7 keys to interpret the Bible within the Catholic tradition, and light up your soul
Key 1: The Bible is a collection of inspired books.
It is an inspired book, meaning that God is present, and is its primary author, using human writers to reveal Himself. God worked in them, and through them, as true authors, who put into writing everything and only what God wanted.
Key 2: Read the Bible from the standpoint of faith.
You can approach the Bible as a linguist or a psychologist. But for faith to grow with the Bible, one must read it “from within the Church,” as a believer. God lovingly goes out to meet His children to speak to them. Therefore, a true understanding is necessary lest we make God say what we want to hear or what is not His Will.
Key 3: The Bible does not exhaust God's Revelation.
The Catholic Church teaches that God "willed to reveal himself and to make known the mystery of his Will." Thus, this Word revealed to the believer must be in harmony with the oral tradition of the Church, and the written witness of her Sacred Scripture.
Key 4: The Word of God is not just the Bible.
"We know that the Word of God is contained in the Bible, handed down by Tradition, and interpreted by the Church’s Magisterium," not only in the written biblical text but in what the Church lives.
Key 5: The Bible is the inspired, written record of God's salvation in history.
The human authors of the Old and New Testaments, inspired by God, tell stories with a recurring theme: that God loves and saves His people. "All these words were written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and believing you may have life through His name.
Key 6: The Bible is a unity.
The Old Testament and the New Testament go together and seek the same thing, to tell the same story of love and salvation. Both parts of the Bible are connected.
Key 7: The Old Testament must be read through Jesus Christ.
Jesus was an authentic son of Israel, deeply rooted in the long history of his people. When he began to preach and teach, he made abundant use of the treasure of Scripture, enriching it with new inspirations and unexpected initiatives. These were not intended to abolish the ancient revelation, but to bring it to its perfect fulfillment.
It is impossible to enter the university of Jesus without passing through the school of the Old Testament.
The Bible should be integrated into your daily prayer routine; it is a way of listening to God and knowing His Will.
As St. Jerome said, "To be ignorant of Scripture is to be ignorant of Christ. And he who knows Christ falls in love with him".
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