“OF ALL THE HUMAN TRADITIONS taught and practiced by the Roman Catholic Church, which are contrary to the Bible, the most ancient are the prayers for the dead. […] began 300 years after Christ”
Ang pagbibigay dalangin sa mga pumanaw (o yumao) ay matagal na pong ginagawa o kinagisnan na ng mga sinaunang Hudyo. Ang ilang halimbawa ay makikita mismo sa kanilang mga sinaunang literatura (Babylonian Talmud: Tractate Sotah 34b) at maging sa deuterocanonical books (Tb 12:12, 2 Mc 12:39–45ff; cf. 1 Cor. 15:29; tignan din ang Harrington 1999: 150; Schadé 2006). Kung susumahin ang bilang ng taon kung kailan ito sinimulan ay walang nakakaalam, bagkus, tanging ang tungkol kay Judas Maccabees (יהודה המכבי, Y'hudhah HamMakabi) sa 2 Maccabees ang masasabing pinakasinaunang tala (para sa Judeo-Christian religion) na naestima sa panahong ng ikalawang siglo {BC} (Schwartz 2008; Geisler, Howe 2009; Petrisko 2009: 11) ngunit may mga suwestiyon din na iba dito, tulad ng ito daw ay nabuo noong kalagitnaan sa naunang banggit.[1]
Maging sa kalaunan ay napanatili parin ng mga Hudyo ang paniniwala nila ng pagbibigay panalangin sa mga namatay na tuwirang ipinakita sa Talmud
"Why do they go to the cemetery? — With regard to this there is a difference of opinion between R. Levi b. Hama and R. Hanina. One says: [To signify thereby], We are as the dead before Thee; and the other says: In order that the dead should intercede for mercy on our behalf" - Seder Mo‘ed, Tracate Ta'anit 16a
At pati po ang pagyukod sa libingan sa isang huwarang guro (just rabbi) ay kanila rin pong napreserba sa kanilang tradisyon
Rabbi Haviva said, "Rabbi Haviva son of Surmaki told me: "I saw one of the rabbis whom Elijah used to frequent. In the morning his eyes were lovely, but in the evening they looked as if they had been burnt by fire. I asked him, ‘What is it?’ He told me that he has asked Elijah, ‘Show me the [departed] rabbis as they ascend to the Heavenly Academy.’ He [Elijah] replied: ‘You can gaze at all of them except for the carriage of Rabbi Hiyya, at which you cannot gaze.’ ‘What is their sign? [How can I distinguish between them?[‘ ‘All are accompanied by angels as they ascend and descend, except for the Rabbi Hiyya’s carriage, which ascends and descends on its own.’ ‘Unable to restrain myself, I gazed at it. Two sparks of fire shot forth and struck that man [i.e. me], blinding him. The next day I went and prostrated myself upon his [Rabbi Hiyya’s] grave, crying, "Your mishnah is my mishnah," and I was healed."" (Mula sa Zohar, Hadqamat Sefer ha-Zohar p.21)
Gaya po ng nababasa mo, matagal na pong pinanghahawakan ng mga Hudyo ang nasabing paniniwala o kaugalian ng pagbibigay pugay at paghingin ng panalangin sa mga yumao; at bahagi na ito ng kanilang Kaddish (קדיש, Qaddish, Mourner's), at partikular na sa El male rachamim, na isang uri panalangin ng mga Hudyo sa mga namatay.
Ngayon po, marahil ang nasa isip mo po ay hindi naman ito mababasa sa bibliya, kung meron man saan ito makikita, dahil bahagi lamang ang mga ibinigay ko ng paniniwalang Hudaismo (tignan din ang paliwanag ni Rabbi Tzvi Freeman patungkol sa paghingi ng panalangin mula sa צדיק (Tzadik) para sa mga Hudyo dito sa lupa). Sa totoo lamang po, merong teksto sa N.T. na maaring nagpapakita ng isang uri ng panalangin sa namatay (o yumao), ito’y sa matatagpuan sa 2 Tm 1:16-18; 4:19*
May the Lord grant mercy to the household (οἶκος, oikōs) of Onesiphorus, because he often refreshed me and was not ashamed of my chain; when he arrived in Rome, he eagerly searched for me and found me—may the Lord grant that he will find mercy from the Lord on that day! And you know very well how much service he rendered in Ephesus.*Mula sa salin ng The New Revised Standard Version (NRSV), copyright 1989 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America.
Greet Prisca and Aquila, and the household (οἶκος, oikōs) of Onesiphorus.
Ang tungkol po sa kung patay na si Onesiphorus o hindi ay isang paksa na pinagdedebatehan padin po; gayunpaman, halos maraming mga scholars (Hanson 1966: 81; Guthrie 1990: 148), mapa-Protestante o Katoliko man, ang nagkakaisa pagdating sa pagbibigay pahayag na siya'y patay na nang nakiusap si Paul ng awa sa Panginoon para sa buong sambahayan nito at kay Onesiphorus sa hinaharap, sa (huling) araw ng paghuhukom (Fee, 1 and 2 Timothy, Titus, 186) Ang paggamit ng salitang sambahayan (oikōs) bago ang pangalan ng taong kinikilalang padre de pamilya dito o hindi pagbanggit dito, bago ang huli, ayon kay Michael Moss sa kanyang komentaryo sa librong 1, 2 Timothy & Titus (p. 200) ay nagpapahiwatig na patay o yumao na ang nasabing tao. (Freedman 1996: 22) Narito pa po ang ilang pahayag na batay sa mga komentaryo ng mga Protestante mula sa A Biblical Defense of Catholicism (pp. 141-143) ni Dave Armstrong na sumasang-ayon na si Onesiphorus ay patay na ng gawin ni Paul ang maikling dalangin (v. 18)
1) Alfred Plummer (1841-1926) (Anglican): The Expositor's Bible (edited by W. Robertson Nicoll), The Pastoral Epistles, London: Hodder & Stoughton, 1891, pp. 324-326:
Certainly the balance of probability is decidedly in favour of the view that Onesiphorus was already dead when St. Paul wrote these words. . . . he here speaks of "the house of Onesiphorus" in connexion with the present, and of Onesiphorus himself only in connexion with the past. . . . it is not easy to explain this reference in two places to the household of Onesiphorus, if he himself was still alive. In all the other cases the individual and not the household is mentioned. . . . There is also the character of the Apostle's prayer. Why does he confine his desires respecting the requital of Onesiphorus' kindness to the day of judgment? . . . This again is thoroughly intelligible, if Onesiphorus is already dead.
. . . there seems to be equal absence of serious reason for doubting that the words in question constitute a prayer. . . .
Having thus concluded that, according to the more probable and reasonable view, the passage before us contains a prayer offered up by the Apostle on behalf of one who is dead, we seem to have obtained his sanction, and therefore the sanction of Scripture, for using similar prayers ourselves. . . .
This passage may be quoted as reasonable evidence that the death of a person does not extinguish our right or our duty to pray for him: but it ought not be quoted as authority for such prayers on behalf of the dead as are very different in kind from the one of which we have an example here. Many other kinds of intercession for the dead may be reasonable and allowable; but this passage proves no more than that some kinds of intercession for the dead are allowable; viz., those in which we pray that God will have mercy at the day of judgment on those who have done good to us and others, during their life upon earth.
2) James Maurice Wilson (1836-1931) (Anglican): Truths New and Old, Westminster: Archibald Constable & Co., 1900, p. 141:
We have, therefore, the sanction of St. Paul for remembering inn our prayers, and interceding for, those who have now passed into the other world . . .
3) Sydney Charles Gayford (Anglican): The Future State, New York: Edwin S. Gorham, second edition, 1905, pp. 56-57:
. . . the most satisfactory explanation is that Onesiphorus was dead. . . .
And so we may hold with some confidence that we have in this passage the authority of an Apostle in praying for the welfare of the departed.
4) John Henry Bernard (1860-1927) (Anglican), The Pastoral Epistles, Cambridge University Press, 1899, p. 114:
On the whole then it seems probable that Onesiphorus was dead when St. Paul prayed on his behalf . . .
5) Donald Guthrie (1915-1992) (Anglican): The Tyndale New Testament Commentaries, The Pastoral Epistles: An Introduction and Commentary, Grand Rapids, Michigan, Eerdmans Pub. Co., 2nd edition, 1990, p. 148:
Since it is assumed by many scholars that Onesiphorus was by now dead, the question has been raised whether this sanctions prayer for the dead. Roman catholic theologians claim that it does. Spicq, for instance, sees here an example of prayer for the dead unique in the New Testament. Some Protestants agree with this judgment and cite the Jewish precedent of 2 Macc 12:43-45 . . .
(…)
At ilan pa po sa aking mga nabasa
18. The Lord grant unto him to find mercy of the Lord. It seems likely that Onesiphorus was dead when the Apostle wrote. In chapter iv. 19 his household is saluted, but there is no mention of him. In the passage before us St. Paul prays for mercy to his household (? in their sorrow at his death). When he prays for the man himself he adds 'in the day' (cp. 2 Thess. i.10). There is nothing in itself improbable in St. Paul's using a prayer for his dead friend. Such prayers were allowed, and are still practiced, among the Jews (2 Macc. xii. 44.45). Prayers for the dead are found in Christian inscriptions as early as the 2nd century, and prayers for the faithful departed occur in the early Liturgies. (H. W. Fulford, Epistles to Thessalonians, Timothy and Titus, pp. 110-11)
16-17. Here and in 4:19 Paul speaks of the “house of Onesiphorus.” This expression and the prayer in v. 18 seem to indicate that Onesiphorus had died before this letter was written. (Brown, R. E., Fitzmyer, J. A., & Murphy, R. E., The Jerome Biblical commentary, p. 358)
"For the sake of Onesiphorus, who by now may be dead, Paul wishes the Lord to give mercy to Onesiphorus's household." (R. H. Gundry, Commentary on the New Testament, Baker Books, 2010)
Was Onesiphorus dead? "[...] The balance of probability is decidedly in favour of the view that Onesiphorus was already dead when St. Paul wrote these words. There is not only in connection with the present and of Onesiphorus himself only in connection with the past; there is also the still more marked fact that in the final salutations, while greeting are sent to Prisca and Aquila, and from Eubulus, Pudens, Linus, and Claudia, yet it is once more "the house of Onesiphorus," and not, Onesiphorus himself, who is saluted. This language is thoroughly intelligible if Onesiphorus was no longer alive but had a wife and children who were still living in Ephesus; but it is not easy to explain this reference in two places to the household of Onesiphorus, if he himself was still alive. In all the other cases the individual, and not the household, is mentioned. Nor is this twofold reference to his family, rather than to himself, the only fact which points in this direction. (Joseph Exell, The Biblical Illustrator: 2 Timothy, Primedia E-launch LLC)
"16 unto = to. house = household. Onesiphorus must have recently died." (E. W. Bullinger, The Companion Bible: The Authorized Version of 1611 with the Structures and Critical, Explanatory, and Suggestive Notes, p. 1810)
"The household of Onesiphorus.] See chap. i. 16. Onesiphorus was probably dead: his family still remained at Ephesus." (Adam Clarke, The Holy Bible: containing the Old and New Testaments, B. Waugh and T. Mason, 1833, p. 609)
Saint Paul himself evidently prayed for the dead, as we can see in 2 Timothy 1:18: "May the Lord grant him [Onesiphorus] to find mercy from the Lord on that Day." This prayer might be unexpectional, except that in verse 16, Paul wrote, "May the Lord grant mercy to the household of Onesiphorus", suggesting that the man in question had passed away and that his family was in need of comfort. (Carl Sommer, We Look for a Kingdom: The Everyday Lives of the Early Christians, Ignatius Press, 2007, p. 149)
Onesiphorus is not mentioned elsewhere in the NT, although the phrase "household of Onesiphorus" occurs again in the Pastorals at 2 Tim. 4:19. The wording in the Epistles strongly implies that Onesiphorus had died - perhaps even before Paul - possibly in the course of his stay in Rome during which he sought out and visited the apostle. (H. W. Tajra, The martyrdom of St. Paul: historical and judicial context, traditions, and legends, pp. 92-3)
Paul expressed his gratitude toward Onesiphorus by wishing that he would experience God's mercy on the last day (v. 18) and by wishing God's mercy on his household (v.16). Both wishes may indicate that Onesiphorus was dead when Paul wrote 2 Timothy. (J. B. Pohill, Paul & His Letters, B&H Publishing Group, 1999, p. 431)
Maliban po sa mga nabanggit sa itaas narito pa po ang ilang reperensya na nagsasabing patay na si Onesiphorus ng isinulat ni Paul ang nasabing epistle (2 Timothy): Watson E. Mills, Richard F. Wilson, Mercer Commentary on the Bible: Acts and Pauline Writings, p. 281; I. Howard Marshal, The Pastoral Epistles, p. 720; Matthew S. Collins, Eerdmans Dictionary of the Bible, p. 988; George W. Knight, The Pastoral Epistles: a commentary on the Greek text, p. 386; Michael Ferrebee Sadler, The Epistles of St. Paul to the Colossians, Thessalonians, and Timothy, G. Bell, 1896, p. 271; Robert James Edmund Boggis, Praying for the dead: an historical review of the practice, Longmans, Green, 1913, pp. 34-7.
Makakakita rin po tayo ng ilan pang uri ng katibayan mula po sa mga sinaunang Kristyanong ama ng simbahan at sa mga nadiskubre narin pong sinaunang nitso sa ilalim ng lupa na pinag-lagakan ng mga namayapang Kristyano na nagbibigay liwanag na tinanggap po ang naturang paniniwala tungkol sa pagbibigay o paghingi ng panalangin mula po sa mga namatay ng Kristyano. (Lowrie 2003: 72) Sa mga himlayang pong ito, masasariwa ang mga kinagisnan ng kagawian o batayan ng pananampalataya ng mga Kristyano noon - na hindi mang-tuwirang pong ipinakita sa banal na kasulatan - ay pinanatili naman po sa pamamagitan ng apostolikong doktrina o tradisyon, na nag-aalis sa anino ng pagdududa o kawalan ng katiyakan sa nasabing pong paksa.
English translation:
"I implore you, brothers to pray whenever you come here and invoke the Father and Son in
all your prayers so that they might save Agape (the person in the tomb) forever"
(The Catacomb of Priscilla on the Via Salaria in Rome, Italy; Christian burials from the late 2nd century through the 4th century)
"I implore you, brothers to pray whenever you come here and invoke the Father and Son in
all your prayers so that they might save Agape (the person in the tomb) forever"
(The Catacomb of Priscilla on the Via Salaria in Rome, Italy; Christian burials from the late 2nd century through the 4th century)
The Catacomb(s) of Callixtus (also known as the Cemetery of Callixtus) was one of the Catacombs of Rome
on the Appian Way; built after AD 150.
Catacombe di Domitilla (Catacombs of Domitilla)
Catacombs of S. Sebastiano (b. 258)
(Ang mga nakaukit ay mga sulat na nanghihingi ng panalangin mula kay Peter at Paul)
(pinagmulan)
Ayon naman sa pahayag ng mga Ama ng Simbahan (Church Fathers) bago po ang ikatlong siglo patungkol sa paghingi ng panalanging sa mga patay (o namatay) na mga Kristyanong banal
"[Appealing to the three companions of Daniel] Think of me, I beseech you, so that I may achieve with you the same fate of martyrdom"
- St. Hippolytus of Rome, On Daniel, 11:30 (A.D. 204), in OTT, 319
"In this way is he [the true Christian] always pure for prayer. He also prays in the society of angels, as being already of angelic rank, and he is never out of their holy keeping; and though he pray alone, he has the choir of the saints standing with him [in prayer]."
- St. Clement of Alexandria, Miscellanies 7:12 (A.D. 208)
"But not the high priest [Christ] alone prays for those who pray sincerely, but also the angels . . . as also the souls of the saints who have already fallen asleep."
- Origen, Prayer 11 (A.D. 233)
"Let us remember one another in concord and unanimity. Let us on both sides [of death] always pray for one another. Let us relieve burdens and afflictions by mutual love, that if one of us, by the swiftness of divine condescension, shall go hence the first, our love may continue in the presence of the Lord, and our prayers for our brethren and sisters not cease in the presence of the Father's mercy"
- St. Cyprian of Carthage, Letters 56[60]:5 (A.D. 253)
____________________
1 VanderKam, Introduction to Early Judaism, pp. 65-69; John J. Collins, Between Athens and Jerusalem: Jewish in the Hellenistic Diaspora (2nd ed.; Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1999); Harrington, Invitation to the Apocrypha, pp. 137-51; Jan W. van Henten, The Maccabean Martyrs as Saviors of the Jewish People: A Study of 2 and 4 Maccabees (Leiden: Brill, 1997); Robert Doran, "The Second Book of Maccabees," in The New Interpreter's Bible (vol. 2; Nashville: Abingdon, 1996); Daniel j. Harrington, The Maccabean Revolt: Anatomy of a Biblical Revolution (Michael Glazier: Wilmington, DE, 1988); Jonathan Goldtstein, II Maccabees (AB 41A; Garden City, NY: Doubleday, 1983); Robert Doran, Temple Propaganda: The Purpose and Character of 2 Maccabees (Washington, DC: Catholic Biblical Association, 1981); Nickelsburg, Jewish Literature Between the Bible and the Mishnah, pp. 118-21.
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