Dei Verbum

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• Dei Verbum
• The Word of God

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Through Revelation, God reveals Himself and His
plan for mans salvation.
He does this through concrete Words and Deeds
speaking to humanity in a language we can
understand.
This Revelation is interpreted through Scripture
and Tradition.
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Scripture is the Word of God written through the
inspiration of the Holy Spirit (dual authorship).
Scripture is inerrant in matters concerning mans
salvation.
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Because of the authority given by Christ through
Apostolic Succession, the Magisterium (teaching
office of the Church) compiled the books that are
presently part of the Canon we consider the Bible
today.
They also have the authority to interpret the
Scripture to ensure that it is read and
understood correctly.
The Magisterium ensure that the Scripture is read
with the inspiration of the same Spirit who wrote
it!
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During the Second Vatican Council, the
Magisterium put forth these guidelines to assist
the Church in the interpretation of Scripture
1. Be attentive to the content and unity of the
whole of Scripture.
Scripture verses can be a very powerful part of
ones prayer life, however, there is a danger
when a verse is taken out of context to read from
it something that the text does not support
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A word is a part of a verse
a verse is a part of a chapter
a chapter is a part of a book
a book is a part of the canon
The canon of Scripture with all the books,
chapters and verses combined tells the story of
Gods Revelation.
It must be read as a whole!
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For example
Matt 239
Call no man your father on earth, for you have
one Father, who is in heaven.
With this verse, one might try to claim that when
Catholics address priests as Father, they are
engaging in an unbiblical practice that Jesus
forbadeit could also nullify the position of the
Pope as the Holy Father.
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When the Bible is read as a whole, one can see
that the term father is used in many other
places as a sign of respect
In the Old Testament
So it was not you who sent me here, but God and
he has made me a father to Pharaoh, and lord of
all his house and ruler over all the land in
Egypt Gen 458
In that day I will call my servant Eliakim, the
son of Hilkiahand I will clothe him with a robe,
and will bind a girdle on him, and will
commitauthority to his hand and he shall be a
father to the inhabitants of Jerusalem and to the
house of Judah. Is 2220-21
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In the New Testament
In Acts 72, St. Stephen refers to our father
Abraham, and Paul speaks of our father Isaac
in Romans 910.
A careful examination of the context of Matthew
23 shows that Jesus did not intend for his words
here to be understood literally
But you are not to be called rabbi, for you
have one teacher, and you are all brethren. And
call no man father on earth, for you have one
Father, who is in heaven. Neither be called
masters, for you have one master, the Christ.
Matt 238-10
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What did Jesus mean?
When read in context, we can clearly see that
Jesus was using a hyperbole an exaggeration to
make a point.
Jesus did this often in Scripturesee Matt 529,
189 Mark 947
In this context, he is criticizing the Jewish
leaders who love the place of honor at feasts
and the best seats in the synagogues, and
salutations in the market places and being called
rabbi by men (Mat 236-7)
By using a hyperbole, Jesus is trying to show the
Pharisees how sinful and proud they were for not
looking humbly to God as the source of all
authority, fatherhood and teaching.
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2. Read Scripture within the living Tradition of
the whole Church.
Because of Apostolic Succession, we believe that
God blesses the Magisterium with the authority to
interpret Scripture correctly.
Further, the doctrine that is taught by the
Magisterium in matters of Faith and Morals is
done so with the guarantee of INFALLIBILITY.
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Reading Scripture within the living Tradition
of the Church means taking into account the fact
that this text has been read by a community of
believers for centuries.
Even before it was a written text, Christians
lived and prayed the Gospel they heard in
sermons, through prayer and meditation, through
Christian art, through liturgical celebrations
and through oral traditions.
Keeping this in mind when reading Scripture
reminds us to stick to the original intention of
the author and read from Scripture what God wants
to express.
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Luke 2219-20
Then, taking bread and giving thanks, he broke it
and gave it to them, saying This is my body to
be given for you. Do this as a remembrance of me.
When this text is read according to the living
Tradition of the Church, we see this as the heart
of the Liturgy of the Eucharist. The bread and
the wine actually become the body and blood of
Jesus Christ.
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3. Be attentive to the analogy of faith.
The Analogy of Faith is the coherence of those
Truths revealed in Scripture and Tradition that
pertain to our eternal salvation
Truth does not contradict Truth!
For example, one could never say There is a
God and There is no God The statements
contradict each other. Logic dictates that it is
either one or the other, but not both at the same
time.
The same thing holds true for Scripture. God has
revealed Truth Truth cannot contradict itself.
Revelation interpreted through Scripture must
support Revelation interpreted through Tradition
and visa versa.
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John 1030
The Father and I are One
The interpretation of Scripture must cohere with
other things believed by faith.
The Church proclaims that there are three
distinct persons in the Trinity the Father, the
Son and the Holy Spirit.
These three distinct persons, however, are all
made of the same divine substancethey are all
God.
In this verse, one can see both the distinction
and the unity believed in the doctrine of the
Trinity. It agrees with and supports the analogy
of faith.
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Because Scripture is the inspired Word of God, we
can interpret two senses as we read to understand
more fully what God has revealed.
1. The Literal Sense
This sense involves reading the text very
carefully to understand exactly what is being
said.
Read Ex 1426-31
Literally, the Scripture is telling the story of
how the Israelites crossed the Red Sea and how
the Egyptians were drowned when they tried to
cross.
All other senses of Sacred Scripture are based on
the literal!!!
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2. The Spiritual Sense
Thanks to the unity of Gods plan, not only the
text of Scripture but also the realities and
events about which it speaks can be signs.
A sign is something that points to something else.
St. Augustine uses the example of smoke and
fireone points to the other.
Three distinctions can be made within the
Spiritual Sense
a. The Allegorical Sense
b. The Tropological or Moral Sense
c. The Anagogical Sense
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A. The Allegorical Sense
When we read Scripture in the allegorical sense,
we see that the events that occur in the stories
of Scripture have a greater significance when
seen in light of the story of Christ.
Example The Israelites crossing the Red Sea to
be delivered from slavery in Egypt is a sign or
type of the Christians Baptism and conformation
to Christ as they are freed from slavery to sin.
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B. The Tropological/ Moral Sense
When we read Scripture in the tropological sense,
we see that the events that occur in the stories
of Scripture teach us to live justly.
Scripture is meant for our instruction and
spiritual transformation of the soul. The words
reveal lessons that teach us how to act in
accordance with Gods will.
Example Ps 61
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C. The Anagogical Sense
When we read Scripture in the anagogical sense,
we see the events in terms of their eternal
significance, leading us to Heaven.
Example
I will put enmity between you and the woman,
between your offspring and hers. Genesis 315
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Putting it all together
Context This verse is part of the curse God
gives the snake after the fall of man.
Literally, God is speaking to the serpent, Adam
and Eve.
Spiritually under the category of the anagogical
sense, we can see a reference to the end of time
when evil will ultimately be conquered.
Read as part of the whole of Scripture and within
the living Tradition of the Church, we can see
that this could be interpreted as a reference to
Mary being born without original sin and to
Jesus victory over sin and death.
For centuries, the Magisterium has interpreted
this as the Protoevangelium or the first Gospel.
Even in the moments following the fall, God was
beginning to reveal His plan for mans salvation!
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Exegesis
Catholic exegesis is the careful study of
Scripture according to these rules of
interpretation.
Exegetes attempt to delve deeper into the Sacred
Deposit of Faith entrusted to us by Christ.
That is why the Bishops say that study of Sacred
Scripture is the very Soul of Theology.