The Bible: structure, genres and interpretation
What this domain tests
This section examines how the Bible is organised, the main literary genres it contains, and the principles Catholics use to interpret it. You need to distinguish canon, genre and exegesis rather than simply recall stories.
Core rules and concepts
- The Catholic canon has 73 books: 46 Old Testament and 27 New Testament. The Protestant canon has 66; the difference is the deuterocanonical books (Tobit, Judith, Wisdom, Sirach, Baruch, 1-2 Maccabees, plus additions to Esther and Daniel).
- Genres include law, historical narrative, prophecy, wisdom, poetry, gospel, epistle and apocalyptic. Genre tells you what kind of truth a text claims.
- Exegesis reads the text in its literary and historical context; hermeneutics asks how it applies today. Catholic interpretation uses the literal sense and the spiritual senses (allegorical, moral, anagogical), within the canon and the Church's tradition.
- Dei Verbum (Vatican II) stresses Scripture and Tradition as one deposit of revelation, with the Magisterium serving rather than replacing the text.
Worked example
Genesis 1 presents creation in six days with a Sabbath rest. A literalist asks whether the days are 24 hours. The better answer: identify the genre as theological narrative shaped by liturgical rhythm; the truth taught is that God alone creates, creation is good, and humanity is made in God's image. The 'days' need not be a scientific chronology. Reasoning: genre, author's intention, theological claim, application.
Traps
Proof-texting verses out of context; treating parables as allegories where every detail is coded; confusing the literal sense with literalism; ignoring the deuterocanonical books; using one genre's rules for another.