Should Catholics Attend Protestant Bible Studies? (Part 1)

Are you considering joining a Protestant Bible study? Drawing from his experience as a former Protestant pastor, Jeff shares his insights on Catholics attending Protestant Bible studies. He discusses the differences between Catholic and Protestant approaches to Scripture, emphasizing the importance of understanding the historical context of the Bible within the authority of the Church. Additionally, he provides essential guidelines for Catholics who are thinking about attending Protestant Bible studies. Stay tuned for part two next week!

Snippet from the Show

Be especially attentive “to the content and unity of the whole Scripture” (CCC 112)

Shownotes

So then, brethren, stand firm and hold to the traditions which you were taught by us, either by word of mouth or by letter. (2 Thessalonians 2:15)

You see that a man is justified by works and not by faith alone. (James 2:24)

3 Criteria for Interpreting Scripture (Catechism of the Catholic Church)

But since Sacred Scripture is inspired, there is another and no less important principle of correct interpretation, without which Scripture would remain a dead letter. “Sacred Scripture must be read and interpreted in the light of the same Spirit by whom it was written.” The Second Vatican Council indicates three criteria for interpreting Scripture in accordance with the Spirit who inspired it.

1. Be especially attentive “to the content and unity of the whole Scripture”. Different as the books which compose it may be, Scripture is a unity by reason of the unity of God’s plan, of which Christ Jesus is the center and heart, open since his Passover.(CCC 112)

2. Read the Scripture within “the living Tradition of the whole Church”. According to a saying of the Fathers, Sacred Scripture is written principally in the Church’s heart rather than in documents and records, for the Church carries in her Tradition the living memorial of God’s Word, and it is the Holy Spirit who gives her the spiritual interpretation of the Scripture (”. . . according to the spiritual meaning which the Spirit grants to the Church”). (CCC 113)

3. Be attentive to the analogy of faith. By “analogy of faith,” we mean the coherence of the truths of faith among themselves and within the whole plan of Revelation. (CCC 114)

Resources

• Email us at thejeffcavinsshow@ascensionpress.com
• Text “jeffcavins” to 33-777 to subscribe and get added to Jeff’s shownotes email list
• Visit Jeff’s website at www.jeffcavins.com
• The Great Adventure Catholic Bible, Second Edition