Jeg har tidligere skrevet mange ganger om at jeg kjenner flere av de amerikanske korherrene fra Klosterneuburg; tre av dem var sammen med meg i Bergen og i fjor sommer besøkte vi korherrene i USA, på Long Island utenfor New York City – se HER og HER.
Bilde over viser et kommuniteten på Long Island har fått en ny prest, dom Gabriel, som ble ordinert i Klosterneuburg 30/12-12. Her kan man se mange flere bilder fra ordinasjonen.
Det sa pave Benedikt bl.a. ved avslutningen av bønneuken for kristen enhet sist fredag (fra Zenit):
Dear Brothers and Sisters!
It is always a joy and a special grace to come together, around the tomb of the Apostle Paul, to conclude the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity. ….This celebration is part of the Year of Faith, which began on 11 October, the fiftieth anniversary of the opening of the Second Vatican Council. Communion in the same faith is the basis for ecumenism. Unity is given by God as inseparable from faith; St. Paul expresses this effectively: «There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to the one hope of your calling, one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all, who is above all and through all and in all»(Eph. 4:4-6). The baptismal profession of faith in God, the Father and Creator, who revealed himself in his Son Jesus Christ, pouring out the Spirit who gives life and holiness, already unites Christians. Without faith – which is primarily a gift of God, but also man’s response – the whole ecumenical movement would be reduced to a form of «contract» to enter into out of a common interest. The Second Vatican Council reminds Christians that «the closer their union with the Father, the Word, and the Spirit, the more deeply and easily will they be able to grow in mutual brotherly love»(Decr. Unitatis redintegratio, 7). Doctrinal issues that still divide us must not be overlooked or minimized. They should rather be faced with courage, in a spirit of brotherhood and mutual respect. Dialogue, when it reflects the priority of faith, can open to the action of God with the firm conviction that we cannot build unity alone: it is the Holy Spirit who guides us toward full communion, who allows us to grasp the spiritual wealth present in the different Churches and ecclesial communities. …
For en ukes tid siden ble det nevnt, av erkebiskop Müller i Troskongregasjonen, at det kanskje også kunne opprettes en løsning der lutheranere kunne bli katolikker på en noe enklere og smidigere måte, og at de kunne konvertere sammen og beholde noen av sine tradisjoner – det var dette som skjedde med anglikanerne for 2-3 år siden. Men flere mener at dette sannsynligvis ikke vil skje med (særlig mange) lutheranere. Dette diskuteres bl.a. på Father Zs blogg (også han er tidligere lutheraner):
The issue was recently addressed by Mgr. Müller. The German theologian chosen by Pope Benedict XVI to lead the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, recognised that the “Lutheran world is different to the Anglican one because Anglicanism has always had an element that is closer to Catholicism.” But this would not stop the Church from allowing Lutheran groups to convert to Catholicism, preserving “legitimate traditions developed” over the centuries.
According to Mgr. Müller, there are Lutherans in his homeland, Germany, who hope to enter once again into communion with the Roman Catholic Church and who believe that the changes introduced by the Second Vatican Council were an adequate response to Luther’s request for reforms five centuries ago. “Protestants – he added – do not oppose Catholicism because they have hung onto many Catholic traditions.”
However, the idea of establishing a Lutheran ordinariate was turned down by the Secretary General of the International Lutheran Federation which has approximately 70 million Christian Lutheran members. …
Den hellige Timoteus, Paulus’ medarbeider og biskop av Efesus, minnes i dag i den tradisjonelle kalenderen, og 26. januar i den nye kalenderen – og i Norge har han måttet vike helt for den hellige Eystein.
Slk leser vi om ham i de tradisjonelle tidebønnene (Matutin):
Timothy was born in Lystra in Lycaonia of a gentile father and a Jewish mother, and was a follower of the Christian religion when the Apostle Paul visited that city. Paul was so moved by what he repeatedly heard of Timothy’s holiness that he took him with him as a companion on his journeys; yet, because of the Jews who had been converted to Christ and who knew that Timothy’s father had been a Gentile, he had him circumcised. When they both arrived at Ephesus, the Apostle ordained him bishop to govern the Church there. The Apostle wrote him two letters, one from Laodicea, the other from Rome. Strengthened by these letters in the ministry of his pastoral office. he could not endure that the sacrifice which is due to God alone should be offered to the images of demons, and he strove to win over the people of Ephesus from the impiety of offering sacrifice to Diana on her feast day. He was stoned, and was nearly dead when the Christians rescued him and took him to a village on a neighboring mountain. There he died in the Lord on January 24.
Og katolsk.no skriver om datoene:
Fra 1100-tallet ble hans minnedag feiret den 24. januar, vigilien for festen for Paulus’ omvendelse. Siden kalenderreformen i 1969 har minnedagen vært 26. januar sammen med Titus, så nær apostelfesten som mulig, for å markere de to biskopenes tilknytning til Paulus. I øst minnes han den 22. januar, den tradisjonelle dødsdatoen. Hans navn står i Martyrologium Romanum.
(Jeg må legge til at jeg syns det er lite naturlig at katolsk.no kaller ham Timotheos, med både -th- og -os.)
Aftenposten skriver i dag at (katolikk), lagmann i Bergen og tidligere dommer ved Menneskerettighetsdomstolen i Strasbourg, Hanne Sophie Greve, sier at alle som jobber i helsevesenet bør få lov til å nekte å bistå kvinner som vil ta abort. Hun siteres slik: «I dette som i andre samvittighetsspørsmål, mener jeg at samvittigheten må komme først. Jeg mener eksempelvis at reservasjonsrett burde være fullt mulig når det gjelder henvisning til abort, når det gjelder kirurgisk abort, og når det gjelder énkjønnet forelderskap.»
Hennes begrunnelse for hvorfor det bør være slik er også interessant:
Greve mener at det vil være brutaliserende for samfunnet hvis de ansatte ikke hadde hatt anledning til å reservere seg på denne måten.
Du kan ikke vingeklippe samvittigheten på ett område uten at det får konsekvenser på andre områder. Da får vi det som i etisk filosofi er den største trusselen i et fredelig samfunn: at staten erstatter samvittigheten, at man ikke trenger å tenke på om man skader andre mennesker så lenge man følger loven. Samvittigheten skal verne samfunnets svake mot de sterke der loven tier, sier Greve.
Jeg syns bildet over av (en tradisjonell) messe tydelig viser hvordan alles oppmerksomhet er rettet mot Gud, i tilbedelse og frembærelse av messens hellige og fullkomne offer. Fra TLM-bloggen.
Liturgikongregasjonen i Vatikanet arbeider med en hefte som de håper å få utgitt i sommer, et hefte som skal hjelpe prestene til å feire messen best mulig – Zenit.org skriver om dette – om kontinuitet med tradisjonen, tradisjonelle alter, messeofferet, skjønnhet etc.:
During his talk Cardinal Antonio Cañizares reiterated the importance Vatican II gave to the liturgy, «whose renewal must be understood in continuity with the Tradition of the Church and not as a break or discontinuity.» A break either because of innovations that do not respect continuity or because of an immobility that freezes everything at Pius XII, he said.
In particular, Cardinal Cañizares stressed the importance that Sacrosanctum Concilium gave to the sacred liturgy, through which «the work of our Redemption is exercised, above all in the divine sacrifice of the Eucharist,» adding that «God wants to be adored in a concrete way and it’s not up to us to change it.»
The cardinal said that there is talk of a renewed Church, which must not be understood as a mere reform of structures, but as a change starting with the liturgy, because it is from the liturgy that the work of our salvation is effected.
When speaking of the liturgy, continued the cardinal, one must not forget what the conciliar document states: «Christ is always present in his Church, especially in the liturgical action. He is present in the sacrifice of the Mass, be it in the person of the minister, ‘offering himself now through the ministry of the priests as he then offered himself on the cross,’ be it especially under the Eucharistic species.»
He stressed that the objective of the liturgy «is the adoration of God and the salvation of men,» which is not a creation of ours, but source and summit of the Church.»
The prefect of the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Sacraments criticized existing abuses such as showmanship, and praised moments of silence «that are action,» which enable the priest and the faithful to talk with Jesus Christ and which exclude the predominance of words that often becomes showmanship on the part of the priest. The correct attitude is the one «indicated by Saint John the Baptist, when he says he must decrease and the Messiah must increase.»
The cardinal criticized the effort to make the Mass «entertaining» with certain songs — instead of focusing on the mystery — in an attempt to overcome «boredom» by transforming the Mass into a show.
He added that the Council did not speak of the priest celebrating Mass facing the people, that it stressed the importance of Christ on the altar, reflected in Benedict XVI’s celebration of the Mass in the Sistine Chapel facing the altar. This does not exclude the priest facing the people, in particular during the reading of the word of God. He stressed the need of the notion of mystery, and particulars such as the altar facing East and the fact that the sacrificial sense of the Eucharist must not be lost. …
Å gå rundt i New York City/ Manhattan er en spesiell opplevelse(jeg var der for første gang for 20 år siden), med høyhus uten ende og en helt spesiell atmosfære, og midt i denne enorme bygningsmassen ser man noe helt ekstraordinært, St Patricks katolske domkirke. Da kirken ble påbegynt i 1858 var det ute på landet – det kan man se på et par av bildene i denne brosjyren. Brosjyren og videoen under er laget nå fordi man skal samle inn rundt 300 millioner kroner for å pusse opp kirken. (Musikken i videoen under er litt overraskende, men sa er/var da kirken også irsk.)
Jeg har skrevet lite på bloggen i det siste, det kan ha flere årsaker, men bl.a. har jeg mye å gjøre. Jeg hadde en flott og svært rolig og fin nyttårsfeire, og så opplever jeg (som mange gjør) at arbeidsoppgavene står i en svært lang kø når man kommer tilbake til kontoret.
Akkurat nå har spesielt mye undervisning; to store konfirmantkull (50 i 9. kl og 40 i 8. kl) som jeg har alene, kurs i katolsk tro for 12-14 interesserte (konvertitter), ekteskapsforberdelse på engelsk og på norsk (et stort norsk kurs begynner neste uke) – pluss det mer vanlige, som dåpssamteler (før barnedåp), sykebesøk med kommunion og messefeiring. Jeg har også en begravelse neste uke, men det har vi katolske prester forholdsvise lite av, siden katolikker flest i Norge er ganske unge.
Den hellige familie er det beste eksempel som fins for dagens familier, skriver pave Leo XIII, i dette apostoliske brevet fra 1892. (De fleste vet at den nye og den tradisjonelle liturgiske kalenderen er ganske forskjellige, og i dag feires festen for den hellige familie i den tradisjonelle kalenderen, og i år faller faktisk festen for Jesu dåp bort. Personlig syns jeg at å feire den hellige familie i romjulen – som i den nye kalenderen – er like naturlig. Men om to uker begynner førfatsetiden (Septuagesima søndag) i den tradisjonelle kalenderen, og jeg syns det er et stort tap at den perioden falt helt bort ved luturgirevisjonen.)
Slik skriver pave Leo XIII (fra matutins 4., 5. og 6. lesning):
From the Apostolic Letters of Pope Leo XIII – Breve Neminem, 14 June 1892
When God in his mercy determined to accomplish the work of man’s renewal, which same had so many long ages awaited, he appointed and ordained this work on such wise that its very beginning might shew to the world the august spectacle of a Family which was known to be divinely constituted; that therein all men might behold a perfect model, as well of domestic life as of every virtue and pattern of holiness: for such indeed was the Holy Family of Nazareth. There in secret dwelt the Sun of Righteousness, until the time when he should shine out in full splendour in the sight of all nations. There Christ, our God and Saviour, lived with his Virgin Mother, and with that most holy man Joseph, who held to him the place of father. No one can doubt that in this Holy Family was displayed every virtue which can be called forth by an ordinary home life, with its mutual services of charity, its holy intercourse, and its practices of godly piety, since the Holy Family was destined to be a pattern to all others. For that very reason was it established by the merciful designs of Providence, namely, that every Christian, in every walk of life and in every place, might easily, if he would but give heed to it, have before him a motive and a pattern for the good life.To all fathers of families, Joseph is verily the best model of paternal vigilance and care. In the most holy Virgin Mother of God, mothers may find an excellent example of love, modesty, resignation of spirit, and the perfecting of faith. And in Jesus, who was subject to his parents, the children of the family have a divine pattern of obedience which they can admire, reverence, and imitate. …
Også i England foreslås det å gjøre ekteskapet kjønnsnøytralt, og nylig har 1000 (av 4000) prester i England & Wales skrevet et åpent brev der de advarer mot forslaget. Bl.a. regner de med at katolikker ikke lenger vil få lov til å si hva Kirken mener om ekteskapet, om lovforslaget blir vedtatt. Her er brevet – fra Fr. Ray Blakes blogg:
After centuries of persecution Catholics have, in recent times, been able to be members of the professions and participate fully in the life of this country.
Legislation for same sex marriage, should it be enacted, will have many legal consequences, severely restricting the ability of Catholics to teach the truth about marriage in their schools, charitable institutions or places of worship.
It is meaningless to argue that Catholics and others may still teach their beliefs about marriage in schools and other arenas if they are also expected to uphold the opposite view at the same time.
The natural complementarity between a man and a woman leads to marriage, seen as a lifelong partnership. This loving union – because of their physical complementarity – is open to bringing forth and nurturing children. This is what marriage is. That is why marriage is only possible between a man and a woman. Marriage, and the home, children and family life it generates, is the foundation and basic building block of our society.
We urge Members of Parliament not to be afraid to reject this legislation now that its consequences are more clear.
Muligens er det ‘storm i et vannglass’, men Dagbladet melder (og også andre aviser) at det reageres på at man på Kvitsund gymnas i Telemark lærer at abort er drap:
Kunnskapsminister Kristin Halvorsen (SV) vil se på det omstridte heftet fra Kvitsund gymnas der abort betegnes som mord og homofili som en skade.
– Vi har bedt om å få tilsendt dette heftet som er omtalt, og vi har bedt skolen om å uttale seg om hvordan de følger opp den lærerplanen som de har fått godkjent. …
Jeg er litt mer overrasket om skolen også forteller hva som er årsaken til homofili – for det vet vel egentlig ingen sikkert?
Jeg leste i formiddag hos CNN om hvordan USA er det dårligste av 16 land når det gjelder befolkningens helse og levealder. På noen områder er dødeligheten 5-6-7-8 ganger større i USA enn i sammenlignbare land:
A just-released report from the Institute of Medicine and National Research Council is making news by clearly illustrating that Americans have «shorter lives and poorer health.» This is somewhat shocking, given how much we spend on health care each year — more than any of the 16 other rich countries surveyed in the study. What’s even more upsetting is that this report focused quite heavily on people who are young. In the United States, even that group fared poorly.
Why is this?
Some of the reasons involve choices make at a personal level. We eat too much, abuse drugs too often, wear seat belts too rarely and commit violence against each other to often.
Systemic issues are also to blame. We have higher levels of poverty than comparable countries, and our safety net programs are less capable of catching people when they fall. And too many also have too much trouble accessing the health care system, resulting in inefficient, ineffective and often absent care. …
Denne søndagen feires Den hellige familie i den tradisjonelle kalenderen, og inngangsverset til messen lyder slik:
Exsultat gaudio pater Iusti, gaudeat Pater tuus et Mater tua, et exsultet quæ genuit te. Quam dilecta tabernacula tua, Domine virtutum: concupiscit et deficit anima mea in atria Domini. – I glede jubler den rettferdiges far; din far og din mor glede seg, og hun juble som fødte deg. Hvor elskelige dine boliger er, hærskarenes Herre! Min sjel stunder etter og tæres i lengsel etter Herrens hus.
Les alle bønnene, antifonene og tekstene til messen – og les mer om de tradisjonelle latinske søndagsmessene i Oslo (i St Hallvard kirke kl 14.30).
4., 5. og 6. lesning til matutin i dag:
From the Sermons of Pope St Leo (the Great) 2nd for Twelfth-Day.
Dearly beloved brethren, rejoice in the Lord; again I say, rejoice. But a few days are past since the solemnity of Christ’s Birth, and now the glorious light of His Manifestation is breaking upon us. On that day the Virgin brought Him forth, and on this the world knew Him. The Word made Flesh was pleased to reveal Himself by degrees to those for whom He had come. When Jesus was born He was manifested indeed to the believing, but hidden from His enemies. Already indeed the heavens declared the glory of God, and their sound went out into all lands, when the Herald Angels appeared to tell to the shepherds the glad tidings of a Saviour’s Birth; and now the guiding star leadeth the wise men to worship Him, that from the rising of the sun to the going down thereof, the Birth of the true King may be known abroad; that through those wise men the kingdoms of the east might learn the great truth, and the Roman empire remain no more in darkness.The very cruelty of Herod, when he strove to crush at His birth this King Whom he alone feared, was made a blind means to carry out this dispensation of mercy. While the tyrant with horrid guilt sought to slay the little Child he did not know, amid an indiscriminate slaughter of innocents, his infamous act served to spread wider abroad the heaven-told news of the Birth of the Lord. Thus were these glad tidings loudly proclaimed, both by the novelty of their story, and the iniquity of their enemies. Then was the Saviour borne into Egypt, that nation, of a long time hardened in idolatry, might by the mysterious virtue which went out of Him, even when His presence was unknown, be prepared for the saving light so soon to dawn on them, and might receive the Truth as a wanderer even before they had banished falsehood.
Dearly beloved brethren, we recognise in the wise men who came to worship Christ, the first-fruits of that dispensation to the Gentiles wherein we also are called and enlightened. Let us then keep this Feast with grateful hearts, in thanksgiving for our blessed hope, whereof it doth commemorate the dawn. From that worship paid to the new-born Christ is to be dated the entry of us Gentiles upon our heirship of God and co-heirship with Christ. Since that joyful day the Scriptures which testify of Christ have lain open for us as well as for the Jews. Yea, their blindness rejected that Truth, Which, since that day, hath shed Its bright beams upon all nations. Let all observance, then, be paid to this most sacred day, whereon the Author of our salvation was made manifest, and as the wise men fell down and worshipped Him in the manger, so let us fall down and worship Him enthroned Almighty in heaven. As they also opened their treasures and presented unto Him mystic and symbolic gifts, so let us strive to open our hearts to Him, and offer Him from thence some worthy offering.
I går leste jeg en artikkel hos FirstThings.com, som stiller dette spørsmålet og prøver å svare på hvorfor dette (noe overraskende) kan komme til å skje. Artikklen begynner slik:
When the Vatican recently announced its new candidates for sainthood, there was a remarkable name on its list: Pope Paul VI.
On December 20, 2012, Pope Benedict declared Paul a Christian of “heroic virtue,” granting him the title, “Venerable.” Paul VI is now one approved miracle away from beatification, and a second from formal canonization.
The response has been both surprise and confusion: many people didn’t even know Paul VI was up for sainthood, and to the extent they did, expressed very uneven feelings about him.
Assailed by both progressives and traditionalists alike, and having reigned during a tumultuous era, Paul VI remains, in death, almost as controversial as he was in life.
In light of all that, the now-Venerable Paul VI deserves a much-needed second look; Catholics need to discern what really drove him, and why the Vatican has advanced his cause. …
7., 8. og 9. lesning til Matutin i dag:
From the Holy Gospel according to Luke (2:21)
In that time after eight days were accomplished, that the child should be circumcised, his name was called Jesus. And so on …Homily by St Ambrose, Bishop of Milan – Book ii. on Luke ii.
So the Child is circumcised. This is the Child of Whom it is said Unto us a Child is born, unto us a Son is given, Isa. ix. 6. Made under the law to redeem them that were under the law. Gal. iv. 4. To present Him to the Lord, 22. In my Commentary on Isaiah I have already explained what is meant by being presented to the Lord in Jerusalem, and therefore I will not enter into the subject again. He that is circumcised in heart gaineth the protection of God, for the eyes of the Lord are upon the righteous. Ps. xxxiii. 16. Ye will see that as all the ceremonies of the old law were types of realities in the new, so the circumcision of the body signified the cleansing of the heart from the guilt of sin.But since the body and mind of man remain yet infected with a proneness’ to sin, the circumcision of the eighth day is also a type of that complete cleansing from sin which we shall have at the resurrection. This ceremony was also performed in obedience to the commandment of God: Every male that openeth the womb shall be called holy unto the Lord. These words were written with especial reference to the delivery of the Blessed Virgin. Truly He That opened her womb was holy, for He was altogether without spot, and we may gather that the law was written specially for Him from the words of the Angel That Holy Thing Which shall be born of thee, shall be called the Son of God.
Among all that are born of women the Lord Jesus Christ stood alone in holiness. Fresh from His immaculate Birth, He felt no contagion from human corruption, and His heavenly Majesty drove it away. If we are to follow the letter and say that every male that openeth the womb is holy, how shall we explain that so many have been unrighteous? Was Ahab holy? Were the false prophets holy? Were they holy on whom Elijah justly called down fire from heaven? But He to Whom the sacred commandment of the law of God is mystically directed is the Holy One of Israel; Who also alone hath opened the secret womb of His holy Virginbride the Church, filling her with a sinless fruitfulness to give birth to Christian souls.
I den tradisjonelle liturgien leser vi i Matutus 4., 5. og 6. lesning:
From the Sermons of Pope St Leo the Great – 7th for Christmas.
Dearly beloved brethren, whosoever will keep truly and honour piously this day’s festival, it is necessary for him neither to think falsely of the Lord’s Incarnation, nor meanly of the Lord’s Godhead. For as there is danger, on the one hand, of denying the truth of Christ’s participation of our nature, so is there no less danger, on the other, of doing despite to the equality of His glory with the glory of the Father. Wherefore, when we draw near to understand the mystery of Christ’s Birth, wherein He was born of the Virgin Mary, we must leave the clouds of earthly imagination behind and pierce the fog of human wisdom with the eye of enlightened faith.
The authority on which we believe is the authority of God Himself; the teaching which we follow is the teaching of God Himself. Wherefore whether we lend the ear of our mind to the testimony of the Law, or to the revelations of the Prophets, or to the full pealing of the Gospel trumpet, that is true, which John the Son of Thunder, uttered, when he was filled with the Holy Ghost, and said In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The Same was in the beginning with God. All things were made by Him, and without Him was not anything made. True also is his witness when he saith The Word was made Flesh, and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the Only-begotten of the Father. John i. 1-3, 14.
The Person of the Son of God therefore remaineth unchanged and one, though He have two natures, keeping His own, and taking ours. He appeareth as man to be the restorer of men, but abideth all the while in His immutable Godhead. That Godhead which He shareth with the Father was not a whit the less Almighty, nor did the form of a servant touch the form of God to derogate from it. The Most High and Everlasting Being, bending down for man’s salvation, took the Manhood into His glory; He ceased not to be That which He is from everlasting. Hence we see the Only-begotten Son of God in one place confessing that the Father is greater than He, John xiv. 28, and in another declaring that He and the Father are One, x. 30. This is an evident proof of the distinction of His two natures, and the unity of His Person; for He is inferior to the Father as touching His Manhood, and yet equal to the Father as touching His Godhead, and yet, though He be God and Man, He is not two, but One Christ.
1. januar syns jeg er blitt overfylt i vår tid, da den både er oktavdag for julen, Jesu navnedag, høytid for Maria Guds mor og verdens fredsdag. I den tradisjonelle kalenderen er den bare oktavdag for julen og Jesu navnedag og i lesning 1,2 og 3 til Matutin leser vi:
Hva skal vi da si om Abraham, vår jordiske stamfar? Hva oppnådde han? 2 Dersom han ble rettferdig ved sine gjerninger, da hadde han jo noe å være stolt av. Men overfor Gud har han ikke det. 3 For hva sier Skriften? Abraham trodde Gud, og derfor regnet Gud ham som rettferdig. 4 Den som har gjerninger å vise til, får lønn etter fortjeneste, ikke av nåde. 5 Men den som ikke har det, men som tror på ham som rettferdiggjør den ugudelige, blir regnet som rettferdig fordi han tror. 6 Slik priser også David et menneske salig når Gud regner det som rettferdig uten at det har gjerninger: 7 Salige er de som har fått sine lovbrudd tilgitt og sine synder skjult. 8 Salig er det mennesket som Herren ikke tilregner synd.
9 Gjelder så denne saligprisningen bare de omskårne eller også de uomskårne? Vi sa at Abraham ble regnet som rettferdig fordi han trodde. 10 Når skjedde det? Var det før eller etter at han ble omskåret? Det skjedde før han ble omskåret. 11 Og omskjærelsen fikk han som et tegn som skulle bekrefte den rettferdighet av tro som han hadde før han ble omskåret. Slik ble han far til alle uomskårne som tror, så de kan regnes som rettferdige. 12 Men han ble også far til de omskårne når de ikke bare er omskåret, men også går i vår far Abrahams fotspor og har den tro han hadde før han ble omskåret.
13 For det var ikke ved loven Abraham og hans ætt fikk løftet om å arve verden, men ved den rettferdighet en får ved tro. 14 Er det de som holder seg til loven, som er arvinger, da er jo troen meningsløs og løftet opphevet. 15 Loven fremkaller vrede, men der det ikke finnes noen lov, finnes det heller ikke noe lovbrudd. 16 Derfor fikk Abraham løftet fordi han trodde, så alt skulle være av nåde. For da kan løftet stå fast for hele hans ætt, ikke bare for den som har loven, men også for den som har samme tro som Abraham. Han er jo far til oss alle, 17 slik det står skrevet: Jeg har gjort deg til far for mange folkeslag. I Guds øyne er han vår far, for han trodde ham som gjør de døde levende og byr at det som ikke er, skal bli til.
