JESUS CHRIST: GOD’S REVELATION TO THE WORLD CHAPTER 2 INTRODUCTION TO SACRED SCRIPTURE

How to Locate and Read Bible References Jn 1:1-18 Jn—abbreviated title of the book First number—chapter number; verse number follows the colon (:) Hyphen (-) indicates several chapters or verses Semicolon (;) separates two references; comma (,) separates two verses in the same chapter

The Bible Is the Inspired Word of God The Church teaches that: God is the author of the Bible, the Holy Spirit inspired the writers of the sacred books, and the Sacred Scriptures teach the Truth.

THE INERRANT WORD OF GOD What Is Inspiration? God is the author of the Bible—he used the human authors as his instrument to convey Divine Revelation to us. The end product: THE INERRANT WORD OF GOD

How to Read the Bible We must pay attention to what the human authors wished to say and to what God wanted to reveal through their words. Vatican II: Scripture “must be read in the light of the same Spirit by whom it was written.”

Vatican II on Sacred Scripture Note the content and unity of the whole Scripture “Read the Scriptures within ‘the living Tradition of the whole Church’” Pay attention to the “analogy of faith”

Biblical Translations Most of the Old Testament was written in Hebrew The New Testament was written in “koine” Greek In 390, St. Jerome completed the Latin translation of both Testaments—the Vulgate There have been almost 500 new translations of individual books of the Bible

Biblical Translations Protestant Catholic King James Version New Revised Standard Ver. Revised English Bible New International Version Douay—Rheims Version New American Bible New Jerusalem Bible

This helps to determine the literal sense of the biblical text. Literary Forms Identifying the correct literary genre is vitally important in scriptural interpretation. This helps to determine the literal sense of the biblical text. Historical Book Prophecy Poetry Letters Genealogies Miracles stories Parables

Different Readings of the Bible Literal interpretation takes into account what the author intended to convey Literalist interpretation ignores various literary forms and the cultural and historical factors of the period in which the biblical authors wrote

The Senses: In Summary Literal sense: teaches history; what the words say in a historical context Allegorical sense: teaches what you should believe; what the words means in the larger context of Salvation History Moral sense: teaches what you should do regarding how to live your life Anagogical sense: teaches where you are going; building up the virtue of hope while leading us to Heaven

Types of “Criticisms” (not to be understood as a negative word) Historical Criticism—tries to determine the historical context of the biblical text Source Criticism—helps to discover where the biblical authors got their material Form Criticism—involves studying small units of biblical texts to attempt to determine how each book took shape during oral tradition before being written down Redaction Criticism—how the various editors put together their sources and arranged them the way they did

Importance of the Bible for Catholics Scripture readings are integral to every Mass and all the sacraments. Scripture is also at the heart of the Liturgy of the Hours—the public prayer of the Church.

How to Understand the Bible Literal Sense Spiritual Sense What the author intended by the words he wrote Looks to the deeper meaning of various scriptural passages as part of God’s overall plan of Salvation

Modern Approaches for Studying Sacred Scripture The Catholic Church teaches us to read Sacred Scripture prayerfully and interpret it critically. The Magisterium authentically interprets the Word of God with the help of biblical scholars.

St. Jerome TRANSLATOR OF THE BIBLE FROM ITS ORIGINAL LANGUAGES IMPORTANT CHURCH FATHER USED HIS PEN TO WRITE FIERCE LETTERS TO HIS OPPONENTS ST. AUGUSTINE SAID OF HIM, “WHAT JEROME IS IGNORANT OF, NO MAN HAS EVER KNOWN”