One of St. Jerome's most famous sayings is the oft quoted (but deservedly so) sentence: "Ignorance of Scripture is ignorance of Christ." Every part of the Bible either points to Jesus Christ or flows from Him.

But in reading and studying the Bible, Christians must remember that the greatest error one can make regarding Scripture is to sever the Bible from the Church founded by Jesus Christ.

For we can say that the Church, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, wrote Scripture. The Jews who wrote the Old Testament belonged to the Chosen People of God, who prefigured the Church, and the first Christians composed the books of the New Testament.

Moreover, the Church conserves the Bible. It was the hierarchical Church that authoritatively decided what books belonged to the canon of Scripture. And it is the Magisterium of the Church that definitively teaches the doctrine found both in Sacred Scripture and Sacred Tradition.

It is the Church who continues to preach the Word and encourages her children to drink deeply from the waters of life found in the Bible.

Let us turn to the Blessed Virgin Mary, she who pondered the word of God "in her heart." And ask her to obtain for us a lasting love for the word of God.

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