The theologically most important document on Sacred Scripture issued by Pius XII was the encyclical Divino Afflante Spiritu, of September 30, 1943. The reason or, rather, the occasion of the new encyclical was the celebration (EB 538) of the fiftieth anniversary of the other great encyclical Providentissimus, by Leo XIII.
After considering the teaching on Scripture and the promotion of the dissemination of the Bible by the predecessors of Leo XIII onwards, Pius XII reconfirms the teaching of faith: 1) on the inspiration extended to the entire Bible (EB 538); 2) on canonicity, as taught by the Tridentine (EB 538); 3) on inerrancy, bearing in mind the principles relating to texts dealing with scientific matters.
He then goes on to examine the criteria that help and educate for a correct interpretation of the sacred text.
They are proposed in order:
1 Knowledge of the results of archaeological explorations and J in particular of the new papyri discovered (EB 547).
2. Expertise in biblical languages and in other oriental languages (EB 547).
3. Textual criticism, the importance of which is repeatedly stressed (EB 549).
4. With this instrument (knowledge of languages and critically restored text) exegetes “must diligently seek the literal meaning of words, using knowledge of languages, context, comparison with similar passages, that is, of all those things of which the interpretation of profane writings is usually taken advantage of, in order to cleanly bring to light the author’s thought” (EB 550 a).
5. But the fact that Sacred Scripture is the inspired Word of God implies that it is necessary to keep in mind as interpretive criteria: a) “the explanations and declarations of the ecclesiastical Magisterium,;; b) “the expositions of the holy Fathers”; c) “the analogy of faith” (EB 551).
6. A further orientation of exegetical work is “the search for spiritual meaning, provided that it turns out that God has put it there” (EB 552).
From here, the nature of inspiration is taken into consideration from the psycho-physical point of view of the hagiographer (EB 555-556), to then proceed to deal with literary genres.
For the first time in the Magisterium we find an explanation of what literary genres are. “The ancient Orientals, to express their concepts, do not always use those forms or genres of speech that we use today, but rather those that were in use among the people of their times and their countries” (EB 558). No one who has a fair concept of biblical inspiration will be surprised that also in the sacred writers, as in all the ancients, there are certain ways of expounding and narrating, certain idioms, peculiar especially to the Semitic languages, certain hyperbolic modes or approximate, sometimes even paradoxical, which serve to better impress on the mind what is meant” (EB 559).
The principles for correctly using literary genres are formulated below.
“The exegete cannot establish a priori what the literary genres are, but only after a careful examination of the ancient literatures of the East” (EB 558).
None of the genres “must be excluded from the sacred Books, provided that the adopted genre of speech does not repudiate the holiness of God or the truth of things” (EB 559).
” With the aforementioned knowledge and with the exact assessment of the ways and uses of speaking and writing among the ancients, it will be possible to resolve many objections raised against the truthfulness and historical value of the divine Scriptures; such study will also lead to a clearer and more luminous understanding of the thought of the sacred author” (EB 560).
Finally, the passage (EB 568) dedicated to Jesus is significant and theologically important, as “a stable foundation and support of peace and tranquility” at all times, and also, therefore, in a period of great catastrophes such as that of the Second World War. Jesus is the content of all the Scriptures -cf. the quote from St. Jerome, Comm. in Isaiam, prologus: PL 24, 17)-and it is his last hermeneutic key (cf. Jn 6,60, also cited in the encyclical).
In the scripture-theology relationship, Pius XII exalts the triple function of the Bible (EB 551), which Benedict XV had already taught. But precisely in this text there is J an interesting novelty. The pope underlines that in each of the books there is a whole theology to discover.
Therefore, Scripture is not only a source for proving dogmatic theses: “Attend, therefore, in due time to these news items (relating to history, archaeology, philology and – other similar matters), insofar as they can contribute to the exegesis, but mainly take into account the theological doctrine of each book or of each text regarding faith and customs”.
L. Pacomio
Bibl.: Text in MPC. 1, 84-102; Pacomio, Interdisciplinary Theological Dictionary 4 vols., Follow me, Salamanca 1982.
PACOMIO, Luciano, Encyclopedic Theological Dictionary, Divine Word, Navarra, 1995
Source: Encyclopedic Theological Dictionary