The Implications of the Divine Inspiration of the Bible in the Teachings of the Church
The Implications of the Divine Inspiration of the Bible in the Teachings of the Church
Introduction
The Holy Bible is obviously not like any other book one can pick up and read. The Bible is God’s word. Hence, scholars of different ages use the term “inspiration” to explain God’s intervention and role in the writing of the Bible. This term “inspiration” is from the Latin, “inspirare” – meaning ‘to breathe into’, ‘to inspire’, ‘ to excite’, ‘to inflame’. Thus, the Holy Mother Church has some teachings on the Divine inspiration of the Bible. It is therefore the task of this reflection to examine these teachings and deduce their implications.
The Teachings of the Church on the Divine inspiration of the Bible
The teachings of the Church on Divine inspiration of the Bible are seen in the Chapter Three of Vatican II’s Dogmatic Constitution on Divine Revelation (Dei Verbum, Nov. 18, 1965). The Church teaches in this document that the divinely revealed realities that are contained in the Sacred Scripture have been committed to writing under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. Thus, relying on the belief of the Apostles, the Church holds the books of the Old and New Testament in their entirety, with all their parts as sacred and canonical because written under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, they have God as their author. Again, the Church maintains that in composing the sacred books of the Bible, God chose men who made use of their powers and abilities, so that with God acting in them and through them, they, as true authors, consigned to writing everything and only those things which he wanted.
The Implications of the Church’s Teachings on Divine Inspiration of the Bible
In the light of the Church’s teachings on Inspiration, one observes that in the Holy Scripture or Bible, the Old and New Testament are placed on the same status as far as Divine inspiration of both is concerned. It is also necessary to recognize that the Bible has both the
Introduction
The Holy Bible is obviously not like any other book one can pick up and read. The Bible is God’s word. Hence, scholars of different ages use the term “inspiration” to explain God’s intervention and role in the writing of the Bible. This term “inspiration” is from the Latin, “inspirare” – meaning ‘to breathe into’, ‘to inspire’, ‘ to excite’, ‘to inflame’. Thus, the Holy Mother Church has some teachings on the Divine inspiration of the Bible. It is therefore the task of this reflection to examine these teachings and deduce their implications.
The Teachings of the Church on the Divine inspiration of the Bible
The teachings of the Church on Divine inspiration of the Bible are seen in the Chapter Three of Vatican II’s Dogmatic Constitution on Divine Revelation (Dei Verbum, Nov. 18, 1965). The Church teaches in this document that the divinely revealed realities that are contained in the Sacred Scripture have been committed to writing under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. Thus, relying on the belief of the Apostles, the Church holds the books of the Old and New Testament in their entirety, with all their parts as sacred and canonical because written under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, they have God as their author. Again, the Church maintains that in composing the sacred books of the Bible, God chose men who made use of their powers and abilities, so that with God acting in them and through them, they, as true authors, consigned to writing everything and only those things which he wanted.
The Implications of the Church’s Teachings on Divine Inspiration of the Bible
In the light of the Church’s teachings on Inspiration, one observes that in the Holy Scripture or Bible, the Old and New Testament are placed on the same status as far as Divine inspiration of both is concerned. It is also necessary to recognize that the Bible has both the