Revealed Knowledge in the Bible & Church

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Revealed Knowledge of God Through the Bible & Church

For all Christians, the Bible tells the story of salvation history. The Catholic Church thinks that God has not left us with just the Bible, but a Church

Salvation

In Christianity, salvation is the saving of human beings from death and separation from God through Christ's death on the cross and resurrection.
Salvation is also called deliverance or redemption.
It is clear throughout the Bible that God speaks to his people directly.
This is through visions and the work of key figures.
- God becomes known to people in the Bible through his direct revelation to them.

Direct revelation

A Biblical example of direct, immediate revelation is that of St Paul, whose previous name was Saul.
Saul travelled to Damascus to arrest Christians there.
As he did so, Jesus appeared from the heavens in a flash of bright light to ask him why he was persecuting the Christians.
He was struck blind and Saul proceeded to Damascus where he fasted and prayed.
- In a vision, Jesus told his disciple Anania to find Saul and restore his sight.

Direct revelation continued

Ananias was skeptical, as he knew Saul hated Christians and would probably punish him.
But Ananias went anyway and did what he was told.
Saul's sight was restored and he became a disciple of the religion he sought to destroy.
He took the name Paul, to signify a new start in his life.
Paul became a pivotal figure in the Christian church. He wrote over half of the New Testament.
- Through Paul, many Christians gain revelation of God through the Bible and Paul’s stories and letters.

Interpreting the Bible

Different Christians interpret the Bible differently.
- Fundamental Christians will take the Bible as the Word of God that cannot be wrong.
They will take the Genesis story as a literal account of creation.
- Other Christians will see the Bible as an inspired text that still holds authority.
But, they may see the Bible as an account of how God has worked through the lives of different people.

Church

The Catholic Church thinks that God has not left us with just the Bible, but a Church. - The Church is the ‘Body of Christ’, which passes on truths and teachings from one generation to the next.
In 325 AD the Bishops of the Church met at Nicaea to discuss what the official teachings of the Church should be.
They eventually came up with the Nicene Creed.
- This sets out numerous Catholic beliefs, including those about God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit.

The Holy Spirit

The Church believes that the Nicene Creed is revealed truth from God.
This is because the Holy Spirit is believed to guide and inspire the leaders of the Church in their decisions.
The Catholic Church believes that there is a combination of sources of Christian truth.
In addition to the Bible, there is the continuing inspiration of the Holy Spirit.
- The Holy Spirit works within the Church to deliver fresh inspiration and teachings.
- The Holy Spirit does this through the Magisterium and the Pope to pass on to Catholics today.