THE WORD OF GOD IN THE LIFE OF THE CHURCH – SCRIPTURE, THE EUCHARIST, AND WHO HAS AUTHORITY TO INTERPRET
Throughout this study, we are reading Dei Verbum carefully in continuity with Sacred Scripture, Sacred Tradition, and the perennial teaching of the Catholic Church – considering both what the text says and how it must be understood within the Faith handed down through the centuries.
Today, in Day Thirteen, we begin the sixth and final chapter of Dei Verbum, “Sacred Scripture in the Life of the Church,” with sections 21, 22 and 23.
We have traveled a considerable distance to arrive here.
The Council has spoken about Revelation, Sacred Tradition and Sacred Scripture, inspiration and interpretation, the Old Testament, the New Testament, and the four Gospels. Now it turns to a profoundly practical question:
What place should Sacred Scripture have in the actual life of the Church – and in our own lives as Catholics?
Section 21 gives a beautiful answer. In the sacred books, our heavenly Father lovingly comes to meet His children and speaks with them. The Word of God strengthens faith, nourishes the soul, and gives spiritual life.
But these sections also raise important questions that deserve careful Catholic distinctions.
What does the Church mean when it says that the Church venerates Sacred Scripture “just as she venerates the body of the Lord”? How do we preserve the profound relationship between Scripture and the Eucharist without obscuring the unique reality of Christ’s substantial presence in the Blessed Sacrament?
When the Council calls for “easy access” to Scripture, what safeguards ensure that reading the Bible does not become private interpretation separated from Sacred Tradition and the teaching authority of the Church?
And when Catholic biblical scholars are encouraged to explore the Scriptures more deeply, what does it mean that their work must remain “under the watchful care of the sacred teaching office of the Church”?
These questions take us directly into the heart of Day Thirteen.
We will look not only at what Dei Verbum teaches, but also at what came before the Council, the insights of Pope Benedict XVI, and what happened in Catholic biblical life afterward. Once again, we will distinguish carefully between the actual words of the Council and what would later sometimes be attributed to the so-called “spirit of Vatican II.”
And yet, beneath all of these theological questions lies something wonderfully simple: God has spoken.
The Father still comes lovingly to meet His children in the pages of Sacred Scripture. The question for each of us is whether we will listen.
Use the button below to access Day Thirteen of our “14 Days Through Dei Verbum” study.
If you have missed any of the previous readings, you can find them under the “Writings” tab on our website.
On Day Fourteen, we will conclude our 14-day journey through Dei Verbum with sections 24, 25 and 26 – the final words of the Council on Sacred Scripture, theology, preaching, prayer, and the responsibility of the faithful to immerse themselves in the Word of God.
May we learn to receive Sacred Scripture as the Church has always received it – with reverence, within Sacred Tradition, under the guidance of the Church, and always leading us more deeply to Jesus Christ.
