scripturales

Scripturales is a term that appears in a limited range of religious studies and manuscript criticism discussions to describe texts or textual traditions that are principally modeled on or derived from sacred scriptures. It designates material that is organized around scriptural authorities, quotations, allusions, or paraphrastic renderings, rather than around purely doctrinal systems, liturgical sequences, or original composition independent of scriptural sources.

Etymology and scope. The word draws on the Latin root scriptura, meaning writing or scripture, and carries an adjectival or plural sense in scholarly usage. In practical terms, scripturales can encompass exegetical treatises, paraphrastic compendia, lectionaries, or homiletic cycles whose structure and purpose are anchored in the reception and interpretation of biblical texts. The category is rarely applied as a rigid taxonomy but rather as a heuristic to highlight the scriptural frame that shapes a given corpus.

Relation to other categories. Scripturales is distinct from works that are devotional or purely literary without a scriptural organizing principle. It can overlap with fields such as patristics, medieval exegesis, and liturgical studies, where scriptural quotation, quotation patterns, and scriptural citation influence form and argument. Because the term is not widely standardized, its exact boundaries vary among scholars and manuscripts.

Usage and reception. Some scholars use scripturales to draw attention to the centrality of scripture within certain textual ecosystems; others criticize the term as vague or vague. The concept remains marginal and is typically restricted to specialized discourse rather than broad bibliographic practice.

See also: exegesis, patristics, lectionary, midrash, scriptural poetry.