In 1521, Martin Luther stood before the Diet of Worms and declared: “My conscience is captive to the Word of God.” Called to account for his teachings, he argued that neither pope nor church council had authority above the Scriptures. His study of the Bible, especially the books of Psalms, Romans, and Galatians, had brought the gospel to him. So when he went into hiding at the Wartburg Castle, following the Diet of Worms, he began translating the Bible into the language of the common people.

Nearly 500 years after Luther, where does the Roman Catholic Church stand today in relation to the Scriptures? What, if anything, has changed from Luther’s time, and what has not changed?

A new teaching document, The Gift of Scripture [London: The Catholic Truth Society, 2005], suggests answers. The 60-page booklet was released last year by the Catholic Bishops’ Conferences of England and Wales, and of Scotland, on the 40th anniversary of Dei Verbum, an important document of the Second Vatican Council. According to the statement on the back cover, The Gift of Scripture sets out to explain Dei Verbum and subsequent Church documents: “What the Catholic Church has to say about the Holy Scriptures builds on ancient insights as well as utilizing modern understandings.”

The Gift of Scripture is written in clear, easy-to-read English. Its tone is irenic and overtly ecumenical. “In this third Christian millennium, we, the bishops of England and Wales and of Scotland, offer this new teaching document on the Bible first to Catholics, but also to all those who are drawn to the Holy Scriptures, so that they may engage with the Scriptures more deeply and more fruitfully” (p. 11). After a Foreword and Introduction, The Gift of Scripture unfolds in five sections: Part One: Hearing the Word of God; Part Two: Understanding the Word of God; Part Three: Reading the Old Testament; Part Four: Reading the New Testament; and Part Five: Living the Word of God.

Throughout the booklet, one finds a high view of Scripture maintained and a call to study it, value it, and live by it. Luther would be pleased. Given the inaccessibility of the Bible in his day, he would be startled by statements like: “We have rediscovered the Bible as a precious treasure, both ancient and ever new. We have received so much from those who have dedicated their lives to making the Scriptures more accessible to us [Does this include Luther’s contribution?]. The Catholic Church is proud to share the endeavor of bringing Scripture alive with other Christians. The anniversary year of Dei Verbum is a good time to turn to the Bible again and to deepen our understanding and love for the Scriptures” (p. 6).

When one gets beyond such lofty statements and examines what the bishops mean by Bible study, a different picture emerges:

1. The method followed in The Gift of Scripture: The writing throughout merges the text of Scripture with official Church documents, especially Dei Verbum. For Luther, the Bible stood apart, authoritative above all other works. Example: “Dei Verbum teaches that we continually receive ‘the bread of life from the table both of the word of God and of the Body of Christ’ (Dei Verbum, 21).”

2. The role of tradition: Again, contra Luther, Scriptures are to be approached through the tradition of the Church. “We approach the Scriptures with reverence asking for the enlightenment of that same Spirit who inspired their writing. We approach the Scriptures as members of the family of the Church, seeking the guidance of the living Tradition of the teaching Church. We are more and more aware that Scripture and Tradition are closely bound together, coming from ‘the same divine source’ (Dei Verbum, 9).” In fact, Scripture and Tradition, the document states, “constitute the one sacred deposit of the word of God entrusted to the Church,” and they both are to be “accepted and honoured with equal devotion and reverence” (p. 15). Such statements carry with it two important implications. First, the “word of God” is not the Scripture but the Scripture and Tradition as a unity. This seems to be the meaning of the phrase “word of God” throughout the document. Second, it is implied that Tradition and Scripture are not to be differentiated on the basis of authority. They have equal authority because, supposedly, Tradition is founded on the Scripture.

3. The Magisterium: Luther aimed to put the Bible in the hands of everybody so that the man at the plow would know it better than popes and prelates. Each Christian, individually, was to read, study, and decide his or her conscience captive to the Word of God. But listen to The Gift of Scripture: “The task of safeguarding the understanding of the Word of God is given to the teaching authority of the Church, the bishops in union with the pope. Their duty is to serve the Word, by teaching it, listening to it attentively, protecting it conscientiously and explaining it faithfully (Dei Verbum, 10). The teaching authority, or Magisterium, seeks to ensure that new insights are faithful to the Word of God” (p. 17). In this important respect catholic theology has not changed.

4. The role of the Eucharist: The Gift of Scripture raises the Eucharist to a place not afforded it in Scripture. This teaching document merges the Scriptures with the Eucharist: “We know well that Christ comes ‘in word and sacrament to strengthen us in holiness’ (Roman Missal). We are fed by the sacrament, but also by the Word. We are invited to ‘take and eat’, to ‘take and drink’, but also to ‘take and read’…” (p. 11). “In the Eucharist the Church never ceases to take the bread of life and to offer it to the faithful ‘from the table both of the word of God and the Body of Christ’ (Dei Verbum, 21)” (p. 53).

5. Selectivity of Scripture: Although The Gift of Scripture applauds “the proliferation of groups of people who gather around the Bible, to read and to study, to reflect and to pray” (p. 56), its emphasis falls on the selective reading of Scripture. For instance, “catechesis will naturally select those texts which are of the greatest moment in Scripture, such as the Decalogue and the Sermon on the Mount” (p. 52). The role of Scripture in liturgy, the Mass and other sacraments is stressed, as well as in the homily, hymns, and prayers. The public reading of Scripture, with the importance of the office of reader, is underscored. (pp. 52-56). In all these activities, the hearing of Scripture is tied to the Church, not to the individual.

So what has changed in 500 years? In terms of the role of the Roman Catholic Church vis-à-vis the Bible nothing at all. The more Rome changes, the more she stays the same. Luther would have the very same complaints, if he were to rise from the dead.

In closing, I will note a couple of other items of interest to Seventh-day Adventists. First, The Gift of Scripture continues to include the Apocrypha in its description of the Old Testament (pp. 23-24). Second, it accepts in some measure the historical-critical approach to Scripture. Thus, concerning “the early chapters of Genesis”: “It became clear that the material found in these chapters of Genesis could not simply be described as historical writing. Though they may contain some historical traces, the primary purpose was to provide religious teaching (The Jewish People 27-28).” The bishops accept the late date for the Book of Daniel, which stands “on the threshold of the New Testament” (p. 32). Turning to the New Testament, while The Gift of Scripture accepts the Markan priority (first Gospel to be written, p. 36), it nevertheless holds that the Gospels are “four trustworthy accounts from the testimony of the apostles and the developing understanding of the early Christian communities” (p. 34).

Recently I toured Reformation sites in Germany. I saw the Augustinian cloister where, as a monk, Luther tortured his body in a futile quest to find peace with God. I stood by the pulpit in the town church of Wittenberg, where as pastor Luther preached thousands of sermons from the Word of God. And I climbed the stairs to the upper room of the Death House in Eisleben where he breathed his last. Seventh-day Adventists are children of Luther. We must stand uncompromisingly on the Bible and the Bible alone as the source of doctrine and the rule of faith and practice. The Gift of Scripture makes abundantly clear that such a stance is needed as much today as it was in the great Reformer’s time.