Read Scripture as the 'Word of the Holy Spirit,' Pope Benedict teaches

Vatican City, Jan 28, 2009 / 10:38 am

Commenting on Saint Paul’s Pastoral Letters at the Wednesday general audience, Pope Benedict XVI warned Christians not to read Scripture as “a historical curiosity,” but rather, as “the Word of the Holy Spirit.”

In his address to the 8,000 people gathered in the Paul VI Hall this morning, Benedict XVI spoke of how St. Paul emphasized the need to read Sacred Scripture "as 'inspired by' and proceeding from the Holy Spirit" in his pastoral letters, two to Timothy and one to Titus.

These Letters, the Holy Father said, refer to a situation in which "certain erroneous and false doctrines had arisen, such as the attempt to present marriage as something bad. This concern remains current today because Scripture is sometimes read as a historical curiosity and not as the Word of the Holy Spirit, in which we can hear the voice of the Lord Himself and perceive His presence in history."

Faithfulness to the deposit of faith handed on by the apostles is also insisted on in these three Letters, the Pope said. “This so-called ‘deposit’ is the criterion of faithfulness to the announcement of the Gospel," he explained. According to St. Paul, Scripture and Tradition are seen as the "firm foundation laid by God" for the life of the Church.

Built upon this “firm foundation,” the Holy Father said, St. Paul teaches strongly and decisively that the mission of the Church is universal.