Apologetic Tracks The Bible: Many Interpretations?
The Bible: Many interpretations?
As
Catholics we believe that the Bible is the Revealed Word of God. We believe
that God chose human authors to convey his revealed word, first by word of
mouth then in writing. These human
authors, inspired by the Holy Spirit, conveyed the revelation of God in human
terms, using stories, parables, images, and literary styles that would best
convey the revealed message. What the
reader must do is identify the human expressions which may or may not be true
and the revealed word of God which is always true.
To
begin, we must realize that Jesus established the Church first on Pentecost
Sunday, before the revealed Word of God was complete. To this body of believers he promised and
sent the Holy Spirit who would reveal the truth of the Word of God.
Jesus
said to the Apostles at the Last Supper: “But I tell you the truth, it is
better for you that I go. For if I do
not go, the Advocate will not come to you.
But if I go, I will send him to you….
I have much more to tell you, but you cannot bear it now. But when he comes, the Spirit of truth, he
will guide you to all truth. He will not
speak on his own, but he will speak what he hears, and will declare to you the
things that are coming. He will glorify
me, because he will take from what is mine and declare it to you. Everything
that the Father has is mine; for this reason I told you that he will take from
what is mine and declare it to you.” (Jn 16:7, 12-15)
It is
this Church which continued every first day of the week to read the Word of God
from the Law and the Prophets as well as proclaimed in word the Gospel of Jesus
and write letters, providing teachings.
In time the verbal Gospel was written down.
Since
there were many alleged writings claiming to be the Word of God, the Church
decided under the guidance of the Holy Spirit to discern and determine what was
the authentic Word of God and what were pious writings. Thus the Bible, as we know it today, came
into being from the compilation of the many scrolls, letters and books
circulating among the various Christian communities. This index of books was ratified by the Pope
and the Bishops of the Church, the authority established by Christ.
Now the
next question deals with the interpretation of
the revealed Word of God. One of
the criticisms leveled against the Catholic Church by some is that the Church
at one time forbade people from reading the Bible. The reality was that many people could not
read and therefore only those instructed were the ones who read and interpreted
the Scriptures. Then when this was no longer a problem, another issue became
evident, namely, private interpretation of the Word of God from texts that were
not accurate and themselves translated and interpreted with a bias.
Maybe the best way to approach this problem of interpretation is to briefly talk about the three levels of interpretation: a) the literal sense, b) the fuller sense, c) the typical sense.
The
literal sense is the most basic. It is
the intended meaning which the human author directly wished to convey through
his words. In the words of the Catechism
of the Catholic Church: “The literal sense is the meaning conveyed by the
words of Scripture and discovered by exegesis, following the rules of sound
interpretation: ‘All other senses of Sacred Scripture are based on the
literal.’”(CCC 116)
This is
different from a fundamentalist or interpretation which looks only at the word
and not its context, independently from what the author may have intended. What
did the author mean when he wrote under inspiration? For example, when Jesus spoke about the Bread
from Heaven in the sixth chapter of John, what did he mean when he said he
would give us his body to eat and his blood to drink? Was he talking symbolically or literally? When some of his disciples found this hard to
believe, did Jesus try to explain what he meant or was his statement clear as
is? At the Last Supper when Jesus said: “Take and eat. This is my Body…Take and
drink, this is my Blood”, did he explain what he meant? Or were they to take it literally? Is this in conformity with the rest of the
Scriptures?
The second level of
interpretation is the fuller sense, namely, the deeper meaning intended by God
over and beyond what the human author may have intended.
In the
Old Testament, the prophets revealed that God would send a Messiah to deliver
the Chosen People from their bondage. This future person, who would be a
descendant of David, would restore the Kingdom to its former glory. All these prophesies were fulfilled in the
person of Jesus Christ, the Son of God incarnate as the Son of Man. The fuller sense of the prophesies was what
God, as author, intended, even though at the time the prophets and those who
heard and read them had a limited understanding.
It is
the Church, reflecting on the Word of God, which brings to light the fuller
meaning of those prophesies, under the guidance of the Holy Spirit.
Finally,
there is the third form of interpretation, namely, the typical sense. Paul
refers to this in the fifth chapter of Romans, among other places. “But death
reigned from Adam to Moses, even over those who did not sin after the pattern
of the trespass of Adam, who is the type of the one who was to come.” (Rom 5:14) Adam is a type or
foreshadowing of Jesus, the second Adam.
Going back to what Jesus said about the gift of his Body and Blood to
eat and drink. He began the dialogue
between himself and those who had experienced the miracle of the multiplication
of the loaves and the fish by challenging the people to the greater sign to
come: “Do not work for food that perishes but for the food that endures for
eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you. For on him the Father, God, has set his
seal”…(They responded).”Our ancestors ate manna in the desert, as it is
written: ‘He gave them bread from heaven to eat.’” Jesus said to them, “Amen, amen, I say to
you, it was not Moses who gave the bread from heaven; my Father gives you the
true bread from heaven. For the bread of
God is that which comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.” So they said to him, “Sir, give us this bread
always.” Jesus said to them, “I am the
bread of life; whoever comes to me will never hunger, and whoever believes in
me will never thirst.” (Jn 6: 27,31-35)
Jesus
was saying that the Manna in the desert was a type of the true food God will
give, namely, the Body and Blood of Jesus, which Jesus promised here and
fulfilled at the Last Supper.
Likewise,
the Passover meal was a type of the true Passover sacrifice and meal Jesus
offered and established at the Last Supper and on the cross.
The
problem with the interpretation of Scripture is who has ultimate authority to
give the ultimate and final understanding of the Word of God? Without such an authority, there is a risk
that the Word of God could be misinterpreted, as has occurred over the
centuries. (How else can we explain the multiplication of various Christian
Churches professing Jesus, but disagreeing on other fundamental beliefs?)
Though a
person may privately interpret the Scriptures, it must be submitted to the
authority of the Church, who alone has been guaranteed by Christ to speak with
authority. “He who hears you, hears me.”
“And so
I say to you, you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church, and the
gates of the netherworld shall not prevail against it. I will give you the keys
to the kingdom of heaven. Whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven;
and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.”
(Mt
16:18-19)
God in
his infinite wisdom foresaw this and provided for it through the gift of the
Holy Spirit to the Church.
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