As we embark upon this quest to “Save Our Souls,” just like any journey we need to have the necessary tools in our “Captain’s Desk” (for we are all captains of our own ships by virtue of our free-will) to ensure that we stay the course and arrive at our destination.
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First off, one can be overwhelmed with the thought of starting this great adventure to distant lands. It can appear to be an impossible quest, whereby someone must do many heroic deeds to arrive at journey’s end. In reality it is very simple and in its simplicity many will be surprised.
Often Christian souls believe they must have the correct “formula” and only that “formula” will achieve the desired results. It is true that there are certain “essentials” that will make the journey easier, but in the end, the uniqueness of a particular soul’s journey makes it difficult to pin down exactly what everyone must do in order to step on hallowed ground.
Therefore, what will be offered here is simply a collection of tools that has helped numerous Saints and have been sure guide posts for a Christian soul who desires eternal happiness. It is up to you, dear Pilgrim Soul, to use these tools wisely and to discover what will help your heart reach its final destination.
Captain’s Desk: The Nautical Chart
Before setting sail any good Captain would do well to have all the necessary tools, otherwise his ship could sail right into unfriendly waters and never reach the end. The first essential tool in a Captain’s Desk is called a nautical chart. This chart shows much more than topography of the sea and land, for it also includes details concerning navigational hazards, natural aids to navigation as well as locations of safe harbor.
For the PILGRIM SOUL our nautical chart is Sacred Scripture. The Divine Revelation of God to the many human authors of the Bible comprises our nautical chart that will steer us away from spiritual hazards and lead us to the safe harbors of Heaven. As Christians this is the primary way that God has spoken to us and so it follows that if we are to know how to reach our final destination, we need to first turn to Sacred Scripture. As the Catechism puts it:
In Sacred Scripture, the Church constantly finds her nourishment and her strength, for she welcomes it not as a human word, “but as what it really is, the word of God”. “In the sacred books, the Father who is in heaven comes lovingly to meet his children, and talks with them. (CCC 104)
Dom Jean-Baptiste Chautard puts reading Holy Writ as one of the necessary aspects of leading a holy and devout life. He recounts:
Devout study of Sacred Scripture, especially of the New Testament, ought to find a place each day, or at least several times a week in the life of a [devout soul].[i]
Saint Josemaria Escriva also comments on this daily exercise of reading Scripture, saying that it “enable[s] you to incarnate the Gospel, reflect it in your life, and help others to reflect it.”[ii]
Saint Therese of Lisieux as well found great nourishment in reading the Bible; in particular, the Gospels. She relates:
But above all it’s the Gospels that occupy my mind when I’m at prayer; my soul has so many needs, and yet this is the one thing needful. I’m always finding fresh lights there; hidden meanings which had meant nothing to me hitherto.
The “Little Flower” even carried around with her a pocket-sized New Testament that she would constantly refer to for strength throughout the day. And she is not alone, for numerous popes, bishops, priests and laity alike have found Sacred Scripture as a light upon their path and a sure map leading to eternal bliss.
Yet, as many can attest, it is not always easy to read Sacred Scripture or to interpret it properly. Just like any nautical chart, if we don’t know how to read it, we will be as lost as we were in the first place. For as the Catechism cites:
In Sacred Scripture, God speaks to man in a human way. To interpret Scripture correctly, the reader must be attentive to what the human authors truly wanted to affirm, and to what God wanted to reveal to us by their words. (CCC 109)
Therefore, when reading the Bible we can not simply interpret it as we see fit. If a Captain of a ship interpreted the chart before him according to his best estimate, who knows where the ship will end up. Instead, we must read carefully and keep four keys in mind in order to unlock the meaning of Scripture:
- Discover the Author’s Intention: God chose to use human authors as instruments in His divine plan. Each of these author’s had a particular intention with their writing. For example, one can not read the Psalms as a history book, for it is primarily poetry and speaks from the depths of the author’s soul.
- Unity of Scripture: If we are to ever discover an inconsistency in Scripture, there are two options: either we do not understand the passage correctly or God made a mistake. I tend to believe that I have made a mistake in interpreting Scripture if I see a discontinuity. Along with that, we should always remember that the Old Testament should be read in light of the New and the New in light of the Old. There is a unity in Scripture that binds it all together.
- Read within the Tradition of the Church: God has ordained that since Saint Peter, the Church has been given the authority to interpret Scripture. Therefore, when we read Scripture it should always be in light of what the Church has taught for centuries. If we find ourselves outside of Church Tradition then we need to acquaint ourselves with the reasons behind what the Church teaches.
- Four Senses of Scripture: The Catcechism teaches us:
According to an ancient tradition, one can distinguish between two senses of Scripture: the literal and the spiritual, the latter being subdivided into the allegorical, moral and anagogical senses. The profound concordance of the four senses guarantees all its richness to the living reading of Scripture in the Church.
The literal sense is the meaning conveyed by the words of Scripture and discovered by exegesis, following the rules of sound interpretation: “All other senses of Sacred Scripture are based on the literal.”
The spiritual sense. Thanks to the unity of God’s plan, not only the text of Scripture but also the realities and events about which it speaks can be signs.
1. The allegorical sense. We can acquire a more profound understanding of events by recognizing their significance in Christ; thus the crossing of the Red Sea is a sign or type of Christ’s victory and also of Christian Baptism.
2. The moral sense. The events reported in Scripture ought to lead us to act justly. As St. Paul says, they were written “for our instruction”.
3. The anagogical sense (Greek: anagoge, “leading”). We can view realities and events in terms of their eternal significance, leading us toward our true homeland: thus the Church on earth is a sign of the heavenly Jerusalem. (CCC 115-117)
These four keys come from centuries of Church teaching and can be found further explained in Dr. Edward Sri’s short book The Bible Compass: A Catholic’s Guide to Navigating the Scriptures. Two other great resources are: Walking with God: A Journey through the Bible by Dr. Tim Gray & Jeff Cavins and A Father Who Keep’s His Promises by Dr. Scott Hahn.
This concludes our look into the first tool necessary to keep in our Captain’s Desk as we embark upon our journey to reach Blessed Shores. Next week, we will discover the second tool that is needed: a compass.
Read the Entire Series
- How the Church is Portrayed as a Ship in Theology & Architecture
- One of the Most Ancient Spiritual Analogies
[i] Dom Jean-Baptiste Chautard, The Soul of the Apostolate, (Rockford: Tan Books and Publishers, 1974), 196.
[ii] Saint Josemaria Escriva, The Furrow, (Princeton: Scepter Publishers, 1994), §672.