3. For the Sake of Our Salvation: The Purpose of Sacred Scripture
"The Church ... has always regarded, and continues to regard, the Scriptures taken together with sacred Tradition as the supreme rule of faith" (, no. 21).
In its dogmatic constitution , literally "the Word of God," the Second Vatican Council provides the gemstone of official Church teachings on the sacred Scripture. Building upon the firm foundation of other magisterial teachings, the Council Fathers remind us of the ultimate reason for God's gift of sacred Scripture: "It pleased God, in His goodness and wisdom, to reveal Himself and to make known the mystery of His will. His will was that men should have access to the Father, through Christ, the Word made flesh, in the Holy Spirit, and thus become sharers in the Divine Nature" (, no. 2).
All of the truths about Scripture and each of the truths contained in the Scripture lead to the Gospel, the good news, that the almighty and ever living God has freely chosen first to create us and then reveal himself to us as a loving Father, through the work of our divine Savior Jesus Christ, and desires to draw us back into his divine favor through the sanctifying power of the Holy Spirit. All of the wisdom and insights which may be gleaned from the Scriptures pale in comparison to this over-arching truth. In a beautiful and central passage of , the Church teaches: "Since, therefore, all that the inspired authors, or sacred writers, affirm should be regarded as affirmed by the Holy Spirit, we must acknowledge that the books of Scripture, firmly, faithfully, and without error, teach that truth which God, for the sake of our salvation, wished to see confided to the sacred Scriptures" (, no. 11).
This passage has one of the longest footnotes of any of the Vatican II documents. This footnote bears witness to the rich tradition upon which the Catholic perspective of the Word of God is based. The footnote contains references to St. Augustine, St. Thomas Aquinas, the Council of Trent, Pope Leo XIII, and Pope Pius XII, each affirming the inspiration, inerrancy, and importance of the sacred Scriptures for the Church and the individual Christian.
These truths provide the framework within which we understand the Bible within the Church. It is inspired by God, literally "God- breathed," and therefore completely trustworthy. It is rich in content and meaning, and deserves our zealous and diligent study. It is an expression of the gift of God of His very self to humanity, and is provided to us for the sake of our salvation.
Taken from www.ewtn.com/library/SCRIPTUR/SSMODCAT.TXT
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