In Principio...

New Advent provided the link to this intriguing essay on the exegesis of Genesis 1 by Fr. Jaki at the Homeletic & Pastoral Review website.

I found Father's comment on creation as being ordered like a big Jewish tent or tabernacle very interesting & worthy of much more consideration. His comment on the the Exile & the contrast between the Jewish cosmological view & that of the pagan nations seems to me to be the fundamental key to gleaning understanding from Genesis 1.

The Holy Father, Pope Benedict XVI, seems to agree. As Cardinal Ratzinger, he wrote a book called In the Beginning, in which he makes heavy reference to this contrast of cultural world views as the canvas on which the Jewish epic of creation is painted. Soon, I will give a review of this brief, but dense book. It will also be interesting to see what comes from the recent ecumenical gathering in Rome (I believe) to study & discuss Genesis.

However, I am a bit befuddled by this bit of the concluding paragraph, almost certainly because I haven't taken the time to re-read the article & given the appropriate thought that serious writing requires. Nevertheless...

"No theological defense of the strict createdness of all can, however, be made without a defense of Genesis 1. It should not be defended under any circumstances as a cosmogenesis, with any reference, indirect as it may be, to science. Its genuinely biblical meaning can, however, be fully defended by that reason whereby, as Genesis I tells us, man is created in the image of Almighty God."

Now, I thought the point Fr. Jaki was making was to invoke "logike latreia," to find the harmony of the truth of Scripture (which comes from the hand of God) with the truth of the observed universe (which comes from the hand of God), though obviously not to explain the scientifically observed universe specifically by means of the scriptural texts. Still, at some level, the two truths have to coincide with or compliment one another, as they both come from the author of Truth. So the specific comment proscribing any reference to science in interpreting the passage seems oddly limiting of something that inherently defies limitation.

...

With some hesistation, I mention Fr. Jaki's observation that Creationists - those who believe in a literalistic, day-bay-day account of creation - inadvertently drive people away from the faith to which they desire to bring them. People may not know about particle physics or cosmic background radiation, but people do know that if physicists & cosmologists are wrong about matter & its behavior, then their computers, wristwatches, microwaves, nuclear power (& bombs) & cell phones wouldn't work either. The same science that indicates a universe 14 billion years old simply cannot be dismissed out of hand. One discredits himself on the spot to demand that either an error of the magnitude 6,000 versus 14,000,000,000,000 has been commited or that there is a universal conspiracy among all members of techincal professions & institutions.

...

I hesitate to mention it, because I know there are many tremendously committed Christians out there who love Scripture, love Christ, & want to share that love with the world. Unfortunately, in rejecting the Church & its guarding Magesterium, they are left to their own devices to find meaning in Scripture. To prevent being totally lost in a sea of opinions, no one of which can have any greater claim to validity than the other without the Spirit-guided Magisterium, they opt for no opinion & simply shut off their brains, taking a word-for-word approach that leaves them standing on the sidelines of the eternal quest for man to come to greater understanding of himself, his world, & his God. They keep the Word of God incarcerated in the words.

Finally, I find it curiously gratifying that everyone who approaches these texts seems to recognize that the Truth is there, but no one has been able to solve the mystery. I've always thought that God will not allow himself to be figured out. Since their inception, man has seen within these text a key to grasping the fundamental meaning of all the exists, including himself. However, it lingers just barely out of reach. Not ever the Bride of Christ, the Church, can claim to fully grasp the meaning. She can only give an approving nod to those interpretations that are in accord with the truth that she knows, loves, & holds deep in her being, but cannot articulate.

The Tradition of Scripture

I'd wager the average Evangelical Protestant knows the content of his or her Bible far, far better than do John or Mary Catholic. Why is this (the former), & why is this (the latter)?

Well, from my Catholic point of view, besides general acceptance of the doctrine of the Trinity espoused in the Apostle's Creed, the biggest piece of vestigae ecclesia that Protestants retain is the Scriptures, or rather, some of the Scriptures. Unfortunately, Jesus did not establish a list of writings to ensure his teaching abides among his followers, but he did establish a Church. This Church, then, accepted what had been handed on to them in the way of sacred writings of the Old Covenant, & proceeded to write additional material & collect various apostolic letters to form the sacred writings of the New Covenant.

Why I am I writing this? Well, it's vitally important to know & understand that 1) the Church preached the Gospel & established churches throughout the Near East & the Mediterranean basin long before any New Testament writings were penned, & 2) the New Testament writings were written by the Church for the Church.

Taken these 2 ideas together, we can say that the Bible contains the Gospel, but the Gospel is not wholly contained in or constrained by the Bible. It is a part of what was handed on "either by word or by letter." You may know that "to hand on" in Latin is "tradere", from which we have the word "tradition". It also means that the apostolic preachers & their successors passed on everything they had received, some of which they later found useful to put into written form. Being from the start a missionary faith, Christians prefered the small-format codex to keep the Scriptures portable, rather than the large scrolls that resided in synagogues. It also fit the nature of their somewhat secretive character in the early days, especially when persecutions were rampant.

My point is that the fullness of the Faith resides in sacred Tradition, received from Christ by the Apostles & handed on to their successors. Sadly, in rejecting Holy Mother Church, Protestants have sawn off the branch on which they sit from the tree. While I do not doubt their zeal, sincerity, or even their desire for truth & love for the Lord, what I do doubt is any particular interpretation of any particular group or person, & the doctrinal & ministerial positions that arise from them. Protestants cling to the letter of Scripture, repeating & memorizing, but without any way of knowing whether an interpretation is valid or inspired, or if it is simply human. To paraphrase then-Cardinal Ratzinger, we must not imprison the Word of God in the text.

The Scriptures are fantastically varied & complex, as you would expect of a document assembled piece by piece by various groups over a period of about 1,300 years. Can anyone now really just pick up a Bible, read it cover to cover, & have a clear & full understanding of everything it contains? Well, I imagine such a person would gain a great deal, but more than likely, would come away with far more questions than answers. And what if more than one meaning arises, either in the same inquisitor or among different parties? Further, why would one believe anything written in the Bible if it had either no idea or a faulty idea of how the Scriptures came to be in the first place, what they were intended for.

The Church, in her divinely-guided wisdom, reserves to herself the judgment on what are appropriate interpretations of Scripture & which are not. Those holding the office of discernment don't do this arbitrarily according to their own wishes, but look deep into the Tradition - what the Fathers, Doctors, Councils, saints, popes, & theologians have proposed throughout the ages & what the Spirit of God may be whispering to the Church now. She reflects on her own practice of worship. She prays for the guidance of the Spirit that was promised her. Here she finds the meanings; everything else is just some man's opinion. It is only within the bosom of the Church that anyone can ever hope to find these truths of Scripture, as well. One cannot claim to know & love Christ whilst kicking his beloved bride in the teeth.

Still, the Church has always realized that Tradition lives. It works itself out in the life of the Church, in the lives of the faithful, & on the battlefields where souls are won & lost. She can never know the entirety of the meanings of Scripture, because as the Word of God, it is beyond the view permitted her by God. Still, she recognizes the Truth when she sees him, as surely as a bride knows her groom.

So, the Church continues to ponder the Scriptures & is continuously taught by her Lord. What she learns, she puts into practice. The Church feeds her faithful through both the Word & the sacraments, ultimately with the Body & Blood of the Lord Jesus himself in the Eucharist. Everything necessary for salvation is contained here. She is not hoarding the treasures of the Scriptures, but reveals them throughout the liturgy on behalf of the faithful. The Church knows the power of the Bible, & how easily human pride can twist its writings to one's own destruction & that of others. It is a not gift to be cheaply & carelessly strewn about, but lovingly & carefully revealed. This is why Catholics often do not know the Bible well, but can know the Faith very well. They hear vast swaths of the Scriptures proclaimed throughout their lifetimes in the Church's liturgy, with - God willing - faithful exposition of them by the Church's ministers leading them deeper into God's truth, leading them toward holiness & salvation.

Yes, individuals both laos & cleros may study the Scriptures & related topics to uncover amazing things - the Church strongly encourages this - but it can only be fruitfully done within the bosom of the Church, according its precepts & in its own time. I believe it was St. Pope Pius X that said that Catholics did not need to study the Bible, because everything needed for salvation was to found in the Church, though he added that it may be beneficial to do so. Nevertheless, it is an exercise of our baptismal office to ponder the Word of God in prayer in order to become more like him & to bring others to him, as well.

I sincerely hope that one day all faithful Catholics will well know the Scriptures & that our Protestant brothers will quit their protest & return to the arms of the Church, for ultimately in denying her, they only protest Christ himself. In order to guide the faithful in the right understanding of the Scriptures, the Pontifical Bible Commission periodically meets to inquire into some aspect of the Scriptures, often selecting topics that cut to the root of thorny issues that separate the Church from other Christian groups. The current topic is: Inspiration & Truth of the Bible. I look forward with great anticipation to the publishing of the findings.

The Higher Path

Generally, if I write or find an article about the Scriptures for my other blog, I will copy a link to it here, as well, rather than reproducting the whole thing. This is one of those times.

My post includes commentary & the link to an article at First Things (click here).

Leading Us Home

The entire message of Scripture might be summed up as this: The God who is love created us to bring us to a perfect union of love with him. I would argue that every other aspect of the Faith is somehow supportive of that underlying premise.

Thus, the Anagogical Sense of the Scriptures, that which leads us forward to our eternal homeland, is perhaps the most important point. The Allegorical Sense can lead to a reduction of God's revelation through the Scriptures & the history of the people of Israel to a mere intellectual exercise akin to "Biblical matching", such as, "Oh, Moses is like Jesus, Pharoah is like the devil, Miriam is like Mary, the Israelites are like the Church, the serpents that bit them are like sin, ..." These cranial gymnastics are interesting, but by themselves may become a distraction that isn't that helpful in moving one toward salvation.

Likewise, the Moral Sense alone could lead one to just try to be a good person, a mere human effort to earn God's favor through "being good." Well, my Pelagian friend, the problem is that salvation is a pure, unmerrited gift from God, which we gratefully accept.

So, you see, it's easy to get the whole Catholic system of Scripture study out of whack if first things aren't put first. The absolutely overriding desire of every human life should be this: to get to Heaven. Thus the Anagogical Sense helps us to get our Biblical priorities straight, and - to paraphrase a certain Cardinal Ratzinger - to keep from imprisoning the Word of God in the letters themselves.

Over at First Things, Mark Shea has another installment in his series about Catholic Scripture study called Coming to Our Senses, dealing specifically this time with the Anagogical Sense. God bless him for taking on this noble task.