The Holy Bible

Having read Dr E. Camilleri's contribution entitled 'The Holy Bible' (The Sunday Times, August 19), I would like to point out that firstly it is not correct to state that "the assurance... actually reading the divine word of God in the Bible alone is the story of Solomon".

The word of God is the result of both Divine inspiration of the human authors and its transmittance through the Apostles' teachings to the community of faith. The community of faith's highest teaching body - Vatican Council II - in Dei Verbum, par. 9 asserts:

"For Sacred Scripture is the word of God inasmuch as it is consigned to writing under the inspiration of the divine Spirit, while sacred tradition takes the word of God entrusted by Christ the Lord and the Holy Spirit to the Apostles, and hands it on to their successors in its full purity, so that led by the light of the Spirit of truth, they may in proclaiming it preserve this word of God faithfully, explain it, and make it more widely known. Consequently, it is not from Sacred Scripture alone that the Church draws her certainty about everything which has been revealed."

Secondly, one does not need to be a born-again Evangelical to be able to interpret the spiritual sense of the Bible. The Catholic Church offers considerable opportunities for a Christian to get in touch with God's message in the Scriptures.

To mention a few, one should consider the courses organised by the Malta Biblical Society with its publications and affiliations with international Bible societies. Reference should also be made to the biblical meetings and publications of the Society of Christian Doctrine (MUSEUM) and the Church's official teaching body (the Church's Magisterium).

It is a question of one's own initiative and personal interest that drives the individual to befriend the Holy Word of God.