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Private Revelation |
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As used in theological discourse, the word “revelation” may designate God’s intervention in human history, by which he imparts supernatural truths to be believed on the authority of God revealing, or it may refer to the body of truths that are the object of our faith, as when we speak of the truths of Revelation. The truths thus revealed have been placed in the custody of the Church instituted by Jesus Christ, and as such they constitute what is known as public Revelation. It is also known as the deposit of faith, because God’s Revelation was brought to completion in Jesus Christ. All who accept Christ in faith must likewise accept all the truths handed down in the twofold source of Revelation: Sacred Scripture and Tradition. It is commonly said that public Revelation ended with the death of the last Apostle; but the closing of public Revelation does not mean that God has withdrawn into an eternal silence. On the contrary, the history of the Church is replete with examples of private revelation. In modern times the question of private revelation must be addressed because so many persons, both Christian and non-Christian, are seeking some kind of contact with the supernatural and transcendent. Indeed, some religious denominations claim to have been founded by persons who received private revelations, among them the Mormons and the Seventh-Day Adventists. The Catholic Church admits the possibility of private revelations and has even approved some of them: for example, the revelations made to St. Margaret Mary Alacoque, St. Bernadette at Lourdes, and the children at Fátima. On the other hand, the official position of the Catholic Church has always been one of extreme caution and even doubt when passing judgment on private revelations. Types of Private Revelation • Private revelations are communications made to individuals by the Lord, the Blessed Virgin Mary, or some other messenger from the world beyond this one. Experts in the field usually classify them into three types: a declarative statement, as when St. Bernadette heard the words, “I am the Immaculate Conception”; a conditioned statement, such as the promises made to St. Margaret Mary Alacoque; or a denunciatory revelation, which is usually a threat of future punishment and hence a conditional prophecy. The first thing that must be said about private revelations is that the only persons obliged to believe them are the ones who are convinced that they are supernatural in origin. Theologians dispute whether this would involve an act of supernatural faith or be simply an act of human faith. But if an individual is personally certain that a revelation is from God, then it would seem that the recipient should accept it with an act of the supernatural virtue of faith. As regards other persons, the general principle is that one is free to accept or reject private revelations. Pope Benedict XIV stated that persons other than the recipient who accept a private revelation will do so simply on human faith, after making a prudent decision that the revelation is probable. If, however, a private revelation has received ecclesiastical approval, bearing in mind the great caution exercised by the investigators, it would be audacious not to accept the decision of the Church. Nevertheless, it is true that private revelations are very susceptible to error. Even for people in good faith, there is always the danger of misinterpreting the message or reading into it something purely subjective and personal. For instance, numerous mystics have written treatises on the life of Christ, based on private revelation: for example, St. Bridget, Mary of Agreda, Anna Katherine Emmerich, and Maria Valtorta. There is great discrepancy in many of the details. The volumes written by Maria Valtorta, entitled The Poem of the Man-God, have been widely circulated in recent years. It should be noted, however, that this work was condemned by the Holy Office in 1959; and Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, Prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, stated again in 1985 that the condemnation by the Church still applies to the second edition of the treatise (cf. B. Groeschel, A Still, Small Voice, fn. 10, p. 58). Rules for Discernment • Prudence dictates that before giving assent to any private revelation, one should exert every effort to discern whether or not it is worthy of credence. The rules for discernment are based on the authoritative teaching of masters of the spiritual life such as St. Teresa of Ávila and St. John of the Cross. Nor do we neglect the input from the study of paranormal and religious psychology, which has made great strides in modern times, thanks to the pioneer work of men like William James. The first thing to be noted is that private revelations are extraordinary phenomena, or gratiae gratis datae, and as such they are not essential for salvation or Christian holiness. Neither are they a proof of the holiness of the individual who receives them. Margaret Mary Alacoque, for example, was not canonized a saint because she had received private revelations concerning devotion to the Sacred Heart or because she was the instrument chosen by God to spread this devotion throughout the world. She was declared a saint because she had reached perfection in the love of God and of neighbor. The essence of Christian holiness is the fulfillment of the twofold precept of charity given by the Lord (Mt 22:35-40). Everything else should be seen either as a means to greater perfection or the fruit of perfect love. Second, since public Revelation was brought to its completion in Jesus Christ, no new public revelation can be expected until the Second Coming of Christ (cf. Vatican Council II, Dogmatic Constitution on Divine Revelation, Dei Verbum, 4). Nevertheless, the history of the Church contains numerous cases of private revelation, whether given for the good of the individual or for the good of others in the Church. In every case, however, the private revelation must be understood and interpreted in the light of the Revelation made by Christ and proclaimed by his Church. As noted above, Pope Benedict XIV stated that private revelations approved by the Church can elicit from us only human faith. They do not in any way bind the faithful by an act of the theological virtue of faith. The reason is that even when the Church approves a private revelation, the content of the revelation is not guaranteed to be infallibly true. Even some of the saints, for example, Catherine of Siena and Joan of Arc, made mistakes in interpreting some of the details in their revelations. If a person is firmly convinced that a given private revelation is authentically divine in origin, that individual is obliged to believe it. It is possible, however, that a person who receives a private revelation, however holy that person might be, could make a mistake in interpreting or applying the revelation. There is no gift of infallibility here. As for the approval by Church authorities, this is usually given only after a commission of experts has studied the matter and submitted its findings to the proper authorities. According to Father P. De Letter, between 1931 and 1950 twenty-two private revelations were investigated; two were approved (Beauraing and Banneux), six were left undecided, and the remaining fourteen were rejected (cf. New Catholic Encyclopedia, Vol. 12, p. 446). The rules for discernment can be summarized as follows: (1) Any revelation that is contrary to the public teaching on faith or morals must be rejected. (2) Any teaching contrary to the common teaching of theologians or that claims to settle an argument among schools of theology is gravely suspect. (3) If some part or detail of a private revelation turns out to be false or erroneous, it is not necessary to reject the entire revelation. (4) The fact that a prophecy comes true is not a proof that the revelation was from God; it could have been due to some other factor. (5) Private revelations that are very detailed or treat of useless matter or mere curiosity should be ignored. (6) The person who receives the revelation should be carefully examined as regards physical and mental health, moral character, obedience, and humility. (7) Carefully examine the immediate fruits that are produced by the revelation.
See: Apparitions; Devil and Evil Spirits; Discernment; Extraordinary Gifts; Prophecy.
Suggested Readings: CCC 65-67, 124, 157. A. Poulain, The Graces of Interior Prayer. B. Groeschel, A Still, Small Voice. Jordan Aumann, O.P. |
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