"The mystery of faith" and "a mystery of faith" are phrases found in different contexts and with a variety of meanings, either as translations of

Greek Greek may refer to: Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor of all kno ...

() or

Latin Latin ( or ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally spoken by the Latins (Italic tribe), Latins in Latium (now known as Lazio), the lower Tiber area aroun ...

, or as independent English phrases.

Two English translations of 1 Timothy 3:9

The phrase "the mystery of faith" is given as a translation of the phrase "τὸ μυστήριον τῆς πίστεως" in in two English versions of the Bible: the

Wycliffe Bible Wycliffe's Bible (also known as the Middle English Bible ''MEB Wycliffite Bibles, or Wycliffian Bibles) is a sequence of orthodox Middle English Bible translations from the Latin Vulgate which appeared over a period from approximately 1382 to ...

and the

Douay–Rheims Bible The Douay–Rheims Bible (, ), also known as the Douay–Rheims Version, Rheims–Douai Bible or Douai Bible, and abbreviated as D–R, DRB, and DRV, is a translation of the Bible from the Latin Vulgate into English made by member ...

. This translation of the text is exceptional, since far more numerous are the Bible versions that render the phrase as "the mystery of the faith", while others still have phrases like "the deep truths of the faith" (

New International Version The New International Version (NIV) is a translation of the Bible into contemporary English. Published by Biblica, the complete NIV was released on October 27, 1978, with a minor revision in 1984 and a major revision in 2011. The NIV relies ...

and

New International Reader's Version The New International Reader's Version (NIrV) is a translation of the Bible in contemporary English. Translated by the International Bible Society (now Biblica) following a similar philosophy as the New International Version (NIV), but written ...

); "the secret of the faith that God made known to us" (

New Century Version The New Century Version (NCV) is a revision of the International Children's Bible (ICB). The ICB is a translation of the Bible that was aimed at young readers and those with low reading skills/limited vocabulary in English. It is written at a 3rd ...

); "the revealed truth of the faith" (

Good News Translation Good News Bible (GNB), also called the Good News Translation (GNT) in the United States, is an Bible translations into English, English translation of the Bible by the American Bible Society. It was first published as the New Testament under the ...

); "the mystery of the Christian faith" (

God's Word Translation The ''God's Word Translation'' (GW) is an English translation of the Bible. God's Word to the Nations Mission Society managed and funded the translation. History The ''God's Word Translation'' of the Bible was produced by the God's Word to t ...

); "the true faith that God has now made known to us" (

Easy-to-Read Version The Holy Bible: Easy-to-Read Version (ERV) is an English translation of the Bible compiled by the World Bible Translation Center. It was originally published as the English Version for the Deaf (EVD) by BakerBooks. History Some Deaf readers stru ...

); "what God has shown us about our faith" (

Contemporary English Version The Contemporary English Version or CEV (also known as Bible for Today's Family) is a translation of the Bible into English, published by the American Bible Society. An anglicized version was produced by the British and Foreign Bible Society, ...

); "the faith that has been revealed" (Common English Bible); "the secret of the faith" (

Young's Literal Translation Young's Literal Translation (YLT) is a translation of the Bible into English, published in 1862. The translation was made by Robert Young, compiler of '' Young's Analytical Concordance to the Bible'' and ''Concise Critical Comments on the New Te ...

); "God's plan and what we believe" (Worldwide English). The passage in question requires

deacon A deacon is a member of the diaconate, an office in Christian churches that is generally associated with service of some kind, but which varies among theological and denominational traditions. Major Christian denominations, such as the Cathol ...

s to hold to this "mystery of faith", "the deep truths of the faith", "the true faith that God has now made known to us" or however else it can best be expressed.

Richard C. H. Lenski Richard Charles Henry Lenski (September 14, 1864 – August 14, 1936) was a German-born American-naturalized Lutheran pastor, scholar, and author who published a series of Lutheran New Testament commentaries. Life Lenski was born on September 14, ...

identifies it with "the mystery of godliness" mentioned in verse 16 of the same chapter. According to

Witness Lee Witness Lee (; September 5, 1905 – June 9, 1997) was a Chinese Christian preacher and hymnist belonging to the Christian group known as the local churches (or Local Church) in Taiwan and the United States. He was also the founder of Livi ...

, it is mainly Christ and the church. This mystery, Andrew Louth says, interrogates us rather than being questioned by us. Barnes' Notes on the Bible identifies the word "the faith" in this context with "the gospel", a view with which Gill's Exposition of the Entire Bible agrees, as does the People's New Testament, while Clarke's communion on the Bible remarks that one manuscripts gives, in place of "the faith", "the resurrection of the dead, which is one of the greatest mysteries of the faith. Floyd H. Barackman says that in this passage "the faith" refers to the whole of the New Testament.

Theosophical idea

Arthur Edward Waite Arthur Edward Waite (2 October 1857 – 19 May 1942) was a British poet and scholarly Mysticism, mystic who wrote extensively on occult and Western esotericism, esoteric matters, and was the co-creator of the Rider–Waite Tarot (also called th ...

wrote that in the

Zohar The ''Zohar'' (, ''Zōhar'', lit. "Splendor" or "Radiance") is a foundational work of Kabbalistic literature. It is a group of books including commentary on the mystical aspects of the Torah and scriptural interpretations as well as material o ...

, which is the foundational work of the

Jew Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, religion, and community are highly inte ...

ish

Kabbalah Kabbalah or Qabalah ( ; , ; ) is an esoteric method, discipline and school of thought in Jewish mysticism. It forms the foundation of Mysticism, mystical religious interpretations within Judaism. A traditional Kabbalist is called a Mekubbal ...

, there lie embedded fragments of a mystical work,

Sepher ha-bahir ''Bahir'' or ''Sefer HaBahir'' (, ; "Book of Clarity" or "Book of Illumination") is an anonymous mystical work, attributed to a 1st-century rabbinic sage Nehunya ben HaKanah (a contemporary of Yochanan ben Zakai) because it begins with the word ...

, an anonymous work of Jewish mysticism, attributed to the 1st century, behind which Waite discerned "a single radical and essential thesis which is spoken of in general terms as 'The Mystery of Faith'." The Mystery of Faith, he said, is represented by the letter of the

Tetragrammaton The TetragrammatonPronounced ; ; also known as the Tetragram. is the four-letter Hebrew-language theonym (transliteration, transliterated as YHWH or YHVH), the name of God in the Hebrew Bible. The four Hebrew letters, written and read from ...

and is identical with the Mystery of Sex. He saw the Mystery of Faith as underlying also popular Christian devotion, such as the veneration of

relic In religion, a relic is an object or article of religious significance from the past. It usually consists of the physical remains or personal effects of a saint or other person preserved for the purpose of veneration as a tangible memorial. Reli ...

s, and the doctrine of the

Eucharist The Eucharist ( ; from , ), also called Holy Communion, the Blessed Sacrament or the Lord's Supper, is a Christianity, Christian Rite (Christianity), rite, considered a sacrament in most churches and an Ordinance (Christianity), ordinance in ...

, and the legends of the

Grail The Holy Grail (, , , ) is a treasure that serves as an important motif in Arthurian literature. Various traditions describe the Holy Grail as a cup, dish, or stone with miraculous healing powers, sometimes providing eternal youth or sustenanc ...

as telling that "the secret words, which were of the essence of the Mystery of Faith, had passed out of all common knowledge".

Theological term

In theology, an article of faith or doctrine which defies man's ability to grasp it fully, something that transcends reason, is called "a mystery of the faith". The

Catechism of the Catholic Church The ''Catechism of the Catholic Church'' (; commonly called the ''Catechism'' or the ''CCC'') is a reference work that summarizes the Catholic Church's doctrine. It was Promulgation (Catholic canon law), promulgated by Pope John Paul II in 1992 ...

speaks of the

Trinity The Trinity (, from 'threefold') is the Christian doctrine concerning the nature of God, which defines one God existing in three, , consubstantial divine persons: God the Father, God the Son (Jesus Christ) and God the Holy Spirit, thr ...

as "a mystery of faith in the strict sense, one of the 'mysteries that are hidden in God, which can never be known unless they are revealed by God'", and it declares: "The mystery of the Most Holy Trinity is the central mystery of Christian faith and life. It is the mystery of God in himself. It is therefore the source of all the other mysteries of faith, the light that enlightens them." The Church itself is "a mystery of the faith".

Ludwig Feuerbach Ludwig Andreas von Feuerbach (; ; 28 July 1804 – 13 September 1872) was a German anthropologist and philosopher, best known for his book '' The Essence of Christianity'', which provided a critique of Christianity that strongly influenced ge ...

applied the phrase "the mystery of faith" to belief in the power of prayer. "The Mystery of Faith" is used in the title of some books as a reference to the totality of the doctrine of the

Eastern Orthodox Church The Eastern Orthodox Church, officially the Orthodox Catholic Church, and also called the Greek Orthodox Church or simply the Orthodox Church, is List of Christian denominations by number of members, one of the three major doctrinal and ...

or of the

Catholic Church The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

. More frequent are books of that title that refer to Roman Catholic doctrine on the

, which was the subject also of a

papal encyclical An encyclical was originally a circular letter sent to all the churches of a particular area in the ancient Roman Church. At that time, the word could be used for a letter sent out by any bishop. The word comes from the Late Latin (originally fr ...

Pope Paul VI Pope Paul VI (born Giovanni Battista Enrico Antonio Maria Montini; 26 September 18976 August 1978) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 21 June 1963 until his death on 6 August 1978. Succeeding John XXII ...

, whose

incipit The incipit ( ) of a text is the first few words of the text, employed as an identifying label. In a musical composition, an incipit is an initial sequence of Musical note, notes, having the same purpose. The word ''incipit'' comes from Latin an ...

was '' Mysterium fidei'' (

for "mystery of faith" or "mystery of the faith"). The phrase "a mystery of faith", rather than "the mystery of faith", appears also with reference to the Eucharist, as in the title of a book by Joseph M. Champlin.

Translation of a phrase in the Roman-Rite Mass

Since November 2011, the phrase "mysterium fidei" in the

Roman Rite The Roman Rite () is the most common ritual family for performing the ecclesiastical services of the Latin Church, the largest of the ''sui iuris'' particular churches that comprise the Catholic Church. The Roman Rite governs Rite (Christianity) ...

liturgy Liturgy is the customary public ritual of worship performed by a religious group. As a religious phenomenon, liturgy represents a communal response to and participation in the sacred through activities reflecting praise, thanksgiving, remembra ...

of the

Mass Mass is an Intrinsic and extrinsic properties, intrinsic property of a physical body, body. It was traditionally believed to be related to the physical quantity, quantity of matter in a body, until the discovery of the atom and particle physi ...

is officially translated as "the mystery of faith", while from 1973 to 2011 the English phrase used as an equivalent was "Let us proclaim the mystery of faith". In this context, the phrase, spoken or sung after the

Words of Institution The Words of Institution, also called the Words of Consecration, are words echoing those of Jesus himself at his Last Supper that, when consecrating bread and wine, Christian eucharistic liturgies include in a narrative of that event. Eucharistic ...

, refers to "the entire mystery of salvation through Christ's death, resurrection and ascension, which is made present in the celebration of the Eucharist". As originally inserted into the words of consecration, perhaps in reaction to the denial by

Manichaeism Manichaeism (; in ; ) is an endangered former major world religion currently only practiced in China around Cao'an,R. van den Broek, Wouter J. Hanegraaff ''Gnosis and Hermeticism from Antiquity to Modern Times''. SUNY Press, 1998 p. 37 found ...

of the goodness of material things, it may have been an expression of the Catholic Church's belief that salvation comes through Christ's material blood and through participation in the sacrament, which makes use of a material element.Edward McNamara, "The Mystery of Faith" in ''ZENIT News Agency'', 7 October 2014
/ref>

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:mystery of faith Order of Mass Faith in Christianity New Testament words and phrases