Ask deacon mike

I recently found myself addressing the same question to two different groups. Each group was discussing the Bible and asking questions which dealt with the interpretation of the Sacred Scriptures. As I thought about my responses to each group I began to think that these are issues that most Catholics probably wonder about. So, I would like to use this opportunity to address how we should interpret the Bible.

There are several basic facts that we should never loose sight of when we read the Bible and try to find meaning in its words. 1) Every word of scripture is divinely inspired. The Church emphatically teaches that the writers of the stories, poems, histories, biographies and other writings were inspired by the Holy Spirit. 2) The contents of the Bible cover various writing styles over a period of thousands of years. In fact nearly all of the contents of the Bible evolved from oral traditions that were handed down from one generation to the next over many hundreds, even thousands, of years.

Now, having said that we need to look at how we should interpret the contents of the Bible. Should we take every word literally? Are we free to place our own personal judgments and opinions into what we read? How do we know what we should believe? These are just some of the questions that naturally come to anyone who seriously takes the time to become acquainted with the Sacred Scriptures.

When we sit down to study the Bible, on our own or in a group, we must always do so in a spirit of prayer. We are spending time with the Word of God and therefore we should open our hearts and minds and souls to God’s Spirit so that we can willingly and clearly experience a dialogue with God. God speaks to us in many ways. The Bible is one of the most important means available to us to understand what God wishes to reveal to us.

There are many stories in the Bible that convey certain ideas and principals. The very first book of the Old Testament is one of these. Genesis tells the story of how God created the world and its inhabitants. In fact there are two creation accounts in Genesis. The purpose of these accounts is not to give a list of names or activities. The purpose is to show that God is such a loving Being that He wanted to share His existence with all of us. Was there an apple or a garden? Was the woman’s name really Eve? Did the snake really speak? How do we know? As I said earlier these were stories that were told over and over from one generation to the next for a long time before they were ever written down for posterity. But we should not get hung up with the accuracy of the “facts”. To do so limits in our minds the workings of God. What we need to take from the story is the fact that God created all things. Evil exists along with good and evil always tries to overcome and eliminate all that is good. But through the loving power of God we can overcome evil.

It is the role of the Church to help us understand what God has revealed to us about Himself. We are not free to place our own interpretations on scripture. We must always look to the Church for guidance. For each of us to interpret the Truth to our own liking does not make our interpretations the Truth the actual Truth. Only God determines what Truth is. When Jesus promised to be with us always He gave the Church the power to guide us in His name. While there is only one Truth, there is of course innumerable ways that the Truth can work in humankind.

It is obvious to anyone who takes the time to look at these things that there is a great desire among the faithful to grow closer to God through His Holy Word. The Church supports this movement. Keep in mind that all of our liturgies always contain an element of Scripture. But it is also our personal responsibility to study Scripture. If you have the opportunity, please take advantage of the numerous Bible studies sponsored by the parish.

As always, if you have questions about anything related to the Church please let me know. You can send me a note in several ways: 1) place it in the collection basket at Mass on Sunday, 2) send it to the rectory to my attention or 3) send me an e-mail at deaconmikefranks@comcast.net. God bless you and remember that I love you all.

Deacon Mike Franks