Research Paper on "Interpretation of the Bible in Roman Catholic Theology"

Research Paper 7 pages (2201 words) Sources: 10

[EXCERPT] . . . .

Bible in Roman Catholic Theology

Interpretations of the Bible in Roman Catholic Theology

There is much controversy regarding the Roman Catholic Church and its relationship with the Bible. Roman Catholic scholars expressed their support toward liberal interpretations of the text, but most of them influenced the masses in accepting interpretations that did not go against Roman Catholic principles. The Roman Catholic community has always been inclined to interpret the Bible from a biased point-of-view, with some of the more recent interpretations being less subjective. Roman Catholic theology provided the world with important information regarding one of the most logical interpretations of the Bible, even with the fact that some of the first versions produced by Roman Catholicism put across obvious prejudice.

In trying to come up with a reasonable understanding relating to how Roman Catholic theology attempted to interpret the Bible, one would have to observe the contradictions between Roman Catholics and Protestants. Roman Catholics were generally reluctant to accept innovative views regarding the Bible, mostly because they went against their traditions by doing so. "The Council of Trent had said that the truth of the gospel which Christ himself had proclaimed and commanded the apostles to preach to every creature was contained in written books and unwritten traditions" (Oberman and O'Hanlon 1961, 35). Roman Catholic theology thus accepts the concept that the Church can also promote convictions that are not obvious in the Bible. There were, however, a series of individuals who could not agree to the fact that evangelical truth could be found in places other than the Bible. These people claimed that tradition was nothing else but mixed interpretations of the Bible.

Anytime that the Roman Catholic Church was threatened by liberal movements rising around the world, the institution's leaders went through great efforts to suppress these groups and to prevent any situation that could put to risk the Roman Catholic community as a whole. There was, of course, a great deal of individuals who attempted to introduce liberalism to Roman Catholic theology. However, these people encountered strong resistance in their endeavor. "As Pius X pointed out in Pascendi, the plans of modernists were checked by three things: the scholastic philosophy, the authority of the fathers and tradition, and the authority of the church" (Grant 1948, 142). Important changes experienced by society through time had a limited effect on Roman Catholic thought, given that members of the Church did their best to maintain their convictions.

During the interaction between religion and modernism, many Roman Catholics abandoned the church in favor of rationalism, considering that they discovered how a series of elements present in the Bible were nothing more than imagined tales. In seeing that the Bible needed to be interpreted in accordance with rational concepts, some people actually believed "that a compromise between Catholicism and biblical criticism would be possible" (Grant 1948, 144). Modernism was a movement that contained a series of important concepts when regarding its ability to contradict many Roman Catholic interpretations of the Bible. However, the movement had little to no success in doing so because Roman Catholic theology had already experienced reform several centuries earlier; with the purpose of preparing the church for the attacks it was expected to experience.

The people who got actively engaged in fighting Roman Catholic interpretations of the Bible motivated their behavior through claiming that the Roman Catholic Church altered passages in the scripture with the purpose of strengthening its position in the Christian world. They insisted that the Church did not have the power to produce a "true meaning" of the Bible and that in spite of its source of inspiration, the document was not freed from containing errors. Critics and theologians apparently have different views concerning religion, with the former focusing on coming up with a rational history of Christianity while the latter are dedicated to supporting tradition.

Many concepts present in today's society did not originate in recent centuries, as most prefer to believe. The Bible contains many elements that guide people through their lives in the present, making it difficult for critics to contradict certain passages from the text. "In Roman Catholicism the notion of man's stewardship over nature has for long accompanied the ideology of Christian fellowship and the consequent condemnation of the exploitation of the poor by those who are powerful" (Binde 2001). Roman Catholics theologians initially failed in providing the public with an accurate account relating to Biblical exegesis primarily because they were reluctant to accept any form of outside assistance (namely that produced by philosophers and scientists). Some of the present day Roman Catholic theologians are convinced that one of the best methods of bringing together interpretations of the scripture and level-headedness would be to respect thoughts produced by the Church as well as convictions that originate from secular sources.

Even though it would seem absurd to understand particular passages in the Bible literally, some Roman Catholic theologians did this and even more-they amplified the message that the text's writers wanted to transmit. The Roman Catholic world between 1750 and 1950 was severely influenced as a result of Richard Challoner's interpretation of the document. The English theologian stated that many of the customs in modern Roman Catholicism were inspired from the Bible, given that the document served as a guide to people everywhere, influencing them in leading a healthy and religious life. In spite of his character, Challoner could not escape the prejudice he inherited from reading the Bible and Roman Catholic interpretations of the document.

Marriage and divorce were only supported by Roman Catholic theologians if they occurred in a strict order and if they were in accordance with principles promoted by Roman Catholic Biblical interpretations. Roman Catholic theologians were determined to support any concepts they found in the Bible and to take away any responsibility from certain Biblical individuals who sinned (biblical heroes), claiming that they only did so because God wanted it.

There are numerous accounts in the Bible pointing toward the belief that some biblical heroes were wrong in doing certain tasks. These individuals are however excused from any responsibility because it had been God's desire to have them commit immoral acts. Even in the case involving Noah getting drunk, Roman Catholic theologians consider the biblical character to be innocent, claiming that he was not acquainted with the risks accompanying drinking and thus did not know the consequences of such an act. Sadly, many Catholics committed immoral acts simply because they believed that it was normal for them to do so, with Biblical characters going through similar situations and being relieved of any accountability for their actions.

The Roman Catholic interpretation of the Bible was shaped in the recent centuries in accordance with the success experienced by Protestants, considering that Roman Catholic theologians were determined to have the world express a more sympathetic position regarding Christianity and Roman Catholicism. Roman Catholics thus came to adopt concepts previously condemned by their church, with the purpose of showing the general public that Roman Catholicism was something it could actually gain benefits from, and that the religious movement was not just a collection of absurd laws supported by no actual rational regulation.

"The law of Bible development appears to require that the individual work, which always comes first, shall be reviewed and revised, re-reviewed and re-revised as knowledge and standards of scholarship advance, the constant effort being to more nearly comprehend and rightly express the divine message to the generations of men as they come and go" (Firth 1911, 12). In trying to produce a good interpretation of the bible, one has to employ a great deal of determination in analyzing previous interpretations, the actual document, and rationality-that can explain many passages from the text.

Many individuals have detached themselves from the Church consequent to getting actively engaged in restructuring its interpretations of the Bible. Most of them could no longer support concepts promoted by Roman Catholicism concomitantly with supporting their own convictions. The Roman Catholic Church considered that most of the individuals who tried to come up with new interpretations of the Bible were heretics and that they should not be accepted as true Roman Catholics. The exceptions were those who produced interpretations that favored Roman Catholicism.

Roman Catholic interpretations of the Bible can be considered to be traditional, whereas Protestant interpretations are innovative. People have typically had difficulties in differentiating between theological and historical interpretations of the Bible. Modernists were dedicated to find a correlation between true historical facts and the Bible, considering that it would be easier and more professional to interpret the document from such a perspective. In spite of their early success, modernists did not manage to overthrow traditional interpretations of the Bible.

Roman Catholics have experienced great progress in interpreting the Bible in the last few decades. "Biblical archaeology, papyrology, the discovery of more manuscripts, the study of ancient interpretation, and of ancient literary and oral style -- each has made its contribution. But each has still more to give. The… READ MORE

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