Is it legal to add a single word to the Holy Scripture? If no, then what is the difference between adding a single word to the Holy Scripture and adding a single word to the Creed? Why do Roman Catholics think that adding a single word to the Holy Scripture is not legal, whereas adding a single word to the Creed is legal?
Actually there is no dogma regarding “adding a single word to the Holy Scripture” in Catholicism that violates any of its doctrines regarding Scripture or Canon Law.
The Magisterium itself decides what is considered canonical Scripture and what is not. adding “single words” may (and indeed has occurred) through history as the Church continues to study the best manuscript evidence available.
As older and very reliable manuscripts have been discovered over the centuries, in rare cases it has been noticed that very few, though minor, scribal errors have crept in to versions of the Sacred Scriptures. Some of these have even been little more than an over-eagerness to adopt “new” or “inventive” readings of the original extant manuscript text available at the time the version was constructed. This has led the Church to update its Latin Vulgate editions over the years.
When the Dead Sea/Qumran scrolls were discovered in the middle of the last century this dramatically changed the way even some basic words were understood through history. Discoveries among these texts have brought to light further evidence which caused many to rethink previously held “facts” when the evidence from antiquity no longer supported them.
This has called for a few changes in the text, not only in the Latin, but also in the modern language versions we now read. The changes have been extremely minor, sometimes causing little more than a change in spelling, but sometimes the removal or addition of several words, even small sections such as in 1 Samuel and Tobit, have been necessary. However nothing doctrinal has been changed.
Does this violate the Scriptural command not to add or take away from the inspired text written at Revelation 22:18, 19? No.
First, that text is discussing “the prophetic words in
this book,” namely the book of Revelation. It is a warning not to change
its contents. While the principle is applicable to the way Catholics view Sacred Scripture as a whole, the warning is to avoid not only adding but ‘taking away’ anything too.
Therefore when discoveries of new empirical textual evidence supports the need to remove or add a few words here and there to previous versions of the canonical text, this is done to make sure nothing has been added or taken away.
It should be noted that even where some of these instances occur, nothing major has been changed or introduced. The text basically reads the same as it has since the Isaiah Dead Sea Scroll was inscribed. The current Nova Vulgata has been under consideration for better alignment to this evidence since the discoveries were made to see where any changes to the text may be necessary if at all.
Since Catholics place their faith and trust in the Magisterium to make the call on what is canonical or not, the adding of a single word where necessary to ensure accuracy of Sacred Scripture has never been against dogma nor breaks any canon laws.
