Glory Be to Jesus Christ!
🌞
Since in the works published at the following links:
https://churchandsociety.org.ua/pdf/projects/zbirnyk.pdf
https://oleksandr-zhabenko.github.io/en/commentaries/17082024.html
https://oleksandr-zhabenko.github.io/en/commentaries/27112024.html
it is written that the use of prepositions is important for the correct understanding of important and actual issues, in particular the issue of power, I am writing commentaries on the use of these prepositions. As a piece of advice on how to read the text, you can read the verse in translation and/or in the original (if you have the opportunity), and then the commentary on prepositions here. Next, you need to understand which part of the verse the commentary refers to, and consider what it affirms — or less often, denies — that is essential to understanding. This thoughtful reading helps to deepen understanding and protects against the mistakes mentioned above.
Liturgy:
1 Corinthians X, 29 — 'ὑπὸ ἄλλης συνειδήσεως' - 'hypo alles syneideseos' - by another conscience
. Here the preposition 'hypo' used with the genitive case, indicates the passive state of the verb would be judged
, emphasises that this is about judgment carried out by another person's conscience. The apostle's question in this sense is entirely logical, because if it were really the opposite — a person's will would be judged by another conscience as judge, then people would judge one another, and not God, because their consciences would have the power to judge others. But in reality only God can judge in the full sense.
1 Corinthians X, 31 — 'εἰς δόξαν θεοῦ' - 'eis doxan theou' - to the glory of God; for the glory of God; for God's glory
. The preposition 'eis' emphasises the movement of the people themselves and the purpose of their actions, that is, what they should be crowned with, what they should lead to and strive for.
The reading has as its theme care for conscience, as well as various personal differences between Christians and how these peculiarities need to be understood. Very rich texts, and not very comprehensible.
1) About food sacrificed to idols. Continuation of previous readings on this matter, explanation that one needs to avoid food sacrificed to idols not because of its peculiarity, not because it is some particularly bad spiritual food, source of evil etc., but because of people's conscience, so that there would be no temptations to paganism, idolatry, denial of Christ and similar.
2) About men and women. Paul writes about spiritual things that we (our contemporaries) do not fully understand. For example, it remains a mystery why Paul mentions angels and what this should mean in this context. Nevertheless, if something in Scripture is not comprehensible, this is not a reason to reject it.
Paul says that differences between sexes are intended by God, and that their existence is good, as is what God created. Paul emphasises that one sex will not exist if the other does not exist, that they are mutually important. He also speaks about differences. I wrote a bit on this topic earlier, I will write here again.
Why God created man first, and woman — after that, this is God's mystery. Nevertheless, Paul says that this has significance for all people, that this is not an accident and not just an event. That is, there was God's design in this. In view of this design Paul also reasons about all the questions mentioned in the reading regarding this.
It should be noted that due to the obscurity one can generally allow many mistakes in understanding.
I will dwell on one, and from that it will also be seen how to understand many others. Created for (for the sake of)
does not mean that a comparison of importance, significance of woman and man takes place. For example, an analogous phrase God created man for eternal happiness together with Him in love
, that is, that according to God's design man should obtain this eternal bliss, does not mean that man and eternal bliss are compared regarding their significance, importance, and that eternal happiness is more important than man himself. Not at all. Therefore the words that woman was created through (for, for the sake of, in view of) man
— likewise do not mean that she is less important, less significant or lower. But this is about the original God's design, what people should be like. One can say that the world of people and their relationships should not turn into a completely dualistic, polarly-balanced world, where the feminine opposes the masculine and completely balances
it. No, but God designed a world with differences that influence its architectonics, its construction, its multi-levelness and multi-planarity, which despite all their potentially possible complexity or simplicity can and should form harmony. I think it is precisely in such a key that all these reasonings need to be understood.
I will provide a building analogy (theology has such a term God's house-building
, part of which is the creation of man). If you are planning a house, and want the kitchen to have windows facing south (in the Southern Hemisphere — north), so that there would be plenty of light there during the day, and then in view of this you place other rooms, this in no way means that the kitchen is more important than all other rooms. And if the kitchen will be more important when it comes to preparing food, then, for example, when it comes to rest and sleep — such will be other rooms, for example, bedrooms.
In view of these reasonings one can also look at all mentioned in this regard. If for a man it is more natural
(more proper; in contemporary language — short hair more simply corresponds to masculine thinking style
than to feminine
) to have shorter hair, and for a woman — longer, then there is nothing strange in this; likewise there would be nothing strange if it were the opposite.
More about the reading from the Apostle see the links:
https://oleksandr-zhabenko.github.io/en/commentaries/16082024.html
https://oleksandr-zhabenko.github.io/en/commentaries/27072023.html
Matthew XVI, 24 — 'ἀπαρνησάσθω ἑαυτὸν' - 'aparnesastho heauton' - let him completely deny himself; let him renounce himself; let him renounce himself
. The first word derives from 'apo' and 'arneomai', where the prefix 'ap' emphasises refusal, distancing, renunciation.
Matthew XVI, 27 — 'ἐν τῇ δόξῃ τοῦ πατρὸς' - 'en te doxe tou patros' - in the glory of the Father
. In what, in what state, in the surroundings and manifestation of what.
Matthew XVI, 28 — 'ἐν τῇ βασιλείᾳ αὐτοῦ' - 'en te basileia autou' - in His Kingdom
. How, in what, in the manifestation and power of what. Here in both cases it is like space
, or environment
, but this is not so much a certain space
, as an important change in the way of existence of the world. Similarly to how Christ's Resurrection changed the state of existence of his human nature.
The reading is about following Christ, about His Second Coming, as well as about the glory of the Kingdom, which may appear to some faithful even in this life (shortly after this these words were fulfilled in a special way for Peter, James and John Zebedee's sons, since Christ was transfigured on Mount Tabor).
About the cross it is well written regarding the reading of the parallel place in Mark:
https://oleksandr-zhabenko.github.io/en/commentaries/19032023.html
More about the reading from the Gospel see the links:
https://oleksandr-zhabenko.github.io/en/commentaries/16082024.html
https://oleksandr-zhabenko.github.io/en/commentaries/27072023.html
Glory be to Thee, our God, glory be to Thee!