Catholics are Bible Christians.
There is a myth among Christians that Catholicism is not biblical and may even be contrary to the biblical implications. An educated and fervent Catholic knows this myth is far from the truth. There are countless examples of how this idea appears to be true or false. There are many ways in which so-called “Bible Christianity” seems to prove the myth true. However, a closer examination is required; to agree with this proposition is either ignorance of what exactly Catholicism is/proposes and/or ignorance of Scripture. Since there are so many objections, this thesis will address a few of the core Catholic doctrines/practices. Catholics believe that scripture is essential to the life of a Christian, they study the Bible if they are practicing, the Eucharist is affirmed by the Bible, and the Mass is immersed in scriptural language. First, one arguing against Catholic doctrine may assert that the Church is against the use, interpretation, or study of scripture, and its relevance to Christian life. On the contrary, the Church insists these are essential to a life lived for Christ. In the Constitutions of the Second Vatican Council, the Church states, “Easy access to Sacred Scripture should be provided for all the Christian faithful.”[1] The Church considers the Sacred Tradition of transmitting Scripture essential to its life.[2] The Church asserts that Christian life is derived, largely, from Sacred Scripture, but is complemented and reinforced by Sacred Tradition and Magisterium.[3] Neither are contrary to nor greater than Scripture but are at its service.[4] Insofar as the Church strives to accomplish its mission and purpose it likewise encourages and instructs the use and interpretation of Scripture and holds Scripture to be particularly essential to every Christian.[5]
Second, an interlocutor may question whether Catholics study the Bible, even if their religion may recommend it. On the contrary, a Catholic who attends the Mass on Sunday and/or throughout the week does study the Bible. The Mass itself is a rich study of the Bible in which both the Old and New Testaments are frequently used and sequentially contemplated.[6] Throughout the liturgical year, the Church methodically reflects on the life of Christ, especially via the Lectionary.[7] The Lectionary is the book which contains all readings of the scripture used during the Mass in a wholistic and sequential cycle. The Church often requires priests and consecrated religious (monks, nuns, and hermits) and encourages the laity to pray the Liturgy of the Hours. This is a sublime method of communal and scriptural prayer handed down from the Jewish roots of Christianity.[8] Providing a Catholic attends Mass, they attend a rich, intense, and ongoing Bible Study.
Third, many question the concept of God making Himself present in the form of bread and wine (the Eucharist), and argue that if it were true the Bible would suggest it. Truly, insofar as Christ is present in the heart of the baptized, He is present in the forms of bread and wine, and Scripture upholds this reality. First, the question as to whether transubstantiation (the changing of the substance of bread and wine into the Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity of Christ) can be considered legitimate was resolved by the early Christians in the first centuries. A letter written to Emporer Antonius Pius approximately in the year 155 A.D. by Justin Martyr suggested that bread and wine are “transmutated” into the Body and Blood of Christ.[9] Second, Jesus said, in the Gospel as recited by John the Apostle, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of man and drink his blood, you have no life in you…For my flesh is food indeed, and my blood is drink indeed…the living Father sent me, and I live because of the Father, so he who eats me will live because of me” (John 6:53, 55, 57, RSVCE). In chapter six, John quoted Jesus referring to Himself as “bread” several times (cf. John 6). This may be distinguished from the typical structure of a parable and suggests He and John insisted upon it. This chapter, the preceding chapter, and the succeeding chapter are historical in their language; they cite actual deeds and conversations and do not use symbolism to explain realities (cf. John 5-8). Even if He would have been speaking in a parable, would He have let His disciples abandon Him for use of figurative language (cf. John 6:60-71)? Therefore, He could not have been speaking in a parable, which is a common reason to dismiss this passage. He, then, reaffirmed His position during the Lord’s supper(cf. Luke 22:14-23). Further, in the story of the Road to Emmaus, Jesus appeared to the disciples and the disciples asked Him, “Stay with us, for it is toward evening and the day is now far spent”, but instead of spending the night, He answered their prayer a little differently (Luke 24:13-35). He answered by sitting down with them, and completed the same actions of the Last Supper and the “feeding of the many”, found at the beginning of the sixth chapter of John’s gospel (Luke 24:30, cf. John 6:11, cf. Luke 22:14-23). Additionally, the Eucharist/transubstantiation is mentioned after the Gospels (cf. Acts of the Apostles 2:42, 46; cf. 1 Corinthians 5:7-8, 10:15-21, 11:17-34; cf. Hebrews 9:11-14, 25). Some hastily conclude that the Bible does not support the Eucharist, however, a closer examination proves otherwise. The Church adheres to the Tradition of the early Christians (those nearest to Jesus, His apostles, and their oral tradition which was written in the New Testament) which is also in support of the Eucharist.
Lastly, even should one accept that the Church encourages the use of Scripture, it is studied during the Mass, and the Eucharist is biblical, they may still question the source of the Mass. The Mass is a well-constructed praxis of Sacred Scripture and Tradition in which Catholics are immersed in the interplay of Scriptural prayers and sequences. A former Presbyterian minister, Catholic convert, and Professor of Theology and Scripture, Dr. Scott Hahn recalls his first experience of the Mass saying “My Bible was not just beside me. It was before me - in the words of the Mass!”[10] In his book, the Lamb’s Supper, he analyzes the Mass, especially in light of symbols in the book of Revelation. The Mass begins with the sign of the cross (cf. Revelation 7:3; 14:1).[11] Before the faithful enter into the most solemn parts of the Mass, they repent of and renounce their sins (cf. 1 John 1:9, cf. Psalm 6:2, 31:9; cf. Matthew 15:22, 17:15, 20:30). Then, the faithful pray the “Gloria …”, which signifies that they are petitioning the Father in Jesus’ name (cf. John 14:13-14; cf. Luke 2:14; cf. Revelation 15:3-4).[12] Next, Sacred Scripture is read from the Lectionary as previously mentioned.[13] A deacon, priest, or bishop gives a homily to reveal the meanings and implications of Scripture and relate them to the faithful, thereby allowing the Holy Spirit to act through speech.[14] Then the sacrifice takes place.[15] Scott Hahn realized that the Mass consummates the New Covenant (cf. John 19:30, cf. Revelation 4:8).[16] The title of Jesus as the “Lamb of God” is used frequently in the Mass (cf. John 1:36; cf. Acts of the Apostles 8:32-35; cf. 1 Peter 1:19; cf Genesis 22:8; cf. Galatians 3:14, cf. Revelation 5:1-14).[17] Sacrifice is a frequent topic in the Bible, especially the Old Testament. Sacrifices are offered for: praise, thanksgiving, solemnly sealing an oath, and renunciation of sins (Psalm 24:1; cf. Psalm 116:12; cf. Genesis 21:22-32; cf. Leviticus 16:7-10, cf. 2 Corinthians 5:21).[18] While on the cross, none of Jesus’ bones were broken and he drank wine vinegar from a sponge on a branch of hyssop, both of these are images from the Passover sacrifice of an unblemished lamb (John 19:29, 36; Exodus 12:22). In the context of Passover, to mark, seal, or renew one’s Covenant with God they needed to eat the Lamb (cf. John 6:54; cf. Exodus 12:8).[19] The use of bread and wine is credited to Melchizedek (the first priest in the Bible) (Hebrews 7:1-17).[20] The phrase “our daily bread” in the Our Father and the Eucharistic bread “cannot be overemphasized”.[21] The Holy Spirit draws us back to Calvary in “remembrance”(1 Corinthians 11:25).[22] To partake in communion, those present must be reconciled with their neighbors which is ceremoniously symbolized by “the exchange of peace”, as commanded by Jesus (cf. Matthew 5:24).[23] During the sacrificial portion of the Mass, the priest raises a broken host and the chalice (the transubstantiated bread and wine) and says “Behold the Lamb of God, behold Him Who takes away the sins of the world”(cf. Revelation 5:6; cf. John 1:36).[24] Then the celebration of the Mass culminates in the faithful “receiving what [they] will be for all eternity”.[25] Based on the provided evidence, there is no conceivable way of overstating the degree to which the Mass is scriptural.[26] “In the earthly liturgy, we take part in a foretaste of that heavenly liturgy which is celebrated in the holy city of Jerusalem toward which we journey as pilgrims, where Christ is sitting at the right hand of God, a minister of the holies and of the true tabernacle.”[27]
In conclusion, acceptance of the myth that Catholics despise/refuse to use the Bible is a result of either ignorance of Catholicism and/or ignorance of Scripture. Despite the supposed truth of the claim, an honest and thorough investigation reveals that it is entirely false. On the contrary, Catholics strongly encourage the use and perpetual study of scripture. Catholics attend the most sublime and thorough Bible study whenever they attend Mass. While at Mass, they receive the Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity of the Author of Scripture and thereby eat of the Lamb of God. The Mass is a tangible participation in the commands of Sacred Scriptures. “At the Last Supper, on the night when He was betrayed, our Savior instituted the Eucharistic sacrifice of His Body and Blood… to entrust to His beloved spouse, the Church, a memorial of His death and resurrection…a paschal banquet in which Christ is eaten, the mind is filled with grace, and a pledge of future glory is given to us.”[28]
[1] Second
Vatican Council, Dogmatic Constitution on Divine Revelation Dei verbum
(18 November 1965), § 22
[2] Catechism
of the Catholic Church, 2nd ed. (Washington, DC: United States Catholic
Conference, 2000), 78, 80
[3] CCC,
81-85.
[4] CCC,
86-87, Dei verbum, 23-24.
[5] Dei
verbum, 25-26.; Pope Benedict XVI, Post-Synodal Apostolic Exhortation on
the Word of God in the Life and Mission of the Church Verbum
domini (30 September 2010), § 86.
[6] Verbum
domini, 57.
[7] CCC,
2698; cf. Verbum domini, 59; Dei verbum, 21, 25.
[8] CCC,
2698, 1096, 1174-8.
[9] Justin
Martyr, “Saint Justin Martyr: First Apology (Roberts-Donaldson) ,” ed.
Peter Kirby, Early Christian Writings (Early Christian Writings, 2020), Chapter
LXVI.; Scott Walker Hahn, The Lamb's Supper: the Mass as Heaven on Earth,
First (New York, NY: Doubleday, 1999), 28-29.
[11]
“St. Cyprian of Carthage, in the third century” wrote about the sign of the
cross: The Lamb's Supper: the Mass as Heaven on Earth, pg. 43.
[12] The
Lamb's Supper: the Mass as Heaven on Earth, pg. 46-47.
[13]
Cf. CCC, 1103.
[14] The
Lamb's Supper: the Mass as Heaven on Earth, pg. 49.
[15] CCC,
1103.; cf. The Lamb's Supper: the Mass as Heaven on Earth, pg. 54.
[16] The
Lamb's Supper: the Mass as Heaven on Earth, pg. 12.
[17] The
Lamb's Supper: the Mass as Heaven on Earth, pg. 16.
[18] CCC,
1356-1381.; The Lamb's Supper: the Mass as Heaven on Earth, pg. 19.
[19] The
Lamb's Supper: the Mass as Heaven on Earth, pg. 26-27.
[21] The
Lamb's Supper: the Mass as Heaven on Earth, pg. 55.
[22] CCC,
1103-1107.
[23] The
Lamb's Supper: the Mass as Heaven on Earth, pg. 56.
[24] The
Lamb's Supper: the Mass as Heaven on Earth, pg. 56.
[25] The
Lamb's Supper: the Mass as Heaven on Earth, pg. 56-57.
[26] I
have vastly demonstrated, though not exhaustively, the scriptural nature of the
Mass.
[27] Second
Vatican Council, Dogmatic Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy Sacrosanctum
concilium (4 December 1964), 8.
[28] Sacrosanctum concilium,
§ 47.
