By Maria Gapinski
Herald Staff Writer
(From the issue of 7/3/03)

SCRANTON — Did St. Matthew write the Gospel of Matthew? Was the evangelist John an eyewitness to the Gospel events?

According to many contemporary Catholic biblical scholars, the answer to both questions is no. The late biblical scholar, Father Raymond E. Brown, S.S., and many of his contemporaries have cast doubt on the identity of the Gospel writers as well as the factual and historical accuracy of the Bible, claiming that the Bible contains errors in these matters.

This misunderstanding can be found in many modern Catholic Scripture commentaries, and even in the introduction to the Good News Bible. Other present-day biblical scholars, such as the fellows of the "Jesus Seminar," deny Jesus’ bodily resurrection from the dead and claim that the evangelists and the early Church actually invented the miracles and words of Christ to craft Him into the Messiah and Son of God. The research and conclusions of the "Jesus Seminar" are commonly taught in universities today.

In response to these errors, which have damaged the faith of untold numbers, the International Catholic Council on Biblical Inerrancy (ICCBI) recently held its first annual conference in the suburbs of Scranton, Pa. The panel of speakers included: Father Brian W. Harrison, O.S., renowned theologian and professor at the Pontifical University in Ponce, Puerto Rico; Robert Sungenis, President of Catholic Apologetics International; Sal Ciresi, frequent columnist for the Arlington Catholic Herald and faculty member at the Notre Dame Graduate School of Christendom College; and Gerry Matatics, President of Biblical Foundations International.

One of the conference highlights was Ciresi’s use of Scripture, the Church Fathers, and magisterial documents to demonstrate the consistent teaching of the Catholic Church: the Sacred Scriptures are the inspired word of God, and when properly understood, are free from all error (i.e. inerrant). He showed that the sacred writers intended to give facts, they had access to the facts, and that they knew that one’s eternal salvation depended upon their getting the facts right. He continued by showing that the Church Fathers independently confirmed that the Gospels were indeed written by the traditional authors: St. Matthew the Apostle, St. Mark the interpreter of Peter, St. Luke the companion of St. Paul, and St. John the Apostle. Concluding with a summary of the magisterial documents, Ciresi made a compelling case for the perennial teaching of the Catholic Church, over and against the novelties propagated as the "assured results of modern scholarship."

A second highlight was Matatics’ and Sungenis’ scholarly discussion of examples of seemingly contradictory Scripture passages that could be explained after engaging in a more comprehensive research of history, archeology, and the original biblical languages. Another highlight was Father Harrison’s insightful discussion of the rise of modern Catholic biblical scholarship in the 1940s, culminating in the 1960s, and after the Second Vatican Council. Harrison demonstrated how a misreading of the 1965 conciliar document, Dei Verbum (Dogmatic Constitution on Divine Revelation), has resulted in much confusion. Probably the best part of the conference was the open forum during which speakers returned top-notch, convincing explanations to scriptural questions raised by attendees.

Matatics concluded the conference by announcing that the ICCBI hopes to publish its work in order to give Catholics the intellectual ammunition they need to defend the truth of the Bible via scholarly and rigorous scholarship against those who attack it. Arrangements are already being made to hold an ICCBI conference next summer.