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

[Elsie]

I like the whatssoever you shann bind on shall be bound in Heaven reading....

Got that list of BOUND things again?

[Elsie]

Convert indicated an advancement or upward movement.

Oh?

---

con·vert

verb

verb: convert; 3rd person present: converts; past tense: converted; past participle: converted; gerund or present participle: converting

kənˈvərt/

1. 1.

   cause to change in form, character, or function.

   "production processes that converted raw material into useful forms"

   synonyms:

   change, turn, transform, metamorphose, transfigure, transmute; More humoroustransmogrify; technicalpermute "plants convert the sun's energy into chemical energy"

   • change or be able to change from one form to another.

     "the seating converts to a double or two single beds"
   •  
   • change one's religious faith or other beliefs.

     "at sixteen he converted to Catholicism"
   •  
   • persuade (someone) to do this.

     "he was converted in his later years to the socialist cause"

     synonyms:

     proselytize, evangelize, bring to God, redeem, save, reform, re-educate, cause to see the light More "they sought to convert sinners"

   • change (money, stocks, or units in which a quantity is expressed) into others of a different kind.

     "the figures have been converted at $0.545 to the Dutch guilder"
   •  
   • adapt (a building) to make it suitable for a new purpose.

     "the space can be easily converted into a home office"

     synonyms:

     adapt, turn, change, alter, modify, rebuild, reconstruct, redevelop, refashion, redesign, restyle, revamp, renovate, rehabilitate; More informaldo up, rehab "the factory was converted into lofts"

   • Logic

     transpose the subject and predicate of (a proposition) according to certain rules to form a new proposition by inference.

[Elsie]

doesn't really matter, does it??

Hillary!

How ya been girl?

Haven't heard much from you since Kerry took over...

[Elsie]

As intelligent as Luther probably was, he didn't seem to know the difference between "reform" and "Revolt"....he revolted....didn't work out too well!!

As intelligent as you claim to be, history does NOT record the fact that Catholicism invented the Counter REVOLT to try to correct some of it's excesses.

[Elsie]

Catholics believe that it is the Body and Blood of Christ....just as He said it was....more than once

So?

If you guys are right, the crackers and grape juice we partake of WILL turn into the 'real stuff' when we consume it; just like yours.

[Elsie]

...not spouting thousands of various philosophies ...

Just cannot leave the talking points; can you ;^)

[Elsie]

...not spouting thousands of various philosophies ...

Just cannot leave the talking points; can you ;^)

[Elsie]

Try putting your eternal soul before your own earthly interests and go to Confession and get back into your faith.

Father forgive me; for I have sinned.

---

http://www.saintaquinas.com/howto_confess.html

[verga]

Funny you should time this reply when you did. I just posted this on another thread:

You are describing the vast majority of protestants on this forum. Virtually none of them is even remotely capable of an intellectual discussion.

I have tried several times to engage them in discussions about, the nature of the incarnation, the Trinity, infinity and eternity in relation to the Godhead, among others. The only response I get (paraphrased) "It ain't in the Bible"

Several months ago there was a question about the location of heaven. Several of the protestant genius's state unequivocally that it was "in space." When I asked where specifically, so we could get a good look with the Hubble telescope they fell silent.

If your comment was an attempt to be derisive of me it failed.

[Elsie]

Virtually none of them is even remotely capable of an intellectual discussion.

Intelligent meaning when they AGREE with you?

[Elsie]

Several months ago there was a question about the location of heaven. Several of the protestant genius's state unequivocally that it was "in space." When I asked where specifically, so we could get a good look with the Hubble telescope they fell silent.

Nice story.

But try the SAME question with your average Catholic pew warmer and see what THEY reply.

[metmom]

Several months ago there was a question about the location of heaven. Several of the protestant genius's state unequivocally that it was "in space." When I asked where specifically, so we could get a good look with the Hubble telescope they fell silent.

bramps, it appears that verga's recollection of the events is flawed. Nobody said that heaven was "in space", nor did I see anyone make any comments about being able to see it with the Hubble telescope.

I'd be curious, verga, just where do CATHOLICS think heaven is?

[metmom]

What else?

[daniel1212]

you don't "convert" from Catholicism....Convert indicated an advancement or upward movement. You deny true Christianity and follow a human founded sect when you fall away from the church.

What next? Following Rome which declares truth by fiat, RCs here compel not only Scriptures to support Rome but even words. faced with multitudes converting to evangelical faith which is a threat to Rome, which treats liberal RCs as members, convert is disallowed as meaning "to bring over from one belief, view, or party to another" or other than its definitions , and instead it must mean an advancement or upward movement, i.e. to become an RC. And consistent to this constrained definition, all converts from Rome have denied true Christianity.

Of course, it is unlikely that this assertion of Rome's elitism and broadside against all Protestant converts would qualify as bigotry according to the Roman Catholic (another word that is objected to) definition of the word here, as it has been decreed that there is not and never has been a scintilla of anti-protestant bigotry on FR.

The autocrats have spoken: the matter is settled.

[daniel1212]

Note also that in contrast to Peter, that the LORD Jesus is the Rock (“petra”) or "stone" (“lithos,” and which denotes a large rock in Mk. 16:4) upon which the church is built is one of the most abundantly confirmed doctrines in the Bible (petra: Rm. 9:33; 1Cor. 10:4; 1Pet. 2:8; cf. Lk. 6:48; 1Cor. 3:11; lithos: Mat. 21:42; Mk.12:10-11; Lk. 20:17-18; Act. 4:11; Rm. 9:33; Eph. 2:20; cf. Dt. 32:4, Is. 28:16) including by Peter himself. (1Pt. 2:4-8)

[daniel1212]

.she can"t be wrong and Christ promised to be with Her until the end of time......long enough for me!!

As before, your assertion is based upon the premise that Rome is the church seen in the NT, despite its clear and its critical differences .

Once again you are begging the question, stating as fact that which needs to be proved.

Thus my post on this issue which was not responded to.

[verga]

bramps, it appears that verga's recollection of the events is flawed.

I don't think the lady doth protest to much, I know she does

Nobody said that heaven was "in space",

The word "Nobody" attempts to make this a universal negative statement. Automatically this makes your statement in error. Further there were two protestants that said it was in space. It was in a discussion about Mary being assumed vs Jesus ascension into heaven. Go back and look it up.

nor did I see anyone make any comments about being able to see it with the Hubble telescope.

Please go back and re-read the comment. I am the one that asked about being able to see it with the Hubble since two of you felt it was in outer space.

Bramps you may want to pay very close attention to the next attempt I make at an intelligent dialogue with one of your fellow protestants. I'd be curious, verga, just where do CATHOLICS think heaven is?

To ask; "Where is heaven?" resorts to the same faulty logic as asking; "When did God come into existence?" Two attributes of God that you must remember of God is that He is both eternal and infinite. This is to say that God is not limited by either time or space. He existed before time began and will continue to exist long after time has ceased to exist.

Further we can understand that God is not limited to space of dimensions as we understand it since saying that He resides in our universe is to put a dimensional limit on both Him and heaven.

Therefore we can say with absolute certainty that God and Heaven are both outside of our universe in what for lack of a better term would have to be called an infinite eternal realm.

Bramps, the two stock answers I get from protestants are: 1) That doesn't answer the question, and 2) Prove it using the Bible.

[verga]

Nobody said that heaven was "in space",

Bramps and metmom please see this thread. iscool admits that he was one of the ones that said it was in space. Perhaps he would like to remind metmom of who the other one was. Mary 'can only bring us to God,' expert says as entrustment nears thread post # 242

[metmom]

It would behoove you to accurately portray what others have said. It would be a great boost to your credibility in the future, as at the moment it is sinking faster than the Titanic.

[verga]

Seriously, Iscool admitted exactly what I said, and anyone with an IQ over 6 sees it.