Biblical Interpretation

Since the Reformation, opinions have differed on how the Bible is to be correctly interpreted. Some Christians believe every word or phrase should be interpreted literally, others feel that faithful interpretation (sometimes literal, sometimes not) is the best way to go. Catholics (along with all Christians) believe that God was the Author of the Sacred Scripture, and so the Bible is viewed as the Word of God. Unlike Protestants, Catholics view the Bible as the written Word of God and Sacred Tradition as the unwritten Word of God. Catholicism uses that second half of the equation to help it interpret the biblical text. Catholics view the Bible as the inspired, revealed work of God, but also see it as a collection of sacred literature. Catholicism does not view the Bible as one big story, but as a collection of smaller books in an overall volume. It is seen as the Word of God, but recorded by man.

The Bible teaches about the history of salvation, but it is not merely a history book. It contains the Psalms of David (songs that King David wrote to honor God around the year 1000 BC), but it is also more than a hymnal. It contains poetry, history, theology, analogy, hyperbole, metaphors, prose, and on and on. Because the Bible is not purely one form of literature, one needs to be aware of the various literary forms that the Bible takes in order to be able to interpret it properly. For example, Jesus says in the Gospel, "If your hand causes you to sin, cut it off." The Catholic Church believes this to be a figure of speech rather than something that should be done literally. However, there are some cultures that will chop off the hands of thieves.

At the same time, Catholics literally interpret the passage of John 6:55 "For my flesh is real food and my blood is real drink." Since individual readings would inevitably lead to disagreement over the correct meaning of biblical text, Catholicism uses the final authority of the Magisterium (the teaching authority of the pope and bishops) in order to properly instruct the faithful.

Catholics believe that a central reason for Jesus's creation of the Church was to act as an institution to protect God's revelations by authentically interpreting biblical text. Sacred Scripture and Sacred Tradition should not be viewed as an either/or concept, the two are seen as being mutually correct. If the Bible is silent on an issue, or if the wording is ambiguous or vague (a frequent problem in the Bible), then Sacred Tradition steps in to fill in the gaps. Those who attack the Catholic Church on these matters should understand that Catholics don't view their Church as superior to the Bible, but see it as behaving like a steward and protector of the Scripture. The Church assumed the role of authentic interpreter not through its own doing, but by the authority given to it by Jesus's instructions: "He who hears you, hears me" (Luke 10:16) and "whatever you bind in Earth shall be bound in heaven" (Matthew 18:18). The Church views itself as an authentic interpreter on issues that are not explicitly addressed in Sacred Scripture, but only because it believes Christ gave it that power.