Raymond Brown and the sensus plenior interpretation of the Bible

In their exegesis of the sacred writings of the Old and New Testaments, Christian interpreters believed that they were uncovering other levels of meaning in the biblical text when read in the light of Jesus and of the church. In the last century, some Catholic scholars posited a distinct sense of scripture (the sensus plenior or "fuller sense") in order to explain this peculiar form of exegesis. Raymond E. Brown (1928-98) treated this subject several times during his impressive career, eventually rejecting it as too problematic. This article will discuss his definition of the theory and the difficulties he later identified with it. It will also offer some observations on the development of the idea in his thinking.