PROVIDENTISSIMUS DEUS

Encyclical letter of Pope leo xiii on the study of Holy Scripture, published Nov. 18, 1893. This article discusses its background, its contents, and its effects.

Background. The rapid progress of the natural and historical sciences made the 19th century more conscious of the human aspects of the Bible. Rationalist scholars began to study it as a purely human document. In the last two decades of the century a division took place among Catholic Biblical scholars: the so-called "liberals" tried to distinguish between the undoubted scientific achievements and the unacceptable philosophical bias in the work of liberal Protestants, whereas the conservatives, afraid of rationalism and confusing traditionally accepted opinions on scientific and historical matters with the dogmatic tradition of the Church, opposed the new views.

Thus Providentissimus Deus appeared at the very beginning of the Catholic effort to harmonize newly acquired scientific and historical knowledge with the traditional teaching of the Church. It was occasioned by an article written by Msgr. d'Hulst in Le correspondant of Jan. 25, 1893, reporting the opinions of the "left wing" theologians, according to whom the Bible, though inspired in its entirety, is inerrant only in matters of faith and morals.

Contents. The encyclical sought to encourage the study of the Bible and to impart to it "a direction suitable to the needs of the present day." The encyclical may be summarized as follows.

The Church has always considered the Bible an inexhaustible repository of divine truth and a source of prayer and meditation. Rationalist errors, however, were destroying the true belief in the inspired word of God in the minds of many.

In view of this danger, the following directives were given for the defense of the Bible and a fuller presentation of its doctrine.

The study of Scripture in seminaries and universities was to be given the place proportionate to its great importance. Professors must be properly prepared. The courses given should enable the student to defend the Bible, to interpret it correctly, and teach him to love it and use it "for the advantage of religion and piety." The text to be used was the Latin Vulgate. Where the Vulgate is not sufficiently clear, one could turn to other ancient versions and, above all, to the original texts. While "a wide field is still left open to the private student" who should feel free to go beyond the achievements of the past, he must never forget that the Church is the infallible interpreter of the Bible in matters of faith and morals. A unanimous interpretation given by the Fathers is likewise free from error.

Another directive dealt with difficulties raised by rationalism. Since the Bible offered many proofs of the Church's claims, its trustworthiness as a human document must be vindicated. Its defenders must be well versed in Oriental languages and the art of criticism to be able to combat the exaggerations of rationalist higher criticism.

To refute the assertion that findings of the natural sciences contradict the Bible, the encyclical pointed out that there could be no contradiction between the theologian and the scientist, as long as each remains within his own field. The sacred writers had no intention to teach about the nature of the universe; they, like their contemporaries, spoke of things as they appear to the senses. Opinions of the Fathers in this field are not binding. "The principles here laid down will apply to cognate sciences, and especially to history." This statement became the object of much discussion and was clarified by benedict xv and pius xii.

Having indicated various ways of defending the trustworthiness and truthfulness of the Bible, the encyclical singled out one method of solving difficulties as being incompatible with the traditional doctrine: that of limiting either the inspiration or inerrancy to the passages that deal with matters of faith and morals.Whatever the Bible contains was written by men moved by the Holy Spirit who cannot be the author of error.

Effects. Providentissimus Deus served as a firm guide to Catholic Biblical scholarship. It endorsed a gradual liberation from undue traditionalism; it made fruitless disputes with findings of the natural sciences unnecessary; it encouraged a judicious acceptance of contemporary scientific and historical discoveries and the desire to return to the original texts. With its definition of inspiration in terms of motion, rather than revelation and suggestion, it led toward a more adequate concept of inspiration.

Bibliography: e. mangenot, Dictionnaire de théologie catholique, ed. a. vacant et al. (Paris 1903–50) 7.2:2177–2266. leo xiii, "Providentissimus Deus," Acta Sanctorum Sedis 26 (1893–94) 269–292. English tr. Rome and the Study of Scripture (7th ed. rev. and enl. St. Meinrad, Ind. 1962). j. levie, The Bible, Word of God in Words of Men, tr. s. h. treman (New York 1962). j. didiot, Traité de la Sainte Écriture d'après S. S. Léon XIII (Paris 1894). m. d'hulst, "La Question biblique," Le Correspondant 170 (1893) 201–251. j. brucker, "La 'Question biblique,"' Études 58 (1893) 361–387; "L'Apologie biblique, d'après l'encyclique 'Providentissimus Deus,"' Études 61 (1894) 545–565; 62 (1894) 619–641. m. j. lagrange, "À propos de l'encyclique Providentissimus," Revue biblique 4 (1895) 48–64; "L'Inspiration et les exigences de la critique," Revue biblique 5 (1896) 496–518. a. f. hewit, "The Encyclical Providentissimus Deus," American Ecclesiastical Review 12 (1895) 318–328, 395–404, 454–465.

[a. m. ambrozic]