[FF1 Q#1] Lessons 5-6

• Apostolic Succession


  Jesus commissioned apostles to continue his mission of sharing the message of salvation to all people
• Gospel Challenge


  1. Spread the truth

  2. Continue the mission he gave his disciples

  3. Fulfilled by the apostles through oral preaching, examples, and observance

  4. Handed on and received from Christ
• Tradition


  Tradere - to pass on; to hand over
• Apostles fulfill their mission


  1. Oral preaching

  2. Lived faith of the Church
• Tradition


  • Oral tradition
  • Written Tradition
• Sola Scriptura

  Scripture only, from the Latin expression adopted by the reformers who said that it is the Bible, not tradition or a church, which is our final authority
• Sacred scriptures originated from oral tradition
• Not all traditions had been written down. Hence, the Bible does not contain the entirety of the revelation
• Tradition does not stop when it is written down. It continues in the life of the Church
• Evangelist John: 'Admitted twice in his Gospel that books cannot contain everything'
• The Bible says: '"Stand firm then, my brothers, to the TRADITIONS that we taught you, whether by WORD OF MOUTH or by letter." 2 Thes 2:15'
• The Bible says: '"the CHURCH of the living God, the FOUNDATION AND OF THE TRUTH." 1 Tim 3:15'
• Even if you have the textbooks, you still need the school and the teacher
• Record of Divine Revelation


  Deposit of Faith
• Dei Verbum 10: '"SACRED TRADITION and SACRED SCRIPTURE form one sacred deposit of the Word of God, committed to the Church."'
• Sacred tradition (t)


  • Cultural traditions
  • Could have arisen from particular needs of the Church at a particular time and place
  • Can be changed, modified, or done away with without destroying the integrity of our Christian Faith
• Sacred Tradition (T)

  • Doctrinal traditions
  • The living and lived faith of the church
  • Can never be changed, modified or done away with, for doing so would harm the integrity of our Christian Faith
• Types of Tradition


  • Scriptural Tradition
  • Apostolic Tradition
  • Teachings of Magisterium
• Scriptural Tradition


  • Traditions that take their root in the holy Bible
  • Practices and beliefs can be justified by quoting sacred scriptures
• Apostolic Tradition


  • Teachings which the Apostles left us, not through written scripture, but through the broken chain of succession of Popes, bishops, Priests, and deacons
  • An assurance that the teachings of the Apostles are preserved intact
• Teachings of Magisterium


  • Teaching authority of the church
  • Exercised by the Pope in making solemn definitions or by the Bishop in an Ecumenical Council like Vatican II
• Bible


  • An account of life, preserved in memory, turned into a text
  • Records events seen as designed and influenced by God
  • An event of community
• Types of biblical writings


  • Narratives
  • Laws
  • Genealogies
  • Prophetic Oracles
  • Poetry
  • Epistles
  • Drama
  • Apocalypses
  • Sayings
  • Biographical-sketches
• Nihil Obstat


  Given by Censor Librorum, it is an attestation a book contains nothing damaging to faith or morals
• Imprimi Potest


  Given by the major religious superior if the author is a member of a religious congregation
• Imprimatur


  Given by the author's diocesan bishop or the bishop of the place in which the book is published
• Biblia/Biblion


  Scroll book
• People discovered sheets of papyrus can be put on top of each other, folded in the middle, and bound, resulting in an easy-to-use book known as codex
• St Jerome used the term bibliotheca divina which means divine library as it contains mini books compiled into one
• Emperor Constantine


  • Ordered its production
  • Various translations emerged from non-Hebrew and non-Greek speaking communities
  • The Latin-Vulgate language is used
• Ignorance of scripture is ignorance of Christ
• Pope St. Damasus


  • Authorized only one definitive translation of the scripture which is Latin
• Archbishop Stephen Langton of Canterbury


  • Divided the books of the bible into chapters
• French printer Robert Estienne (Stephanus)


  • Divided the chapters of the Bible into verses
• Bibliotheca Divina


  • Most sacred books
  • Historical Narratives
  • Wisdom and Poetry
  • Prophecy
• Divine inspiration


  • Among the trinity, it is the unique gift of the holy spirit
  • It is not ecstatic
  • It is not verbal or mechanical dictation
  • It is not subsequent approbation
  • It's not simply negative assistance
  • It is not mere ideological inspiration (formal inspiration)
  • Even the very words used by the authors were inspired by God
• Biblical Ratio


  • The special influence of the Holy Spirit upon the human authors so that they may write what God wanted them to write
  • Holy Spirit is the principal cause of the bible and the human person is the instrumental, cause
  • The Church affirms the truth of biblical inspiration as its origin is not human, but Divine
• Pope Paul VI: "Dei Verbum": 'Bible must be acknowledged as teaching solidly, faithfully, and without error the truth which God wanted to put into writing'
• Pope Leo XIII: "Providentissimus Deus": 'God so moved and impelled them to write'
• The word of God is written by men through the inspiration of the Holy Spirit