Verbum Domini

As you know, a few weeks ago the Church mourned the death of Pope Benedict XVI, who was Bishop of Rome from 2005 until 2013. Some of that time span also happened to be when I lived in Rome studying theology, and perhaps partly for that reason, I have always had a special affinity for Benedict XVI. Not that I didn't love and appreciate St. John Paul II before him, or Pope Francis now, but there was something about the thought of Benedict that always resonated with me.

One of the big events that happened soon after I got to Rome in 2008 was the Synod on the Word of God – a meeting of bishops from around the world to discuss how Catholics should approach the Bible. The other seminarians and I, as students of theology, were delighted that it was Pope Benedict who had called such a meeting, and we read with great interest his reflection on Scripture that followed that synod. In Verbum Domini, or “The Word of the Lord,” he reiterated a theme that had long been part of his theology, from his early days as a seminary professor all the way through his papacy and even beyond: that in Sacred Scripture we encounter the living Word of God.

The 20th century saw a lot of innovations in the study of Scripture, many of which were good. We learned more about how the texts of the Bible were composed, about their different literary forms, and about the historical and cultural backgrounds of their authors and their audiences. For all the positives of this new knowledge, one of the disadvantages was that many people – even many Christians – began to see the Bible as just another human text. It lost, for them, its sacredness and its value as a guide for our lives. Pope Benedict, throughout his career, resisted this impulse. While appreciating the new insights that modern scholarship had given us, he also reminded Christians that the Biblical texts were written from the vantage point of faith. Their human authors wanted to communicate to us in their writings something essential about God and our relationship with him. Even more importantly, God himself also speaks in Scripture: through the inspired words of the human author, we hear God’s word – what he wants to communicate to us for our salvation.

Today, we celebrate the Sunday of the Word of God, a chance to reflect upon the value of Sacred Scripture for our faith. It was Pope Francis who called on the Church to do this each year on the Third Sunday of Ordinary Time, but I’m sure it’s an endeavor that his predecessor Benedict agreed with. In the Bible, God speaks to us – and his Word is as living and effective now as it was when it was first written down. In Scripture, he really has something to say to our lives, right here and now, if only we will open ourselves to his Word.

How do we do that? Allow me to share a few recommendations that might help you in reading the Bible.

• First, don’t be intimidated. It’s true that some parts of Scripture are hard to understand, but sometimes we can use that as an excuse to never even try. There can be a lot of spiritual fruit gained from just diving in, especially in those books that are more straightforward like the Gospels or the Acts of the Apostles or the Psalms. Even if you don’t understand every word, your faith will be deepened and expanded in important ways.

• Second, if you find something challenging or confusing, consult what the Church teaches about it. We believe that the Scriptures, the written Word of God, has been entrusted to the community of faith to be interpreted and safeguarded, so it is in and through what our Church teaches that we understand what Scripture really means. One of the best resources for this is the Catechism, the compendium of the teachings of our faith, but there are other great Catholic resources out there, too – books, study courses, podcasts, apps, and more. They can help you to break open Scripture and understand it in accord with our Catholic faith.

• Third, don’t forget that the most important way we encounter Scripture is here, in the liturgy. Pope Benedict, in that document I mentioned earlier, Verbum Domini, said that “the liturgy is the privileged place for the proclamation, the hearing, and the celebration of the word of God.” Each time we come to Mass, we encounter God’s living Word, and specifically those parts of it that the Church has given us to reflect upon and be nourished by, both in the readings and in the prayers of the Mass. Try to read the readings for Mass at least a couple times during the week before Sunday comes around. See what jumps out at you, what intrigues you, what connections you make with other things that you have heard in previous weeks, and I guarantee your experience at Mass will be the richer because of it.

Friends, in today’s Gospel, we hear the words of the Lord Jesus, calling his listeners to repentance and beginning to call the disciples to follow him. In the reading of our Bibles and the listening of Sacred Scripture in the liturgy, we also hear the “Verbum Domini,” the Word of the Lord speaking to us, inviting us to a more faithful discipleship. Let’s renew today our commitment to encountering the Lord in his written Word, and to letting that Word enliven our prayer and worship, especially here at Mass. May the Sacrament of the Lord’s Body and Blood that we will soon receive help us to hear his living Word and give us the grace to respond.