Programme 3: The Second Reading (SOTW III)

SOTW III/1 Once more, we turn to the current context of faith and church, with particular emphasis on the metaphors for “the Jesus event” (salvation/redemption). A key figure is the evolution of Christian is St Paul, the first Christian writer to come down to us. His letters from the spinal cord of the Second Reading on Sundays.

SOTW III/2 How is the Second Reading chosen? To understand better what we hear on Sunday, examine the lay-out of the Lectionary regarding the second reading. The use of Paul, Acts, the letters of John.

SOTW III/3 We give special attention to St Paul: his person, culture, conversion, ministry, letters (distinguishing original and Deutero-Pauline).

SOTW III/4 The letters of Paul can be hard to follow, especially as we hear only excerpts from longer arguments. It might be hand to see how to read as a whole a letter of St Paul. We will take as an example his earliest letter, which is also one of the warmest (1 Thessalonians)

SOTW III/5 St Paul has had a huge influence in the ways Christians have looked on Jesus, as the key to their lives. Today, as search for new ways of understanding "what happened for us in Christ", St Paul has some proposals.

SOTW III/6 The Acts of the Apostles (Eastertide). The store of actions takes the story of the Christian movement beyond the resurrection and outside Israel. What was the purposes of the Acts? Did the writer use sources? Is there a "theology" of the church in this document?