Cardinal Ratzinger and the Biblical Commission
The Biblical Commission has just celebrated its centenary. On the occasion, Cardinal Ratzinger gave a speech, in which he evoked the hazards of the commission during its history. The first 50 years were marked by difficult relations with the biblical experts, given the fact that the Magisterium held many things to be certain and left little room for exegesis. The cardinal quoted several examples of mistrust of the Magisterium towards the historico-critical method of the modernists.
These tendencies of the Magisterium changed radically in the second part of the 20th century, and in particular after Vatican II council and the constitution Dei Verbum on divine revelation. We are profoundly grateful for the opening up brought about by Vatican II; however, we must guard against condemnation of the past, which is part of the scientific process, which has allowed us to come as far as we have and which constantly brings us new challenges.
Seeking to be reassuring, he went on showing that faith is founded on history: Faith which knows nothing of its history is a Gnostic faith. (
) Faith is founded on the Bible: the reality of the birth of Jesus of the Virgin Mary, the historical institution of the Eucharist during the Last Supper, the physical resurrection of the dead, etc., these are the elements of our faith.
Since the turning point in 1972, the Biblical Commission has been not only the organ of the authentic Magisterium, but also a meeting place for a dialog between the representatives of the Magisterium and qualified exegets.
A small observation: our reply to Cardinal Ratzinger would be the same as that of Archbishop Lefebvre. If the Church has been wrong in considering many things as certainties, it is quite possible that she is wrong again, in no longer considering them as such. It would therefore be wiser to wait until tomorrow, in order to see how things turn out. This simple reply shows the arrogance of the modernists, who consider that the Church has been mistaken in considering many things to be certainties.
