What Constitutes Divine Revelation?

A brief reflection on Dei Verbum no. 10

Feb 18, 2025

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One of the many blessings of being a son or daughter of the Church is the belief in the authority of the Church. Put in another way, the Church, founded on Jesus Christ, professes to teach without error all those saving truths God entrusted to His Church, which are necessary for salvation. Since that is the case, there is abundant peace in the Magisterium—the teaching office of the Church—because, as Christ confirmed, “the powers of death shall not prevail against it”1 (or, in Greek, the gates of Hades).

One essential aspect of this authority is the apostolic succession of the bishops of the Catholic Church which ensures the authority and teaching of the Apostles of the Lord is perpetuated.

This past week on my podcast, Saints in the Parish, I had the pleasure of sitting down with my local shepherd, Archbishop Thomas J. Rodi of the Archdiocese of Mobile to discuss life as a bishop, the challenges he faces, and the process of retiring as a Catholic bishop at 75 years old. If you would like to listen or watch that episode, click here.

In light of that wonderful conversation, I would like to turn our attention today on one of the most important documents from the Second Vatican Council, Dei Verbum, and in particular, discuss paragraph 10 and the theological and ecclesiological reflections that follow.

Dei Verbum, No. 10

To begin, Dei Verbum is the Second Vatican Council’s Constitution on Divine Revelation. This pivotal document is enlightening for any Catholic, and indeed, any Christian of good will, who desires to learn and reflect more deeply on the Church’s understanding of the word of God, given to mankind through the two sources of Revelation: Sacred Tradition and Sacred Scripture.

In particular, I would like us to reflect on paragraph no. 10.

This is the text in it’s entirety:

Sacred tradition and Sacred Scripture form one sacred deposit of the word of God, committed to the Church. Holding fast to this deposit the entire holy people united with their shepherds remain always steadfast in the teaching of the Apostles, in the common life, in the breaking of the bread and in prayers (see Acts 2, 42, Greek text), so that holding to, practicing and professing the heritage of the faith, it becomes on the part of the bishops and faithful a single common effort.
But the task of authentically interpreting the word of God, whether written or handed on, has been entrusted exclusively to the living teaching office of the Church, whose authority is exercised in the name of Jesus Christ. 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, it draws from this one deposit of faith everything which it presents for belief as divinely revealed.
It is clear, therefore, that sacred tradition, Sacred Scripture and the teaching authority of the Church, in accord with God's most wise design, are so linked and joined together that one cannot stand without the others, and that all together and each in its own way under the action of the one Holy Spirit contribute effectively to the salvation of souls.2

The Nature of Divine Revelation

To begin, this important paragraph deals specifically with the exact nature of Revelation, or, more concretely, what constitutes Revelation itself.

Divine Revelation, according to the Tradition of the Catholic Church, speaks of not one, but two sources of Divine Revelation. For the Church, both Sacred Tradition and Sacred Scripture together constitute the “word of God” and form “one sacred deposit.”3 Contrary to the modern understanding found in most Protestant traditions, the Sacred Scriptures alone do not constitute the fullness of Divine Revelation. They are an integral part, yes, but they themselves are not the whole. As the text makes clear, Divine Revelation itself consists in BOTH Tradition and Scripture.

To drive the insight even further, the document goes so far as to assert that both tradition and Scripture are the “word of God”, and they have been “committed to the Church.”4 This insight is profound because it helps situate Revelation in its proper context. When we speak of the “word of God”, we are speaking of the totality of what God has revealed to His Church, and that consists in both the written word and the word handed down, which are both guarded by the Church. Through this deposit of faith, the faithful, along with their shepherds, remain constantly faithful to the Apostolic teaching.

Now that we have reflected on the sources of revelation and have gained insight into the constitution of the deposit of faith, we must ask, in harmony with Dei Verbum: Who has been entrusted with the responsibility of interpreting of the deposit of faith?

The Interpretation of Revelation

Dei Verbum, once again in harmony with the whole of the Tradition, states clearly that “the task of authentically interpreting the word of God, whether written or handed on, has been entrusted exclusively to the living teaching office of the Church, whose authority is exercised in the name of Jesus Christ.”5 Again, referencing what we have already stated, the document clarifies that the word of God is not only that which has been written, but also that which has been handed on. It is the “living teaching office of the Church”, the Magisterium, that has been entrusted with the duty of exercising the authority of interpretation in regard to the deposit of faith.

In Avery Cardinal Dulles’s important work, Magisterium: Teacher and Guardian of the Faith, he describes the Magisterium as:

the authoritative teaching of those who are commissioned to speak to the community in the name of Christ, clarifying the faith that community professes. The term “Magisterium” designates not only the function of official teaching but also the body of persons who carry on this function, the official teachers.6

The Magisterium is therefore those who have been entrusted with the specific authority to teach, namely those who have been given the prophetic office.

Dei Verbum then clarifies that the Magisterium is not above the word of God, but serves it. Dulles, commenting on this teaching of Dei Verbum, states that “the popes and councils teach very clearly that the Magisterium is not an original source of revelation, but a witness to a revelation handed down from the past.”7 The Magisterium merely guards, teaches, and explains what has been revealed and adds nothing that it has not received.

The Linking of Scripture and Tradition

In the last passage from paragraph 10, in one of the most recognizable passage from Dei Verbum, the Council Fathers write that:

It is clear, therefore, that sacred tradition, Sacred Scripture, and the teaching authority of the Church, in accord with God’s most wise design, as so linked and joined together that one cannot stand without the others, and that all together and each in its own way under the action of the one Holy Spirit contribute effectively to the salvation of souls.8

In this closing statement, the Council Fathers make clear that Sacred Tradition, Sacred Scripture, and the Magisterium, cannot be separated. Without either tradition or Scripture, one does not have the fullness of revelation. Both must be present in their totality.

In connecting these three elements: tradition, Scripture, and the Magisterium, the Council makes clear that this deposit of faith must be guarded and interpreted, which is why the Magisterium must be linked with any and every mention of Divine Revelation.

Conclusion

Finally, from the Magisterial teachings of Pope St. John Paul II and Pope Benedict XVI, we can state that the Christian faith is not a “religion of the book.” The totality of Revelation is not found “solely” within the written word. Our religion is a religion of the “word of God.”

Pope Benedict XVI, in his Post-Synodal Apostolic Exhortation, Verbum Domini, unfolds this mystery for us. He writes that Jesus Christ is the center of revelation. However, as the Pope makes clear, “we also need to realize that creation itself, the liber naturae, is an essential part of this symphony of many voices in which the one word is spoken.”9 Revelation is also unfolded throughout history. Therefore, the Pope concludes that we indeed honor the Sacred Scriptures, but “the Christian faith is not a ‘religion of the book’: Christianity is the ‘religion of the word of God’, not of ‘a written and mute word, but of the incarnate and living Word’.”10 It is in this reality that the word of God finds its fullest meaning. The Church does not limit the word of God to the written word only, but rather includes the spoken word handed down by the Apostles which has been entrusted to the living office of the Church.

Only in this light, can the true meaning of Divine Revelation find its fullness within the life of the living Church.

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Matthew 16:18

Second Vatican Council, "Dogmatic Constitution on Divine Revelation, Dei Verbum, 18 November, 1965," in The Word on Fire Vatican II Collection: Constitutions, ed. by Matthew Levering (Park Ridge, IL: Word on Fire Institute, 2021), No. 10 (Hereafter cited as DV).

DV 10.

Ibid.

Avery Cardinal Dulles, S.J., Magisterium: Teacher and Guardian of the Faith (Ave Maria: Sapientia Press of Ave Maria University, 2017), p. 2-3.

Magisterium, p. 6.