Pontifical Biblical
Commission examines question: What is man?
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| Sistine Chapel - detail from the Creation of Adam |
The Pontifical Biblical Commission publishes a new
systematic study on the anthropological vision of Scripture, from Genesis to
Revelation. In an interview with Vatican News, Jesuit Father Pietro Bovati says
that the sacred texts contain principles for reflecting on the great questions
of our age.
By Vatican News
A new book-length study by the Pontifical Biblical
Commission examines the Scriptural understanding of the human being. Entitled
“What is man? An itinerary of biblical anthropology”, the document aims not at
giving an answer to every question about man, but rather, providing foundational
principles for discernment.
That’s according to Father Pietro Bovati, SJ, the secretary
for the Commission. In an interview with Vatican News, he explained the
significance of the document. “The Pope wanted this theme to be addressed
starting precisely from Scripture, which is the foundation and soul of all
Christian reflection”, Fr Bovati said. “At the basis of this is a question:
what is man? This question runs through the whole of the Bible as an
itinerary”.
Providing fundamental principles
Emphasizing the need to be guided by Scripture, Fr Bovati
said that “Scripture teaches man the truth about man”. This kind of
“methodology of biblical theology”, he explained, is not intended to give
answers to every possible question, but to provide foundational principles “for
a discernment of the sense of man in history”.
The Commission’s study is composed of four chapters, dealing
with major themes including man as created by God; man in relation to the rest
of creation; the relational reality of anthropology (focusing on spousal,
parental/filial, and fraternal relationships); and the salvific plan of God for
humankind.
Helping respond to modern questions
With regard to specific questions about human beings (for
example, questions related to gender) Father Bovati said the Commission did not
intend to go beyond what the Bible actually says about those questions. “So we
agreed to address the issues, respecting the level of information that we have
from Scripture”, he said. Recognizing that our “cultural situation” is very
different from the situations in which the Biblical books were written, Fr
Bovati noted that we cannot necessarily find “immediate and precise” answers to
contemporary questions in the Bible. Nonetheless, in the Scriptures we can find
principles, “useful indications for reflection” which can help “theologians,
moralists, pastors” respond to modern concerns.
A systematic work
Father Bovati said the Commission “kept in mind… the whole
Christian tradition” in the work, but at the same time wanted to do the
preliminary work of “showing what Scripture really says”. That work, he
explained, “had never been done”, since theologians normally only cite texts
that are useful for the arguments they are making. “We, on the contrary, wanted
to do a systematic work”, he said, “in order to offer a path of what the Bible
says about all the complexity of the human being”.
This work, said Fr Bovati, is one of the most original
contributions of the new document. “We have not only tried to clarify some
points, and perhaps give a more mature, more complex interpretation even of
certain biblical texts”. The originality, he continued, “lies in the itinerary,
in offering to theologians, to those involved in the transmission of the faith,
an understanding of man that is more complex, more organic, more in conformity
with our Biblical traditions”.
In response to the question, “What is the truth of man?”, Fr
Bovati said “the Bible gives some indications that must be considered
absolutely fundamental for all”.
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