Jesuit Cardinal Disputes The Rationalist Approach To The Bible

Rationalist approach to the Bible.

The rationalism that was an aspect of Modernism took a skeptical view of miracles and the historicity of biblical narratives. Furthermore, this approach attempted to evaluate the meaning of the Bible by focusing on the text alone and ignoring what the Church fathers and others have historically taught about it. This way of looking at the Bible became quite popular in the Protestant churches and found its way into Catholic churches. It was an offshoot of the concept of sola scriptura, which asserts that an individual can learn all that is necessary regarding religion just by reading the Bible.

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Cardinal Alberto Vanhoye, S.J., the former Rector of the Pontifical Biblical Institute of Rome and Secretary Emeritus of the Pontifical Biblical Commission, said the way to overcome the temptation to read the Sacred Scriptures with the rationalist approach characteristic of some contemporary scholars, is to read it with an authentic spirit of prayer.

The renowned Bible scholar, who was made cardinal by Pope Benedict XVI on March 24, 2006, said in the interview, “Providence has deigned that I have been able to consecrate truly all of my life to the profound study of Scripture to the benefit of so many students from all over the world. Therefore, I thank the Lord for giving me this privilege.”

The 85 year-old Jesuit then laid out some premises for studying the Bible, which he said are “clearly premises of faith.”

“The Bible is a text that expresses the faith. In order to receive it in a serious and profound way, we must enter into the current that produced it. Therefore, approaching the inspired text with a spirit of faith is essential. On the other hand, there also exists the conviction that the Bible is at the same time an historical book, not simply a theoretical word. It is a revelation with facts, events, an historical, existential reality that must be received in this way,” he said.

“Sacred Scripture,” the cardinal added, “is essential for knowing Christ, for following him, for researching all of the dimensions of the mystery of Christ.” Moreover, he pointed out, there is a “close relationship between exegetical research and the deepening of faith and the spiritual life. This has made me never doubt once about studying, researching and employing all of my strength and capacities in this study of such fundamental importance for the life of the Church.”

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Photo is of Cardinal Vanhoye, S.J.and Pope Benedict XVI