A story for every day...
The merchant and the businessman.
A merchant who has to send a letter of great importance, would go to a businessman, explain his case in all details to give him a very exact knowledge of it, and give him power of attorney to write to his correspondent. Although the businessman did not write the letter himself, it will nevertheless contain only the ideas and the will of the principal. So it is with Scripture. The good God, that is to say the Holy Spirit, prompted the sacred writers to write their books and at the same time He enlightened their minds in an extraordinary way. Their books therefore do not contain their word, but the word of God.
– This special action of the Holy Spirit on the authors of the Bible is called inspiration.
Saint Anthony and a letter from the emperor.
Saint Anthony the Hermit (died 356), who lived in Egypt in the desert of the Thebaid, received a letter from Constantine the Great. His disciples were amazed that the emperor would deign to write to their master in person. “You should,” said the Saint to them, “rather wonder that God, the King of kings, should have deigned to send us poor creatures an autograph letter in Holy Scripture.”
– Holy Scripture is the word of God.
