ComVal pastors, priests converge for unity and peace
Published on December 13, 2009
Davao Today,August 19,2010
Davao City—In a show of full support, pastors, priests and religious leaders in Compostela Valley — regardless of religion — convened at the provincial capitol on the feast of the Immaculate Conception to share their valuable messages of unity and peace.
December 8 was declared by Gov. Arturo Uy, through an executive order, as an annual Provincial Thanksgiving Day interfaith assembly. This year’s theme is “Thanks be to God for His unspeakable gift” and was attended by well-respected religious leaders Bishop Wilfredo Manlapaz, Aleem Eliser Banac, Bro. Alejandro Aguspina, and Dr. David Magalong.
“We recognize the significant role of the church and the inter-faiths. They are our partners in promoting spiritual development and moral values towards good governance,” Uy said.
The provincial government recognizes the important and significant role of the church and the inter-faiths in the promotion of spiritual development and moral values towards good governance. As a result, a Provincial Spiritual Development and Moral Recovery Program (PSDMRP) was created and a council formed to draw up support and ensure the implementation of the program.
The activity is also in line with the implementation of Presidential Proclamation No. 62 “Declaring a Moral Recovery Program and Enjoining Active Participation of All Sectors in the Filipino Society.”
Councilor Paul Galicia, who is director for the program, said the PSDMRP has since maintained a pool of lecturers and preachers. Capitol employees have convocation programs, where they have monthly value-formation discussions facilitated by competent preachers.
The program has also spread down and replicated to the 11 municipalities in Comval. Activities such as bible sharing, regular prayer meetings and providing spiritual advisory services to employees and the public are already conducted.
“Sa Mabini, gitawag ang mga pastor, kaabag ug Imam. Maayo ang impact tungod kay wala naghatag ug gap sa mga Muslim ug Christian tungod sa ani nga program,” (In Mabini, pastors, kaabag and Imam are called. The program has a good impact because it does not create gap among Muslims and Christians) Muslim Mayor Hadji Amir Muñoz said.
“Daku kaayo ang ikatabang sa lungsod sa Pantukan sa MRP, kada Sabado aduna kitay ginatawag nga dawn prayer. Matag kadlawon ang mga pastor ug kapulisan nagapahigayun ug usa ka prayer para sa kaayuhan sa atong lungsod” (The Moral Recovery Program has helped Pantukan a lot. Every Saturday, we hold Dawn Prayer where early morning, pastors and the police hold prayer for our town), Pantukan Mayor JC Celso Sarenas said.
In the afternoon, the interfaith assembly had their physical fitness challenged in a friendly competition in various indoor and outdoor games such as table tennis, chess, scrabble, dart and basketball played between pastors and priests. (IDS ComVal)
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Compostela Valley’s 3rd Bulawan Festival now on its 3rd Day
Wednesday, 10 March 2010
Compostela Valley Province----- It’s the third day, March 5, 2010, of the weeklong celebration of the of 3rd Bulawan Festival and 12th Founding Anniversary of Compostela Valley. Gathered for an assembly, the province’s peacekeepers coming from the eleven (11) municipalities were delighted during the morning Program held at the Capitol’s Freedom Stage.
The Inspirational Talk delivered by Bro. Alejandro Aguspina, a Preacher based in Cebu City, served as an eye opener for the crowd as to the essence of unity in the family. They were empowered and alive to the stories of transformation that he shared.
Governor Arturo T. Uy thanked the peacekeepers for their presence. They play a great part on the success of the festival, he told them.
The audience were more excited when Sen. Vicente “Tito” C. Sotto, Cong. Rozzano Rufino “Ruffy” B. Biazon, and former Miss Universe Margie Moran-Florendo arrived to join the assembly. Ms. Florendo represents his cousin Hon. Manuel Roxas. Atty. Franklin M. Drilon who is also expected to come with them was not able to make it.
Former Miss Universe Margie Moran-Florendo read the message of Hon. Manuel Roxas for the Comvalenyos. In his turn, Hon. Ruffy Biazon said he finds ComVal a beautiful place, more so the people living on it. The introduction of Sen. Tito Sotto by the Bulawan Festival Action Officer, Hon. Maria Carmen Zamora-Apsay followed. Sen. Sotto recalled that 12 years ago he was the Chairman of the Committee of the Local Senate (10th Congress) and he was one of the authors of the creation of Compostela Valley Province.
The program was closed with a message given by SP Member Arvin Dexter M. Lopoz. The rest of the afternoon is scheduled for the release of the peacekeepers’ honorarium.
In the evening awaits a DepEd Cartoon Nitework where the teachers will perform on stage depicting cartoon characters like Snow White, Pocahontas, Anastasia, Lion King, Shrek, others. (grace almedilla/ ids comval)
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The Trumpet Newsletter
March 2010
Alliance of Filipino Catholic Charismatic Prayer Communities
"Welcome, 2010"
By Bob Canton, National Coordinator
Greetings to all of you in the
mighty Name of our Lord Jesus Christ.
As I'm writing this column, my heart is full of excitement and joy, realizing of this great privilege of sharing with you many great things that the Lord is doing for and with and through the AFCCPC.
The Year 2009 was indeed a great year for the AFCCPC. We have seen the establishments and also have discovered many brand new prayer groups and communities in North America. We also had the privilege to minister to them.
Our 15th National Convention which was held in Baltimore, MD. in June was a success in many aspects, in spite of some obstacles that we had to face such as the economic downturn in this country and elsewhere. Many who came to this Convention told us that by attending this gathering, they were blessed by the Lord beyond measures. Through this Convention, the Lord Jesus by the power of the Holy Spirit, has touched many lives, indeed. I have also witnessed the enthusiasm and greater zeal of many leaders in the Renewal, particularly in the AFCCPC, to continue to serve the Lord and the Church for His glory. This is truly very encouraging and inspiring.
I also perceived an emerging change of attitude among some leaders from, "their organization, the AFCCPC," to "our organization, the AFCCPC." It is my constant prayer to the Holy Spirit that this change of attitude will continue to spread, especially among the leaders, because the Lord has called us to unity, to be one body and one spirit in Christ Jesus. There were myriad of blessings that the Lord has showered us with but we cannot enumerate them all due to the limited space allocated for this column. However, I would like to mention that I also had the opportunities and the privilege to minister in Jesus Name in various countries in 2009.
For the first time, the Lord allowed us to conduct Healing Crusades in Indonesia where we ministered over 20,000 people in the cities of Jakarta, Bali, Semarang, and Galapa Gading. In November, the Lord also opened a door for us to preach, teach, and heal in the mighty name of Jesus in Dubai and Sharjah, United Arab Emirates. Thousands of people also came to our services in St. Mary's Church in Dubai and in St. Anthony's in Sharjah. I saw the people's hunger for the Lord in these Muslim countries. It is a humbling experience to witness signs and wonders, healings and miracles and transformation of hearts taking place right before our eyes.
Jesus is alive and the Holy Spirit is very active all over the world. Towards the end of 2009, I also went to the Philippines to speak and to conduct a Healing Rally during the Kerygma Conference in the Araneta Coliseum which was attended by approximately 12,000 people. That was my third trip to the Philippines in 2009. I was also privileged to meet and fellowship with the Catholic Charismatic Leaders and some Church dignitaries in those countries mentioned above. We praise God for His tremendous blessings for us and for the AFCCPC in the year 2009. "Welcome, 2010!" I really believe that this year we will witness and receive greater blessings and graces from our Heavenly Father. In fact, these blessings have already started to pour out into us. Many prayer groups and communities in many parts of the country are scheduling Life in the Spirit Seminars, Growth in the Spirit Seminars, Days of Renewal and Teachings, Retreats, Healing Rallies, Mini Conferences, and other works of evangelization. In his encyclical entitled Redemptoris Missio, Pope John Paul 11, states, "No believer in Christ, no institution of the Church can avoid this supreme duty: to proclaim Christ to all peoples."
The AFCCPC, in response to this teaching of the Church, has many evangelistic outreaches and activities that have already been lined up for this year. On March 19-21, 2010, the Rocky Mountain Region which is composed of Arizona, Nevada, New Mexico, Utah, Wyoming, Montana, Colorado, and Idaho, will conduct, for the first time in the AFCCPC history, a Regional Conference in Phoenix, AZ. The theme of the Conference is "Lord, Show Me Your Way," taken from Psalm 27:11. The invited speakers are Fr. Bill Halbing, Sr.Nancy Kellar, Val Kiamko, Alejandro Aguspina, and yours truly. Jojo Concepcion and Mayette Ravasco are the chairperson and asst. chairperson respectively of this Conference and they are assisted by a very able and very enthusiastic Planning Committee and by various prayer groups not only in the Phoenix area but also in many cities in Arizona. The venue of this Conference is the Marriott Phoenix Airport located at 1101 N. 44th St., Phoenix. Please register for this Conference right away. You don't want to miss this Conference which promises to very Spirit-filled and power-filled. There will also be a Youth track to be conducted on Saturday and Sunday, March 20-21, 2010, for 13-22 years of age.
Another anointed and power-packed Conference is also slated in East Atlantic Region on July 2-4, 2010. It will be held in the Hilton Hotel in East Brunswick, N.J. The conference theme is taken from Isaiah 43:5, "Do not be afraid, for I am With You." Purita Vazquez, one of the members of the board of the AFCCPC, is the Conference's chairperson and the assistant chairpersons are Dr. Dave Armesto and Liza Jablonski. The Regional Coordinators and Officers and Spiritual Advisers in that Region are also working hard for the success of this Conference. The following speakers are scheduled to come, namely, Patti Mansfield, Fr. Bill Halbing, Sr. Linda Koontz, Don Quilao from Toronto, Canada, Fr. Joe Cadusale, Dr. Narcisco Albarracin, Jr. and his wife, Terri, and yours truly. As always, we reach out to the Youths of today by featuring the Youth Track in all our Conferences. We need your prayers and constant intercession for these Conferences and for the activities of the AFCCPC. We shall continue to press on and do what the Lord calls all believers to do and to be: to bring souls to Him and to be united with Him.
These two Regional Conferences are, no doubt, great vehicles for the Lord to fellowship with His people so that they will establish a personal relationship with Him. I therefore, urge you not to squander away these windows of opportunities that the Lord is offering to us. In Isaiah 55:6, the Word of God says, "Seek the Lord while He may be found, call Him while He is near." Let us continue to seek God with all of our hearts. I hope and pray that we will all take advantage of these blessings from the Lord by attending these two Regional Conferences. For more information, please access our website, www.afccpc.org. You may also download the flyers and registration forms.
This year, I will continue to visit many prayer groups and communities mostly within the AFCCPC umbrella and of course other groups and communities as well, all over North America, aside from my monthly trip outside of the U S A to answer the Lord's call for me to reach out to as many people as possible throughout the world by proclaiming the Good News of the Lord Jesus Christ. I'm so grateful for your prayers and I'm also equally thankful to some of you who had accompanied and assisted me in my travels such as Jim Blubaugh from Ohio, Atty. Gus Mora and his wife Onie from California, Al Pineda from New Jersey, Dr.Joe and Agnes Nepomuceno and Dr. Ray Caparros from Maryland, Dr. Narciso Albarracin, Jr., and his wife Terri, from Ohio and my younger brother Nilo. Some of you will be traveling with me again this year and I could not thank you enough for your assistance. Of course, I'm most grateful to my wife, Chita, who supports me all the way in this ministry and who is also my traveling companion in some of these trips, even though she is still working as a Registered Nurse. I know that the anointing from the Lord is very strong when both husband and wife are in unity in doing God's work.
National Gathering of Leadership Groups:
Last January 11-13, 2010, five of us from the AFCCPC participated in the Gathering of National Leadership Groups which was held in Lutz, Florida, a suburb of Tampa, in the Bethany Center Retreat House.
There were six streams of the Catholic Charismatic Renewal (otherwise known as the Committe of 6) that were represented in the meeting; namely the National Service Committee, the Association of Diocesan Liaisons, the Ethnic Groups composed of Haitians and Hispanic groups, the Fraternity of Charismatic Covenant Communities and Fellowships, the Korean National Service Committee, and the Alliance of Filipino Catholic Charismatic Prayer Communities. The Indonesian and the Vietnamese groups also sent representatives to the Gathering, including Auxiliary Bishop Dominic Luong from the Diocese of Orange, California. The groups discerned together as to what direction the Lord is leading us and what He wants us to do as a group. We prayed together, we praised the Lord with one voice and one heart, we broke bread together in the Eucharistic celebrations, we ministered to each other in Jesus' name and we fellow-shipped with one another. I sensed a great spirit of unity and camaraderie that was present during the three-day meeting. Altogether, there were 50 leaders present including Dr. Narciso Albarracin, Jr.,from Ohio, Lynn Eclipse from New York, Irnie Tabasa from California and Ramon Mescallado from Florida and yours truly who represented the AFCCPC.
The day before the meeting, I was in Ft. Myers, FL., about 2 1/2 hours drive from Lutz, to minister to about 50 people in the home of one of the Albarracin's friends. Although the weather outside in "sunny" Florida was in the low 20's, the atmosphere inside the house was very warm indeed because the people were very open and welcoming to the words of the Lord and to the healing and restoring power of the Holy Spirit. I also had the opportunity to talk about the AFCCPC and the ICCRS and about the baptism of the Holy Spirit to the people gathered.
Wednesday, August 18, 2010
Sunday, August 15, 2010
Wednesday, August 11, 2010
Basic Hermeneutics
In all human communication, the receiver must create meaning from the symbols (the message) used by the communicator. All Christians must discover the meaning intended by the author(s) of the books of the Bible to understand what God is revealing. The process of discovering meaning from the Bible is called hermeneutics. All Christians recognize that how we approach the Bible determines often what we take from it. Understanding what God would have us know from the Bible is made difficult by many factors:
o The Bible contains some very ancient books;
o Sometimes it is not even known who the author of a book really was;
o Not knowing for certain who an author was is complicated by the period of time in which an author lived;
o Since many authors were ancient Semites, their way of thinking and manner of expressing themselves differ from our own;
o Since we do not possess any original manuscripts of the books of the Bible, we have to contend with copying and editing which occurred over time;
o Then the issue of the multiplicity of human authors and editors complicates our understanding;
o Finally, the fact of both a divine and a human author makes understanding a challenge.
Hermeneutics (from the Greek word hermeneia which means speech or interpretation) is used to cover a broad scope in the process of understanding. It refers to
o interpretation by speech itself, as language interprets the mind;
o the process of translation from an unintelligible language to an intelligible one (cf. 1 Cor 12:10);
o interpretation by commentary and explanation.
Roman Catholic Christians have often been accused of not being allowed to read the Bible on their own. This could not be further from the truth. When, in history, Catholics were forbidden to read the Bible it was a particular translation which usually was unauthorized and highly illiterate in its fidelity to original sources. In other words, unauthorized versions were often just simply bad translations.
It is often said Roman Catholics cannot interpret the Bible on their own. The Papal Encyclical, Divino Afflante Spiritus, of Pope Pius XII in 1943 attempted to counteract this error by stating that there are but few texts whose understanding has been determined by the teaching authority of the Church; and Catholics do indeed have freedom to interpret the Scriptures.
The Catholic Church has been solicitous over the way in which the Bible is interpreted. Experience teaches us that it is easy to find even contradictory meanings from the same Scripture with an unbridled approach to reading and interpreting the Bible.
The Catholic Church teaches that the first principle of hermeneutics is the literal meaning of the text.
Spiritus Paraclitus (Benedict XV, September 15, 1920)
As Jerome insisted, all biblical interpretation rests upon the literal sense ...
Divino Afflante Spiritus (Pius XII, September 30, 1943)
... discern and define that sense of the biblical words which is called literal ... so that the mind of the author may be made clear.... the exegete must be principally concerned with the literal sense of the Scriptures.
Literal Sense
The first sense then for understanding the Bible is the literal sense.
Definition: the literal sense of Scripture is the meaning which the human author directly intended and the author's words convey.
Criteria to understand the literal sense:
o The literary form that the author used is the first aid in determining what the author meant. If the author wrote poetry instead of history, then the literary form of poetry assists in determining the meaning intended by the author. Some other literary forms of the Bible include history, law, songs, love stories, stories (parables), etc.
o The literary history of the biblical book or of the section of the Bible that contains the book also aids in determining the meaning intended by the author. Literary history of a book includes what is known about the author, his background, his historical period of Israel's history, etc.
An example of the Church using the literal sense of a scripture passage in order to understand what meaning we should get from it is the 6th chapter of the Gospel according to John.
Literary Form of John 6:25-69:
Most scripture scholars today affirm that John's gospel is historical in nature. Hence we believe that John strove to preserve both the words and actions of Jesus. Unlike the Synoptics, John wrote through the eyes of the faith of the late Apostolic Church in light of the way that faith translated into practice and worship.
Where John is clearly biographical, the literal meaning is emphasized by linguistic psychology: multiple repetition of the message in different words. Where literalness is intended, intended meaning is reinforced by recording the reaction to literal meaning by the hearers without the speaker's correction.
Literary History of John 6:25-69:
The apostle John was an eyewitness to the life and teachings of Jesus. He was one of the Twelve. He was also the last of the Apostles to write and to die. He refers to himself as the "disciple whom Jesus loved."
Interpretation of John 6:25-69:
Following the details of the multiplication of the loaves and fishes--biographical, Jesus walking on the sea--biographical, Jesus reacts to the crowds' need for signs. Jesus takes them from manna, bread from heaven, to "true bread from heaven (v. 32)" ... "I am the bread (v. 35)." "I am the bread that came down from heaven (v. 41)." This is God saying this: "I am the bread that came down from heaven." If He was not really the bread that came down from heaven, His omnipotent and creative Word would then have made it so.
Five times in different verbal expressions, Jesus confirmed the reality of the meaning he intended.
Jn 6:51
I am the living bread that came down from heaven; whoever eats this bread will live forever; and the bread that I will give is my flesh for the life of the world.
Jn 6:53
Jesus said to them, "Amen, amen, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you do not have life within you."
Jn 6:54
Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him on the last day.
Jn 6:55
For my flesh is true food, and my blood is true drink.
Jn 6:56
Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in me and I in him.
The best way a person can make a clear literal point is repetition of the same message in different ways. Jesus did this. Those around him clearly understood what he was saying--cannibalism and the drinking of blood--both forbidden by Mosaic Law.
Jn 6:60,66
Then many of his disciples who were listening said, "This saying is hard; who can accept it?" ... As a result of this, many (of) his disciples returned to their former way of life and no longer accompanied him.
Had these disciples mistaken the meaning of Jesus' words, Jesus, knowing their thoughts and their error, would surely have known and corrected them. He didn't. They had clearly understood his meaning--Jesus' flesh was to be really eaten; his blood to be really drunk.
Fuller Sense
But the Bible has God, a divine author, besides the human author. The Church teaches that there exists a more-than-literal meaning for understanding the Bible: a fuller sense.
Definition: The fuller sense is the deeper meaning intended by God as divine author. The fuller sense of Scripture, since it is the meaning intended by God, may not have been clearly known and intended by the human author.
Criteria to establish the fuller sense:
o Because the Catholic Church holds that there are two revealing authorities of Divine Revelation, the Bible and the Holy Spirit, the fuller sense of the Bible can be found in the authoritative interpretation of those revealing authorities. Some of these authorities are the New Testament itself, the Fathers of the Church, the Church in Council (cf. Acts 15 model), the "faithful people" faithful to what was handed down to them, etc. The Spirit of Truth is entrusted to faithful people as an authority in the Church.
o The fuller sense of any Scripture text has to be in agreement with the literal sense of the words. This fuller sense must be a consequential development of what the human author of the text intended to say.
An example of the fuller sense in the interpretation of Scripture is found by looking at the New Testament.
In the Gospel according to Matthew, Chapter 1, verse 23, Matthew says that the conception of Jesus by Mary was a virginal conception and took place so that the words of the prophet Isaiah (7:14) might be fulfilled.
Isaiah gives no evidence that the prophet had Jesus' conception in the womb of Mary in mind. Isaiah does not speak of a virgin in the strict sense--merely an unmarried woman. Isaiah is not clear that he is even speaking to a distant future conception. The whole meaning of Isaiah's chapter appears to imply that the birth he prophesies will take place about 735 B.C. during the reign of King Ahaz the father of the future King Hezekiah. The words of Isaiah may have literally meant the conception of the future King Hezekiah. At the time of Isaiah's words in chapter 7, the mother of the future King Hezekiah would have been unmarried.
Matthew, on the other hand, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, creates an interpretation of Isaiah which is definitely not literal. Matthew clearly interprets Isaiah in a fuller sense: the unmarried woman is the virgin Mary, and God-with-us is Jesus.
Typical Sense
Following the lead of Paul himself (cf. Rom 5:14) there is another way for creating meaning in the Bible: the typical sense.
Definition: The typical sense of Bible texts is the deeper meaning that some elements (persons, places, things and events) of the Bible have because God, the divine author of the Bible, intended that these elements foreshadow/shadow further things.
Criteria to understanding the typical sense:
o The typical sense of the Bible is created by continuing revelation or growth in the understanding the Word of God. Extra-biblical growth in understanding the Word of God is evidenced in the growth and development of the understanding of the Trinity, the Incarnation, etc. Types--the typical sense--are discovered in the New Testament, or in the agreement among "faithful people" faithful to what was handed down to them--the Fathers of the Church, in worship-- the liturgy--and its development through the ages, in the documents of the Church, etc. The Catholic Church believes that the Holy Spirit is a revealing authority in the Church and reveals Himself to "faithful people" in all ages.
o The other criterion for discovering the typical meaning of Scripture is understanding that any type found in the text of the Bible has to be related to the anti-type (e.g., Christ to Adam). This confirms that God planned the relationship of the type to the anti-type.
An example of the typical meaning in the Bible is in Paul's writings. Paul appears to delight in establishing types between the New Testament and the Old Testament. In 1 Cor 10:6 Paul typifies those events which occurred to the Israelites in the desert of Sinai throughout the Exodus to those things that happen to Christians.
Another example of a type--the typical meaning in the Bible--is the bronze serpent raised by Moses in the desert. The evangelist John presents raising the bronze serpent as a type of Christ crucified (3:14).
o The Bible contains some very ancient books;
o Sometimes it is not even known who the author of a book really was;
o Not knowing for certain who an author was is complicated by the period of time in which an author lived;
o Since many authors were ancient Semites, their way of thinking and manner of expressing themselves differ from our own;
o Since we do not possess any original manuscripts of the books of the Bible, we have to contend with copying and editing which occurred over time;
o Then the issue of the multiplicity of human authors and editors complicates our understanding;
o Finally, the fact of both a divine and a human author makes understanding a challenge.
Hermeneutics (from the Greek word hermeneia which means speech or interpretation) is used to cover a broad scope in the process of understanding. It refers to
o interpretation by speech itself, as language interprets the mind;
o the process of translation from an unintelligible language to an intelligible one (cf. 1 Cor 12:10);
o interpretation by commentary and explanation.
Roman Catholic Christians have often been accused of not being allowed to read the Bible on their own. This could not be further from the truth. When, in history, Catholics were forbidden to read the Bible it was a particular translation which usually was unauthorized and highly illiterate in its fidelity to original sources. In other words, unauthorized versions were often just simply bad translations.
It is often said Roman Catholics cannot interpret the Bible on their own. The Papal Encyclical, Divino Afflante Spiritus, of Pope Pius XII in 1943 attempted to counteract this error by stating that there are but few texts whose understanding has been determined by the teaching authority of the Church; and Catholics do indeed have freedom to interpret the Scriptures.
The Catholic Church has been solicitous over the way in which the Bible is interpreted. Experience teaches us that it is easy to find even contradictory meanings from the same Scripture with an unbridled approach to reading and interpreting the Bible.
The Catholic Church teaches that the first principle of hermeneutics is the literal meaning of the text.
Spiritus Paraclitus (Benedict XV, September 15, 1920)
As Jerome insisted, all biblical interpretation rests upon the literal sense ...
Divino Afflante Spiritus (Pius XII, September 30, 1943)
... discern and define that sense of the biblical words which is called literal ... so that the mind of the author may be made clear.... the exegete must be principally concerned with the literal sense of the Scriptures.
Literal Sense
The first sense then for understanding the Bible is the literal sense.
Definition: the literal sense of Scripture is the meaning which the human author directly intended and the author's words convey.
Criteria to understand the literal sense:
o The literary form that the author used is the first aid in determining what the author meant. If the author wrote poetry instead of history, then the literary form of poetry assists in determining the meaning intended by the author. Some other literary forms of the Bible include history, law, songs, love stories, stories (parables), etc.
o The literary history of the biblical book or of the section of the Bible that contains the book also aids in determining the meaning intended by the author. Literary history of a book includes what is known about the author, his background, his historical period of Israel's history, etc.
An example of the Church using the literal sense of a scripture passage in order to understand what meaning we should get from it is the 6th chapter of the Gospel according to John.
Literary Form of John 6:25-69:
Most scripture scholars today affirm that John's gospel is historical in nature. Hence we believe that John strove to preserve both the words and actions of Jesus. Unlike the Synoptics, John wrote through the eyes of the faith of the late Apostolic Church in light of the way that faith translated into practice and worship.
Where John is clearly biographical, the literal meaning is emphasized by linguistic psychology: multiple repetition of the message in different words. Where literalness is intended, intended meaning is reinforced by recording the reaction to literal meaning by the hearers without the speaker's correction.
Literary History of John 6:25-69:
The apostle John was an eyewitness to the life and teachings of Jesus. He was one of the Twelve. He was also the last of the Apostles to write and to die. He refers to himself as the "disciple whom Jesus loved."
Interpretation of John 6:25-69:
Following the details of the multiplication of the loaves and fishes--biographical, Jesus walking on the sea--biographical, Jesus reacts to the crowds' need for signs. Jesus takes them from manna, bread from heaven, to "true bread from heaven (v. 32)" ... "I am the bread (v. 35)." "I am the bread that came down from heaven (v. 41)." This is God saying this: "I am the bread that came down from heaven." If He was not really the bread that came down from heaven, His omnipotent and creative Word would then have made it so.
Five times in different verbal expressions, Jesus confirmed the reality of the meaning he intended.
Jn 6:51
I am the living bread that came down from heaven; whoever eats this bread will live forever; and the bread that I will give is my flesh for the life of the world.
Jn 6:53
Jesus said to them, "Amen, amen, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you do not have life within you."
Jn 6:54
Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him on the last day.
Jn 6:55
For my flesh is true food, and my blood is true drink.
Jn 6:56
Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in me and I in him.
The best way a person can make a clear literal point is repetition of the same message in different ways. Jesus did this. Those around him clearly understood what he was saying--cannibalism and the drinking of blood--both forbidden by Mosaic Law.
Jn 6:60,66
Then many of his disciples who were listening said, "This saying is hard; who can accept it?" ... As a result of this, many (of) his disciples returned to their former way of life and no longer accompanied him.
Had these disciples mistaken the meaning of Jesus' words, Jesus, knowing their thoughts and their error, would surely have known and corrected them. He didn't. They had clearly understood his meaning--Jesus' flesh was to be really eaten; his blood to be really drunk.
Fuller Sense
But the Bible has God, a divine author, besides the human author. The Church teaches that there exists a more-than-literal meaning for understanding the Bible: a fuller sense.
Definition: The fuller sense is the deeper meaning intended by God as divine author. The fuller sense of Scripture, since it is the meaning intended by God, may not have been clearly known and intended by the human author.
Criteria to establish the fuller sense:
o Because the Catholic Church holds that there are two revealing authorities of Divine Revelation, the Bible and the Holy Spirit, the fuller sense of the Bible can be found in the authoritative interpretation of those revealing authorities. Some of these authorities are the New Testament itself, the Fathers of the Church, the Church in Council (cf. Acts 15 model), the "faithful people" faithful to what was handed down to them, etc. The Spirit of Truth is entrusted to faithful people as an authority in the Church.
o The fuller sense of any Scripture text has to be in agreement with the literal sense of the words. This fuller sense must be a consequential development of what the human author of the text intended to say.
An example of the fuller sense in the interpretation of Scripture is found by looking at the New Testament.
In the Gospel according to Matthew, Chapter 1, verse 23, Matthew says that the conception of Jesus by Mary was a virginal conception and took place so that the words of the prophet Isaiah (7:14) might be fulfilled.
Isaiah gives no evidence that the prophet had Jesus' conception in the womb of Mary in mind. Isaiah does not speak of a virgin in the strict sense--merely an unmarried woman. Isaiah is not clear that he is even speaking to a distant future conception. The whole meaning of Isaiah's chapter appears to imply that the birth he prophesies will take place about 735 B.C. during the reign of King Ahaz the father of the future King Hezekiah. The words of Isaiah may have literally meant the conception of the future King Hezekiah. At the time of Isaiah's words in chapter 7, the mother of the future King Hezekiah would have been unmarried.
Matthew, on the other hand, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, creates an interpretation of Isaiah which is definitely not literal. Matthew clearly interprets Isaiah in a fuller sense: the unmarried woman is the virgin Mary, and God-with-us is Jesus.
Typical Sense
Following the lead of Paul himself (cf. Rom 5:14) there is another way for creating meaning in the Bible: the typical sense.
Definition: The typical sense of Bible texts is the deeper meaning that some elements (persons, places, things and events) of the Bible have because God, the divine author of the Bible, intended that these elements foreshadow/shadow further things.
Criteria to understanding the typical sense:
o The typical sense of the Bible is created by continuing revelation or growth in the understanding the Word of God. Extra-biblical growth in understanding the Word of God is evidenced in the growth and development of the understanding of the Trinity, the Incarnation, etc. Types--the typical sense--are discovered in the New Testament, or in the agreement among "faithful people" faithful to what was handed down to them--the Fathers of the Church, in worship-- the liturgy--and its development through the ages, in the documents of the Church, etc. The Catholic Church believes that the Holy Spirit is a revealing authority in the Church and reveals Himself to "faithful people" in all ages.
o The other criterion for discovering the typical meaning of Scripture is understanding that any type found in the text of the Bible has to be related to the anti-type (e.g., Christ to Adam). This confirms that God planned the relationship of the type to the anti-type.
An example of the typical meaning in the Bible is in Paul's writings. Paul appears to delight in establishing types between the New Testament and the Old Testament. In 1 Cor 10:6 Paul typifies those events which occurred to the Israelites in the desert of Sinai throughout the Exodus to those things that happen to Christians.
Another example of a type--the typical meaning in the Bible--is the bronze serpent raised by Moses in the desert. The evangelist John presents raising the bronze serpent as a type of Christ crucified (3:14).
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