Mark 12:28-34
A statement frequently recited (and foundational to Jewish teaching) is “Hear, O Israel, the Lord, our God, is one”, and is frequently called the “Shema” because the first words in Hebrew in that statement are “Shema Yisrael Adonai . . . . “. It is notable that the Jews’ worship was monotheistic (worshipping only one God), and was an immense departure from all the other polytheistic religions (in ancient Israel and the surrounding area) that had many gods.
For the Jews of Jesus’ time, one’s neighbor was always understood to refer only to another Jew. Jesus greatly expanded the concept of “neighbor” to include anyone who lived next to one, including the greatly hated Samaritans, or even complete pagans.
The Greek word “agapa/agape“ was an inclusive, unconditional love, in the spirit of the Golden Rule: Do unto others as you would want to have them do unto you. Similarly, do not do unto to others the things that you would not want them to do unto you. A discussion ensues on the meaning of the several kinds of love, including a little on how early Friends interpreted love for one’s neighbor.
Referring to the statement “. . . the Lord is one.” Henry moves on to assert that the Quaker concept of God was pre-trinitarian. Conversely, early Friends were not unitarian in belief either. (Since the word, “trinity” never occurs in the Scriptures of Truth, Quakers were careful not to use the word “trinity" or "trinitarian” in referring to God.)
Henry goes on to let the group know that 1 John 5:7-8 was translated in the King James Version (KJV) (“There are three that testify in Heaven: Father, the word and the Holy Spirit” which many have interpreted as implying a trinitarian formula. However, in recent years, all of the copies of the Holy Scriptures that have been found (and that date many hundreds of years earlier than those used for the original KJV) do not have those words.
Mark 12:35-40
The scribes of Jesus’ day could be seen as being similar to lawyers today.
The word “prophet” literally means a spokesman for God. God speaks through a prophet. Only sometimes did prophetic speaking include predicting the future.
Early Friends saw, and especially focused on, Jesus as our Guide.
Mark 12:41-44
The widow was sacrificing greatly to give even the tiny amount she had.
Greek:
Plesion: neighbor
Shema (Hebrew): Hear
Agapa/agape: unconditional, self-giving love
Eros: sexual love
Philia: love for a friend
Sterge: love for one’s family
Kyrios: lord
Propheteis: prophet
Discipulos (Latin): students
Didaskale: teacher
Rabbi: master, teacher
Contemporary American English/older English:
Mister: master
Sir: sire
Teacher: master
Credits:
The words to our music are from George Fox’s 19th Epistle in 1652 (page 14 in The Epistles of George Fox ) . The music was composed and sung by Paulette Meier.
Visit us on our website at ohioyearlymeeting.org.
Any who might be interested in joining any of the Ohio Yearly Meeting Zoom online studies should check out the Online Study and Discussion Groups on our website. All are welcome!
We welcome feedback on this and any of our other podcast episodes. Contact us through our website, or email us at OYMConservative@gmail.com.
Mark 12:28-34
A statement frequently recited (and foundational to Jewish teaching) is “Hear, O Israel, the Lord, our God, is one”, and is frequently called the “Shema” because the first words in Hebrew in that statement are “Shema Yisrael Adonai . . . . “. It is notable that the Jews’ worship was monotheistic (worshipping only one God), and was an immense departure from all the other polytheistic religions (in ancient Israel and the surrounding area) that had many gods.
For the Jews of Jesus’ time, one’s neighbor was always understood to refer only to another Jew. Jesus greatly expanded the concept of “neighbor” to include anyone who lived next to one, including the greatly hated Samaritans, or even complete pagans.
The Greek word “agapa/agape“ was an inclusive, unconditional love, in the spirit of the Golden Rule: Do unto others as you would want to have them do unto you. Similarly, do not do unto to others the things that you would not want them to do unto you. A discussion ensues on the meaning of the several kinds of love, including a little on how early Friends interpreted love for one’s neighbor.
Referring to the statement “. . . the Lord is one.” Henry moves on to assert that the Quaker concept of God was pre-trinitarian. Conversely, early Friends were not unitarian in belief either. (Since the word, “trinity” never occurs in the Scriptures of Truth, Quakers were careful not to use the word “trinity" or "trinitarian” in referring to God.)
Henry goes on to let the group know that 1 John 5:7-8 was translated in the King James Version (KJV) (“There are three that testify in Heaven: Father, the word and the Holy Spirit” which many have interpreted as implying a trinitarian formula. However, in recent years, all of the copies of the Holy Scriptures that have been found (and that date many hundreds of years earlier than those used for the original KJV) do not have those words.
Mark 12:35-40
The scribes of Jesus’ day could be seen as being similar to lawyers today.
The word “prophet” literally means a spokesman for God. God speaks through a prophet. Only sometimes did prophetic speaking include predicting the future.
Early Friends saw, and especially focused on, Jesus as our Guide.
Mark 12:41-44
The widow was sacrificing greatly to give even the tiny amount she had.
Greek:
Plesion: neighbor
Shema (Hebrew): Hear
Agapa/agape: unconditional, self-giving love
Eros: sexual love
Philia: love for a friend
Sterge: love for one’s family
Kyrios: lord
Propheteis: prophet
Discipulos (Latin): students
Didaskale: teacher
Rabbi: master, teacher
Contemporary American English/older English:
Mister: master
Sir: sire
Teacher: master
Credits:
The words to our music are from George Fox’s 19th Epistle in 1652 (page 14 in The Epistles of George Fox ) . The music was composed and sung by Paulette Meier.
Visit us on our website at ohioyearlymeeting.org.
Any who might be interested in joining any of the Ohio Yearly Meeting Zoom online studies should check out the Online Study and Discussion Groups on our website. All are welcome!
We welcome feedback on this and any of our other podcast episodes. Contact us through our website, or email us at OYMConservative@gmail.com.