used to gather to pray morning prayer before the celebration of the Divine Liturgy on Sundays and feasts. At the end of prayer they used to read from the Holy Scriptures, three readings after evening prayer and two or three during morning prayer. The Gospel was proclaimed during the Divine Liturgy. Many texts testify to this, the most important of which is the “Reesh Qeryan” (originally the Fereesh Qeryan, or “chosen readings”). This document was a collection of selected read- ings from the Old and New Testaments (excluding the gospels), containing readings to be proclaimed 4 during morning and evening prayer, not during the Divine Liturgy. This manuscript is dated to 1242 AD, composed in Bqarqasha (Northern Lebanon) and printed by Fr. Youhanna Tabet. Readings for the Divine Liturgy only appear for Thursday of the Mysteries and Sunday of the Glorious Resurrection. Eight read- ings were assigned for Easter Sunday, six from the Old Testament and two from the New Testament, excluding the gospel. During this period, the Scripture readings for the Divine Liturgy were chosen only from the epistles of Saint Paul and the gospels, while the readings for morning and evening prayer were chosen from both the Old and New Testaments. Some other important information regarding the development of the use of Scripture within the Divine Liturgy should be kept in mind. There is no evidence of a principled rejection of the Old Testament and the non-Pauline epistles in the New Testament.
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