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

2. The Game of Life CITIUS ALTIUS FORTIUS
We participate in the journey of life, hoping to be all that God intends for us: the best people we can be.

3. 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

4. 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.

5. 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

6. 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.”

7. 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”

8. 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

9. Different Readings of the Bible

10. 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

11. 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

12. Biblical Translations

13. 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

14. 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.

15. 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.

16. 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

17. 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”