Dei Verbum: What Is the Church’s Purpose?

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The goal of the doctrinal Dei Verbum is to follow the footsteps of the Council of Trent and Vatican I, in that it wishes to set forth authentic doctrine on divine revelation and how it is handed on. The document speaks upon multiple topics, among which are revelations, the relationships between Scripture and Tradition, the values of the Old Testament, the positions of the four Gospels in the life of the church, and others. However, there is one specific theological truth that cannot be overlooked. The way you interpret the Scripture should carefully investigate what meaning the authors intended and what God wanted to manifest by means of their words. The word of the Lord is the essence of our faith and our livelihood. Through Dei Verbum we discover that the sacred readings and writings are understood and made active in the Church, therefore making the Church an engine for fulfilling the words of God. Through the promulgations of Pope Paul VI, it is clear that the sacred tradition and the Sacred Scripture together, are taught through the authority of the Church so that each in its own way contribute effectively to the salvation of souls under the action of the one Holy Spirit. As we discuss the larger ecclesiological question, “what is the church?” we can take from Dei Verbum that it is a few things. The first is that it is an engine. The second is that it cannot stand-alone. And the third is that it should remain easily accessible and stay guarded. The main purpose of the Church is to act as an engine. We see a close connection between sacred tradition and Sacred Scripture. Both merge towards the same end, yet they cannot reach it solely by themselves. They need the Church because the Church serves to make sure they are “accepted and venerated with the same sense of loyalty and reverence.”(6) This then leads me to my second point, the Church cannot stand-alone.
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