Jerome's love of Scripture, focused on the 'humble character of God's revelation,' more than on 'the narrative and poetic genius of the Bible', Pope Francis wrote. The letter pointed out that marking the 16th centenary of Saint Jerome's death is 'a summons to love what Jerome loved… which can be described in essence as a restless and impassioned desire for a greater knowledge of the God who chose to reveal himself.'

Jerome bequeathed to the Church 'devotion to the Sacred Scripture, a 'living and tender love' for the written word of God,' Pope Francis said in his apostolic letter. 'Today more than ever,' Pope Francis said, 'our world needs the medicine of mercy and peace.' Jerome himself 'was often involved in bitter disputes for the cause of the faith,' but loved and desired peace. 'Jerome's work of translation teaches us that the values and positive forms of every culture represent an enrichment for the whole Church,' while at the same time witnessing 'to the fact that the Bible continually needs to be translated into the linguistic and mental categories of each culture and generation.' The pope said, 'Jerome's profound knowledge of the Scriptures, his zeal for making their teaching known, his skill as an interpreter of texts… all these make him, sixteen centuries after his death, a figure of enduring relevance for us, the Christians of the twenty-first century.'įrancis noted that Jerome's translation of the Scriptures into Latin helped to shape western culture. Reviewing the life of the fourth century saint, Francis in his letter highlighted how Jerome devoted himself entirely 'to Christ and His word,' working unceasingly 'to make the divine writings accessible to others.' May the example of this great doctor and father of the Church 'awaken in us a renewed love for the Sacred Scripture and the desire to live in a personal dialogue with the word of God,' Francis told pilgrims before concluding his weekly general audience, and while informing them of his new apostolic letter. Pope Francis has called in Catholics today to heed the advice of Saint Jerome and understand that every culture represents an enrichment for the whole Church.įrancis, in his apostolic letter, ' Scripturae Sacrae affectus' (Devotion to Sacred Scripture'), released by the Vatican September 30, was commemorating the 1600th anniversary of the death of Saint Jerome the 'great doctor and father of the Church, who put the Bible at the center of his life.'

Scripturae sacrae affectus