The Literal Sense of Scripture Catholic exegesis has traditionally distinguished between two senses of Scripture, the literal

sense and the spiritual sense. (1) The Ponfical Biblical Commission defines the literal sense as "that which has been expressed directly by the inspired human authors." (2) This sense focuses on the meaning conveyed by the inspired author(s) in the final form of the scriptural text. It is concerned with what the authors have "expressed directly" at the time of composition, not with any subsequent meanings the text might have attained in later history. It, therefore, does not concern itself with new perspectives and understandings given to the text when quoted by later biblical authors. Neither does it concern itself with readings of the text that arise from exegetical approaches such as canonical intrepretation or the sensus plenior. To arrive at the literal sense of a text, the interpreter must focus exclusively on what was expressed by the inspired author(s) at the time of its production. Stated more technically, "[o]ne arrives at this sense by means of a careful analysis of the text, within its [own] literary and historical context." (3) Toward this end, the exegete has at his disposal a variety of modern literary and historical techniques, originally devised for the study of other ancient documents, to help him to recover the original meaning present in the literal sense of the text. Though the literal sense restricts itself to what the original author(s) intended when writing, this does not mean that it can only have one meaning. Many times it is the biblical author's intention to convey two or more levels of meaning at the same time. We have an example of this in John 3:3, where Jesus tells Nicodemus that one must be born "anew", i.e. anothen, in order to enter the kingdom of God. Here the Greek word anothen has a dual meaning, signifying both "anew" and "from above". For the author of John the reality of baptism includes both being born "anew" and being born "from above". Since this double meaning is intended by the author, it is part of the text's literal sense. Another important aspect of the literal sense is what the Pontifical Biblical Commission refers to as its "dynamic aspect". Against those who would too narrowly confine the meaning of a text's literal sense to its historical context, the Commission advises us to be attentive to the direction of thought present in the text. In other words, it is legitimate to recognize in the literal sense the basis for a future development of meaning. The PBC notes that discerning this direction of thought "far from working toward a limitation of meaning, will on the contrary dispose the exegete to perceive extensions of it that are more or less foreseeable in advance." (4). Recog-nizing this aspect of the literal sense will be very important in our discussion the spiritual sense of Scripture. For it is this "dynamic aspect, this openendedness," as Williamson explains, which "provides the opening which all re-readings, including the spiritual sense, make use of." (5) The Spiritual Sense of Scripture The Pontifical Biblical Commission defines the spiritual sense of Scripture as "the meaning expressed by the biblical texts when read under the influence of the Holy Spirit, in the context of the paschal mystery of Christ and of the new life which flows from it." (6) This sense refers mainly to readings of the Old Testament texts in light of their fulfillment in the life and mission of Jesus. Discerning the spiritual sense is not a way of imposing new meanings onto the literal sense of Old Testament texts. Rather it is a way of disclosing meanings already there, yet unnoticed before the advent of Christ. According to the PBC, the "paschal event, the death and resurrection of Jesus, has established a radically new historical context, which sheds fresh light upon the ancient texts and causes them to undergo a change in meaning." (7)

Many of the new readings that result when considering the Old Testament in light of the New can be classified as typological interpretations. According to Williamson, the typical sense can be described as "the deeper meaning of the persons, places and events in the Bible when they are seen to have foreshadowed subsequent persons, places, and events in God's word of salvation." (8) An example of the typological interpretation of Scripture can be found in the first epistle of Peter. Here the story of the salvation of Noah's family, through water, is presented as a foreshadowing of Christian baptism. The author writes of Noah's ark, "in which a few, that is, eight persons, were saved throught water. Baptism, which corresponds to this, now saves you...". (9) With typological interpretation the story of Noah's ark receives a new, "deeper meaning," when read in light of the events of Christian salvation. An additional aspect of the spiritual sense that should be noted is that it has traditionaly been subdivided in to three further senses: the allegorical sense, the moral sense, and the anagogical sense. The allegorical sense refers realities and events to the significance they have in Christ. The moral sense focuses on realities and events in order to discern the proper way of acting. The anagogical sense views realities and events from the perspective of their eternal significance. (10) The Pontifical Biblical Commission summarizes these senses by noting that each of them relate, respectively, "to the truth revealed, to the way of life commended and to the final goal to be achieved." (11) The Interrelation of the Senses of Scripture One way to understand the relationship between the two senses of Scripture is to recognize that the literal sense serves as the foundation for the spiritual sense. The Catechism of the Catholic Church quotes St. Thomas Aquinas on this point, who writes that "[a]ll other senses of Sacred Scripture are based on the literal." (12) As the basis of the spiritual sense of Scripture, the literal sense functions in a magisterial way. In other words, the literal sense serves as a check on the legitimacy of spiritual readings of Scripture. The literal sense acts as a judge discerning whether the particular spiritual reading is in continuity, or harmony, with the base it is building upon. When a spiritual and a literal reading of a text are at variance, the spiritual sense must always submit to the literal, it is to this sense alone that all readings must conform. The theological justification for the necessary conformity to the literal sense is based upon the truthfulness of God. For once we have established what God is saying in the literal sense this meaning cannot be contradicted, God does not contradict himself. Another way in which the literal and the spiritual senses are related is that they both disclose to us the mystery of God's nature and innmost life, what the Fathers of the Church refer to as theologia. Though the spiritual sense may express the theologia in a more explicit fashion, one should not underestimate the importance of the literal sense in the disclosure. For the Fathers of the Church also point out the key part the oikonomia, or works of God, plays in the disclosure of the mystery. These works of God in history are presented to us, primarily, in the literal sense of Scripture. For the Fathers the oikonomia presented in the biblical account was the essential means by which the theologia was revealed. The Catechism highlights this fundamental relationship when it states that "[t]hrough the oikonomia the theologia is revealed to us", and conversely, that "the theologia illuminates the whole oikonomia." (13) This intrinsic relationship is the ground upon which the effort of the literal and spiritual sense to convey the mystery of God is based. Though focused on different aspects they are not ultimately communicating different things, but are presenting the same reality in complimentary ways.

A third way in which the literal and the spiritual senses are related can be described as their mutual penetration of one another. The literal sense and the spiritual sense are not always distinct realities, many times they overlap and coincide with one another in the same text. The PBC notes that "[w]hen a biblical text relates directly to the paschal mystery of Christ or to the new life which results from it, its literal sense is already a spiritual sense." (14) There are examples of this on almost every page of the New Testament. Similarly, in the Old Testament there are passages in which the literal sense contains a religious or spiritual sense. Though these texts do not refer to the Christian mystery in a direct way, "Christian faith recognizes in such cases an anticipatory relationship to the new life brought by Christ." (15) Finally, the literal and the spiritual senses are related in a holistic way. They demonstrate the unity and continuity of God's actions in the unfolding of his plan of salvation. The Catechism advises interpreters of Scripture to be especially attentive to the content and unity present in the whole of Scripture. It continues, stating that as "[d]ifferent as the books which comprise it may be, Scripture is a unity by reason of the unity of God's plan, of which Christ Jesus is the center and heart..." (16) The literal and spiritual senses that we encounter in the texts of the Bible participate in its essential unity. The chief way in which the literal and spiritual senses display the unity of the divine plan are in typological readings of Scripture. The Catechism notes that the Church, from earliest times, has constantly "illuminated the unity of the divine plan in the two Testaments through typology, which discerns in God's works of the Old Covenant prefigurations of what he accomplished in the fullness of time in the person of his incarnate Son." (17) How the Senses Provide us with an Interpretive Hermeneutic Recognizing that there are two senses of Scripture provides us with an interpretive hermeneutic in that it reminds us that the task of exegesis does not end after the determination of the literal sense. It is common practice among biblical scholars to use the term "exegesis" to refer solely to a historical or literary evaluation of the text. Once exegete has determined the literal sense, the interpretive task is considered complete. Francis Martin points out that the interprative task is a two step process, one that attends to the dual nature of Scripture. He notes that what is accomplished through "utilizing the methods of historical and literary criticism" is merely "a discription or a report of what the text says." The interprative task is not complete at this point, there is "another step necessary in a total reading of the text." (18) For Martin, this further step is the discernment of what the text is talking about. Only when one has passed from what the text says to what the text is talking about, has one completed the interprative task. In other words, only when one has heard the religious message Scripture speaks of can interpretation be considered complete. Therefore, an integral approach to exegesis is necessary, one that attends to both the human and divine nature of the text. The PBC is to be commended for broadening the meaning of "exegesis" beyond its restriction to the literal sense. As Williamson notes, "[f]or the Biblical Commission "exegesis" means complete interpretation, drawing out of a biblical text its meaning as the word of God for Christian faith." (19) Another way in which the senses of Scripture provide us with an interpretive hermeneutic is by providing us with a Christological orientation in our exegesis. We have already quoted the PBC's definition of the spiritual sense as "the meaning expressed by the biblical texts when read under the influence of the Holy Spirit, in the context of the paschal mystery of Christ and of the new life which flows from it." (20) Through the influence of the Holy Spirit we are able to discern the meaning expressed in the biblical texts as they relate to Christ and his mysteries. Our minds are illumened so that we might recognize in the many persons, places and events,

foreshadowings of the one figure upon which they converge, Christ. The Catechism expresses this Christological orientation of spiritual exegesis when it writes that "[t]hrough all the words of Sacred Scripture, God speaks only one single Word, his one Utterance in whom he expresses himself completely." (21) The Catechism follows this up with a quote from Augustine, who says, "[y]ou recall that one and the same Word of God extends throughout the Scripture, that it is one and the same Utterance that resounds in the mouths of all the sacred writers...". (22) A final way in which the senses of Scripture provide us with an interpretive hermeneutic is by emphasizing the prominent part the Holy Spirit plays in scriptural interpretation. As we've already noted, Catholic exegesis does not dwell on the literal sense alone, but goes beyond it to the spiritual sense. This movement from the literal to the spiritual sense is made through the influence of the Holy Spirit. In fact, the assistance of the Holy Spirit plays an essential role in this movement. For when we attempt to discern the spiritual sense of Scripture we are, in reality, striving for a knowledge of divine realities. As such, we need the divine assistance if we hope to comprehend what God intends to reveal in Sacred Scripture. The assistance of the Holy Spirit plays a key role here, for, as 1 Corinthians states, "no one comprehends the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God." (23) Thankfully, we have received the gift of the Holy Spirit in baptism. With this gift we have been initiated into a new spiritual world, the world that is presented to us in the Scriptures. The Holy Spirit within us helps us to recognize our affinity with this world, an affinity which helps us discern the spiritual realities being presented. Only after the Holy Spirit has helped us to discern and appropriate the spiritual realities being presented in Scripture can we claim to have understood fully the meaning it is attempting to convey. (24) With this final step, moving from the literal to the spiritual sense, we've completed the task of interpretation. We have achieved an "integral" exegesis.