LESSON 1
Synoptic view of the History of Salvation. The progressive revelation of God, One and Triune. Revelation and the salvation of all men. Situation of man before God. God reveals himself in history through words and actions. Christ as the summit and fullness of Revelation. The Church continues the mission of Christ on earth. History of Salvation, Biblical History and History of the Church.
There are a few lines in the New Testament where the object of our study is very well summarised. We will find these lines in the Letter to the Hebrews. It reads:
"1 In many and various ways God spoke of old to our fathers by the prophets, 2 but in these last days he has spoken to us by a Son, whom he appointed the heir of all things, through whom also he created the world. 3 He reflects the glory of God and bears the very stamp of his nature, upholding the universe by his word of power. When he had made purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high, 4 having become as much superior to angels as the name he has obtained is more excellent than theirs." (Heb 1:1-4)
These lines also summarise the answer we have to give when someone asks us what the difference is between the Christian religion and other beliefs. The Jewish-Christian tradition has a claim that is unique to it: God has spoken to us! All other religions are the result of human effort, of man's search for God. The Jewish-Christian belief, on the other hand, is the result of God's search for man. God has spoken to man, and acted in his life!
God shows himself to us, his creatures, through words (for example, the law given to Moses, the words of the prophets, and so on). He also shows himself to his creatures through deeds, either natural or supernatural.
The book of Deuteronomy tells us how Moses reminded the Israelites
32 "For ask now of the days that are past, which were before you, since the day that God created man upon the earth, and ask from one end of heaven to the other, whether such a great thing as this has ever happened or was ever heard of. 33 Did any people ever hear the voice of a god speaking out of the midst of the fire, as you have heard, and still live? 34 Or has any god ever attempted to go and take a nation for himself from the midst of another nation, by trials, by signs, by wonders, and by war, by a mighty hand and an outstretched arm, and by great terrors, according to all that the LORD your God did for you in Egypt before your eyes? 35* To you it was shown, that you might know that the LORD is God; there is no other besides him. 36 Out of heaven he let you hear his voice, that he might discipline you; and on earth he let you see his great fire, and you heard his words out of the midst of the fire. 37 And because he loved your fathers and chose their descendants after them, and brought you out of Egypt with his own presence, by his great power, 38 driving out before you nations greater and mightier than yourselves, to bring you in, to give you their land for an inheritance, as at this day; 39 know therefore this day, and lay it to your heart, that the LORD is God in heaven above and on the earth beneath; there is no other. 40 Therefore you shall keep his statutes and his commandments, which I command you this day, that it may go well with you, and with your children after you, and that you may prolong your days in the land which the LORD your God gives you for ever." (Deuteronomy 4:32-40)
Psalm 103 confirms and says
7 He made known his ways to Moses, his acts to the people of Israel. (Ps 103:7)
Does man deserve such treatment?
4* [W]hat is man that thou art mindful of him, and the son of man that thou dost care for him? 5 Yet thou hast made him little less than God, and dost crown him with glory and honor. 6* Thou hast given him dominion over the works of thy hands; thou hast put all things under his feet, 7 all sheep and oxen, and also the beasts of the field, 8 the birds of the air, and the fish of the sea, whatever passes along the paths of the sea. 9 O LORD, our Lord, how majestic is thy name in all the earth! (Psalm 8:4-9)
Wonder of wonders. This God not only speaks to us through his creatures. He speaks to us in Person! This is definitely superior to the previous revelations. Christ is superior to the prophets before him. They spoke about the truth, Christ is Truth himself. They showed the people the Way, Christ is himself the Way. They promised life, and Christ is Life himself.
Before he ascended into heaven, Jesus Christ passed on to his apostles the mission of redeeming men.
15 And he said to them, "Go into all the world and preach the gospel to the whole creation. 16 He who believes and is baptized will be saved; but he who does not believe will be condemned. (Mark 16:15-16).
The mission of the apostles and their successors has been confirmed through the centuries. The Second Vatican Council's document on Divine Revelation, entitled Dei Verbum, affirms in numbers 7 and 8:
But in order to keep the Gospel forever whole and alive within the Church, the Apostles left bishops as their successors, "handing over" to them "the authority to teach in their own place."(St. Irenaeus, "Against Heretics" III, 3, 1: PG 7, 848) ... And so the apostolic preaching, which is expressed in a special way in the inspired books, was to be preserved by an unending succession of preachers until the end of time. Therefore the Apostles, handing on what they themselves had received, warn the faithful to hold fast to the traditions which they have learned either by word of mouth or by letter (see 2 Thess. 2:15), and to fight in defense of the faith handed on once and for all (see Jude 1:3) (cf. Second Council of Nicea: Denzinger 303 (602); Fourth Council of Constance, session X, Canon 1: Denzinger 336 (650-652))
From the above, we can see that Salvation History includes Biblical History and the History of the Church as well. We can thus distinguish different periods which will constitute the outline of our course: