"Action items" for the faithful from Verbum Domini

Our Holy Father encourages us to many things in Verbum Domini. Here is a selection of them, most of which were found by searching for the word fragment "encourag" in the text:

I encourage all the faithful to renew their personal and communal encounter with Christ, the word of life made visible, and to become his heralds, so that the gift of divine life – communion – can spread ever more fully throughout the world. (VD 2)

The faithful need to be better helped to grasp the different meanings of the expression, but also to understand its unitary sense. (VD 7)

It is important that the faithful be taught to acknowledge that the root of sin lies in the refusal to hear the word of the Lord, and to accept in Jesus, the Word of God, the forgiveness which opens us to salvation. (VD 26)

In our day the faithful need to be helped to see more clearly the link between Mary of Nazareth and the faith-filled hearing of God's word. I would encourage scholars as well to study the relationship between Mariology and the theology of the word. (VD 27)

I encourage scholars and pastors to help all the faithful to approach these [difficult] passages through an interpretation which enables their meaning to emerge in the light of the mystery of Christ. (VD 42)

Promoting common translations of the Bible is part of the ecumenical enterprise. I would like to thank all those engaged in this important work, and I encourage them to persevere in their efforts. (VD 46)

I encourage the Church's Pastors and all engaged in pastoral work to see that all the faithful learn to savour the deep meaning of the word of God which unfolds each year in the liturgy, revealing the fundamental mysteries of our faith. (VD 52)

To have a deeper experience of the reconciling power of God's word, the individual penitent should be encouraged to prepare for confession by meditating on a suitable text of sacred Scripture and to begin confession by reading or listening to a biblical exhortation such as those provided in the rite. (VD 61)

I also encourage communities of consecrated life to be exemplary in the celebration of the Liturgy of the Hours, and thus to become a point of reference and an inspiration for the spiritual and pastoral life of the whole Church. (VD 62)

The Synod Fathers encouraged all pastors to promote times devoted to the celebration of the word in the communities entrusted to their care. (VD 65)

I encourage Pastors to foster moments of recollection whereby, with the assistance of the Holy Spirit, the word of God can find a welcome in our hearts. (VD 66)

I encourage our Christian communities to offer every possible practical assistance to our brothers and sisters suffering from [seeing and hearing] impairments, so that they too can be able to experience a living contact with the word of the Lord. (VD 71)

I encourage pastors and the faithful to recognize the importance of [making the Bible the inspiration of every ordinary and extraordinary pastoral outreach]: it will also be the best way to deal with certain pastoral problems which were discussed at the Synod and have to do, for example, with the proliferation of sects which spread a distorted and manipulative reading of sacred Scripture. (VD 73)

The General Catechetical Directory contains valuable guidelines for a biblically inspired catechesis and I readily encourage that these be consulted. (VD 74)

A knowledge of biblical personages, events and well-known sayings should thus be encouraged; this can also be promoted by the judicious memorization of some passages which are particularly expressive of the Christian mysteries. (VD 74)

The Synod frequently encouraged all Christians to grow in their relationship with the word of God, not only because of their Baptism, but also in accordance with their call to various states in life. (VD 77)

Mindful of the inseparable bond between the word of God and Mary of Nazareth, along with the Synod Fathers I urge that Marian prayer be encouraged among the faithful, above all in life of families, since it is an aid to meditating on the holy mysteries found in the Scriptures. (VD 88)

The Synod also recommended that the faithful be encouraged to pray the Angelus. (VD 88)

As we proclaim the Gospel, let us encourage one another to do good and to commit ourselves to justice, reconciliation and peace. (VD 99)

I therefore encourage the faithful to meditate often on the Apostle Paul's hymn to charity [1 Cor. 13] and to draw inspiration from it. (VD 103)

I encourage the competent offices and groups to promote in the Church a solid formation of artists with regard to sacred Scripture in the light of the Church's living Tradition and her magisterium. (VD 112)

During the Synod, it was clear that a number of local Churches still lack a complete translation of the Bible in their own languages. ... I would encourage the investment of resources in this area. (VD 115)

The Synod asked Conferences of Bishops, wherever it is appropriate and helpful, to encourage meetings aimed at helping Christians and Muslims to come to better knowledge of one another, in order to promote the values which society needs for a peaceful and positive coexistence. (VD 118)

I wish once more to encourage all the People of God, pastors, consecrated persons and the laity, to become increasingly familiar with the sacred Scriptures. (VD 121)

Verbum Domini — "The God Who Speaks" (6-14)

This is the second installment of my commentary on Pope Benedict's post-synodal apostolic exhortation on the Word of God in the Life and Mission of the Church, Verbum Domini (which you can download here). This covers Part One, Section One (Verbum Dei: The God Who Speaks, paragraphs 6-21); this particular post addresses paragraphs 6-14.

The God of the Universe is a God Who speaks: He does not simply place some clues scattered throughout time and space, He actively speaks in — and to — His creation. He reveals Himself to His people through His Word, the Logos, Who is uncreated, God from God. This revelation is a dialogue within God, Who is a Trinity of Persons, as well as a dialogue with humanity. "God makes himself known to us as a mystery of infinite love in which the Father eternally utters his Word in the Holy Spirit. Consequently the Word, who from the beginning is with God and is God, reveals God himself in the dialogue of love between the divine persons, and invites us to share in that love." (VD 6)

The expression "the word of God" can be understood in many ways; I quote paragraph 7 in its entirety (with my own emphases).

The analogy of the word of God

In the light of these considerations, born of meditation on the Christian mystery expressed in the Prologue of John, we now need to consider what the Synod Fathers affirmed about the different ways in which we speak of "the word of God". They rightly referred to a symphony of the word, to a single word expressed in multiple ways: "a polyphonic hymn". The Synod Fathers pointed out that human language operates analogically in speaking of the word of God. In effect, this expression, while referring to God's self-communication, also takes on a number of different meanings which need to be carefully considered and related among themselves, from the standpoint both of theological reflection and pastoral practice. As the Prologue of John clearly shows us, the Logos refers in the first place to the eternal Word, the only Son, begotten of the Father before all ages and consubstantial with him: the word was with God, and the word was God. But this same Word, Saint John tells us, "became flesh" ( Jn 1:14); hence Jesus Christ, born of the Virgin Mary, is truly the Word of God who has become consubstantial with us. Thus the expression "word of God" here refers to the person of Jesus Christ, the eternal Son of the Father, made man.

While the Christ event is at the heart of divine revelation, we also need to realize that creation itself, the liber naturae, is an essential part of this symphony of many voices in which the one word is spoken. We also profess our faith that God has spoken his word in salvation history; he has made his voice heard; by the power of his Spirit "he has spoken through the prophets". God's word is thus spoken throughout the history of salvation, and most fully in the mystery of the incarnation, death and resurrection of the Son of God. Then too, the word of God is that word preached by the Apostles in obedience to the command of the Risen Jesus: "Go into all the world and preach the Gospel to the whole creation" (Mk 16:15). The word of God is thus handed on in the Church's living Tradition. Finally, the word of God, attested and divinely inspired, is sacred Scripture, the Old and New Testaments. All this helps us to see that, while in the Church we greatly venerate the sacred Scriptures, the Christian faith is not a "religion of the book": Christianity is the "religion of the word of God", not of "a written and mute word, but of the incarnate and living Word". Consequently the Scripture is to be proclaimed, heard, read, received and experienced as the word of God, in the stream of the apostolic Tradition from which it is inseparable.

As the Synod Fathers stated, the expression "word of God" is used analogically, and we should be aware of this. The faithful need to be better helped to grasp the different meanings of the expression, but also to understand its unitary sense. From the theological standpoint too, there is a need for further study of how the different meanings of this expression are interrelated, so that the unity of God's plan and, within it, the centrality of the person of Christ, may shine forth more clearly.

There is a great deal to meditate upon when we consider the ways in which that Word has been communicated to mankind throughout history. However, we must caution against considering all religions as genuine receptions and interpretations of that Word.

Because "[c]reation is born of the Logos" it "indelibly bears the mark of the creative Reason which orders and directs it." (VD 8) Thus the cosmos is an echo of the Word of God; as St. Bonaventure says, "every creature is a word of God, since it proclaims God." (VD 8) This relationship between creation and the Word centers on the creation of man: "Contemplating the cosmos from the perspective of salvation history, we come to realize the unique and singular position occupied by man in creation." (VD 9) Or, to put it more astonishingly: "human salvation is the reason underlying everything." (VD 9) One consequence of this is that the Word of God has been made present in the "natural law" written on the human heart: "Listening to the word of God leads us first and foremost to value the need to live in accordance with this law 'written on human hearts' (cf. Rom 2:15; 7:23). Jesus Christ then gives mankind the new law, the law of the Gospel, which takes up and eminently fulfils the natural law, setting us free from the law of sin..." (VD 9)

[At this point, I think it's worthwhile to comment on the sheer number of scriptural references made in this document, more than in any other document I can recall reading. There are over 240!]

For the one who recognizes the presence of the Word of God in creation, each creature is seen as a precious creation of God: "Those who know God's word also know fully the significance of each creature." (VD 10) At the same time, we are called to recognize that creatures are just that: creatures, not the Creator. "[T]he realist is the one who recognizes in the word of God the foundation of all things. This realism is particularly needed in our own time, when many things in which we trust for building our lives, things in which we are tempted to put our hopes, prove ephemeral." (VD 10) Thus these creations, because they are less than their Creator, are "incapable of fulfilling the deepest yearnings of the human heart." (VD 10)

Having looked at the Word in creation, and then specifically in the creation of Man, we now consider the Word in its Christological context. Paragraph 11 begins by quoting the opening of the letter to the Hebrews: "In many and various ways God spoke of old to our fathers by the prophets; but in these last days he has spoken to us by a Son, whom he appointed the heir of all things, through whom also he created the world." (Heb. 1:1-2) It is affirmed, then, that "the entire Old Testament already appears to us as a history in which God communicates his word." (VD 11) This communication from God is seamless from the Old to the New Testament, because the Word becomes flesh in Jesus Christ, whose "unique and singular history is the definitive word which God speaks to humanity." (VD 11)

[Here, Pope Benedict quotes Deus Caritas Est 1, that "Being Christian is [the result of] the encounter with an event, a person, which gives life a new horizon and a decisive direction," just as I had in my previous post. I quoted DCE without having read this far in the document, so it's a small delight to me to able to draw a connection that the Holy Father drew as well!]

The faith of the apostles teaches us that "the eternal Word became one of us. The divine Word is truly expressed in human words." (VD 11) In the patristic and medieval tradition, this act of condescension was called the "abbrevation" of the Word, a rather clever play on words... pun intended! Benedict quotes from his homily of December 24, 2006:

"The Fathers of the Church found in their Greek translation of the Old Testament a passage from the prophet Isaiah that Saint Paul also quotes in order to show how God's new ways had already been foretold in the Old Testament. There we read: 'The Lord made his word short, he abbreviated it.' (Is 10:23; Rom 9:28) ... The Son himself is the Word, the Logos: the eternal word became small – small enough to fit into a manger. He became a child, so that the word could be grasped by us." (VD 12)

In Jesus, the Word was expressed in "perfect humanity" and perfect obedience to the will of the Father. (VD 12) This Word goes to the extreme of becoming "muted" in the crucifixion: "Jesus' mission is ultimately fulfilled in the paschal mystery: here we find ourselves before the 'word of the cross' (1 Cor 1:18). The word is muted; it becomes mortal silence, for it has 'spoken' exhaustively, holding back nothing of what it had to tell us." (VD 12) This silencing of the Word is then given its "authentic and definitive meaning" in the "most luminous mystery of the resurrection." (VD 12) So it is in the Paschal mystery that "the unity of the divine plan" is made clear: the New Testament repeatedly asserts that the Paschal mystery is accomplished "in accordance with the Scriptures." (VD 13)

Because Jesus is the Word incarnate, He is "the culmination of revelation [and] the fulfilment of God's promises." (VD 14) This means that "the Christian dispensation, since it is the new and definitive covenant, will never pass away; and no new public revelation is to be expected before the glorious manifestation of our Lord Jesus Christ." (VD 14, quoting Dei Verbum 4) Benedict quotes the same passage from St. John of the Cross that Fr. Corapi quotes often as well: "Since he has given us his Son, his only word (for he possesses no other), he spoke everything at once in this sole word – and he has no more to say... because what he spoke before to the prophets in parts, he has spoken all at once by giving us this All who is his Son." (VD 14)

Pope Benedict then provides some helpful guidelines for the reception and application of private revelation, which I quote in full with my emphases:

Consequently the Synod pointed to the need to "help the faithful to distinguish the word of God from private revelations" whose role "is not to 'complete' Christ's definitive revelation, but to help live more fully by it in a certain period of history". The value of private revelations is essentially different from that of the one public revelation: the latter demands faith; in it God himself speaks to us through human words and the mediation of the living community of the Church. The criterion for judging the truth of a private revelation is its orientation to Christ himself. If it leads us away from him, then it certainly does not come from the Holy Spirit, who guides us more deeply into the Gospel, and not away from it. Private revelation is an aid to this faith, and it demonstrates its credibility precisely because it refers back to the one public revelation. Ecclesiastical approval of a private revelation essentially means that its message contains nothing contrary to faith and morals; it is licit to make it public and the faithful are authorized to give to it their prudent adhesion. A private revelation can introduce new emphases, give rise to new forms of piety, or deepen older ones. It can have a certain prophetic character (cf. 1 Th 5:19-21) and can be a valuable aid for better understanding and living the Gospel at a certain time; consequently it should not be treated lightly. It is a help which is proffered, but its use is not obligatory. In any event, it must be a matter of nourishing faith, hope and love, which are for everyone the permanent path of salvation. (VD 14)

The next post in this series will complete looking at "The God Who Speaks", paragraphs 15-22.

Verbum Domini — Introduction (1-5)

This is the first installment of my commentary on Pope Benedict's post-synodal apostolic exhortation on the Word of God in the Life and Mission of the Church, Verbum Domini (which you can download here). This covers the introduction (paragraphs 1-5).

The opening sentences are worth quoting verbatim (pun certainly intended!).

"The word of the Lord abides for ever. This word is the Gospel which was preached to you." (1 Pet 1:25; cf. Is 40:8) With this assertion from the First Letter of Saint Peter, which takes up the words of the Prophet Isaiah, we find ourselves before the mystery of God, who has made himself known through the gift of his word. This word, which abides for ever, entered into time. God spoke his eternal Word humanly; his Word "became flesh." (Jn 1:14) This is the good news. This is the proclamation which has come down the centuries to us today. (Verbum Domini [VD] 1)

This certainly sets the tone for the whole document. Benedict is writing to us about the good news, the Word-made-flesh, Who abides forever.

For those of us — myself included — who aren't aware just how much work goes into these bishops' synods, Benedict lists the documents he will be revisiting in his exhortation:

the Lineamenta, the Instrumentum Laboris, the Relationes ante and post disceptationem, the texts of the interventions, both those delivered on the Synod floor and those presented in written form, the reports of the smaller discussion groups, the Final Message to the People of God and, above all, a number of specific proposals (Propositiones) which the Fathers considered especially significant. (VD 1)

The purpose of the exhortation is "to point out certain fundamental approaches to a rediscovery of God's word in the life of the Church as a wellspring of constant renewal" so that "the word will be ever more fully at the heart of every ecclesial activity." (VD 1)

Then the Holy Father quotes the beginning of St. John's first epistle, drawing attention to the direct contact the Apostles had with the Word of life, and their desire to bring others into fellowship — that is, communion — with that Word Who is Jesus, and with His Father. We have had contact with that Word, too: "Being Christian is [the result of] the encounter with an event, a person, which gives life a new horizon and a decisive direction." (Deus Caritas Est [DCE] 1) We must renew this encounter with Christ and be His heralds so that this gift of communion with God can be spread throughout the earth. It is "the Church's gift and unescapable duty to communicate that joy" which is sharing in the God's divine life, since God alone has "the words of eternal life." (VD 2; John 6:68)

Benedict considers the Church's journey with the Word since Vatican II's Dei Verbum. The previous Synod's theme was "The Eucharist as the Source and Summit of the Church's Life and Mission," and this theme naturally led to the Synod on the Word of God: "the Church is built upon the word of God; she is born from and lives by that word." (VD 3) The faithful draw strength from the Scriptures, growing by hearing, celebrating, and studying them. He notes the increase in Catholic biblical studies in ecclesial (not merely academic) life over the past few decades. The Catholic Commentary on Scripture, the Ignatius Study Bible series, and of course the Great Adventure Bible Timeline come to my mind as excellent examples of this. The years between Vatican II and this Synod

have also witnessed a growing awareness of the "trinitarian and salvation-historical horizon of revelation" against which Jesus Christ is to be acknowledged as "mediator and fullness of all revelation." (VD 3)

The Church continually preaches Christ as "completed and perfected revelation" to every generation. (VD 3) The Synod was called "to review the implementation of the [Second Vatican] Council's directives [regarding the Word of God], and to confront the new challenges which the present time sets before Christian believers." (VD 3)

At this point, I think I found an error in a footnote. It is said that "In the last forty years, the Church's magisterium has also issued numerous statements on" questions pertaining to revelation and Scripture. (VD 3) A footnote lists Pope Paul VI's Summa Dei Verbum by mistake, I think — while this document's title includes "Dei Verbum" in it, it is about seminaries; it does not mention "Scripture" nor "Bible" at all, only "Biblical" once. I think an overzealous researcher for magisterial pronouncements included this one without vetting it first!

In paragraph 4, His Holiness makes an important note about the way in which the Scriptures must be read: "we can deepen our relationship with the word of God only within the 'we' of the Church, in mutual listening and acceptance." (VD 4) Put another way, the Scriptures must be read in the Church, that is, from within the Tradition of the Church. That being said, he also drew attention to the participation by the Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople, and by a rabbi who offered "a precious witness on the Hebrew Scriptures." (VD 4) With these perspectives, there is also "an ongoing Pentecost" in the Church today: "various peoples are still waiting for the word of God to be proclaimed in their own language and in their own culture." (VD 4)

This emphasis on evangelization brings to mind St. Paul, whose year was being celebrated during the Synod:

Paul's life was completely marked by his zeal for the spread of God's word. How can we not be moved by his stirring words about his mission as a preacher of the word of God: "I do everything for the Gospel" (1 Cor 9:23); or, as he writes in the Letter to the Romans: "I am not ashamed of the Gospel; it is the power of God for salvation to every one who has faith." (1:16) Whenever we reflect on the word of God in the life and mission of the Church, we cannot but think of Saint Paul and his life spent in spreading the message of salvation in Christ to all peoples.

Finally, the pope reiterates his desire that the fruits of the Synod's labor "have a real effect on the life of the Church: on our personal relationship with the sacred Scriptures, on their interpretation in the liturgy and catechesis, and in scientific research, so that the Bible may not be simply a word from the past, but a living and timely word." (VD 5)

The three parts of his exhortation follow the prologue of St. John's Gospel (John 1:1-14), "a magnificent text [...] which offers a synthesis of the entire Christian faith." (VD 5) These three parts are Verbum Dei (The Word of God), Verbum in Ecclesia (The Word in the Church), and Verbum Mundo (The Word to the World).

Verbum Domini — Plain Text and MS Word

Here are links to three versions of Verbum Domini.  They're smaller in page-count than the 208-page PDF!

1. Plain text
2. MS Word (letter, 58 pages)
3. MS Word (folio, 84 pages)

These documents do not differ from the original English PDF, except for formatting, and the exclusion of the Index from the end of the document. In the MS Word documents, the footnotes included as actual footnotes; in the plain-text document, they are endnotes.

Post-Synodal Apostolic Exhoratation Verbum Domini due today!

Pope Benedict is expected to publish his second Post-Synodal Apostolic Exhortation today. His first was Sacramentum Caritatis, following the Synod on the Eucharist; this one is Verbum Domini, following the Synod on the Word of God.

Dr. Brant Pitre has the same concern I do:

Some have speculated that the delay is tied to the debate over inerrancy and interpretation that took place during the synod; I have no way of verifying or falsifying that, but it will be interesting to see whether the exhortation addresses it, since Proposition 12 from the bishops requested clarification on “the inspiration and truth” of Scripture. Will Benedict give it in this exhortation? We’ll find out.

For those of you who had not followed the Synod's proceedings, there was a garish statement made in the instrumentum laboris (the "working document") that "with regards to what might be inspired in the many parts of Sacred Scripture, inerrancy applies only to 'that truth which God wanted put into sacred writings for the sake of salvation' (DV 11)." (15c) That needs to be answered by the Pope!

Update (9:30 am) — Around noon, Vatican time, the document was released, as reported by this Vatican press release.  Apparently, it's been released as a PDF.  Normally, I would say, that's cool.  But the English text is a 208-page PDF with a large font-size.  Not cool.  The Latin PDF is 150 pages; still crazy.  I'd prefer the HTML version so I can copy the text and format it in a Word document that doesn't require 100+ sheets of paper!

Update (3:09 pm) — I've produced three versions (one plain-text, two MS Word) of Verbum Domini in place of the 208-page PDF.  You can download them here.