Broadly speaking there are two methods of interpreting Holy Scripture that we are likely to encounter today. One, which has become quite prevalent in modern times, is essentially a debunking exercise that eviscerates the Gospel of its supernatural content and reduces it to a work of fiction. The apostles of this hokey-cokey school of biblical exegesis are likely to classify Our Lord’s miracles on the level of pious fables, which almost certainly never took place, but which may nevertheless convey some sociopolitical moral in line with the latest fad of the Zeitgeist.

The other is the traditional and Catholic manner of interpreting Holy Scripture, in which we approach the inspired word of God with wonder and reverence for the work and presence of the Holy Ghost, Who is the primary author of every inspired word – the same Holy Ghost Who can neither deceive nor be deceived.

In the Catholic tradition, there are four categories by which we are to discern the multilayered meanings of Scripture, always under the guidance of the authentic (that is to say time-honoured and traditional) Magisterium, or teaching authority, of the Church. Whenever we notice confusing or ambiguous messages on matters of faith and morals which do not seem to chime soundly with what the saints believed, we do well to ask ourselves: how did St Augustine, St Thomas Aquinas, St Pius X etc. interpret this, and what did they believe and teach?

The first category for understanding Holy Scripture is the literal interpretation. This prevents us from stumbling into the blind alleys of fundamentalist literalism, because it asks, “What sort of literature is this intended to be?” In some places in the Bible the Holy Ghost, and the human authors working in cooperation with Him, use poetry or metaphor to express divine truth. In the case of the Gospels, however, we must recognise the work of the Evangelists as possessing a genuinely historic and factual value. Their inspired authors recount events that actually happened, and the words that were spoken by Our Saviour, with the support of reliable human testimony from credible witnesses, and with supernatural protection from error. St Luke for instance tells us that the raising from death of the only son of a widow in Naim is a real event that took place, a miracle which caused amazement amongst those present (Lk 7:11-17).

The second way of understanding Holy Scripture is the allegorical, and here we have the invaluable assistance of the great fathers and doctors of the Church, who saw in the widow of Naim a figure for the Church bringing sinners to Our Lord so that through repentance they might be raised from spiritual death to participate in the life of His Resurrection. In the Sacrament of Penance, we are raised from the death of sin, restored to the State of Grace and made once again living members of the Mystical Body of Christ, just as truly as the young man in Naim who was carried dead to Our Lord on a bier was restored alive to his grieving mother.

The third sense of Scripture is its “anagogical” significance. This has to do with any particular passage’s relevance to the end times and our destiny in eternity. All of Our Lord’s resurrection miracles point, of course, to His own Resurrection on Easter Sunday. But they also look forward to the resurrection of our own bodies when He returns in majesty to this planet and raises our bodies from the earth. We must pray that they will be reunited with our souls in Heaven, and ensure by our cooperation with God’s grace that they are not consigned along with our souls to hell.

The fourth category by which the Church interprets Scripture is according to its moral sense. As members of the Church, we who have had our sins forgiven have an important role to play in bringing those who are spiritually dead to Our Saviour, by means of word and example. We must pray fervently for sinners, and for a world which has gone astray, fortifying our intercessions with fasting and penance.

Observing the dire international situation of our own age, and painfully aware of the spiritual blindness of many of our world leaders, combined with the unprecedented capacity they possess for unleashing conflagration and destruction on an unimaginable scale, there is greater urgency for this than ever. We might have the feeling that the world, and this realm in particular, are heading to hell in a handcart. As Christians, however, we must not allow ourselves to be disheartened. God has the power to bring life where there is death. Life has the final victory over death for those who repent and live in Faith, Hope, and Charity.

Thankfully, we not only have our Mother the Church to assist us, but also the Mother of God. On Calvary Our Lord made the Blessed Virgin our Mother when He told St John the Evangelist: “Woman, behold thy son” (Jn 19:26). On those occasions when She has spoken to us on this earth through apparitions, the core of Her message has always been constant – do prayer and penance for our own sins, and for those who do not even realise that they are spiritually dead. In this month of the Holy Rosary, we should keep this in mind as we meditate on those accounts from the Gospels of real events that occurred two millennia ago in Palestine, and which are mighty in their salvific power today. Praying the Rosary with faith and devotion achieves miracles of grace in our lives and in the world.

Father Julian Large