Church readings selective and open to change

The Lectionary is not the Bible - rather it is a selection of scripture readings arranged for use at worship. It is not a haphazard construct but an ordered selection of readings.

Many in a Sunday congregation will recognise the patterns: three readings, usually Old Testament, then New Testament, and the key readings, the gospel. All arranged in a three-year cycle.

There are various principles used to determine which scripture passage is read. For instance, the reading of a particular gospel in a continuous fashion during each year and on ordinary Sundays, with the Old Testament reading chosen to harmonise with or complement the gospel reading.

At Advent, Christmas, Lent and Easter, the readings capture the spirit and meaning of the season, often chosen because of time-honoured usage, like the beginning of John's gospel ("In the beginning was the Word . . . the Word was made flesh") read on Christmas Day.

The introduction to the Lectionary tells us its compilers tried to place before us at Sunday Mass the more important passages of scripture.

It also tells us some of the criteria used to determine the selection, in addition to what church tradition offered on the arrangement of a Lectionary.

Difficult texts are noted and where they present real difficulty they are omitted. This is especially true of the Sunday Lectionary. Rather than leaving out texts, the introduction calls us to examine our religious education and the training given to those who preach.

The introduction cautions that omission of texts must not be made lightly, for fear of distorting the meaning of the text or the intent and style of scripture.

An important passage may be included while leaving out "some verse that is unsuitable pastorally or that involves truly difficult problems".

On the wider scale of omissions, most of the Old Testament legal prescriptions, ritual laws and regulations on purity and impurity (as in Leviticus) are not included in the Lectionary. They are judged un suitable or unnecessary for reading in Christian assembly.

The omission of particular verses is noticeable in several instances. To take one example, in the reading from the beginning of Revelations used on a Sunday in Easter-time, the voice tells John to write down all that he sees in the book.

The Lectionary leaves out ". . . and send it to the seven churches of Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamum, Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia and Laodicea." Readers and hearers would probably regard this as a good judgment.

Domestic Violence notes seven New Testament texts liable to give an undesirably negative impression regarding women. Only four are in the Lectionary, two of which are in the Sunday readings and, as has been made clear, a shorter version of these readings, omitting verses cited in the document, is permitted.

BUT commentary and explanation, rather than omission, should also be considered. Indeed Domes- tic Violence, while citing Ephesians 5:22-24 as one of the texts, offers a good understanding of the passage elsewhere: "In Ephesians 5:21-33, for instance, the general principle laid down is one of mutual self-giving between husband and wife modelled on the relationship between Christ and the Church."

Indeed, if we read what is written before this particular text it would be clear that all Christians should be subject to one another out of reverence for Christ.

There is a subjectivity about any selection or omission process and difficulties and sensitivities must be engaged. Those who have the task of compiling a Lectionary or who might be engaged in its revision must examine the role of women in the Bible.

A future Lectionary might well include many of the stories about wo men that are not now included. Readings from the books of Ruth, Judith and Esther might be included on Sundays.

The reading about the Maccabee brothers might include the reference to their brave mother, "especially admirable and worthy of honourable remembrance, for she watched the death of seven sons in the course of a single day, and bravely endured it because of her hopes in the Lord" (Macc 7:20).

At Pentecost we hear of the apostles gathered in the room, but earlier in Acts the reference is to the apostles "together with several women" (Acts 1:14).

Many different Christian churches in the English-speaking world use the Revised Common Lectionary (RCL, 1983). This Lectionary is less inclined to omit verses within a reading. Many would say that RCL, which is based on the Roman Lectionary and uses a similar three-year cycle of three readings for Sundays, is an improved work.

Indeed, it is often suggested that the Catholic Church should also adopt it, as the Church of Ireland has since permitting its use in Advent 1995.

Because of the similarity of the two Lectionaries it is good to remember that last Sunday, as on many Sundays, the same readings were proclaimed in both Churches.

Father Patrick Jones is director of the National Centre for Liturgy at St Patrick's College, Maynooth, Co Kildare. Patrick.Jones@may.ie