RCIA Day Four

Two 'sections' or 'lessons' tonight:

The Bible -

What it is, who wrote it (a variety of authors, most of which we do not know the identities of for certain). The Old Testament and the New Testament. The Old it the history of God's chosen people, leading up to the birth of Christ, the New Testament is the story of Christ's life and the birth of the Church. Understanding how the Bible is broken down, book, chapter, verse. That the Bible is considered the inspired Word of God, and therefore always correct.

Saint Jerome, in 360, translated all the extant texts that the Church was using into latin, creating the Latin Vulgate, which was sanctioned by the Church at Tret in 1546 as the official Sacred Scriptures.

The difference between the Catholic Bible and Protestant Bibles - Catholics have all the books. Protestants have removed seven, and use a shorter version of Esther. Also, some language has been changed.

Interpreting the Bible -

Pentatuch - "Torah", "Jewish Bible", the first five books of the Old Testament. Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy.

Sacred Scripture, Sacred Tradition and the Magesterium are the Deposit of Faith.

Major sections of the New Testament: Gospels, Acts, Epistles (Letters of Paul & Catholic Letters)

Sacred Scripture can be interpreted in four ways - literally, historically, spiritually and allegorically. One must look at the context of the scripture to understand how it is to be applied, though they all have multiple levels of complexity.