Should Catholics Attend Protestant Bible Studies? (Part 2)

How do we study and interpret Scripture? Jeff explains the different senses of scripture—literal and spiritual—and dives into the origins and differences in the Biblical canons between Protestants and Catholics.

Snippet from the Show

Understanding the senses of Scripture enriches our study of the Word of God.

Shownotes

The Senses of Scripture

CCC 115 According to an ancient tradition, one can distinguish between
two senses of Scripture: the literal and the spiritual, the latter being
subdivided into the allegorical, moral, and anagogical senses. The
profound concordance of the four senses guarantees all its richness to
the living reading of Scripture in the Church.

CCC 116 The literal sense is the meaning conveyed by the words of
Scripture and discovered by exegesis, following the rules of sound
interpretation: “All other senses of Sacred Scripture are based on the
literal.”

CCC 117 The spiritual sense. Thanks to the unity of God’s plan, not only
the text of Scripture but also the realities and events about which it
speaks can be signs.

1. The allegorical sense. We can acquire a more profound
understanding of events by recognizing their significance in Christ; thus,
the crossing of the Red Sea is a sign or type of Christ’s victory and also
of Christian Baptism.

2. The moral sense. The events reported in Scripture ought to lead
us to act justly. As St. Paul says, they were written “for our instruction.”

3. The anagogical sense (Greek: anagoge, “leading”). We can view
realities and events in terms of their eternal significance, leading us
toward our true homeland: thus, the Church on earth is a sign of the
heavenly Jerusalem.

The Cannon of Scripture

CCC 120 It was by the apostolic Tradition that the Church discerned
which writings are to be included in the list of the sacred books. This
complete list is called the canon of Scripture. It includes 46 books for
the Old Testament (45 if we count Jeremiah and Lamentations as one)
and 27 for the New.

• The deuterocanonical books are Tobit, Judith, 1 and 2
  Maccabees, Wisdom, Ecclesiasticus, and Baruch. 

Catholic Answers Article

The Faulty Assumption of Protestant Apologetics by Joe Heschemeyer 

Resources

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• The Great Adventure Catholic Bible, Second Edition