| Feature Article – January 2008 |
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The Revised Common Lectionary contains a number of selections from the Apocrypha, a section of the Bible which puzzles many people. Most of these books are ones that are found in the Greek version of the Old Testament (known as the “Septuagint”), but not in the Hebrew. Also known as the “Deuterocanonical” books (i.e. from the “second canon”), they were in use throughout Judaism in Jesus’ time, and most Jews regarded them as Holy Scripture by. The writers of the New Testament typically quote the Greek text, which differs in some respects from the Hebrew. The Septuagint is the Bible which Paul and Luke and Matthew knew and used.
The Deuterocanonical books were deleted from the Jewish scriptures around 600 AD, when the Jewish authorities determined that they would take as authoritative only those texts that were known in Hebrew, adopting the so-called “Masoretic Text.” The Church continued to use an Old Testament based on the Septuagint. This persists to this day in the Roman Catholic and Orthodox churches.
The Churches of the Reformation generally accepted only the Masoretic text as authoritative, and deleted the Deutero-canonical books from the canon. They were hidden away, so to speak, giving rise to the term “Apocrypha,” a term meaning “hidden things.” Taking a middle road, the Church of England did not delete them outright, but treated them as a supplement to the Old Testament, now found in many Bibles between the two Testaments. Article VI of the Articles of Religion (BCP, p. 700) says “the Church doth read [them] for example of life and instruction of manners; but yet doth it not apply them to establish any doctrine . .” Notwithstanding this caveat, readings from the Apocrypha have always been included in the BCP daily lessons (BCP, pp. xvi-xlvii) and in at least one place in the Eucharistic lectionary, the Commemoration of the Faithful Departed (All Souls), for which the first lesson is Wisdom 3:1-6 (BCP, p. 301). The lectionaries of the BAS provide a richer diet of Apocryphal readings.
There are three lectionaries: The Lectionary for Sundays and Holy Days, pp. 266-447, The Daily Office Lectionary, pp. 450-497, and The Weekday Eucharistic Lectionary, pp. 498-523. As well, there are a number of lists of suggested readings for special occasions and services.
It should be noted that the lectionaries provide alternatives to most appointed Apocryphal readings. This is useful in those congregations which use Protestant translations which lack the Apocrypha (e.g. the New International Version).
Anglicans have continued to read them in the context of liturgy and private devotions, and our tradition tells us that we may indeed learn godly truths from them. Nonetheless, they clearly fall into a separate category from the canonical books of the Old Testament. Does that then imply that they should be read in a different manner? In particular, is it appropriate to say “The Word of the Lord” as prescribed in The Book of Alternative Services after a reading from the Apocrypha?
To address this question, we must first consider the nature of this acclamation.
In many congregations, readers have become accustomed to expanding it by adding two words, “This is…” This seemingly minor addition substantially changes its meaning and impact.
“This is the Word of the Lord” is a declarative sentence, implying that the words that have been read are literally God’s words. It reflects a particular belief about the nature of the Bible which is not universally accepted among Anglicans. Furthermore, this declaration tends to limit God’s Word to the printed text.
In contrast, “The Word of the Lord” is not even a sentence, and so ought not to be heard as a statement of belief. Rather, it is an acclamation—an act of praise of the God who speaks through the written text to become active in the lives of human beings. It recalls the great 20th century theologian Karl Barth, who said that the Bible is not the Word of God, but becomes the Word of God when interpreted in a community of the faithful. The “Word of God,” (logos in the Greek) refers to God’s active and creative force, going back to Genesis 1, “And God said . . . and it was so.” God spoke the world and the human race into being, and continues to speak our lives into the fullness of being. It also recalls the prologue to the Gospel of John: “In the beginning was the Word . . .”
Responding “Thanks be to God” to the standard acclamation thus acknowledges and gives thanks for the written and spoken word, and for the whole of God’s action in the created order—the Word of God at work.
With a broader and more theologically nuanced understanding of “Word,” the use of the standard acclamation for Apocrypha reading is absolutely appropriate. God can and does speak to us through many texts, and indeed faithful Christians throughout the centuries have heard God speaking through these books.
Nonetheless, recalling the distinction made in Article VI, there are some who find the standard acclamation problematic when used for Apocryphal readings. One answer may be to use the formula from A New Zealand Prayer Book, in which the lessons are ended with the exhortation “Hear what the Spirit is saying to the Church,” a modified quotation from the letters to the seven churches in Revelation 2 & 3. The Spirit of God is unfettered, not limited to the printed text of any particular book. Can the Spirit speak through the Apocrypha? Of course! And so we may say “Thanks be to God!”
God, through your Word this world came to be.
Through the written word, and the spoken word,
may we become the living word,
a letter of hope and grace to the world.
Empowered by the Holy Spirit,
we pray in the name of your Son Jesus Christ,
the incarnate Word, our Risen Lord. Amen.