How to Read the Bible – A Three Step Plan (written for Catholics - valid for all)

taylormarshall.com ^ | September 30, 2013 | Dr. Taylor Marshall

[NYer]

How do you read the Bible? Today is the feast day of Saint Jerome, who once quipped, “Ignorance of Scripture is ignorance of Christ.”

“Ignorance of Scripture is ignorance of Christ.” – Saint Jerome

It’s a running joke that if you want to find a Bible verse, you ought to ask a Protestant and not a Catholic. Protestants read the Bible. Catholics not so much.

This raises the question:

Why Don’t More Catholics Read the Bible?

I think the answer lies in the fact that we Catholics go to Mass. The Holy Mass has at least two Bible readings every time. If you pray the Breviary or Liturgy of Hours, multiply that several times.

Joe Catholic says to himself, “Why should I study the Bible? I go to Mass. I hear it there. Check and check.”

There is something beautiful in this. For Catholics, Bible reading is liturgical. Hence, Bible reading remains chiefly a community experience.

Three Step Plan to Kick It Up a Notch

It’s good to listen to the readings from the Bible at Holy Mass. However, we also need a personal (even private) encounter with God in the pages of Sacred Scripture. All of the saints breathed Sacred Scripture. Scripture served as the grammar for their souls. They couldn’t communicate without it.

Here are some basic spiritual needs that you have every single day of your life:

1. Praise – Voicing your delight in God and His provision for your life. Gratitude destroys discouragement.
2. Wisdom – You need practical advice to navigate the complexities of life.
3. Challenge – You need to be lifted higher. You need to grow in your faith. You need to be inspired. You must be an intentional Christian.

So when you wake up tomorrow, do the following:

1. Read a Psalm. Start with Psalm 1. Make it your anthem of praise for that day.
2. Read at least one Proverb. Proverbs are the wisdom morsels of your day. There are 31 chapters. Why not read one chapter every day during the month. Oct 1 is Provers 1. October 31 is Proverbs 31. You get the idea.
3. Read a chapter of the one of the Gospels. This is your challenge. Your Savior challenges you in the four Gospels. He calls you to be not merely a nominal Catholic but a disciple. You cannot seriously read the Gospels and stay lukewarm. Christ speaks in a way that cannot be ignored.

“But I’m so busy. I don’t have the time!”

What? You’re too busy. Sorry, you just got served a yellow card:

That’s a yellow card. You’ve been warned…

Doing these three readings will take you only 3-5 minutes. That’s the time of a commercial break. It will change your life for good. I promise. It takes 21 days to make a habit, so give it 21 days and see if you aren’t hooked. Put the Bible on your night stand and read it in the mornings. Start fresh.

“Ignorance of Scripture is ignorance of Christ.” – Saint Jerome, Doctor of the Church

[NKP_Vet]

Or is that a million “rites”, how about NONE that protestants have. Ask Jimmy Swaggart about rites and see what his answer will be. I needed a good laugh this morning. The majority of protestants go to church, sit in a pew, don’t open their mouth to recite any type of scripture, sit there and listen to a hell and brimstone preacher (most with no credentials at all) tell them they are going to hell if they don’t change their ways.

For anyone that believes that type of nonsense in a church constitutes worshiping the Lord I have some good ocean front property to sell you in Arizona.

And don’t reply back and tell me I don’t know what I’m talking about. I was a baptist, then pentecostal for 58 years.

[daniel1212]

He said the Bible was right in the main, but, through the translators and others, many precious portions were suppressed, and several other portions were wrongly translated;

As do prohomsoexual polemicists. "Hath God said?"

If I ever pass into the heavenly courts, it will be by the consent of the Prophet Joseph.

Btwn him and the popes and the Mary of Rome, etc. Not in Scripture, thus it is no wonder The LDS needs the BoM, and Rome needs her Tradition.

[daniel1212]

Praise God.

[aMorePerfectUnion]

“The majority of protestants go to church, sit in a pew, don’t open their mouth to recite any type of scripture, sit there and listen to a hell and brimstone preacher (most with no credentials at all) tell them they are going to hell if they don’t change their ways.”

I hasten to add this has NEVER been my experience in any of a number of churches I attended as we moved throughout the country. Ever. Most were fully involved in worship, the teaching of God’s Word, hell is not a prominent topic unless it is part of the passage of study and most of my pastors had Masters level or Doctorates.

If that was the totality of your experience in your church, I understand why you generalize from that and why Romanism looked good to you.

It is however, false. You might as well say that in every Roman Church, boys are molested right in pews by evil men wearing black robes, etc. Both are false.

[NKP_Vet]

Try turning your TV to any protestant service and see for yourself. You will see one man in the stage waving a Bible around yelling at everyone, saying “praise the Lord” every other word out of his mouth. The only thing you will hear from the congregation are a hundred “amens”, and singing and hand clapping.

[Elsie]

The majority of protestants go to church, sit in a pew, don’t open their mouth to recite any type of scripture, sit there and listen to a hell and brimstone preacher (most with no credentials at all) tell them they are going to hell if they don’t change their ways.

And you know this HOW?

From your OWN experience??

[Elsie]

Not in Scripture, thus it is no wonder The LDS needs the BoM, and Rome needs her Tradition.

Most LDS 'beliefs' are not in BoM; either!

[Elsie]

Try turning your TV to any protestant service and see for yourself.

So TV in America reveals what is actually true?

Who knew!!

---

http://www.catholictv.com/daily-mass.aspx

[aMorePerfectUnion]

We’ll I’ve seen similar things, but TV show guys are not the experience of the vast majority of Christians.

You should get out more.

[Elsie]

[verga]

Please explain the difference between a "rite" and a denomination.

If the difference was as you imply there would not be a need to have a separate denomination.

[verga]

And don’t reply back and tell me I don’t know what I’m talking about. I was a baptist, then pentecostal for 58 years.

You do know that I am Catholic and I gave you a courtesy ping so you could see that the other post was being answered.

You and I are on the exact same page.

[aMorePerfectUnion]

“And don’t reply back and tell me I don’t know what I’m talking about. I was a baptist, then pentecostal for 58 years.You and I are on the exact same page. “

Wow two baptist, pentecostal catholics on one thread! who knew!

[daniel1212]

Most LDS 'beliefs' are not in BoM; either!

You are right, and i remembered that later. Nor do the things Rome believes have to have the unanimous consent of the (so-called) church fathers.

[Iscool]

Try turning your TV to any protestant service and see for yourself. You will see one man in the stage waving a Bible around yelling at everyone, saying “praise the Lord” every other word out of his mouth. The only thing you will hear from the congregation are a hundred “amens”, and singing and hand clapping.

You mean kinda like one visions when one reads the bible...Like an apostle up there preaching to the congregation...Like having people immersed in water for baptism...Like people singing songs to praise the Lord...Like taking up collections...Like praying for others to GOD...And you claim that is not biblical???

What you don't see is people bouncing up and down to recite repetitious speaking parts that have been memorized for ages...You don't see someone passing out a cracker which is claimed to be Jesus in person (which the bible warns against)...You don't see leaders in long robes looking especially religious (which the bible warns against)...You don't see any religious characters sitting on a throne and allowing people to bow down to him (which the bible warns against)...

So just what is it that you have to object to??? And did you become a born again Christian asking Jesus to become your Savior while you were a Baptist or Pentecostal??? And if you did, what led up to your testimony of turning to Jesus???

[narses]

“Jesus said to them again, ‘Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, even so I send you.’ And when he had said this, he breathed on them, and said to them, ‘Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained.’ “

[Elsie]

narses (... unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you do not have life within you.)

[aMorePerfectUnion]

Favorite verse of Breatharians. The repeat it over and over.

[narses]

So scripture is mocked in your odd cult? Why?

[aMorePerfectUnion]

“So scripture is mocked in your odd cult?’

No. I consider Breatharians to be a false belief system. They appear to gravitate toward verses and pictures about breathing. They also appear to post the same things, spamming threads. I do not know why.