BIBLE.pdf

A. The First Mover—Everything constantly moves and changes, so CFE 101: GOD’S JOURNEY WITH HIS PEOPLE logically there must have been a First Mover who set it all in m...

A. The First Mover—Everything constantly moves and changes, so CFE 101: GOD’S JOURNEY WITH HIS PEOPLE logically there must have been a First Mover who set it all in motion. B. Causality (or First Cause)—The cycle of life shows us that all things SALVATION HISTORY are caused by something else, and nothing can cause itself. Thus, there must have been an uncaused First Cause. 1. Salvation history is the pattern of events through which God reveals himself and his saving actions to us. C. Contingency (Necessary Being)—Everything that exists is created by something else. But everything must go back to some first thing, 2. Salvation history can be divided into eight stages—six stages found in the an uncreated Necessary Being that creates everything else. Old Testament, and two stages found in the New Testament. D. Model of Perfection—Knowing that beauty, goodness, and 3. The Old Testament stages are the following: (1) primeval history, (2) the knowledge vary suggests that we have some standard of perfection patriarchs, (3) Egypt and the Exodus, (4) the Promised Land and the to compare things to. The infinite standard for perfection must be judges, (5) the kings and the prophets, and (6) the Exile and the return. one all-perfect being, God. 4. The New Testament stages are the following: (7) the life of Jesus Christ E. Intelligent Being—The world is characterized by remarkable order, and (8) the Church. in which even those things that have no intelligence of their own act toward and achieve a purpose. This suggests an intelligent designer 5. The final stage of salvation history continues today through the Church. who directs everything toward achieving its end, or purpose. 6. The Church will continue to share the Gospel until the end of time. 4. The limitation of human reason: The fact that natural reason can prove 7. We, as members of the Church and with the help of the Holy Spirit, take God’s existence is revelation part in Christ’s mission today. 5. Divine Revelation- refers to God’s self-communication through which he makes known the mystery of his divine plan. Divine Revelation is a gift accomplished by the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit through the words and Faith And Revelation deeds of salvation history. It is most fully realized in the Passion, death, 1. God’s disclosure of Himself is /What God has made known about himself Resurrection, and Ascension of Jesus Christ. called: Revelation It is communicated to the world in two main ways: 6. Historical conditions and the consequences of Original Sin reduce our through Sacred Scripture and through Sacred Tradition. ability to know God through natural revelation alone. We need the grace 2. “Revelation is God’s personal loving communication to us of who He is of God. and His plan to save us all in His love. It is God’s reaching out to us in 7. God, in his desire to enter into a loving relationship with humanity, took friendship, so we get to know and love Him.” CFC no.101 the initiative of introducing himself to us, and of communicating with us 3. Natural revelation -is the process by which God makes himself known to both through natural and supernatural means. human reason through the created world. That is, we can come to know 8. God makes himself known to us through the signs of creation around us, God by contemplating his wondrous creations: the universe, the trees through the voice of the Church, through events and persons and and changing seasons, the uniqueness of every human being, and the through the voices of our conscience speaking from within us. energy that flows through all living things. 9. “The heavens declare the glory of God, and the firmament proclaims His Example: Saint Thomas Aquinas gave five proofs for the existence of handiwork” Psalm 19:1 The beauty of nature awakens our religious God: sense. Realizing that we cannot be responsible for the grandeur of  creation, we end up concluding: there must be a God who is the cause is still speaking and acting through the church, that is through us and our of everything. participation in the life of the community. We believe that we as a church, continue Jesus’ preaching and mission to the world.” 10. CREATION IS THE FIRST ACT OF GOD’S REVELATION. “Ever since the creation of the world, his eternal power and divine nature, invisible 16. The Incarnation refers to the mystery in which Jesus Christ, the divine though they are, have been understood and seen through the things he Son of God and Word of God, became flesh. Jesus Christ became truly has made.” Romans 1:19-20 man while remaining truly God. In the Incarnation, God revealed himself to us so that we would understand the message of salvation. The 11. For history to be revelatory, we have to learn looking at history with the Incarnation is important because it reflects God’s love and saving plan eyes of faith. We have to realize that God is not merely watching us from for humanity. a distance. Rather, he is actively involved in the story of our lives, both as individuals and as a people. Even the most secular historical events, 17. Models of Revelation: (Avery Cardinal Dulles SJ) (Each model presents a when seen with faith, become evidences of God’s divine plan gradually definition for revelation and faith, and presents the role of God and the unfolding through time recipients of revelation. 12. Historians enable us to remember significant events. The PROPHETS Revelation as Doctrine of God, both ancient and modern, help us to see historical events with God’s own eyes. While prophets may tell future events, prediction of the REVELATION – Divinely authoritative doctrine inerrantly future is just incidental to prophecy. The main task of a prophet is to proposed by God’s word in the Bible or by official church teaching convey the message of God by interpreting the SIGNS OF THE TIMES. FAITH – Firm assent to the revealed truths contained in the The meaning of historical events as revealed by God through the written or transmitted word of God prophets are at times unpalatable. Often, prophets speak the uncomfortable truth, hence they are often persecuted. ROLE OF GOD – TEACHER who communicates knowledge by speech or writing 13. God fully revealed himself in Jesus Christ. “In times past God spoke in varied ways to our fathers through the prophets; in this, the final age, He ROLE OF RECIPIENTS – Pupils who are expected to be has spoken to us through His Son” Hebrews 1:1-2 “No one has ever seen attentive and docile God, but the only Son, who is te same as God, made Him known…” John 1: 18 Revelation as History 14. JESUS CHRIST IS THE FULLNESS OF GOD’S REVELATION By REVELATION – Manifestation of God’s saving power by His becoming man like us, he revealed to us everything we need to know great deeds in history about God, using a language that we can understand and relate to. FAITH – Trust in God as the Lord of history who has repeatedly 15. “God speaks to us in and through the life of the church. God speaks to proven his power, goodness and fidelity on those who rely on Him us through the lives of holy people who have evidently taken Jesus’ ROLE OF GOD – TRANSCENDENT AGENT who brings about message to heart and serve as an example to all. As we participate in revelatory events of signs to his people the life of the church, we participate in revelation. We believe that Jesus 2  ROLE OF RECIPIENTS – Discernment and interpretation of ROLE OF RECIPIENTS – Responsive to the call to build a fully signs given in salvation history human world Revelation as Inner Experience 18. OUR RESPONSE TO REVELATION IS. FAITH :We cannot totally grasp God, because God is greater than anything we can understand. God is REVELATION – Self-manifestation of God by His intimate the ultimate mystery. We respond to Him in FAITH presence in the depths of the human spirit 19. Many of the truths revealed by God to us are beyond the power of our FAITH – Prayer of the heart, pious affections, or some such human comprehension. Yet because we believe that God, who is all loving and devout response good "cannot deceive nor be deceived” we say “AMEN” even to things ROLE OF GOD – DIVINE VISITOR, the guest of the soul we do not fully understand ROLE OF RECIPIENTS – Openness to God’s presence. 20. Revelation is both a gift and a task. Revelation is God’s free, undeserved act of love by which he enables us to have knowledge of him and of the Revelation as Dialectical presence salvation that he offers. Revelation likewise challenges us to interpret the events in our lives in the light of the life-changing Gospel of Jesus, that REVELATION – God’s address to those whom he encounters we might know and obey God’s will and thus become tangible signs of with His word in Scripture and Christian proclamation God’s loving presence FAITH – Personal acceptance of one’s status as a forgiven 21. There are three things involved in faith: believing in God’s existence, sinner, thanks to God’s mercy in Jesus Christ recognizing His word as truth, and accepting his word as the rule of life ROLE OF GOD – MERCIFUL JUDGE who pronounces sentence and the way to salvation. For this reason, we say that faith is a way of of condemnation and pardon life. As such, faith, involves the total person: mind, heart, and will in an integral act of believing, trusting, and doing ROLE OF RECIPIENTS – Obedient submission to the power of the word 22. ON THE FAITH OF CATHOLICS Catholic faith is the belief that Jesus Christ revealed God in and through the Holy Catholic church. Catholic Revelation as New Awareness means “universal”. It is a faith that is deeply sacramental, as preserving in its use of religious symbols to signify God’s presence; traditional, as REVELATION – A breakthrough to a higher level of preserving and transmitting the original teachings of Christ from consciousness as humanity is drawn to a fuller participation in the generation to generation, and communal, as drawing people together in divine creativity common belief, way of life, and worship. And the most distinguishing FAITH – A commitment to / and participation in, the movement characteristic of the Catholic faith is that it recognizes the Pope as the where the divine Spirit continually leads creation forward to its successor of Peter and the bishops as the successor of the apostles. ultimate fulfillment. 23. Faith is believing in God, but it is also accepting that God made himself ROLE OF GOD – ATTRACTING the imagination to envision the known through Jesus Christ, and living our lives based on that belief. world in a new way 24. Faith is entrusting our lives to God. 3 25. Faith is a gift from God, yet it is also a choice we make. Reasonable yet beyond our natural ways of knowing. 26. We express our faith when we proclaim the Nicene Creed. Faith is an An individual act of our graced reason, yet also a lifelong process individual response to God, and an act of the entire Church. Gift of God through both Revelation and ulterior inspiration, yet 27. Faith is built on belief and leads to trust. In faith we allow God to guide something we do nobody can believe for us. our lives, leading to joy and happiness in this life and in the next. A personal individual response, yet only possible as a member of the 28. Faith means acting on what we believe and doing small things with great Christian community, the Church love. 32. We can be like Christ by doing God’s will—that is, choosing good and 29. Faith means believing in one God and allowing nothing else to take the working for good in all circumstances. Our vocation as religious beings place of God in our lives. We have come from God, and, through Jesus is to live fully human lives in which we know, love, and freely choose Christ and his Church, we can return to God. God. 30. CHARACTERISTICS OF FAITH ACCORDING TO Catechism for 33. Saint Augustine said, “The whole life of a good Christian is a holy desire Filipino Catholics to see God as He is.” That is, because we are religious beings, made by God and going back to him, we are created with an unceasing craving to TOTAL AND ABSOLUTE -Pattern after Christ’s complete surrender know God and his saving hand. to the will of the Fathe 34. Saint Augustine tells us that we find happiness and truth when we LOVING AND MATURING MISSIONARY -Not a stagnant but respond to God’s call to live in communion with him. By removing worldly dynamic, and this dynamism is manifested in growing knowledge of distractions and focusing instead on God, we can develop a clearer Christ and in imitation of his example of selfless service sense of his vision and path. TRINITARIAN -Recognizing that God is not a solitary person but a 35. Jesus Christ gave us the Beatitudes as a framework, or key, for living in community of love and Christ is our entry point to this communit true happiness. INFORMED AND COMMUNITARIAN- Believing all the words and 36. Saint Augustine proclaimed four objects that we should love: God, our teachings of Jesus and that these words and teachings are neighbors, ourselves, and our bodies. safeguarded for us by Christian community in the Church. INCULTURATED -Manifested in the affairs of daily life especially in human relationships DEPOSIT OF REVELATION & FAITH 31. PARADOXICAL CHARACTERISTICS OF FAITH 1. God, the one and only source of revelation, so willed that his revelation be transmitted to us through two modes: Sacred Scriptures and Sacred Certain enough to die for, yet a mystery because like love there is Tradition, two phases of the same revelation forming one sacred deposit always more to understand. A free personal response to God, yet of the word of God entrusted to the Church morally binding in conscience 4 2. The Deposit of Faith refers to the heritage of faith contained in Sacred SACRED SCRIPTURES Scripture and Sacred Tradition. It has been passed on from the time of the Apostles. The Magisterium, or the teaching authority of the Church, Overview of the Bible takes from it all that it teaches as revealed truth. 1. The Bible is another name for Sacred Scripture. The other name of the 3. Sacred Scripture and Sacred Tradition are two pillars holding up the Bible is Sacred Scriptures from the Latin Word “Scriptura” which means Church as a light for all to know the mystery of God. Scripture, the written writing or something written. and inspired Word of God, developed from Tradition, the living lived-faith experiences and Sacred Traditions to a written record transmission of the Word of God. Neither can be understood without the other. Together they communicate all of Revelation. a. for the benefits of the community 4. The word tradition means “to hand on.” Sacred Tradition means both the b. to build up, strengthen and enrich the community’s faith. central content of the Catholic faith and the way that content has been handed down through the centuries under the guidance of the Holy Spirit. 2. The word bible comes from the Latin term biblia, which means “books.” 3. From the Greek word (plural word)- “biblia” (singular )- “biblion” which 5. Sacred Tradition refers to the process of passing on the Gospel means multiple sheet of papyrus rolled into “scrolls. message, the truths that Jesus Christ taught us. It began with the oral communication of the Gospel by the Apostles, was written down in the Scrolls- One of the earliest forms and materials for written Scriptures, and is interpreted by the Magisterium (or teaching office of documents. the Church) under the guidance of the Holy Spirit. It is the living transmission of the Word of God. 4. The Bible as the WORD OF GOD 6. The responsibility of teaching about Jesus Christ, through Scripture and In order to reveal himself to men, in the condescension of his Tradition, belongs to the Apostles and their successors, the Pope and goodness God speaks to them in human words: “Indeed the the bishops. words of God, expressed in the words of men, are in every way like human language, just as the Word of the eternal Father, when 7. The Magisterium refers to the Church’s living teaching office, which consists of all bishops, in communion with the Pope, under the guidance he took on himself the flesh of human weakness, became like of the Holy Spirit. The Magisterium has a unique responsibility to men.” (CCC 101) authentically teach and interpret Scripture and Tradition, by which it o Word about God-Divine self and action defines the dogma of the Church through its teaching authority and the power of the Holy Spirit. o Word from God-contains God’s self-communication in human words o Word by God-God is the principal author, human as co- author. 5 5. The BIBLE is a collection of books, it is a small library, which means that C. Wisdom books-Wisdom and poetry books include teachings on though it appears like a single book, it is actually a compilation of books, ways to be a wise person, to live a good and holy life. The poetry each of a different literary form. books include songs of praise, wise sayings, advice on living a good life, and a song celebrating love between a man and a It is a “small library that contains history, drama, poetry, woman, symbolizing God and his people. The wisdom books narratives, fiction, short stories, prophecies, proverbs,letters, contain poetry, both emotional and practical, on what it means to laws and regulations, miracle stories, moral teaching, speeches, be wise. historical novels, parables.Uses figure of speech: simile, D. Prophetic books-The books of the prophets reveal the metaphor, hyperbole etc preaching of various prophets, usually touching on the failures of God’s people: idolatry, injustice, and false worship. The 6. The two main sections of the Bible are the Old Testament and the New messages of the prophets also include messages of hope: God Testament. is faithful, the faithful will survive, God will send a Messiah. 7. The Old Testament is the account of the loving and communicative 8. The New Testament is called “New” because it is the story of how God relationship between God and the Hebrew people, or Israelites. the Father sent his only Son, Jesus Christ, to initiate a New Covenant The OLD TESTAMENT-originally written in Hebrew (The Hebrew with his People. He had never revealed or manifested himself in such a Bible). way before. SEPTUAGINT- is the ancient Greek translation of the Old 9. The New Testament can be divided into five categories of books: Testament. A. The Gospels-The Gospels tell about the life, ministry, Passion, The NEW TESTAMENT-is Originally written in Greek. death, Resurrection, and Ascension of Jesus Christ. The VULGATE- Latin translation of the Bible by St. Jerome B. The Acts of the Apostles - The Acts of the Apostles tells us about Pentecost and the work of the early Christian community 8. The Old Testament can be divided into four categories of books: to spread the Good News. A. Books of law (The Torah or Pentateuch)- The Pentateuch is the first five books of the Bible: Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, C. The Pauline letters, the non-Pauline letters- The Pauline Numbers, and Deuteronomy. These books teach us about God’s letters (written by Paul and his followers) offer advice, teaching, plan for salvation. The books of law are found in the Torah or news, and pastoral support to communities that Paul helped to Pentateuch: the first five books of the Old Testament, which form. The non-Pauline letters also offer pastoral support, advice, provide the history and laws of God’s Chosen People. and teaching to early Christian communities but were written by authors other than Paul. B. Historical books - were written to emphasize God’s actions in history. The historical books recount Jewish history, specifically D. The Book of Revelation-the Book of Revelation offers support the lives of various leaders, and illustrate God’s saving work in to Christians being persecuted for their beliefs; it reminds them of the lives of the Israelites. the second coming of Christ. 6 10. Four special books in the New Testament are called the Gospels. The 2. The most important truths revealed in the Bible are not scientific Gospels tell us about the life, teachings, death, and Resurrection of truths but religious truths. Jesus Christ. 3. The Church teaches that faith, science, and history can coexist and 11. The Gospels are the heart of the Scriptures. The Catechism tells us help to explain each other. God created us with the ability to develop that the Gospels are the heart of the Scriptures because they are our a fuller understanding of faith and belief through both academic primary sources for knowing about the teachings of Jesus Christ and his pursuits and the truths revealed to us in the Sacred Scriptures, which role as God’s most perfect Revelation in the plan of salvation are not meant to present historical and scientific facts. A contextualist approach teaches us how to relate religious truth found in Sacred 12. The official canon of the Catholic Bible contains seventy-three books: Scripture with the truths of history and science forty-six Old Testament books and twenty-seven New Testament Books. 13. These 73 books in the Bible were written by many authors who belong When Did It Happen? When Was It Written? to a particular time and culture different from our own. The writing of 1. Sometimes there was a long period between the actual events in these books took over a thousand years-from 1,000 BCE to 125 CE. the Bible and when the final writing occurred. 14. The Catholic Bible includes seven additional Old Testament books, 2. At some point, guided by the Holy Spirit, human authors called the deuterocanonical books (Greek for “second canon”). These expressed how God acted in the lives of their ancestors who lived books are included as part of Apostolic Tradition; they were part of the years, decades, or sometimes even centuries beforehand. Septuagint, the Greek translation of the Old Testament. The Protestant reformers rejected the Septuagint as the source for the Old Testament 3. The Bible tends to bounce around in time, going backward and and thus excluded these books from the Old Testament. forward, and sometimes events found in one book are repeated in another book. 15. List the seven deuterocanonical books. -Tobit, Judith, First and 4. It is always helpful to learn about the time period in which the Second Maccabees, Wisdom, Sirach, and Baruch. The Protestant would events most likely occurred, as well as the date the book was call it APOCRYPHA probably written. 16. God is the ultimate author of the Bible, for the Holy Spirit inspired the 5. Ultimately, all of these details help us to better understand what human authors to communicate, without error, what God wants us to God is revealing through the words of the human authors of the know for our salvation. This guidance of the Holy Spirit is called Bible. inspiration. 6. It was written by several human authors who belong to a time and 17. Together the Old Testament and New Testament paint a picture of God’s culture different from our own. It was written over a thousand years gift of grace and redemption. We must read each considering the other to see the history of salvation. from 1000BCE to 125 CE. When Israel as a nation became settled Kingdom under King David and King Solomon that a national The Bible or Science—Which One Is Right? written literature began to emerge.When King David established 1. It is important to note that science deals strictly with objectively the capital in Jerusalem official documents had to be preserve. measurable phenomena. During the time of King Solomon there was a group of writers 7  emerge who wrote, compile, edit materials of the written A book had to meet all four standards to be considered divinely documents. inspired and canonical. How the Bible Came to Be 5. Four commonly used English translations of the Catholic Bible are the New American Bible, New Revised Standard Version, New 1. A. People experienced God over a long period of time. Jerusalem Bible, and Good News Translation. B. People shared the stories of their experiences of God verbally. 6. In summary, To be considered inspired by the Holy Spirit and C. The leaders of the Church determined the official collection of included in the canon, each book had to meet these four criteria: inspired books that is the Bible. This official collection is called the apostolic origin, universal acceptance, liturgical use, and canon. consistency. D. People speaking different languages translated the Bible into their 7. The Gospels formed in three stages. own languages from the Bible’s original languages, which are Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek. First came the Jesus events, life and teachings of Jesus himself, including his Passion, death, Resurrection, and Ascension. 2. Oral tradition is the handing on of the message of God’s saving plan through words and deeds. Next came oral tradition, in which the Apostles, empowered by the Holy Spirit, passed on to their followers the message of 3. The early Christians sought to write down the message of Jesus salvation that was taught, revealed, and accomplished in Jesus’ Christ as a way to protect and safeguard it, because many of those life and ministry. who had known Jesus personally were being persecuted and executed for their faith. The early Christians did not want to lose the Third came the written Gospels, in which the Gospel writers perspective and testimonies of these eyewitnesses to Christ’s life, synthesized oral and previously written tradition about the teachings, death, and Resurrection. Incarnation and Paschal Mystery. They wrote down the Gospels both to preserve a formal record of the authentic Good News 4. The early bishops used four standards to determine whether a book (especially as eyewitnesses were beginning to die) and to reach is canonical. different communities that needed to understand it. First, was the book based on the preaching and teaching of the Apostles and their followers? apostolic origin Interpreting the Scriptures Second, was it universally accepted by major Christian 1. The fundamentalist approach to biblical interpretation means communities in the early Church? universal acceptance by all interpreting the Bible and Christian doctrine based on the literalist major Christian communities meaning of the Bible’s words, without regard to the historical setting Third, was the book being used in Christian liturgical celebrations, in which the writings or teachings were first developed. especially the Eucharistic celebration, or Mass? the use of the writings in liturgical celebrations 2. The contextualist approach to biblical interpretation takes into Fourth, was the book’s message consistent with other Christian account the various contexts for understanding, including the senses and Hebrew (or Jewish) writings? consistency of the book’s of Scripture, literary forms, historical situations, cultural backgrounds, message with other Christian and Jewish writings. the unity of the Scriptures, the Church’s Tradition, and the analogy of faith. In the contextualist approach, the literal sense of the Scriptures 8  is informed by scientific and historical knowledge, which in turn of the Church’s doctrine, the coherence of God’s revealed truth, is informs the spiritual senses of the Scriptures and helps us know how called the analogy of faith. to relate the truths of faith to science. 5. It is important to know literary genres, or writing styles, in biblical 3. Biblical archaeology has helped us better understand the Scriptures interpretation because each literary genre has its own rules to guide through the discovery of ancient texts, artifacts, buildings, and cities interpretation. Studying literary genres can give us insight into what that help us understand more clearly what life was like in biblical a human writer of the Scriptures intended to convey. times, as well as how biblical and nonbiblical texts were written and 6. The scholar must study the context in which the biblical author lived. redacted. The scholar must also look at the various literary genres and Exegesis: What Does It Mean? techniques commonly used at the time. 1. Biblical exegesis is the critical interpretation and explanation of 7. A particular biblical text or passage can be fully understood only Sacred Scripture. within the complete picture of both the Old and New Testaments. The Scripture scholar discovers the deeper meaning of Sacred Scripture 2. Biblical exegesis is the critical interpretation and explanation of a when she or he takes into account the unity that exists in all truth, biblical text. It involves thoughtful and rigorous interpretation of the especially the truths of faith. Understanding one truth helps us to Scriptures to determine what God is communicating to us through the better understand the others. words. An exegete, or biblical scholar, must pay attention to what a book’s human author was trying to communicate and to what God 8. The bible was written for particular audiences. wanted to reveal to us through the book. Exegetes must also consider the human author’s culture and context, as well as the The Sacred Scriptures are a response to the people’s craving for literary genres and techniques common at the time the author was God’s Word. The content of each book are suited for the writing. particular audience to which it is addressed. 3. To understand what the human author (of the Bible) was trying to To interpret a book effectively, one must also be familiar with the say, the document (Dogmatic Constitution on Divine Revelation) needs of each book’s audience, so as to understand why the goes on to say that we should pay we particular attention to the contents of each book are as such. following: the literary genres used by the author, the characteristic Making Sense of the Bible ways people spoke and wrote in their time, and the cultural ways people interacted with one another at the time. ( 1. The literal sense considers the plain meaning of the text. The literal sense is the meaning intended by the human author. To properly grasp what the human authors were trying to communicate, we “must take into account the conditions of their time and culture, the literary genres in use at that time, and their Because the human authors often used poetry, symbolism, modes of feeling, speaking, and narrating” (CCC, number 110). metaphors, and even exaggeration, understanding the literal sense of the writing requires study and interpretation. 4. To understand what God wants to reveal to us, the document goes on to say that we should pay particular attention to the following: the 2. The spiritual sense is interpretation that builds on the literal content and unity of the whole Scripture, the living Tradition and sense, considering what the realities and events of Scripture teachings of the whole Church, and the analogy of faith. The unity signify and mean for salvation. 9  3. The three categories, or sub-senses, of the spiritual sense are the 4. This does not mean that the Holy Spirit dictated the Bible word for allegorical sense, the moral sense, and the anagogical sense. word. Instead, God’s truth was expressed using the human authors’ skills and creativity. Because it is God’s Word being conveyed, God Allegorical sense—How the people, events, and things in the is the true author of Sacred Scripture. Bible point to the life, death, and Resurrection of Jesus Christ. 5. Effects of Inspiration because the BIBLE is inspired Moral sense—How a passage instructs us to live in right relationship with God, neighbor, self, and the earth. a. It gives us the revelation of God. It enables us to know Anagogical sense—Investigating the eternal significance of b. God and his will. the events and teachings in the Bible c. It is final and definitive. It contains all that we need to know for 4. The literal sense of the Scriptures refers to the meaning they communicate, as discovered through biblical interpretation. This our salvation. sense includes examining the actual or obvious meaning, the key d. It is one integral whole. It cannot contradict itself. characters and events described, and the literary and cultural backgrounds of the text. In contrast, the spiritual sense of the e. It is sacramental, a visible sign of God’s presence, enabling us Scriptures considers what the realities and events signify. The to encounter him concretely. spiritual sense includes three categories of senses: allegorical (pointing to the Christological significance), moral (what the f. It moves us to live as God wants us to. Scriptures tell us about living a just life), and anagogical (how the g. It contains only the truth. Scriptures direct our attention to eternal life in Heaven). h. It enables the Church to recognize its divine influence. Inspiration: From God’s Mouth to Our Hearts 6. Divine inspiration is the divine assistance the Holy Spirit gave the 1. Divine Inspiration is the divine assistance the Holy Spirit gave the authors of the books of the Bible so the authors could write in human human authors of the books words the salvation message God wanted to communicate. of the Bible so they could communicate through human words God’s message of salvation. 7. God is the ultimate author of the Sacred Scriptures. He chose ordinary human beings to write the books of the Bible. These human 2. Inspiration is a gift, grace freely given by God, the human author is authors had full use of their knowledge and creativity. They were true able to formulate and articulate correctly the word of God, enables authors and reflected the culture and time in which they lived. But the them to faithfully write down God’s word while fully using their intellect Holy Spirit “breathed into” them the ways and truths of God. In this and will. way, God acted in them and through them 3. With this assistance, the human authors of the Bible were able to 8. Biblical inerrancy is the doctrine that the books of the Scriptures are teach “that truth which God wanted put into sacred writings for the free from error regarding the truth God wishes to reveal for the sake sake of salvation” (Dogmatic Constitution on Divine Revelation, of our salvation. Even though human authors wrote these books, number 11). divine inspiration means that God is their ultimate author. Because 10  of this, the truths of faith that he inspired them to write are without Jerusalem Bible (NJB); and the Good News Translation in Today’s error. English Version, Second Edition (GNT). The bible is free from error as a consequence of inspiration god The Old Prepares Us for the New as principal author it contains inerrant saving truth. 1. Almost two-thirds of Sacred Scripture is the Old Testament. The Constitution on Divine Revelation states: “The books of 2. We call the Old Testament “Old” because it reveals God’s covenants Scripture must be acknowledged as teaching firmly, faithfully and saving actions prior to the coming of Jesus Christ. and without error that truth which God wanted to put into the 3. The Old Testament is called old because it is the foundation of our sacred writings for the sake of our salvation.” (DV 11) identity as a people of faith, touched by the Incarnation of God. The Old Testament contains God’s Revelation and lays the framework for “Read the Scripture within "the living Tradition of the whole our Christian faith. The New Testament is about the New Covenant, Church". According to a saying of the Fathers, Sacred Scripture Jesus, which fulfills the Old Covenant and the promise of redemption is written principally in the Church's heart rather than in found in the Old Testament. documents and records, for the Church carries in her Tradition 4. The writings of the Old Testament were sacred to Jesus. In fact, he the living memorial of God's Word, and it is the Holy Spirit who would often quote from the Old Testament in his teachings and used gives her the spiritual interpretation of the Scripture.” CCC 113. these Scriptures in his prayer. 9. The Holy Spirit is the interpreter of the Scriptures. The Holy Spirit, The New Fulfills the Old whom we acknowledge as the author of Sacred Scriptures, is the 1. By becoming flesh in the person of Jesus Christ, God established a only One who could reveal to us what the Bible truly means because New Covenant that fulfilled and perfected the Old Covenant. only the author can truly explain what he meant with his words. The 2. Jesus’ followers were well versed in Old Testament writings and Holy Spirit dwells in the Church. It is therefore the Church who began making the connections between the prophecies of the Old teaches us the correct meaning of Scriptures. Testament and things they had witnessed. Bible Translations 3. The Gospels are considered “the heart of all the Scriptures because they are our principal source for the life and teachings of the 1. The Bible was originally written in three different languages: Hebrew, Incarnate Word, our Savior”1 (CCC, number 125). Greek, and Aramaic. 2. Saint Jerome completed one of the earliest translations of the Bible. Both the Old and New Testaments are read by Christians in the light Called the Latin Vulgate, the Church used this translation of the of the Risen Crucified Christ. The New Testament’s own use of Old Bible for over a thousand years. Testament events, persons, and things as types foreshadowing its 3. There are four Catholic English translations that are used most often own, exemplifies this dynamic unity of the two testaments. today: The New American Bible, Revised Edition (NABRE); the New Ignorance of Scripture is ignorance of Christ, the knowledge of Revised Standard Version, Catholic Edition (NRSV); the New Christ is primarily dependent on the faith accounts of the early 11  Christians contained in the NT as well as the prophecies and pre- 3. Scholars employ various forms of biblical criticism to deepen their figuration of his coming in the OT. understanding of how the human authors expressed God’s Word. Interpreting the Bible 4. The word criticism does not refer to a negative viewpoint. It refers to an analysis or evaluation. Reliable Guides: The Magisterium and the Holy Spirit Biblical Archaeology: Digging for Answers 1. The Magisterium is the Church’s living teaching office. It consists 1. Archaeology is the study of human activity and history by means of of all the bishops in the world, in communion with the Pope, the excavating and analyzing the artifacts and other physical materials. bishop of Rome. 2. Biblical archaeology refers to archaeological digs that seek to 2. God has given the Magisterium the responsibility and the gifts discover ancient texts, artifacts, and buildings. Learning more about required to interpret Sacred Scripture correctly. The Magisterium acts ancient cultures and geography helps us understand life in biblical under the guidance of the Holy Spirit to faithfully teach the message times. Even the discovery of ancient nonbiblical religious texts that God revealed to the original Apostles. benefits us by revealing the religious beliefs of other cultures during 3. “Inspired by the Holy Spirit” (“Divino Afflante Spiritu,” 1943) calls for the time periods covered in the Bible. new translations of the Bible into modern languages. 3. Sepphoris was a wealthy Roman city at the center of trade for the 4. The Dogmatic Constitution on Divine Revelation (Dei Verbum, 1965) area. Tradesmen like Jesus and his foster father, Joseph, were encourages scholars to recognize the different genres or types of probably in great demand there. Because it was located just a few biblical literature. The Council also supports studying the cultures in miles from Nazareth, it is quite possible that Jesus took this hour- which the various books of the Bible were written. long walk to get work. 5. In the document Interpretation of the Bible in the Church (1993), the 4. Though we do not have the original versions of any of the biblical Church offers more specific directions and guidelines for interpreting books, we have older copies and more copies of the books of the the Bible. Bible than for any other ancient text! Every ancient copy found has 6. The Magisterium, the teaching office of the Church, has been given reinforced biblical scholars’ certainty in the authority of biblical text. the sole responsibility for authentically interpreting the Sacred 5. The Dead Sea Scrolls are a collection of ancient scrolls, found on the Scriptures. The Magisterium is the bishops in communion with the northwestern shore of the Dead Sea, which possibly belonged to the Pope, guided by the Holy Spirit. Essenes, a group of pious, conservative Jews who lived during the The Literature of the Bible time of Jesus. 1. History and poetry are two different literary genres. Each one has its The Church advises us to read the Sacred Scriptures for help own set of expectations and rules for grasping its meaning. learning how to live a moral life. By telling us about salvation history and the wisdom of our Creator, the Word of God can direct us to 2. These books (of the Bible) use numerous literary forms or genres: God’s true good. religious history, prayer, song, poetry, proverbs, parables, letters, and gospels, among others. 12  Reading, studying, and praying the Word of God can influence our moral life. In Scripture we can learn about salvation history and God’s wisdom and goodness. We learn the Law of God through the Ten Commandments and the Beatitudes, which tell us how to make virtuous choices and achieve true happiness. Prepared by: ALLAN JOSEPH L. LIPE CFE Class Facilitator This hand-out is prepared exclusively for the use of CFE 101 Classes of Mr. Allan Joseph L. Lipe only 13