The faith of the Catholic Church is based on both a
fundamental
principle of hermeneutics and the constant faith of the Church
from Apostolic times.
The Catholic Church teaches that the first principle
of
hermeneutics--the science of the translation and
interpretation
of the Bible--is the literal meaning of the text.
Spiritus
Paraclitus
Benedict XV, September 15, 1920
As Jerome insisted, all biblical interpretation rests upon
the literal sense ...
