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Safeguarding
tradition by an understanding of Scriptures and fidelity to the deposit
of faith
On Wednesday, 28 January
[2009], at the General Audience in the Paul VI Audience Hall, continuing
his Catecheses on the teaching of St Paul, the Holy Father focused on
representing the "family of God" in society. The following is a
translation of the Holy Father's Catechesis, which was given in Italian.
Dear Brothers and Sisters,
The last of the Pauline Letters, which I would like to
talk about today, are known as "Pastoral Letters", because they were
sent to individual Pastors of the Church: two to Timothy and one to
Titus, both close collaborators of St Paul. In Timothy, the Apostle saw
almost an "alter ego"; in fact he entrusted him with important missions
(to Macedonia: cf. Acts 19:22; to Thessalonica: cf. 1 Thes 3:6-7; to
Corinth: cf. Cor 4:17; 16:10-11), and then wrote a flattering eulogy on
him: "I have no one like him, who will be genuinely anxious for your
welfare" (Phil 2:20).
According to the Ecclesiastical History of
Eusebius of Caesarea, a fourth century historian, Timothy was the first
Bishop of Ephesus (cf. 3:4). Titus, too, must have been very dear to the
Apostle, who explicitly describes him as "full of zeal... my partner and
fellow worker" (2 Cor 8:17-23), and further "my true son in the common
faith" (Ti 1:4). He had been assigned a few very delicate missions in
the Church of Corinth, whose results heartened Paul (cf. 2 Cor 7:6-7,
13; 8:6).
After this, according to the tradition handed down to
us, Titus joined Paul in Nicopolis in Epirus, in Greece (cf. Ti 3:12),
and was then sent by him to Dalmatia (cf. 2 Tm 4:10). The Letter sent to
him suggests that he was later made Bishop of Crete (cf. Ti 1:5).
The Letters addressed to these two Pastors occupy a very
particular place within the New Testament. Most exegetes today are of
the opinion that these Letters would not have been written by Paul
himself, but would have come from the "Pauline School", and that they
reflect his legacy for a new generation, perhaps including some words or
brief passages written by the Apostle himself. Some parts of the Second
Letter to Timothy, for example, appear so authentic that they could have
come only from the heart and mouth of the Apostle.
Without a doubt, the situation of the Church as it
emerges from these Letters is very different from that of Paul's middle
years. He now, in retrospect, defines himself as the "herald, apostle,
and teacher" of faith and truth to the Gentiles (cf. 1 Tm 2:7; 2 Tm 1:
11); he presents himself as one who has received mercy — he writes — "so
that in me, as an extreme case, Jesus Christ might display all his
patience, and that I might become an example to those who would later
have faith in him and gain everlasting life" (1 Tm 1:16).
So it is of essential importance that in Paul, a
persecutor converted by the presence of the Risen One, the Lord's
magnanimity is really shown to encourage us, and lead us to hope and to
have faith in the Lord's mercy who, notwithstanding our littleness, can
do great things.
The new cultural contexts that are assumed here go
beyond the middle years of Paul's life. In fact reference is made to the
appearance of teachings that must be considered quite erroneous and
false (cf. 1 Tm 4:1-2; 2 Tm 3:1-5), such as those [teachings]
which held that marriage was not a good thing (cf. 1 Tm 4:3a).
We can see a modern equivalent of this worry, because
today, too, the Scriptures are sometimes read as an object of historical
curiosity and not as the word of the Holy Spirit, in which we can hear
the voice of the Lord himself and recognize his presence in history. We
could say that, with this brief list of errors presented in the three
letters, there are some precocious early traces of that later erroneous
movement which goes by the name of Gnosticism (cf. 1 Tm 2:5-6; 2 Tm
3:6-8).
The writer faces these doctrines with two basic
reminders. The first consists in an exhortation to a spiritual reading
of Sacred Scripture (cf. 2 Tm 3:14-17), that is to a reading which
considers them truly "inspired" and coming from the Holy Spirit, so that
one can be "instructed for salvation" by them. The correct way to read
the Scriptures is to enter into dialogue with the Holy Spirit, in order
to derive a light "for teaching — for reproof, correction, and for
training in righteousness" (2 Tm 3:16). This, the Letter adds: is "so
that the man of God may be fully complete and equipped for every good
work" (2 Tm 3:17).
The other reminder is a
reference to the good "deposit" (parathéke):
a special word found in the Pastoral Letters and used to indicate
the tradition of the apostolic faith which must be safeguarded with the
help of the Holy Spirit who dwells in us. This "deposit" is therefore to
be considered as the sum of the apostolic Tradition, and as a criterion
of faithfulness to the Gospel message. And here we must bear in mind
that the term "Scriptures", when used in the Pastoral Letters, as in all
the rest of the New Testament, means explicitly the Old Testament, since
the writings of the New Testament either had not yet been written or did
not yet constitute part of the Scriptural canon.
Therefore the Tradition of
the apostolic proclamation, this "deposit", is the key to the reading of
the Scriptures, the New Testament. In this sense, Scripture and
Tradition, Scripture and the apostolic proclamation as a key, are set
side by side, and almost merge to form together the "firm foundation
laid by God" (cf. 2 Tm 2:19 ). The apostolic proclamation — that is,
Tradition — is necessary in order to enter into an understanding of the
Scriptures, and to hear the voice of Christ in them. We must, in fact,
"hold firm to the sure word as taught" by the teaching received (Ti
1:9).
Indeed, at the basis of
everything is faith in the historical revelation of the goodness of God,
who in Jesus Christ materially manifested his "love for men", a love
which in the original Greek text is significantly expressed as
filanthropìa
(Ti 3:4; cf. 2 Tm 1:9-10); God loves humanity.
Altogether, it is clear
that the Christian community is beginning to define itself in strict
terms, according to an identity which not only stands aloof from
incongruous interpretations, but above all affirms its ties to the
essential points of faith, which here is synonymous with "truth" (1 Tm
2:4, 7; 4:3;6:5; 2 Tm 2:15, 18, 25; 3:7-8; 4:4; Ti 1:1, 14).
In faith the essential
truth of who we are, who God is, and how we must live is made clear. And
of this truth (the truth of faith), the Church is described as the
"pillar and bulwark" (1 Tm 3:15). In any case, she remains an open
community of universal breadth who prays for everyone of every rank and
order, so that all may know the truth: God "wants all men to be saved,
and to come to the knowledge of the truth", because Christ Jesus "gave
himself as a ransom for all" (1 Tm 2:4-5).
Therefore the sense of
universality, even if the communities are still small, is strong and
conclusive in these Letters. Furthermore, those in the Christian
community "speak evil of no one", and "show perfect courtesy toward all
men" (Ti 3:2). This is the first important component of these Letters:
universality and faith as truth, as a key to the reading of Sacred
Scripture, of the Old Testament, thereby defining a unified proclamation
of Scripture, a living faith open to all and a witness to God's love for
everyone.
Another component typical
of these Letters is their reflection on the ministerial structure of the
Church. They are the first to present the triple subdivision into
Bishops, priests and deacons (cf. 1 Tm 3:1-13; 4:13; 2 Tm 1:6; Ti 1:
5-9). We can observe in the Pastoral Letters the merging of two
different ministerial structures, and thus the constitution of the
definitive form of the ministry in the Church.
In Paul's Letters from the
middle period of his life, he speaks of "bishops" (Phil 1:1), and of
"deacons": this is the typical structure of the Church formed during the
time of the Gentile world. However, as the figure of the Apostle himself
remains dominant, the other ministries only slowly develop.
If, as we have said, in the
Churches formed in the ancient world
we have Bishops and deacons, and not priests, in the Churches formed in
the Judeo-Christian world, priests are the dominant structure. At the
end of the Pastoral Letters, the two structures unite: now "the bishop"
appears (cf. 1 Tm 3:2; Ti 1:7), used always in the singular with the
definite article "the bishop". And beside "the bishop" we find priests
and deacons. The figure of the Apostle is still prominent, but the three
Letters, as I have said, are no longer addressed to communities but
rather to individuals, to Timothy and Titus, who on the one hand appear
as Bishops, and on the other begin to take the place of the Apostle.
This is the first
indication of the reality that later would be known as "apostolic
succession". Paul says to Timothy in the most solemn tones: "Do not
neglect the gift you received when, as a result of prophesy, the
presbyters laid their hands on you (1 Tm 4:14). We can say that in these
words the sacramental character of the ministry is first made apparent.
And so we have the essential Catholic structure: Scripture and
Tradition, Scripture and proclamation, form a whole, but to this
structure — a doctrinal structure, so to speak — must be added the
personal structure, the successors of the Apostles as witnesses to the
apostolic proclamation.
Lastly, it is important to
note that in these Letters, the Church sees herself in very human terms,
analogous to the home and the family. Particularly in 1 Tm 3:2-7 we read highly
detailed instructions concerning the Bishop, like these: he must be
"irreprehensible, the husband of one wife, temperate, sensible,
dignified, hospitable, an apt teacher, no drunkard, not violent but
gentle, not quarrelsome, and no lover of money. He must manage his own
household well, keeping his children under control and respectful in
every way, for if a man does not know how to manage his own household,
how can he care for God's Church?.... Moreover he must be well thought
of by outsiders".
A special note should be
made here of the importance of an aptitude for teaching (cf. also 1 Tm
5:17), which is echoed in other passages (cf. 1 Tm 6:2c; 2 Tm 3:10; Ti
2:1), and also of a special personal characteristic, that of
"paternity". In fact the Bishop is considered the father of the
Christian community (cf. also 1 Tm 3:15). For that matter, the idea of
the Church as "the Household of God" is rooted in the Old Testament (cf.
Nm 12:7) and is repeated in Heb 3:2, 6, while elsewhere we read that all
Christians are no longer strangers or guests, but fellow citizens of the
saints and members of the household of God (cf. Eph 2:19).
Let us ask the Lord and St Paul that we too, as
Christians, may be ever more characterized, in relation to the society
in which we live, as members of the "family of God". And we pray that
the Pastors of the Church may increasingly acquire paternal sentiments —
tender and at the same time strong — in the formation of the House of
God, of the community, and of the Church.
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