Views of scripture
Revelation
How does God reveal Godself?
How do we get a Bible from that?
Different views of biblical inspiration:
- Every word was dictated by God exactly as it appears in the Bible today
- God acts in history, humans tell stories in own words
- God inspired some parts, not secondary material
- God guided the complete process through many humans leading to end result –Catholic view
Does revelation still happen?
Inerrancy
Lack of error
Word for word?
- Catholic view: “The Word of God, expressed in the words of men”
Science? History?
- Catholic view: faith and morals necessary for salvation
- Reason
Scripture and Tradition
Protestant view: Sola Scriptura… clear and sufficient by itself
Catholic view: Scripture and Tradition are inseparable
What is meant by tradition?
- The Church
- Ideas worth passing down
- Community
Further reading: Daniel Harrington, “The Bible in Catholic Life”
(PDF)