I often receive questions about reading the scriptures, particularly when someone hears about a scripture scholar who has said that a certain book or passage is a “folktale” or is thought to be fiction. Here I’ll share with you an edited version of a recent exchange that I had with a parishioner who had been told that the book of Esther is fictional – or, at least, that parts if it are.
I fully understand that it can be particularly jarring to hear someone say that there is something, anything, that is “fiction” in the bible! How that can be possible when we also say that the bible is God’s word, and truth? First of all, it is pretty important to understand that different Christian denominations interpret the bible differently. Some see it as a literal, completely historical text, while others (like Catholics) see it as a collection of different writings that were inspired by God, but written using the literary styles of the day, and the skills and perspective of their human authors.
We believe that the divine inspiration of the scriptures was (and is) real, but that “inspiration” did not mean robotic dictation. Those denominations who believe in a fully robotic dictation of every word of scripture, and every word of the entire bible being historically true, are having to do a great deal of dismissal and suspension of rational thought. It is often new news to many people that all Christian denominations aren’t in agreement about this issue (and more), but Church teaching couldn’t be clearer. The Pontifical Biblical Commission (an official working group of the US bishops) say that anyone who tries to read everything in the bible as if it was written as a history book, is committing “intellectual suicide” (“The Interpretation of the Bible in the Church” USCC pub., 1994, pg. 19)
That’s strong language, but what it means is that we can’t take every word of the bible as history. If we did, we’d see that there are parts that contradict each other. -like, reading Genesis 1 and Genesis 2, for example. Those stories of creation are a bit different in content. Also Luke refers to Jesus’ “Sermon on the Plain” in Luke 6:20, whereas Matthew’s gospel refers to Jesus’ “Sermon on the Mount” in Matthew 5. Was the sermon on a mountain, or on a plain? Those little points aren’t of significance for readers who interpret the scriptures as the Church does. Understand, also, that we aren’t alone. There are many others who stand in agreement with us.
The Catholic Church has over 2,000 years of experience in reading and interpreting scripture in worship, and study. I truly believe that you can trust any sources that have the approval of the Catholic Church, and even some that come from other sources, if you have a very trained eye! Catholicism is a “thinking person’s” religion in that we don’t simply dismiss the things we don’t understand. We believe God is Truth. God is found in understanding. So much more can be said on this topic that I’ll spend a couple of weeks continuing the discussion. For now, I’ll say that scripture study can be a lifelong passion and quest. There is always more to learn, and reading it can, truly, change your life! …see you next week.