Suggestion: Why Lectionaries matter to you
1) As the Dead Sea Scrolls and Nag Hammadi materials are researched, the old Lectionaries and related ritual books remain the one undertapped source of early Biblical manuscripts
2) As the synagogues were using lectionaries 5 centuries before Christ, lectionaries are an important element of understanding the context of Judaism and the early church
3) Lectionaries remain the primary resource for pericope analysis
4) Lectionaries provide the context for the sermons of the early church fathers
5) How the church used scripture from the earliest records to present tells us something about the church's understanding of the meaning of the scripture
6) Nearly 80% of the Christians in the world use some form of a lectionary.
7) The framework for Lectionaries is also the framework for the Divine Office, Liturgy of the Hours, Morning/Evening Prayer. This type of prayer grew out of the Jewish household prayers and is therefore an important element of the history of the church.
Common misunderstandings:
1) A lectionary does not always dictate the readings for the day. Depending upon the denomination there are varying degrees of flexibility and choice.
2) Not all scripture specified for a day is necessarily in a lectionary in the technical sense. The number of books and the contents of each volume is variable across denominations
3) Not all entries are associated with particular calendar dates. Some entries are intended for use in times of war, natural calamity, etc.
4) Not all lectionaries cover an entire year - for example, there is a common environmental lectionary that covers 4 weeks. There are formal prayer cycles that cover one month - for example, the Anabaptist Missio Dei Brevary
5) Contemporary lectionaries do not stand on their own. It is important to be able to compare the use of a passage across time and denominations to understand how the church has traditionally used a passage
6) Calendar dates for lectionaries are of secondary not primary importance. Across the web you find two separate indices - one for the current calendar year, one by liturgical year title. The latter is the permanent identifier against which archives are kept.
7) Lectionaries are not limited to liturgical churches - note, for example, the African-American lectionary hosted at Vanderbilt.
A pretty picture to put things in perspective:
Yes, my harping about lectionaries again gives GS an opportunity to complain about interlinears and DH to gripe about Handouts. My guess is that Logos will give us 2 of the 3 - interlinears are here to stay (Sorry George)
Orthodox Bishop Alfeyev: "To be a theologian means to have experience of a personal encounter with God through prayer and worship."; Orthodox proverb: "We know where the Church is, we do not know where it is not."
Comments
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you make some pretty pictures MJ.. theres a lot of stuff I never knew here, thx
Never Deprive Anyone of Hope.. It Might Be ALL They Have
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Beautifully presented. I hope you are turning this work into an article for publication.
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Nicely done. The case for at least being familiar with lectionaries is compelling.
Prov. 15:23
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I believe that the suggestions forum is the place for this.
BTW, I find 1 - 5 to be compelling reasons to study the early lectionaries. Although I personally am apathetic about their modern usage, at least in my life/worship.
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MJ. Smith said:
A pretty picture to put things in perspective:
MJ, are you familiar with mind mapping software? Some of the better ones would help you put together stuff like this with pictures and relationships. (i recommend imindmap and mindmanager. There are others with a variety of strengths (pricing, web based, dynamic, etc)
I like Apples. Especially Honeycrisp.
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Orthodox Bishop Alfeyev: "To be a theologian means to have experience of a personal encounter with God through prayer and worship."; Orthodox proverb: "We know where the Church is, we do not know where it is not."
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Dan DeVilder said:
MJ, are you familiar with mind mapping software?
Some. But I've not tried either that you mention and will check them out.
Orthodox Bishop Alfeyev: "To be a theologian means to have experience of a personal encounter with God through prayer and worship."; Orthodox proverb: "We know where the Church is, we do not know where it is not."
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Terry Poperszky said:
I believe that the suggestions forum is the place for this.
I understand your logic but I put it here as the result of what I had perceived as a bug in the lectionary's behavior in Notes - a thread yesterday. I wanted to make the case that lectionaries are not on the periphery but are integral to serious Bible study - textual and interpretative - in hopes of moving the perceived bug up in priority.
Orthodox Bishop Alfeyev: "To be a theologian means to have experience of a personal encounter with God through prayer and worship."; Orthodox proverb: "We know where the Church is, we do not know where it is not."
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MJ. Smith said:Terry Poperszky said:
I believe that the suggestions forum is the place for this.
I understand your logic but I put it here as the result of what I had perceived as a bug in the lectionary's behavior in Notes - a thread yesterday. I wanted to make the case that lectionaries are not on the periphery but are integral to serious Bible study - textual and interpretative - in hopes of moving the perceived bug up in priority.
I've added this thread to the request for a 'liturgical date' data type.
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MJ. Smith said:
I understand your logic but I put it here as the result of what I had perceived as a bug in the lectionary's behavior in Notes
As always, your logic is unassailable, I bow before it. [:D] Well, at least on which forum to pick. I should know better by now. [;)]
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Peace, Martha!
Am responding to this "ancient" post in case some who have come onto this particular forum lately have not seen it.
Excellent work! *smile* You might want to post it to the General Forum
Philippians 4: 4 Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, Rejoice. 5 Let your reasonableness be known to everyone. The Lord is at hand..........
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Spurred on to join my brother in resurrecting an old post I had forgotten about. This would make a great Logos Blog Post.
Sarcasm is my love language. Obviously I love you. 0 -
So it would, Brother Thomas!
*smile*
Good thinking with the lovely intellect God gave you .......
Peace and Joy this day and always
Philippians 4: 4 Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, Rejoice. 5 Let your reasonableness be known to everyone. The Lord is at hand..........
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