Divine Revelation – Scripture, Tradition & Magisterium

Vocabulary flashcards summarizing core terms and concepts related to Divine Revelation, Sacred Scripture, Sacred Tradition, and the Magisterium as presented in the lecture notes.

Divine Revelation

God’s self-disclosure and communication of His will to humanity.

Revelation (Latin: revelatio)

Literally an “unveiling”; the act by which God makes Himself and His plan known.

Natural Revelation

Knowledge of God accessible through human reason by observing creation.

Supernatural Revelation

Truths God makes known directly, surpassing what reason alone can discover.

Public Revelation

Supernatural revelation given for the salvation of all, completed in Christ and entrusted to the Church.

Private Revelation

Supernatural messages given to individuals for personal or communal benefit, not binding on all believers.

Sacred Scripture

The inspired written Word of God contained in the 73 books of the Bible.

Sacred Tradition

The living transmission of the Gospel, handed on orally by the Apostles and their successors.

Magisterium

The Church’s teaching office, exercised by the Pope and bishops in union with him.

Deposit of Faith

The full content of Divine Revelation contained in Scripture and Tradition.

Word of God

God’s message communicated through creation, Scripture, Tradition, and supremely in Jesus Christ.

Bible

The canonical collection of inspired books; from Greek biblia, “books.”

Old Testament

Forty-six inspired books written before Christ, centered on the first covenant.

New Testament

Twenty-seven inspired books written after Christ’s Paschal Mystery, announcing the new covenant.

Testament (berith)

Biblical term meaning covenant, pact or alliance with God.

Canon of Scripture

The official list of inspired books recognized by the Church.

Deuterocanonical Books

Seven Old Testament books accepted by Catholics but called apocrypha by many Protestants.

Apocrypha (Protestant use)

Books excluded from the Protestant Old Testament canon.

Septuagint

Ancient Greek translation of the Old Testament, circa 250 B.C., used by early Christians.

Vulgate

St. Jerome’s 4th-century Latin translation of the entire Bible, long the Church’s standard text.

New Vulgate

1977 revised Latin Bible authorized by the Church for liturgical and doctrinal use.

Hexapla

Origen’s six-column comparative edition of Hebrew and Greek Old Testament texts (3rd cent.).

Hagiographer

A human author of an inspired scriptural book.

Inspiration (Biblical)

Supernatural action by which the Holy Spirit moved human authors to write God’s Word without error.

Verbal Inspiration

Catholic teaching that inspiration extends to the very words of Scripture, not concepts only.

Inerrancy

Freedom of Sacred Scripture from error in all that God wanted written for our salvation.

Principal Author

Title for God, the primary cause of Scripture; human writers are instruments.

Instrumental Cause

The human author’s role as an instrument used by God in composing Scripture.

Ecstatic Inspiration (Error)

False theory that writers lost consciousness while writing Scripture.

Mechanical Dictation (Error)

False view that authors acted as passive scribes taking divine dictation.

Subsequent Approval (Error)

Rejected idea that books became inspired only after Church approval.

Negative Assistance (Error)

Theory claiming God merely prevented error without positively inspiring authors.

Modernist Heresy

Early 20th-century view reducing Scripture to human religious experiences.

Infallibility (Church)

Charism whereby the Magisterium is preserved from error when definitively teaching faith or morals.

Extraordinary (Solemn) Magisterium

Infallible teaching expressed ex cathedra by the Pope or by Ecumenical Councils.

Ordinary-Universal Magisterium

Infallible consensus of the bishops worldwide, in union with the Pope, on a doctrine.

Ordinary Magisterium

Regular, non-infallible teaching of the Pope and bishops through everyday documents and preaching.

Ex Cathedra

A papal definition made “from the chair” of Peter, guaranteed to be infallible.

Ecumenical Council

Gathering of bishops under the Pope to define doctrine or discipline for the universal Church.

Dogma

A truth of Revelation solemnly proposed by the Church as obligatory belief.

Council of Hippo (393)

Early council that listed the complete Catholic biblical canon.

Council of Trent (1546)

Council that definitively affirmed the canon and inspiration against Protestant objections.

Dei Verbum

Vatican II Dogmatic Constitution on Divine Revelation (1965).

Catechism of the Catholic Church (CCC)

Authoritative summary of Catholic faith and morals, issued in 1992.

Apostolic Tradition

Teaching, worship and practices handed on from the Apostles.

Apostolic Succession

Unbroken transmission of apostolic authority from the Apostles to today’s bishops.

Ecclesiastical Traditions (small “t”)

Changeable Church customs such as liturgical colors or holy days.

Human Tradition (condemned)

Man-made rules that obscure or contradict God’s commandments.

Authority of Knowledge

Credibility based on expertise or experience in a subject.

Authority of Office

Right to decide or govern deriving from a designated role, not personal expertise.

Papal Encyclical

Authoritative circular letter of the Pope on doctrine or morals.

Apostolic Constitution

Solemn papal document establishing significant norms or institutions.

Motu Proprio

Document issued personally by the Pope on his own initiative.

Apostolic Exhortation

Papal document urging the Church to deeper faith or action, often after a synod.

Papal Bull

Formal papal charter sealed with a lead bulla, used for major decrees.

Council of Carthage (397, 419)

Councils that reaffirmed the canonical list of Scripture.

Deuterocanon – Tobit

Example of a book accepted by Catholics but rejected by many Protestants.

Codex Vaticanus

4th-century Greek Bible manuscript housed in the Vatican Library.

Codex Sinaiticus

4th-century complete Greek Bible manuscript discovered at St. Catherine’s Monastery.

Deposit of Faith

Complete set of revealed truths preserved in Scripture and Tradition.

Small “t” Traditions

Revisable Church practices not belonging to the revealed deposit of faith.

Catechetics

Religious instruction based on Scripture and Tradition for forming faith.

Lectio Divina

Traditional prayerful reading of Scripture seeking communion with God.

Scriptural Typology

Interpretive method finding prefigurations of New Testament realities in Old Testament events.

Deuteronomical Books

Alternate term for the deuterocanonical writings recognized by Catholics.

Biblia

Greek plural term meaning “books,” root of the word Bible.

Codex

Early book form replacing scrolls; many ancient biblical manuscripts are codices.

Inspiration (CCC 105-106)

Church teaching that Scripture was written under the guidance of the Holy Spirit.

Senses of Scripture

Traditional interpretive guidelines for understanding the deeper meanings of biblical texts.

Literal Sense of Scripture

The meaning conveyed by the words of Scripture and discovered by exegesis, based on historical and literary context.

Allegorical Sense (Spiritual Sense)

How persons, events, or things in the Old Covenant prefigure those in the New Covenant, especially Christ.It reveals deeper theological truths and connections between the two Testaments.

Spiritual Sense of Scripture

The deeper meaning of biblical texts, seen in light of Christ and the Paschal Mystery, divided into allegorical, moral, and anagogical. It provides insight into how the events and teachings in Scripture relate to Christian life and salvation, leading to moral lessons and eschatological hopes.

Moral Sense (Spiritual Sense)

How the events recounted in Scripture lead us to act justly and guide our moral life. It teaches us how to live righteously and make ethical decisions based on biblical principles. It focuses on the lessons we learn about right conduct and our responsibilities to God and others.