Paul, Christianity’s great missionary, who founded churches all over the eastern Roman world, was also its first theologian. Born a Jew, trained as a rabbi, and at first a dedicated enemy of Christianity, he claimed to have encountered Jesus as a blinding light and a voice on the road to Damascus. Although he never met Jesus during his lifetime, he claimed to be one of the disciples and his influence far outshone that of all of the original twelve disciples put together, partly because he dedicated himself principally to converting non-Jews. He linked the new Christian ideas with older Jewish ones, but also frequently made radical breaks with tradition when he thought it necessary. No break was more radical than his rejection of the Jewish belief that obedience to the Law was the path to salvation. In the following passage Paul maintains that complete obedience is impossible because we are born damnably flawed (according to a doctrine known as original sin), and that only belief in Jesus can bring salvation (a doctrine known as salvation by faith). In modern times, liberal churches tend to dwell on the Sermon on the Mount, conservative churches on writings like this.

What makes all Christians equal, in Paul’s opinion?

But now, apart from law, the righteousness of God has been disclosed, and is attested by the law and the prophets, the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe. For there is no distinction, since all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God; they are now justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God put forward as a sacrifice of atonement by his blood, effective through faith. He did this to show his righteousness, because in his divine forbearance he had passed over the sins previously committed; it was to prove at the present time that he himself is righteous and that he justifies the one who has faith in Jesus.

Then what becomes of boasting? It is excluded. By what law? By that of works? No, but by the law of faith. For we hold that a person is justified by faith apart from works prescribed by the law.

New Revised Standard Version

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License. Paul Brians Department of English Washington State University Pullman 99164-5020This is just a sample of Reading About the World, Volume 1. Reading About the World is now out of print. You can search for used copies using the following information:Paul Brians, et al. Reading About the World, Vol. 1, 3rd edition, Harcourt Brace College Publishing: ISBN 0-15-567425-0 or Paul Brians, et al. Reading About the World, Vol. 2, 3rd edition, Harcourt Brace College Publishing: ISBN 0-15-512826-4.Try Chambal: http://www.chambal.com/csin/9780155674257/ (vol. 1) http://www.chambal.com/csin/9780155128262/ (vol. 2)

The final meal of Jesus before his death is given a mystical significance in this account. Avoiding any appearance of Jesus being a passive victim, John portrays him as willingly offering himself as a sacrifice. The idea is related to the lamb that was sacrificed in place of the first-born children of the Hebrews in Egypt and ritually eaten on Passover. He offers his life as a substitute–not literally for the lives of others–but for their salvation after death in the life to come. However, the imagery used here would have been offensive to most Jews, since one of the earliest Jewish laws forbade the eating of blood, and dead bodies were considered ritually unclean. The concept of eating the body of the god was familiar to non-Jews from pagan rites, however; and would have been more acceptable to them. Protestants generally see this account as metaphorical, and consider the rite of the Last Supper to be a symbolic memorial. For Catholics, the bread and wine and actually and miraculously transformed into the body and blood of Christ, without, however, changing their apparent form.

“I am the living bread that came down from heaven. Whoever eats of this bread will live forever; and the bread that I will give for the life of the world is my flesh.”

The Jews then disputed among themselves, saying, “How can this man give us his flesh to eat?” So Jesus said to them, “Very truly, I tell you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you. Those who eat my flesh and drink my blood have eternal life, and I will raise them up on the last day; (1) for my flesh is true food and my blood is true drink. Those who eat my flesh and drink my blood abide in me, and I in them. Just as the living Father sent me, and I live because of the Father, so whoever eats me will live because of me.”

New Revised Standard Version

(1) Some passages in the Christian Scriptures imply that resurrection occurs immediately after death, others that it will be postponed until the Day of Judgment. Theologians differ among themselves on this point.

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.This is an excerpt from Reading About the World, Volume 1, edited by Paul Brians, Mary Gallwey, Douglas Hughes, Azfar Hussain, Richard Law, Michael Myers Michael Neville, Roger Schlesinger, Alice Spitzer, and Susan Swan and published by Harcourt Brace Custom Publishing. The reader was created for use in the World Civilization course at Washington State University, but material on this page may be used for educational purposes by permission of the editor-in-chief:

Paul Brians
Department of English
Washington State University
Pullman 99164-5020

Reading About the World is now out of print. You can search for used copies using the following information:Paul Brians, et al. Reading About the World, Vol. 1, 3rd edition, Harcourt Brace College Publishing: ISBN 0-15-567425-0 or Paul Brians, et al. Reading About the World, Vol. 2, 3rd edition, Harcourt Brace College Publishing: ISBN 0-15-512826-4.

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The most original contribution of Christianity to the concept of the Messiah is the concept of the suffering and dying savior. Whereas orthodox Jews would have considered a dying Messiah a contradiction in terms, in Christianity Jesus’ death was portrayed as a necessary and inevitable part of his mission, and his resurrection from death was to provide the example for his followers. In its most fully-developed form, the doctrine holds that his death actually functions as a sacrifice which wipes out the sin of those who believe in him. Unlike other dying and resurrected Mediterranean and Mesopotamian gods, Christ’s death is not linked to annual cycles of planting and harvest, but is seen as a unique event which begins a new era in history. It is not surprising then, that though two of the gospels do not even mention his birth, they all devote a great deal of space to his trial and death. Every aspect of this story has been illustrated in every artistic medium throughout Christendom. Unfortunately, the desire of the early church to emphasize the role of the Jews and deemphasize that of the Romans led historically to violent persecutions of Jews by Christians throughout later history.

What aspects of this account seem to lessen the responsibility of the Romans for Jesus’ death? How does Jesus react to the various sufferings he goes through?

Now at the festival (1) the governor was accustomed to release a prisoner for the crowd, anyone whom they wanted. At that time they had a notorious prisoner, called Jesus Barabbas. (2) So after they had gathered, Pilate (3) said to them, “Whom do you want me to release for you, Jesus Barabbas or Jesus who is called the Messiah?” For he realized that it was out of jealousy that they had handed him over. While he was sitting on the judgment seat, his wife sent word to him, “Have nothing to do with that innocent man, for today I have suffered a great deal because of a dream about him.” Now the chief priests and the elders persuaded the crowds to ask for Barabbas and to have Jesus killed. The governor again said to them, “Which of the two do you want me to release for you?” And they said, “Barabbas.” Pilate said to them, “Then what should I do with Jesus who is called the Messiah?” Then he asked, “Why, what evil has he done?” But they shouted all the more, “Let him be crucified!”

So when Pilate saw that he could do nothing, but rather that a riot was beginning, he took some water and washed his hands before the crowd, saying, “I am innocent of this man’s blood; see to it yourselves.” Then the people as a whole answered, “His blood be on us and on your children!”(4) So he released Barabbas for them; and after flogging Jesus, he handed him over to be crucified. (5)

Then the soldiers of the governor took Jesus into the governor’s headquarters, and they gathered the whole cohort around him. They stripped him and put a scarlet robe on him, and after twisting some thorns into a crown, they put it on his head. They put a reed in his right hand and knelt before him and mocked him, saying “Hail, King of the Jews!” They spat on him, and took the reed and struck him on the head. After mocking him, they stripped him of the robe and put his own clothes on him. Then they led him away to crucify him. . . .

From noon on, darkness came over the whole land until three in the afternoon. And about three o’clock Jesus cried with a loud voice, “Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?” that is, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” (6) When some of the bystanders heard it, they said, “This man is calling for Elijah.” (7) At once one of them ran and got a sponge, filled it with sour wine, put it on a stick, and gave it to him to drink. But the others said, “Wait, let us see whether Elijah will come to save him.” Then Jesus cried again with a loud voice and breathed his last. At that moment the curtain of the temple was torn in two, from top to bottom. The earth shook, and the rocks were split. The tombs also were opened, and many bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep were raised. (8) After his resurrection they came out of the tombs and entered the holy city and appeared to many. Now when the centurion (9) and those with him, who were keeping watch over Jesus, saw the earthquake and what took place, they were terrified and said, “Truly this man was God’s Son!”

New Revised Standard Version

(1) Passover.

(2) Perhaps a popular anti-Roman agitator.

(3) Pontius Pilate, the Roman governor of Judaea.

(4) A line unfortunately quoted frequently in history to excuse persecution of Jews.

(5) Nailing to a cross was one of the most common forms of execution used by the Romans, designed to cause a protracted, agonizing death. There were instances of people having survived quite lengthy periods of crucifixion. According to Mark 15: 44, Pilate was astonished that Jesus had not survived into the evening.

(6) Although the four gospels give strikingly similar accounts of the trial and crucifixion, they each report different “last words.” Some see these words as stressing the humanity of Jesus. Others argue that since these are the opening words of Psalm 22, which ends by expressing confidence in God, that confidence is implied in the quotation.

(7) An ancient prophet whom Jews believe will return in the time of the Messiah.

(8) Jesus’ sacrifice is portrayed as producing life after death immediately. This incident is not mentioned elsewhere.

(9) Roman officer.

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License. This is an excerpt from Reading About the World, Volume 1, edited by Paul Brians, Mary Gallwey, Douglas Hughes, Azfar Hussain, Richard Law, Michael Myers Michael Neville, Roger Schlesinger, Alice Spitzer, and Susan Swan and published by Harcourt Brace Custom Publishing. The reader was created for use in the World Civilization course at Washington State University, but material on this page may be used for educational purposes by permission of the editor-in-chief:

Paul Brians
Department of English
Washington State University
Pullman 99164-5020

Reading About the World is now out of print. You can search for used copies using the following information:Paul Brians, et al. Reading About the World, Vol. 1, 3rd edition, Harcourt Brace College Publishing: ISBN 0-15-567425-0 or Paul Brians, et al. Reading About the World, Vol. 2, 3rd edition, Harcourt Brace College Publishing: ISBN 0-15-512826-4.

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The ascetic goal of holy poverty has not been nearly as central to Christianity as it has to Hinduism or Buddhism, being practiced mainly by early hermits and the stricter sort of monks and nuns. Yet this passage has often been quoted as a poetic description of that ideal. Others prefer to emphasize the theme of trust in God as bringing prosperity, though that emphasis downplays the importance of the introductory sentences.

What images from nature can you find in this passage that symbolize the gifts of God?

No one can serve two masters; for a slave will either hate the one and love the other, or be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and wealth.
Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air; they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? And can any of you by worrying add a single hour to your span of life? And why do you worry about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they neither toil nor spin, yet I tell you, even Solomon (1) in all his glory was not clothed like one of these. But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which is alive today and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you–you of little faith? Therefore do not worry, saying, “What will we eat?” or “What will we drink?” or “What will we wear?” For it is the Gentiles who strive for all these things; and indeed your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. But strive first for the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.

New Revised Standard Version

( 1) The wealthiest of the ancient Jewish kings.

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.This is an excerpt from Reading About the World, Volume 1, edited by Paul Brians, Mary Gallwey, Douglas Hughes, Azfar Hussain, Richard Law, Michael Myers Michael Neville, Roger Schlesinger, Alice Spitzer, and Susan Swan and published by Harcourt Brace Custom Publishing. The reader was created for use in the World Civilization course at Washington State University, but material on this page may be used for educational purposes by permission of the editor-in-chief:

Paul Brians
Department of English
Washington State University
Pullman 99164-5020

Reading About the World is now out of print. You can search for used copies using the following information:Paul Brians, et al. Reading About the World, Vol. 1, 3rd edition, Harcourt Brace College Publishing: ISBN 0-15-567425-0 or Paul Brians, et al. Reading About the World, Vol. 2, 3rd edition, Harcourt Brace College Publishing: ISBN 0-15-512826-4.

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The Christian Scriptures abound with references to the Last Judgment, to Heaven, and to Hell. This saying seems to promise salvation only to a sub-grouping within the early church, placing considerable emphasis on the performance of good deeds. In this it resembles the teachings of Jewish prophets like Isaiah (1:10-20). Such a path to salvation is far more rigorous than, for instance, the Buddhist tradition of the eventual salvation of all beings.

What metaphor in this passage seems to promise Hellfire to those who are not true followers?

Enter through the narrow gate, for the gate is wide and the road is easy that leads to destruction, (1) and there are many who take it. For the gate is narrow and the road is hard that leads to life, and there are few who find it.

Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing but inwardly are ravenous wolves. (2) You will know them by their fruits. Are grapes gathered from thorns, or figs from thistles? In the same way, every good tree bears good fruit, but the bad tree bears bad fruit. A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. Thus you will know them by their fruits.

Not everyone who says to me, “Lord, Lord,” will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father in heaven. On that day many will say to me, “Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many deeds of power in your name? (3) Then I will declare to them, “I never knew you; go away from me, you evil-doers.”

New Revised Standard Version

(1) Traditionally interpreted as eternal torment in Hell.

(2) Aimed at teachers who disagreed with the dominant group in the early church.

(3) Note that not even the successful performance of miracles is enough to prove worthiness.

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

This is an excerpt from Reading About the World, Volume 1, edited by Paul Brians, Mary Gallwey, Douglas Hughes, Azfar Hussain, Richard Law, Michael Myers Michael Neville, Roger Schlesinger, Alice Spitzer, and Susan Swan and published by Harcourt Brace Custom Books. This is an excerpt from Reading About the World, Volume 1, edited by Paul Brians, Mary Gallwey, Douglas Hughes, Azfar Hussain, Richard Law, Michael Myers Michael Neville, Roger Schlesinger, Alice Spitzer, and Susan Swan and published by Harcourt Brace Custom Publishing.   The reader was created for use in the World Civilization course at Washington State University, but material on this page may be used for educational purposes by permission of the editor-in-chief:

Paul Brians
Department of English
Washington State University
Pullman 99164-5020

Reading About the World is now out of print. You can search for used copies using the following information:Paul Brians, et al. Reading About the World, Vol. 1, 3rd edition, Harcourt Brace College Publishing: ISBN 0-15-567425-0 or Paul Brians, et al. Reading About the World, Vol. 2, 3rd edition, Harcourt Brace College Publishing: ISBN 0-15-512826-4.

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Sometimes claimed to be a uniquely Christian contribution to ethics, the “Golden Rule” has also been argued to be an eloquent expression of the universal principal underlying the concept of law. Compare the similar saying by Confucius.

In everything do to others as you would have them do to you; for this is the law and the prophets. (1)

New Revised Standard Version

(1) The Law and the Prophets are the first two parts of the Hebrew Bible. The third, the Writings, had not been fully consolidated at this time. This commandment would then be the essence of all Jewish teaching.

This is an excerpt from Reading About the World, Volume 1, edited by Paul Brians, Mary Gallwey, Douglas Hughes, Azfar Hussain, Richard Law, Michael Myers Michael Neville, Roger Schlesinger, Alice Spitzer, and Susan Swan and published by Harcourt Brace Custom Publishing. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License. The reader was created for use in the World Civilization course at Washington State University, but material on this page may be used for educational purposes by permission of the editor-in-chief:

Paul Brians
Department of English
Washington State University
Pullman 99164-5020

Reading About the World is now out of print. You can search for used copies using the following information:Paul Brians, et al. Reading About the World, Vol. 1, 3rd edition, Harcourt Brace College Publishing: ISBN 0-15-567425-0 or Paul Brians, et al. Reading About the World, Vol. 2, 3rd edition, Harcourt Brace College Publishing: ISBN 0-15-512826-4.

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The sayings of Confucius were remembered by his followers and were later compiled in a book of Analects (sayings), perhaps having been expanded on in the meantime. Through them we discover Confucius’ notions of the virtues, i.e., the positive character traits, to which we should aspire. Foremost among these is Filial Piety, the respect which children owe to parents–and by extension, wives owe to husbands, sisters to brothers, and everyone to ancestors. When such virtue is cultivated in the home, it is supposed to carry over into one’s relations in affairs of state as well.

How does Confucius formulate the equivalent of the Golden Rule (“do unto others as you would have them do unto you”)? Is his a stronger injunction or a less demanding one?

On Filial Piety

Mang I asked what filial piety is. The Master said, “It is being obedient.” Soon after, as Fan Chi was driving him, the Master told him “Mang asked me what filial piety is, and I answer him ‘being obedient.'” Fan Chi asked, “What exactly did you mean?” The Master replied, “That parents, when alive, should be served according to ritual; that, when dead, they should be buried according to ritual; and that they should be sacrificed to according to ritual.”

Ziyou asked what filial piety is. The Master said, “The filial piety of now-a-days means providing nourishment for one’s parents. But dogs and horses likewise are able to do something along that line for their own kind. Without reverence, what is there to distinguish the one support given from the other?”

On Goodness

The Master said, “A youth, when at home, should behave well toward his parents, and when abroad, respectfully to his elders. He should be earnest and truthful. He should overflow in love to all, and cultivate the friendship of the good. When he has time and opportunity, after doing those things, he should study the polite arts.”

The Master said, “With coarse rice to eat, with water to drink, and my bended arm for a pillow, I still have joy in the midst of these things. Riches and honours acquired by unrighteousness are to me as a floating cloud.”

Zhonggong asked about perfect virtue. The Master said, “When abroad, behave to everyone as if you were receiving an important guest; treat people as if you were assisting at a great sacrifice;do not do to others as you would not wish done to yourself. Thereby you will let no murmuring rise against you in the country, and none in the family. . . .”

On the Gentleman

Confucius took the notion of the gentleman, as one who owned land and had some political power, and reworked it into a moral notion which captures the essence of the good life. The graciousness and self-discipline which characterize such a gentleman are fostered by, and expressed in, ritual and music. But this also leads to many detailed guidelines about how to dress and how to perform the rituals. (The counterpart would be rules of etiquette in our society.)

Why is ritual supposed to be important? What happens to otherwise virtuous traits without such ritual?

The Master said, “Riches and honours are what men desire; but if they cannot be obtained in the proper way, they should be let go. Poverty and meanness are what men dislike; but if they cannot be avoided in the proper way, they should not be avoided. If a gentleman abandons virtue, how can he fulfill the requirements of his title? A gentleman not, even for the space of a single meal, act contrary to virtue. Even in moments of haste, and in times of danger, he clings to virtue.”

The Master said, “A gentleman, well studied in literature, and abiding by the rules of ritual, will not go very wrong.”

“When gentlemen perform well all their duties to their relations, the people are inspired to virtue. When they remain true to their old friends, the people are preserved from irresponsible behavior.”

The Master said, “A gentleman points out the admirable qualities of men and does not point out their bad qualities. A petty man does just the opposite.”

The Master said, “A gentleman is distressed by his lack of ability, but he is not distressed by men’s not knowing him.”

The Master said, “What the gentleman demands is something of himself. What the petty man demands is something of others.”

A gentleman does not wear a deep purple or a puce color, nor in his at-home clothes does he wear red. In warm weather, he wears a single-layered garment, either of coarse or fine texture, but when going out he wears it over another garment. He wears lambskin with a garment of black, fawn with white, and fox with yellow. His fur dressing gown should be long, but with the right sleeve short. His night clothes must be half again as long as his body. When staying at home, he wears thick furs of the fox or the badger. So long as he is not in mourning, he wears all the trimmings of his girdle. . . . He does not wear lamb’s fur or a black cap when making a visit of condolence. And on the first day of the month he must put on his court robes and present himself at court.

On Ritual and Music

The Master said, “If a man lacks the human virtues, what has he to do with ritual? If a man lacks the human virtues, what has he to do with music?”

The Master said, “Respectfulness, without the rules of ritual becomes laborious bustle; carefulness, without the rules, becomes timidity; boldness becomes insubordination; straightforwardness becomes rudeness.

The Master said, “It is by the Odes that a man’s mind is aroused, by the rules of ritual that his character is established, and by music that he is perfected [finished]. . . .”

Education is, of course, important to Confucius, as one needs to learn the traditions and profit from the wisdom of the past. Government can then be carried on by “moral force,” as opposed to requiring military or legal force. As to religion, Confucius does not challenge it, but he doesn’t put his hope in it either. His stress is always on living well, which means living properly, here and now and by our own actions.

Which is more important for an orderly state: food, weapons, or a government that one can trust.

On Education

The Master said, “Anyone learning without thought is lost; anyone thinking but not learning is in peril.”

The Master said, “Yu, shall I teach you what knowledge is? When you know a thing, to realize that you know it; and when you do not know a thing, to allow that you do not know it: this is knowledge.” The Master said, [I have been] “a transmitter and not a maker, believing in and loving the ancients. . .”

When the Master went to Wei, Ran Yu acted as driver of his carriage. The Master observed, “How numerous the people are!” Ran Yu asked, “When they are more numerous, what more shall be done for them ?” “Enrich them,” was the reply. “And when they have been enriched, what more shall be done?” The Master said, “Instruct them.”

On Government

The Master said, “To rule a country of a thousand chariots requires reverent attention to business, sincerity, economy in expenditures, and love for men, as well as the employment of the people only in the right seasons.”

The Master said, “If the people are governed by laws and punishment is used to maintain order, they will try to avoid the punishment but have no sense of shame. If they are governed by virtue and rules of propriety [ritual] are used to maintain order, they will have a sense of shame and will become good as well.”

Ji Kang Zi asked Confucius about government, saying, “What do you say to killing those who are unprincipled [i.e., the immoral] for the good of those who are principled?” Confucius replied, “Sir, in carrying on your government, why should you use killing at all? Let your obvious desires be for what is good, and the people will be good. The relation between superiors and inferiors is like that between the wind and the grass: the grass is bound to bend when the wind blows across it.”

Zigong asked about government. The Master said, “The requisites of government are that there be sufficient food, sufficient military equipment, and the confidence of the people in their ruler.” Zigong said, “If one had to dispense with one of those three, which should be given up first?” “The military equipment, ” said the Master. Zigong again asked, “If on had to dispense with one of the two remaining, which should be given up?” The Master answered, “Give up the food. From of old, death has always been the lot of men; but if the people have no faith in their rulers, they cannot stand.”

On Religion

Someone asked the meaning of the great sacrifice. The Master said, “I do not know. Anyone who knew its meaning would find it as easy to govern the kingdom as to look on this,” and he pointed to the palm of his hand.

Zilu asked about serving the ghosts of the dead. The Master said, “Until you are able to serve men, how can you serve their ghosts?” When Zilu ventured to ask about death, the answer was: “While you do not know life, how can you [hope to] know about death?”

Translated by James Legge (1887), revised by Michael Neville

This is an excerpt from Reading About the World, Volume 1, edited by Paul Brians, Mary Gallwey, Douglas Hughes, Azfar Hussain, Richard Law, Michael Myers Michael Neville, Roger Schlesinger, Alice Spitzer, and Susan Swan and published by Harcourt Brace Custom Books. This is an excerpt from Reading About the World, Volume 1, edited by Paul Brians, Mary Gallwey, Douglas Hughes, Azfar Hussain, Richard Law, Michael Myers Michael Neville, Roger Schlesinger, Alice Spitzer, and Susan Swan and published by Harcourt Brace Custom Publishing.   The reader was created for use in the World Civilization course at Washington State University, but material on this page may be used for educational purposes by permission of the editor-in-chief:

Paul Brians
Department of English
Washington State University
Pullman 99164-5020

Reading About the World is now out of print. You can search for used copies using the following information:Paul Brians, et al. Reading About the World, Vol. 1, 3rd edition, Harcourt Brace College Publishing: ISBN 0-15-567425-0 or Paul Brians, et al. Reading About the World, Vol. 2, 3rd edition, Harcourt Brace College Publishing: ISBN 0-15-512826-4.

Try Chambal:
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These famous sayings must have exercised a powerful attraction for the downtrodden people who made up much of the early Christian community. Quite specific rewards are offered in compensation for present suffering. The emphasis on the wickedness of the rich is very much in the tradition of Jewish prophets like Amos. Political liberals have generally preferred this version of the Beatitudes, conservatives, the more spiritual version in Matthew 5.

What rewards are promised to those that suffer in this life?

Blessed are you who are poor,
for yours is the kingdom of God.
Blessed are you who are hungry now,
for you will be filled.
Blessed are you who weep now,
for you will laugh.
Blessed are you when people hate you, and when they exclude you, revile you, and defame you on account of the Son of Man. (1)
Rejoice in that Day and leap for joy, for surely your reward is great in heaven; for that is what their ancestors did to the prophets. (2)
But woe to you who are rich,
for you have received your consolation.
Woe to you who are full now,
for you will be hungry.
Woe to you who are laughing now,
for you will mourn and weep.
Woe to you when all speak well of you, for that is what their ancestors did to the false prophets.

New Revised Standard Version

(1) Jesus himself, a Messianic title of disputed meaning.

(2) Many passages in the Christian Scriptures seem aimed at strengthening the faith of those under persecution for their beliefs. It had become a tradition to believe that all the ancient Jewish prophets had been persecuted.

This is an excerpt from Reading About the World, Volume 1, edited by Paul Brians, Mary Gallwey, Douglas Hughes, Azfar Hussain, Richard Law, Michael Myers Michael Neville, Roger Schlesinger, Alice Spitzer, and Susan Swan and published by Harcourt Brace Custom Books. This is an excerpt from Reading About the World, Volume 1, edited by Paul Brians, Mary Gallwey, Douglas Hughes, Azfar Hussain, Richard Law, Michael Myers Michael Neville, Roger Schlesinger, Alice Spitzer, and Susan Swan and published by Harcourt Brace Custom Publishing.   The reader was created for use in the World Civilization course at Washington State University, but material on this page may be used for educational purposes by permission of the editor-in-chief:

Paul Brians
Department of English
Washington State University
Pullman 99164-5020

Reading About the World is now out of print. You can search for used copies using the following information:Paul Brians, et al. Reading About the World, Vol. 1, 3rd edition, Harcourt Brace College Publishing: ISBN 0-15-567425-0 or Paul Brians, et al. Reading About the World, Vol. 2, 3rd edition, Harcourt Brace College Publishing: ISBN 0-15-512826-4.

Try Chambal:
http://www.chambal.com/csin/9780155674257/ (vol. 1)
http://www.chambal.com/csin/9780155128262/ (vol. 2)

In contrast to Mark, Matthew contains far fewer miracles and a great deal of teaching, including the famous collection of sayings called “The Sermon on the Mount,” some of them quite extreme. As we saw earlier, Jewish law required the fair treatment of enemies, and by no means called upon all crimes to be punished by “an eye for an eye;” but it did not require forgiveness to extend as far as this.

In your opinion, which of these is the most extreme commandment? Why?

You have heard that it was said, “An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.” (1) But I say to you, Do not resist an evildoer. (2) But if anyone strikes you on the right cheek, turn the other also; and if anyone wants to sue you and take your coat, give your cloak as well; and if anyone forces you to go one mile, go also the second mile. (3) Give to everyone who begs from you, and do not refuse anyone who wants to borrow from you.

You have heard that it was said, ” You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.” (4) But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be children of your Father in heaven; for he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the righteous and on the unrighteous. For if you love those who love you, what reward to you have? Do not even the tax collectors do the same? (5) And if you greet only your brothers and sisters, what more are you doing than others? Do not even the Gentiles (6) do the same? Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.” (7)

New Revised Standard Version

(1) See Exodus 21:23-25.

(2) This statement is so strong, seeming to leave no room for police, judges, or even self-defense, that some scholars have argued that it must envision a very near end of the world. In that case, civil society need not be maintained because all will shortly be judged by God. A more traditional view applies Paul’s theory that salvation by works (good deeds) is literally impossible. These commandments would then be uttered because they are impossible to obey, in order to force the hearer to accept that only faith can save.

(3) This commandment has been explained by some as an extension of the much-resented Roman law which required subjects to carry the spear and shield of a soldier for one mile whenever requested. The early church was anxious to avoid any appearance of being hostile to Rome, unlike the Jews who rebelled against the imperial government. “Going the second mile” has come to be a popular expression for making an extra effort.

(4) This saying occurs nowhere in the Hebrew Bible. It may be simply an expression of popular attitudes.

(5) Tax collectors were hated representatives of Rome, all the more so because their income depended on charging taxpayers more than was actually due the central government.

(6) Non-Jews.

(7) With the exception of some saints, few Christians have taken this commandment literally, seeing in it an inconsistency with Paul’s doctrine of original sin. Jewish law, of course, expected perfection in that the worshiper was supposed to be able to observe all of God’s law without superhuman efforts.

This is an excerpt from Reading About the World, Volume 1, edited by Paul Brians, Mary Gallwey, Douglas Hughes, Azfar Hussain, Richard Law, Michael Myers Michael Neville, Roger Schlesinger, Alice Spitzer, and Susan Swan and published by Harcourt Brace Custom Publishing. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.The reader was created for use in the World Civilization course at Washington State University, but material on this page may be used for educational purposes by permission of the editor-in-chief:

Paul Brians
Department of English
Washington State University
Pullman 99164-5020

This is just a sample of Reading About the World, Volume 1. Reading About the World is now out of print. You can search for used copies using the following information:Paul Brians, et al. Reading About the World, Vol. 1, 3rd edition, Harcourt Brace College Publishing: ISBN 0-15-567425-0 or Paul Brians, et al. Reading About the World, Vol. 2, 3rd edition, Harcourt Brace College Publishing: ISBN 0-15-512826-4.

Try Chambal:
http://www.chambal.com/csin/9780155674257/ (vol. 1)
http://www.chambal.com/csin/9780155128262/ (vol. 2)

The Gospel of Mark, generally believed to have been the first written, portrays Jesus above all as a miraccle-worker. Miraculous healings were a familiar concept to Romans and Jews alike; and they did not so much set Jesus apart as to validate him as having divinely-derived powers. However, in this miracle, the stress is laid not on Jesus’ role, which is depicted as almost involuntary, but on the woman’s. The lesson being taught is not so much about healing as it is about faith, one of Mark’s main themes. Mark divides those who encounter into two types: those who do not believe, and those who do.

What is it that Jesus says has caused the woman to be healed?

Now there was a woman who had been suffering from hemorrhages for twelve years. She had endured much under many physicians, and had spent all that she had; and she was no better, but rather grew worse. She had heard about Jesus, and came up behind him in the crowd and touched his cloak, for she said, “If I but touch his clothes, I will be made well.” Immediately her hemorrhage stopped; and she felt in her body that she was healed of her disease. Immediately aware that power had gone forth from him, Jesus turned about in the crowd and said, “Who touched my clothes? And his disciples said to him, “you see the crowd pressing in on you; how can you say, ‘Who touched me?'” He looked all around to see who had done it. But the woman, knowing what had happened to her, came in fear and trembling, fell down before him, and told him the whole truth. He said to her, “Daughter, your faith has made you well; go in peace, and be healed of your disease.”

New Revised Standard Version

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

This is an excerpt from Reading About the World, Volume 1, edited by Paul Brians, Mary Gallwey, Douglas Hughes, Azfar Hussain, Richard Law, Michael Myers Michael Neville, Roger Schlesinger, Alice Spitzer, and Susan Swan and published by Harcourt Brace Custom Publishing.

The reader was created for use in the World Civilization course at Washington State University, but material on this page may be used for educational purposes by permission of the editor-in-chief:
Paul Brians
Department of English
Washington State University
Pullman 99164-5020

Reading About the World is now out of print. You can search for used copies using the following information:Paul Brians, et al. Reading About the World, Vol. 1, 3rd edition, Harcourt Brace College Publishing: ISBN 0-15-567425-0 or Paul Brians, et al. Reading About the World, Vol. 2, 3rd edition, Harcourt Brace College Publishing: ISBN 0-15-512826-4.

Try Chambal:
http://www.chambal.com/csin/9780155674257/ (vol. 1)
http://www.chambal.com/csin/9780155128262/ (vol. 2)