Bible

• Bible


  A direct form of revelation for Catholics
• Revelation

  The way in which God has made Himself known to the world
• Inspired word of God


  Catholics believe the Bible writers were guided by the Holy Spirit
• Not everything written in the Bible might have been historically or literally accurate
• Catholics must work carefully to determine exactly what a sacred author is saying to be true
• Metaphorical writing


  An author might write metaphorically to help bring out the truth more clearly
• Biblical literature


  Contains a variety of different literature
• The Bible must be read in context of when it was written
• There is no problem accepting evolution and the Big Bang for Catholics
• The creation story in Genesis is a poetic reflection on the significance of God as creator
• This links to Pope John Paul II’s teaching on the compatibility of science and religion
• Fundamentalist belief about the Bible


  Fundamentalist Christians believe that the Bible is the literal word of God. For example, they believe that God created the world in a single week and that

  everything was made perfectly at that time. They would reject the Theory of Evolution. They believe the Holy Spirit dictated the Bible and that no one

  should question anything that the Bible teaches because it comes from God. Where there appear to be contradictions, they think that this just shows

  that people do not yet have enough understanding.