A Eunuch Disproves the Perpiscuity* of Scripture

Normally I am pretty tired in morning mass and don't always perceive wondrous insights from the readings of Holy Scripture but today the reading from Acts really spoke to me. The first reading was from from Acts 8:26-40. It was the story about Philip and his encounter with the Ethiopian eunuch. The eunuch, after visiting Jerusalem to worship, was heading home and reading from Isaiah. He was trying to understand the bible on his own but he couldn't.

29	And the Spirit said to Philip, "Go up and join this chariot."
30	So Philip ran to him, and heard him reading Isaiah the prophet, and asked, "Do you understand what you are reading?"
31	And he said, "How can I, unless some one guides me?" And he invited Philip to come up and sit with him.

 Philip then enlightens him with Spirit-led catechesis (teaching), with the result that the eunuch wishes to be baptized. The word had stirred his heart and caused him to desire conversion.

35 Then Philip opened his mouth, and beginning with this scripture he told him the good news of Jesus. 36 And as they went along the road they came to some water, and the eunuch said, "See, here is water! What is to prevent my being baptized?" 38 And he commanded the chariot to stop, and they both went down into the water, Philip and the eunuch, and he baptized him. 39 And when they came up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord caught up Philip; and the eunuch saw him no more, and went on his way rejoicing.

My conclusions from this plain reading of scripture today are:

1) A person alone can't always understand the bible alone. The perpiscuity of scripture is a dubious notion at best. Clearly the bible is best interpreted through an authority and who but the apostles of Christ and their successors would have the "best" interpretation?   

An interesting aside from this little story is that it shows us the normative method of conversion for the early post-resurrection Church was baptism in water. There was no mention of a sinner's prayer. If baptism is just symbolic and a "add on" why didn't Phillip simply get the eunuch to recite the sinner's prayer and let him go at that. After all, there was no one around to witness the baptism, so the idea of baptism being for the purpose of a public testimony was pretty useless here. Baptism was the way in which this new believer was made a member of the body of Christ.

*Perpiscuity of Scripture: a belief begun in the reformation that the bible is clear, self-interpretive and easy to understand, therefore requiring no teaching authority. Many modern day fundamentalists and evangelical Christians hold to this. The reality is that they really don't because they read the bible through the interpretive lens of their own magisterium, their pastor, their denomination's confession etc. They just won't admit it. The reality is that everyone has a magisterium!   Catholics just admit it  and are thankful for it.