By Dr. Scott Hahn

I was in Rome taking part in an ecumenical gathering of biblical scholars just months after the elevation of Pope Benedict XVI.

One of them, a Reformed Old Testament scholar, remarked to me that Catholics now had a "real biblical theologian" at the helm.

This Protestant recognized something that many of my fellow Catholics have yet to fully appreciate - that Benedict XVI is among the finest biblical theologians in the world today.

He has been one of my guiding lights since I discovered his book, Introduction to Christianity, as a Protestant, more than 20 years ago.

Recently, I had the privilege of presenting him with a spiritual bouquet on behalf of St. Paul Center supporters who pledged to pray for an ever deepening biblical renewal in the Church. Together we'll be praying thousands of Rosaries and thousand of more hours of lectio divina, as well as offering hundreds of Masses and holy hours for this intention, which is so dear to our Holy Father's heart.

I'm grateful for your dedication to the cause of biblical renewal. And I know he will be, too.

It was with deep humility that I also sent him the text of my inaugural lecture as Pope Benedict XVI Chair of Biblical Theology and Liturgical Proclamation at St. Vincent Seminary in Latrobe, Pennsylvania.

In Benedict, God has given us a leader who knows that terrible truth, first articulated by St. Jerome: “Ignorance of the Scriptures is ignorance of Christ.” Indeed, he's quoted Jerome several times since taking office - as if Jerome had been prophesying about something that's come to pass in our own day.

Benedict knows that we can't know Christ unless we know how to hear (and read) the Scriptures correctly. And if we don’t know Christ, we’re lost, without a Savior.

Benedict sees in our churches today a "crisis of faith in Christ" - a crisis that he traces directly to the so-called historical-critical method, which has been the dominant model in universities, seminaries, and pulpits for nearly a century.

Reliance on this method - which does not give us access to the divine dimension or meaning in the Scriptures - has led to a widespread belief that Jesus was simply a man, a marginal rabbi who preached only tolerance and benevolence, according to Benedict.

I can't do justice to this topic here.

But reflecting on these things has helped me again see how crucial the work is that we're doing. Our work, which depends on your prayers and financial support, could prove to be the difference between whether people are ignorant of Scripture and Christ or not.

We know that we depend on our Holy Father's wisdom and guidance. What we sometimes forget is that he depends on us, too.

We can pray for Pope Benedict's intentions. But we can do more. We can help make his vision a reality.

February 2006