MINISTRY 0F THE WORD OR PREACHING 0F THE WORD 0F GOD: ACT 0F LIVING TRADITION

13 "Now what was handed on by the apostles includes everything which contributes to the holiness of life and the increase in faith of the People of God; and so the Church, in her teaching, life, and worship, perpetuates and hands on to ail generations all that she herself is, ail that she believes" (DV, 8).

This tradition is bound up with things that have been said. In scope and depth, however, it is more than these sayings. It is a living tradition, since through it God continues his conversation. "And thus God, who spoke of old, uninterruptedly converses with the Bride of his beloved Son; and the Holy Spirit, through whom the living voice of the Gospel resounds in the Church, and through her, in the world . . ." (DV, 8).

This is why the ministry of the word can be considered as that which gives voice to this living tradition, within the totality of tradition. "This tradition which comes from the apostles develops in the Church with the help of the Holy Spirit. For there is a growth in the understanding of the realities and the words which have been handed down. This happens through the contemplation and study made by believers, who treasure these things in their hearts, through the intimate understanding 0f spiritual things they experience, and through the preaching of those who have received through Episcopal succession the sure gift of truth" (DV, 8).

On the one hand, the divine revelation which constitutes the object of the Catholic faith and which was completed at the time of the apostles, must be clearly distinguished from the grace of the Holy Spirit, without whose inspiration and illumination no one can believe. On the other hand, God, who formerly spoke 10 the human race by revealing himself through divine deeds together with the message of the prophets, of Christ, and of the apostles, even now still secretly directs, through the Holy Spirit, in sacred tradition, by the light and sense of the faith, the Church, his bride, and he speaks with her, so that the People of God, under the leadership of the Magisterium, may attain a fuller understanding of revelation.

The Church’s shepherds not only proclaim and explain directly to the People of God the deposit of faith which has been committed to them, but moreover they make authentic judgements regarding expressions of that deposit and the explanations which the faithful seek and offer. They do this in such a way that "in holding to, practising, and professing the heritage of the faith, there results on the part of the bishops and faithful a remarkable common effort" (DV, 10).

From this it follows that it is necessary for the ministry of the word to set forth the divine revelation such as ibis taught by the Magisterium and such as it expresses itself, under the watchfulness of the Magisterium, in the living awareness and faith of the People of God. In this way the ministry of the word is not a mere repetition of ancient doctrine, but rather it is a faithful reproduction of it, with adaptation to new problems and with a growing understanding of it.