Papal encyclicals of the late 19th and mid-20th centuries as the basis of modern Catholic biblical studies’ methodology

Abstract

This article researches 4 documentsthat dwell upon the views of the higher Catholic church authority on biblical studies: the encyclical of Pope Leo XIII «Providentissimus Deus» (18 Nov. 1893), the encyclical of Pope Pius X «Pascendi Dominici gregis» (8 Sept. 1907), the encyclical of Pope Benedict XV «Spiritus Paraclitus» (15 Sept. 1920 г.) and the encyclical of Pope Pius XII «Divino aflante spiritu» (30 Sept. 1943 г.). These documentsgave the foundation for the development of Catholic biblical methodology. They were released as a response to the Roman Curia and to the recently evolved trends that had been disrupting the authority of the church. Each message gives an answer to what the new principles of theology are, what way to relate to them there is, and above all — how to stand up against them. These papers cover such fundamental questions of biblical studies as inspiration, exegesis, attitude to the Critical method.