Biblical Interpretation
How to properly interpret or understand what is written in the Bible is something that the Bible itself teaches us cannot be done on our own: “knowing this first, that no prophecy of Scripture is of any private interpretation, for prophecy never came by the will of man, but holy men of God spoke as they were moved by the Holy Spirit. (2 Peter 1:20-21)
“Since the Bible was written under the guidance of the Holy Spirit, it is the Holy Spirit abiding in the Church Who is the Proper Interpreter of the Bible. The Church, in other words, is the custodian, the caretaker, the interpreter of the Bible.”1 “we do not read the Bible as isolated individuals, interpreting it solely by the light of our private understanding…We read it as members of the Church, in communion with all the other members throughout the ages. The final criterion for our interpretation of Scripture is the mind of the Church.”2
The importance of the Church and her Tradition when it comes to reading the Bible is something that some other denominations of Christianity do not believe. One of these viewpoints is known as Sola Scriptura which emphasises that the Bible alone is to be taken as the authority for Christianity. However, this is goes against what the Bible itself teaches us: “Therefore, brethren, stand fast and hold the traditions which you were taught, whether by word or our epistle.” (2 Thessalonians 3:15)