Christ the Savior-Holy Spirit Orthodox Church
Archpriest Steven C. Kostoff
4285 Ashland Ave, Cincinnati OH 45212 - (513) 351-0907
Fall Adult Education Class 2016 - The Life of Christ

Click for more info and to order the book
Click for more info and to order the book

 

 

 

FALL ADULT CLASS BEGINS OCT 26

 

Six Classes on Wednesday evenings, thru Nov. 30

 

"To follow our long-standing tradition of reading a book together in the Fall as the basis of our class sessions and discussions, I have chosen a fairly new book by Fr. Patrick Reardon, titled The Jesus We Missed - The Surprising Truth About the Humanity of Christ.

 

"Fr. Patrick is a prolific writer and an excellent biblical scholar.  This latest of his publications is filled with a constant stream of insights into the Gospels' portrayal of Christ.  It should lead to some exciting and revealing discussions.”

 

— Fr. Steven

 

Full info and links to order the book here...

 

 

Study Questions for Session VI, Dec 7

Icon of the Apostles Peter and John encountering Jesus' burial shroud in the empty tomb.
Icon of the Apostles Peter and John encountering Jesus' burial shroud in the empty tomb.
Icon of the Apostles Peter and John encountering Jesus' burial shroud in the empty tomb.

 

Dear Class,


I realize that this is quite "last minute," but I thought to still send out a few  questions that could help guide our discussion this evening:

Ch. 11 - "The Bridegroom is Taken Away"

+  Where do we find the image of the Bridegroom in the Scriptures? How is the Bridegroom taken away?

+  What stands out most clearly for you when you think about St. Peter's denial?

+  What is the link between Pilate's wife (named Claudia by tradition) and the Magi in St. Matthew's Gospel?

+  What does it mean for Jesus to "taste death?"  How does Fr. Patrick apply the anguished cry of Psalm 22 to Jesus?


Ch. 12 - "Risen in the Flesh"

+  What does it mean that the "risen Jesus" is the "same Jesus?"

+  What is the difference between the "apologetic" NT texts concerning the Resurrection and the Gospel's more theological/devotional accounts?

+  What stands out about the Road to Emmaus "discussion" between Jesus and His disciples?

+  To what extent do you accept Fr. Patrick's speculation concerning the Apostle Thomas?


Epilogue - "The Same Jesus"

+  What does the folded burial kerchief indicate in the empty tomb?

 

 

Study Questions for Session V, Wed. Nov 30

 

Dear Class Members,

For Session V, we will be reading and discussing Ch. 9 & 10 in Fr. Patrick's book. Another two chapters with some great insights!  Here, again, are a few questions based on the reading that will hopefully guide our discussion:



From Ch. 9:

+  What are some of the indictments against Jesus that led the religious authorities to reject him (see p. 131-132)?


+  Fr. Patrick is implying on some level that the paralytic was so afflicted because of his sin?  Does this sound convincing?


+  What is the relationship between the widow near the treasury and Christ's passion?


+  How do the Synoptic accounts of the Last Supper (The Seder) differ from what we find in St. John's Gospel?


+  What does Fr. Patrick mean when he writes that at the Supper, Jesus "was completely preoccupied by the Father?"



From Ch. 10:

+  What did the pagan philosopher Celsus point out as weaknesses of Christ?


+  What can we make of the witnesses of the agony in the Garden?


+  In the section "The Reverent Priest" (p. 156), we read of Fr. Patrick's explanation of how God (the Father) "heard" the prayer of Jesus in the garden.  What does Fr. Patrick claim?  Is it convincing?


+  How was Jesus "made perfect through suffering?"


+  What is the over-all impression that is left through such scenes as "The Angel and the Blood," "The Kiss," "The Severed Ear?"



Fr. Steven

 

Study Questions for Session IV, Wed. Nov 16

 

Join us for Session IV this Wednesday, Nov. 16:

  • 7:00pm - Vespers
  • 7:45pm - Class

 

Dear Faithful Class Members,
 
 
Here are a few questions that can hopefully generate some good discussion tomorrow evening at our class:


 
Ch. 7 "Jesus at Prayer"
 
+ Fr. Patrick begins the chapter with some deeply insightful remarks about the nature of prayer.  What are his three main points?
 
+ If Jesus is the Word of God incarnate, why would He even need to pray?
 
+ How does Fr. Patrick link together the Transfiguation and the Agony in Gethsemane?
 
+ What is the significance of Jesus calling God "Father."  What does it mean for the disciples of Christ (and by implication for us also today)?
 

 

Ch. 8 "Jesus and the Women"
 
+ What is so unique about Christ's relationship to women?
 
+ What does St. Luke emphasize about the children of the widow of Nain and Jairus' daughter not found in the other Gospels?
 
+ How does Fr. Patrick explain the difficult passage about Jesus interacting with the Gentile woman from the district of Tyre and Sidon?
 
+ I found this to be a particularly intriguing statement: "In the Gospels we find not a single example of someone criticizing a woman in Jesus' presence and getting away with it."  What are some examples supporting this claim?
 
+ Why is Joanna, the wife of Chuza, steward of Herod, such an important woman in Christ's ministry?


 
 
These are all basic questions based on the reading, so they are meant, again, to prompt our deeper discussion.
 
Look forward to seeing you tomorrow evening! We will begin with Vespers at 7:00 p.m.
 
Fr. Steven

 

Study Questions for Session 3, plus more on the Temptations in the Wilderness

 

NO VESPERS BEFORE CLASS THIS EVENING, NOV. 9.

CLASS BEGINS AT 7:30PM

 

Dear Parish Faithful,
 
We will meet for Session III of our Fall Adult Education Class on Wednesday, November 9.  Below are a few questions that can serve as a guide for our discussion. Please feel free to formulate questions of your own that you would like to discuss.


 
From Ch. 5:


 
+ According to Fr. Patrick, how long of a public ministry does he ascribe to Jesus, and on what basis?
 
+ What are some of the distinctions between our own conceptions of chronological accuracy and what we find in the canonical Gospels?
 
+ How does Fr. Patrick relate the synagogue scene of LK. 4:16-21 to the previous baptism of Christ?
 
+ What does Fr. Patrick mean about the "subtlety" of Christ expressed in the Seven Signs of St. John's Gospel?

+ Any questions/comments on "narrative sequence?"



From Ch. 6



+ How does Fr. Patrick approach the question of Christ's "ignorance."  This is an important topic considering the over-all nature of the book's theme.

+ What are some of the pedagogical usages of questions in the teaching of Christ?



_____

 

Venerable Bede on the Temptations in the Wilderness

It is always dangerous to "go back" to the previous week's chapters, because then we certainly will not complete the two assigned chapters for the evening. Nevertheless, Fr. Patrick raised some very important pastoral considerations based upon the sequence of Baptism and Temptation/Testing in the Wilderness.  I will therefore share this fine passage from the Venerable Bede, that does precisely the same thing.  If this generates any questions or comments for Wednesday, please bring those up.



"Soon after he had been baptized, he performed a fast of forty days by himself, and he taught and informed us by his example that, after we have received forgiveness of sins in baptism, we should devote ourselves to vigils, prayer, fasts and other spiritually fruitful things, lest when we are sluggish and less vigilant the unclean spirit expelled from our heart by baptism may return, and finding us fruitless in spiritual riches, weigh us down again with a sevenfold pestilence, and our last snare would then be worse than the first. 

Let us be wary that we do not relight the fires of old obsessions which would wreck us on our new voyage.  Whatever sort of flaming sword it is that guarded the doorway to paradise has been already effectively extinguished for each of the faithful in the font of baptism. 

For the unfaithful, however, the gate remains always formidable, and also for those falsely called faithful though they have not been chosen, since they have no fear of entangling themselves in sins after baptism.  It is as though the same fire put out in baptism has been rekindled after it had been once extinguished."  HOMILIES ON THE GOSPELS, 1.12.

 

More Reflections from Session 2

Christ being tempted in the wilderness.
Christ being tempted in the wilderness.
Christ being tempted in the wilderness.
November 3, 2016

 

"And He was with the wild beasts..." (MK 1:13)

 

Dear Class Members,


I believe we had a pretty good session yesterday evening. I must be more careful over how we use our time, for we were a bit short in speaking of the highly significant "Temptation/Testing in the Wilderness," especially the pastoral reflections that followed by Fr. Reardon. We may just pick up there next week "ever so briefly."

We paused yesterday day on the intriguing text of MK. 1:11-13, in which St. Mark narrates a very short and tantalizing passage about Christ's temptation in the wilderness.  In addition to mentioning Satan, St. Mark also narrates that Jesus "was with the wild beasts; and the angels ministered to him."  

There are no real Patristic commentaries on St. Mark's Gospel, outside of a work by a certain Victor, Presbyter of Antioch (5th c.).  Therefore, I could not find a specific patristic commentary on this verse. And since the "wild beasts" are not mentioned in St. Matthew's or St. Luke's account, I am not certain that we could find a comparable  interpretation on that verse from one of the patristic commentaries on those Gospels (Sts. John Chrysostom, Ambrose, Augustine, Cyril, etc.).  

However, in the Pelican New Testament Commentaries, the one on Saint Mark by Dennis Nineham (Anglican, I believe), I did find a nuanced and compelling reading of this passage and the "wild beasts."  Thought that you may also like to read it.  Nineham first sets the stage by describing the biblical approach to "the wilderness:"


The wilderness was traditionally the haunt of evil spirits, and Satan is the chief of the evil powers opposed to the will of God  and the establishment of his kingdom. It should be noted the the 'trial' is represented as lasting for the whole forty days and that there is no reference to fasting or hunger; on the contrary, the 'ministry' of the angels, which is represented as continuous, probably consisted in keeping Jesus supplied with food, just as angels fed Elijah in I Kings 19.


Nineham then goes on to interpret the presence of "wild beasts:"


The wild beasts:  They may be mentioned to emphasize the loneliness and awfulness of the desert (cf. e.g. Isa. 34:11 for how the presence of  'doleful creatures' was felt to heighten the desolation of the wilderness). 

More probably they are thought of as subject and friendly to Our Lord, and the passage should be understood against the background of the common Jewish idea that the beasts are subject to the righteous man and do him no harm (cf. the story of Adam, and also Job 5:22 and Test. Benj. 5:2), and also that when the Messiah comes, all animals will once again be tame and live in harmony (cf. e.g. Isa. 11:6ff., Hos. 2:18). 

In Ps. 91:11-13 dominion over the wild beasts is coupled with the promise of service by angels, and St. Mark probably means that by his victory over Satan Jesus has reversed Adam's defeat and begun the process of restoring paradise.  Thus the whole passage is illuminated by this remarkable quotation from Test. of Naph. 8:4:

'If you do good, my children, both men and angels shall bless you, and the Devil shall flee from you and the wild beasts shall fear you and the Lord shall love you.'

Saint Mark, p. 64.



Next week, we will move on to Ch. 5 & 6.

- Fr. Steven

 

Fall Adult Class - Notes for Session 2

Baptism of Jesus; from 'Jesus of Nazareth', Franco Zeffirelli, director.
Baptism of Jesus; from 'Jesus of Nazareth', Franco Zeffirelli, director.
Baptism of Jesus; from 'Jesus of Nazareth', Franco Zeffirelli, director.
November 1, 2016

 

Dear Interested Disciples of Christ,
 
(A disciple is one that listens carefully to the words of the Master and sits as His feet with intense focus so as to receive "words of life."  In other words, one who will go out of his/her way to learn more about and from Christ).
 
For Session II of our Fall Adult Education Class, we will discuss Ch. 3 & 4 of Fr. Patrick Reardon's The Jesus We Missed.
 
From Ch. 3 we learn of Christ's:

1)  Baptism - What are the Old Testament allusions in the Baptism of Christ?
 
2)  The Call of the Disciples - What was expected of those disciples directly called by Christ?  Who in the world is Rock Johnson?!?
 

From Ch. 4 we learn:

1)   More implications of the Incarnation - What further "limitations" does Christ accept once He becomes flesh?  (We will discuss this important passage carefully).
 
2)  The Temptation in the Wilderness - What are five points to learn from St. Mark's brief account?  How is the temptation more complex in Sts. Matthew and Luke?  What are some of the reasons behind the different orders in the temptation accounts of Sts. Matthew and Luke? What are the very names given to the "Evil One" in the Gospels?
 
3)  Pastoral Context - What were the evangelists teaching later Christians through the wilderness temptation accounts?
 
4)  Where do the temptation accounts leave us as we trace "The Life of Christ?"

 

— Fr. Steven

 

Scroll down for more notes, plus book order info and links...

 

Fall Adult Class - Notes for Session 1

Icon of Jesus as a boy, the 'Tekton.'
Icon of Jesus as a boy, the 'Tekton.'
Icon of Jesus as a boy, the 'Tekton.'
October 21, 2016

 

Dear Parish Faithful,


The following is for anyone who plans on committing to this year's upcoming Fall Adult Education Class. We will begin next week, Wednesday, October 26, and continue for six consecutive Wednesday evenings. Our book will be The Jesus We Missed by Fr. Patrick Reardon.

The book conveniently divides into 12 chapters (with an Introduction and Epilogue) which will allow us to cover two chapters per session.  Our over-all goal is to read this fine book hoping to come away with a much fuller and comprehensive understanding of the "Life of Christ," from His Nativity to Crucifixion and Resurrection.  We want to know Christ, not just know about Him; but learning essential things about Him may be the first step in that long process of knowing Him which covers our entire earthly existence.

For Session I please read the first two chapters, but also read the Introduction very carefully. That is where  Fr. Patrick will provide his main "thesis" of the book's over-all content and meaning.  We will spend some time on the Introduction for that reason. I would especially concentrate on the subsection "In the Flesh," on p. xxi-xxiv. The main question would be:  What does the Incarnation mean for the humanity of Christ?  

And please formulate any of your own questions based on your reading of the Introduction and Ch. 1 & 2.. In addition, please be prepared to share any passages that you found of great interest; or were "provocative;" or were puzzling, etc.

As to Ch. 1, what does "growing up" mean for Jesus?  Have you come away with any new insights into Joseph and into the Virgin Mary? At the end of the chapter, what does Fr. Patrick mean by Christ's "self-knowledge?"  How does he approach the whole issue of "self-knowledge?"

As to Ch. 2, there is a fascinating discussion about the "growth" of the Virgin Mary's own understanding of Christ.  This is based on the passage, unique to St. Luke, of Jesus in the Temple as a young boy; and then the Wedding at Cana.  What is meant by the "hour" of Christ? How does the work into these passages?
 
There are many more things to discuss, but hopefully these questions will get things started!
 
 
— Fr. Steven

 

Scroll down for more info, and links to order the book.

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Fall Adult Class 2016 - The Life of Christ

 

Join us for our annual Fall Adult Education Class,

an in-depth study of the Life of Christ, based on the highly regarded book:

 

The Jesus We Missed

     The Surprising Truth about the Humanity of Christ

         by Fr. Patrick Reardon

 

Six Wednesday evenings, from Oct. 26 through Nov. 30
Vespers at 7:00pm  •  Class at 7:45pm

 

“The curriculum this year for the Church School is ‘The Life of Christ’.  With that in mind, this year we will link the Fall Adult Education Class with the Church School, and together make this the center of our study. 

"Therefore, to follow our long-standing tradition of reading a book together in the Fall as the basis of our class sessions and discussions, I have chosen a fairly new book by Fr. Patrick Reardon, titled The Jesus We Missed - The Surprising Truth About the Humanity of Christ.

"Fr. Patrick is a prolific writer and an excellent biblical scholar.  This latest of his publications is filled with a constant stream of insights into the Gospels' portrayal of Christ.  It should lead to some exciting and revealing discussions.”


— Fr. Steven

 

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