As we approach the sixtieth anniversary of the conclusion of Vatican II (1962-1965), and especially its reinvigoration during the 2021-2024 Synod, it seems opportune to look back to the Council’s key documents and their implementation.
Over the past sixty years, some of us may have recalled those heady days when feisty clerics engaged in worthwhile heated arguments that resulted in much more refreshing and challenging documents than would otherwise have been the case. Yet, with some noticeable exceptions, we have barely scratched the surface of their rich and provocative potential… until now. The recently concluded Synod on Synodality has given our Catholic communities a real incentive to revisit, to celebrate, and (in many cases) to finally implement the Council’s vision and teaching, readily available to all via its invaluable documents.
One document that would seem to have potential for renewed reflection and implementation is the dogmatic constitution on Divine Revelation (Dei Verbum). For a start, it is short and succinct (26 paragraphs). In essence, it deals with the subject of its title, “the Word of God”, the importance of the sacred scriptures, and the benefits to the church and society of ongoing biblical study.
The shift in theological substance of the document is reflected in its title. The original schema, prepared for the first session by the conservative theological commission, was entitled “The Sources of Revelation” (De Fontibus Revelationis). As this title suggests, its contents were little more than a narrow repetition of the Councils of Trent and Vatican I. When many of the conciliar fathers downed their mitres and refused to even consider it, Pope John XXIII withdrew it altogether and set up a joint commission to create a new schema. A subsequent more liberal version De divina revelatione was debated at the third session. The ultimate result was the Dogmatic Constitution Dei Verbum, officially proclaimed on 18 November 1965. As with all Vatican documents, the title Dei Verbum (DV) is highly significant. As would be expected in this document, the term applies primarily to the sacred Scriptures. In reference to the Old Testament, the same metaphor is used of the prophetic word, the Israelites’ experience of God, and the scriptures themselves. The other main use of verbum occurs in reference to the person of Jesus Christ, the eternal Logos, “the incarnate Word”, especially as in John 1:1-14, and in Hebrews 1:1-2 where the author brings the two meanings together.
The development of DV from the initial draft was spread over the whole four sessions of the Council and was the responsibility of the Pontifical Theological Commission. Its eventual positive outcome was largely due to the visionary leadership of the moderate faction, whose efforts are captured in the felicitous image The Rhine Flows into the Tiber by R.M. Wiltgen (1967).
The three essential sticking points were: the question of one or two sources of revelation (DV, article 9), inspiration and inerrancy (a.11), and the historicity of the Gospels (a.19). The ultimate resolution was one of compromise, as summarised here (cf. Wiltgen, 175-183).
At the first session, the Council fathers were so divided on the scripture-tradition issue that John XXIII set up a joint sub-commission. The revised schema, accompanied by detailed comments prepared by Karl Rahner and supported by, among others, Joseph Ratzinger, was presented to the Council fathers in May 1963. After a long and heated discussion on the Council floor, the decision was taken to leave the text unchanged. Ultimately, a compromise was reached and the final text reads: “Consequently, it is not from sacred Scripture alone that the Church draws her certainty about everything that has been revealed. Therefore, both sacred tradition and Sacred Scripture are to be accepted and venerated with the same sense of loyalty and reverence.” (a.9)
The initial text that finally became article 11, was presented for consideration by yet another sub-commission; it included the significant sentence, “the books of Scripture must be acknowledged as teaching, faithfully and without error, the truth of salvation” (italics added). Not surprisingly it was the modifying phrase that caused huge debate. Those who opposed the phrase and wanted it eliminated, argued that it would restrict the “(historical) truth” of Scripture. Its proposers defended it on the grounds that it did not contradict the core belief of Scripture as “the word of God.” In the final text, the compromise was to retain the phrase but with further explanation.
The third key issue centred on the original phrase “true and sincere things about Jesus”. Attempts were made by the ad hoc commission to reword this to “true historical narrative”; however, at this stage no change was made. Pope Paul VI was personally unconvinced and reconvened the commission who added an unequivocal statement about the historical nature of the Gospels (a.19), thereby giving context and clarification to the final contentious phrase.
The central focus on the “Word of God” shifts the emphasis away from revelation as a static deposit of faith, to the dynamic doctrine of God’s gracious self-communication to humanity. The contribution of Karl Rahner and Yves Congar, and like-minded progressive theologians, supported by the sympathetic leadership of cardinals of the calibre of the Europeans Franz König, Josef Frings, Leon Suenens, Bernard Alfrink, and Julius Döpfner (hence, “the Rhine flows into the Tiber”!) would seem obvious and providential. As a group, they, and succeeding generations on whom they cast their mantle, have had a lasting effect on subsequent theological and biblical thinking.
Overall, the positive tone of Dei Verbum can be viewed as close to that of Gaudium et Spes. Both documents reach beyond the inner workings of the church to address the whole world. Both are imbued with a non-judgmental tone of invitation and encouragement, recognising the “present state of the human race” (a.6). Apart from this common spirit, both refer to the Word of God in its two meanings: as scripture and as the incarnate Word.
On a practical, pastoral level, much of what the document has to say about inspiration is solidly based on the core scriptural passages 2 Timothy 3:16-17 and 2 Peter 1:19-21, with the former quoted in its entirety (a.11). “The books of Scripture must be acknowledged as teaching solidly, faithfully and without error that truth which God wanted put into the sacred writings for the sake of our salvation (2 Tim 3:16-17).”
This statement has great significance as it offers a clear and unequivocal statement against claims to naïve historicity in general, and fundamentalism in particular. As such, it has relevance in preaching and in religious education for both adolescents and adults. It can provide a clear and solid base for a response to the perennial question “Is the Bible true?” It offers assurance for those who struggle with a biblical narrative and language that may appear to contradict teaching about a loving and compassionate God, in order “that we may learn the gentle kindness of God, which words cannot express” (a.13).
The document’s final section affirms the liturgy’s priority for communicating the message of the Gospel that has just been proclaimed. This finds a welcome echo in the recent Synod 2024 Report: “Deepening the link between liturgy and synodality will help all Christian communities, in the diversity of their cultures and traditions, to adopt celebratory styles that make visible the face of a synodal Church” (#27).
A significant part of Chapter VI of DV, ‘Sacred Scripture in the Life of the Church’, is given to “the ministry of the Word”, defined as “pastoral preaching, catechetics and all Christian instruction, in which the liturgical homily must hold the foremost place” (a.24). Explicit encouragement is given to educate “as many ministers of the divine word as possible to provide the nourishment of the Scriptures for the People of God, to enlighten their minds, strengthen their wills, and set men’s (sic) hearts on fire with the love of God” (a.23). This seems a clear invitation to suitably qualified ‘ministers of the word’ to give the homily during the Sunday Eucharist. Is it opportune, sixty years later, and with the hope-filled spirit engendered by the synodal process, to finally be implemented? Ideally, biblical scholars who also relish the text in their own faith-filled prayer life (a.25), could open new depths by sharing insights from modern biblical scholarship. Whenever I’ve heard a homilist attempt to do this, there has been a positive response. It can make the Gospel message come alive when listeners are led to appreciate the historical, cultural and religious context of the evangelists and their communities. Identifying with first century people faced with suffering, death, oppression, yet who also have shared their joy-filled faith experience of Jesus and the community in the Gospel accounts, can bring a whole new spiritual awareness.
In 1994, the Catechism of the Catholic Church presented as its second chapter, what is virtually a summary of key quotes from Dei Verbum. Clearly, this gives strong recognition to its ongoing importance in the life of the Church. In the same year, in his apostolic letter, Tertio Millenio Adviente, Pope John Paul II challenged the whole church to reflect: “To what extent has the word of God become fully the soul of theology and the inspiration of the whole of Christian living, as Dei Verbum sought?”
Although a whole-hearted positive response remains ‘a work in progress’, this delay is not the fault of John Paul’s three successors, each of whom has made substantial efforts to bring it to fruition.
Pope Benedict XVI convoked the Synod on “the Word of God in the life and mission of the Church” (2008) precisely to build upon and encourage further implementation of the vision and insights of Dei Verbum. This is reflected in the very title of his post-synodal apostolic exhortation, Verbum Domini (September 2010), and finds an echo of the explicit statement early in his document: “By celebrating this Synod, the Church, conscious of her continuing journey under the guidance of the Holy Spirit, felt called to further reflection on the theme of God’s word, in order to review the implementation of the Council’s directives, and to confront the new challenges which the present time sets before Christian believers.” (VD, #3).
Pope Francis took this up with his apostolic letter Aperuit illis “He opened (the scriptures) to them”, that is, to the two disciples he accompanied on the way to Emmaus (Lk 24:35). True to his pastoral vision, Francis instituted the annual liturgical celebration of ‘Word of God Sunday’ offering a range of practical ways to encourage the people of God to appreciate, study, and pray the Scriptures. In the Australian church, this celebration will take place on 1 February 2026.
Already, in just the sixth month of his pontificate, Pope Leo met with the members of the Catholic Biblical Federation on Monday 17 November, the eve of the promulgation of Dei Verbum on 18 November 1965. In acknowledging this sixtieth anniversary, the Pope made the document his own: “The teaching of Dei Verbum is unequivocal” quoting the opening sentence: “‘We are called to hear the Word of God with reverence and to proclaim it with faith” (DV, a.1). He encouraged his listeners to find “new forms of biblical outreach” in response to the challenge: “easy access to Sacred Scripture should be provided for all the Christian faithful’” (DV, a.22).
The combination of a rich theology of revelation and refreshing accessibility gives Dei Verbum lasting relevance among the documents of the Church. One of its abiding insights, among others, is the admission that, while the magisterium is always the final arbiter of interpretation, “this teaching office is not above the word of God, but serves it, teaching only what has been handed on, listening to it devoutly, guarding it scrupulously and explaining it faithfully in accord with a divine commission and with the help of the Holy Spirit” (a.10).
There is an honesty and humility here that sits well with the synodal ‘conversations in the Spirit’, a process through which the Holy Spirit can lead all levels of the Church to find authentic truth and lasting peace. Clearly a global Catholic community of over a billion people requires a degree of order and authority. These are the tasks of the hierarchy, the Church as ‘institution’. But, from a Gospel perspective, the Church is a prophetic community of disciples, drawn together by their baptismal call to holiness and the prophetic task of reminding the world that the love and compassion of God belong to all. Reflection on the Scriptures is a time-honoured way in which people come to the conviction of their call to live this out. But, as the biblical text records the eunuch replying to Philip, “How can I understand [the scriptures] unless someone guides me?” (Acts 8:31).
Sr Dr Margaret Beirne RSC is an Associate Professor and Senior Lecturer in Biblical Studies at St Andrew’s Greek Orthodox Theological College in Surry Hills, Sydney. After 30 years in secondary education, she began doctoral research on the Gospel of John at École Biblique in Jerusalem in 1995. She completed her DTheol at Melbourne College of Divinity in 2000, publishing her thesis and several articles. Sr. Margaret joined St Andrew’s in 2009, and in 2014, she served as Congregational Vicar for the Sisters of Charity. She was appointed Associate Professor at St Andrew’s faculty in 2021.
