God's Word: Scripture, Tradition, Office

by Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger

Overview

In this book Joseph Ratzinger, now Pope Benedict XVI, presents the Word of God as a living reality in the Church. God's Word, according to Ratzinger, is encountered in the Bible, in Tradition, and through the teaching Office of the Bishop, who, through apostolic succession, is to be the servant of and witness to the divine Word. Ratzinger examines as well the relationship between the Episcopacy and the Papacy. He also considers the nature of Apostolic Succession, and he responds to Reformed objections to the Catholic view of the subject. His treatment is sympathetic to the concerns of non-Catholic Christians while remaining faithful to Catholic teaching and practice.

This book also includes the famous Erasmus Lecture of Cardinal Ratzinger, which assesses the strengths and weaknesses of modern critical approaches to biblical interpretation. Ratzinger proposes a new approach that avoids the pitfalls of a narrowly critical outlook on the Bible without succumbing to fundamentalism.

God's Word provides profound insights into Pope Benedict XVI's efforts to renew the Church's participation in God's Truth through the divine Word, as well as the Church's mission to proclaim the Word to all people.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781586171797
Publisher:	Ignatius Press
Publication date:	03/28/2008
Pages:	126
Product dimensions:	8.75(w) x 5.50(h) x (d)

About the Author

Joseph Ratzinger (Benedict XVI) is recognized as one of the most brilliant theologians and spiritual leaders of our age. As pope he authored the best-selling Jesus of Nazareth. Prior to his pontificate, he wrote many influential books important for the contemporary Church, such as Introduction to Christianity and The Spirit of the Liturgy.

Table of Contents

Introduction   Peter Hunermann   Thomas Soding     7
Primacy, Episcopacy, and Successio Apostolica     13
The Church's Teaching on Primacy and Episcopacy     15
Reflections on the Nature of Apostolic Succession in General     22
Successio Papalis and Successio Episcopalis in Relation and Distinction to Each Other     31
The Question of the Concept of Tradition: A Provisional Response     41
Revelation and Tradition: An Attempt to Analyze the Concept of Tradition
Formulation of the Problem     41
Theses on the Relation between Revelation and Tradition
Revelation and Scripture     51
The Differing Significance of Scripture in the Old and New Testaments     53
Christ, the Revelation of God     56
The Nature of Tradition     58
The Function of Exegesis     64
On Interpreting the Tridentine Decree on Tradition     67
The Pneumatological Setting of the Concept of Tradition in the Original Draft of Cardinal Cervini     68
The Linking of Tradition with Ecclesial Life in Various Contributions to the Discussion at Trent     76
Tradition and Church Dogma     82
The Meaning of the Trent Decree     83
Biblical Interpretation in Conflict: The Question of the Basic Principles and Path of ExegesisToday     91
Preliminary Considerations: The Situation and the Task     91
Self-Criticism of the Historical-Critical Method Following the Paradigm of the Methodological Doctrine of Martin Dibelius and Rudolf Bultmann     102
Some Basic Elements of a New Synthesis     114

Introduction

"Nourished and sustained by the Eucharist, Catholics cannot but feel encouraged to strive for the full unity for which Christ expressed so ardent a hope in the Upper Room. The Pope, the Successor of Peter, knows that he must make himself especially responsible for his Divine Master's supreme aspiration. Indeed, he is entrusted with the task of strengthening his brethren (cf. Lk 22: 32). With full awareness, therefore, at the beginning of his ministry in the Church of Rome which Peter bathed in his blood, Peter's current Successor takes on as his primary task the duty to work tirelessly to rebuild the full and visible unity of all Christ's followers."

- From the Introduction