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

[dsc]

“Does THIS qualify?”

No. The writer was clearly referring to certain individuals that post here on FR, and not to all protestants or Protestantism in general.

[dsc]

“You might want to have a look at this post, dsc.”

Why? It doesn’t reflect anti-protestant bigotry in any way. Not even close.

That statement is analogous to saying, “It is impossible to talk to most leftists about economics...”et cetera.

Are we conservatives bigoted against leftists?

[dsc]

“First I’d have to KNOW how you KNOW that he KNOWS it to be false.”

I don’t think that could be explained so that you would understand it. You in particular, not all protestants.

[dsc]

My post certainly attracted some childish replies.

What it did not produce was a single example of anti-protestant bigotry.

Know why?

Because there isn’t any.

We Catholics don’t sit around bad-mouthing protestants. We don’t spend our days hating on them. We don’t even think about it very much, if at all.

Just as with leftists and conservatives, the hatred comes from one direction.

[CynicalBear]

>> how on Earth is that statement logical, what does Judas betraying Jesus have to do with Jesus Divinity<<

According to Catholic logic which says the RCC wrote scripture and we should be thankful, Mary birthed Jesus so we need to venerate her, so Judas betrayed Jesus which led to His death and resurrection which showed He was God and gave us salvation. Catholic logic! See? So Catholics should venerate Judas just as they do Mary.

[daniel1212]

You should know by now that this polemic has a artificial life of its own, regardless of how often and much RCs are shown that by attacking Luther for his regard of the apocrypha, and as if he deviated from an indisputable canon, then they also impugn those RCs who proceeded him in his questioning and dissent . Which was allowed as the RC canon would only be indisputably settled over Luther’s dead body.

Meanwhile, the church itself began in dissent from those who also presumed more of their office than Scripture.

[Elsie]

We can ALWAYS count on you!

Slack jawed fools are not TOTALLY worthless!

[Elsie]

The writer was clearly referring to certain individuals that post here on FR, and not to all protestants or Protestantism in general.

But too gutless to actually name them?

[daniel1212]

Hey! The Bible doesn't say it isn't true - so it COULD be true

Indeed, as it is true that actual evidence from Scripture is not needed for RC doctrine, only that it does not contradict Scripture, but which Rome is the autocratic judge of. Meanwhile RCs have much liberty to compel Scripture to support Rome, following her presumption.

For as with the Eucharist (and bind and loosing), in which" The priest speaks and lo! Christ, the eternal and omnipotent God, bows His head in humble obedience to the priest's command. (John A, O'Brien, >I>The Faith of Millions, Our Sunday Visitor (1938), p. 235; has Nihil obstat & Imprimitur) , so what Rome autocratically declares is truth must indeed be Truth, not because of Scriptural substantiation, by which the church established its claims.

[Elsie]

Are we conservatives bigoted against leftists?

I'm bigoted against TALKING TO DEAD PEOPLE.

[Elsie]

I don’t think that could be explained so that you would understand it. You in particular, not all protestants.

I'm sorry that your explainin' skills are so limited.

Perhaps you need prayer...

[smvoice]

You are MUCH too hard on yourself. You're NOT "slack jawed".

:)

[Elsie]

We Catholics don’t sit around bad-mouthing protestants. We don’t spend our days hating on them.
We don’t even think about it very much, if at all.

Is posting on FR ok?

[Elsie]

Comment #979 Removed by Moderator

(I didn’t think it’d last...)

[smvoice]

...you tried to post that while DROOLING, didn’t ya’...

[Elsie]

You're NOT "slack jawed".

I guess yer rite; but how this stuff get on my shurt?

[Elsie]

No; slobbering while kissing...

[Elsie]

What it did not produce was a single example of anti-protestant bigotry.

So true!

[smvoice]

LOL! I think I’ve seen that guy before..pushing around some kind of cart, laden with books, and mumbling to himself “get yer doctrine.. doctines here..get yer doctrines...”

[metmom]

We Catholics don’t sit around bad-mouthing protestants. We don’t spend our days hating on them. We don’t even think about it very much, if at all.

And yet here you are on this Religion forum, posting to non-Catholics.....

Why do I have a hard time believing you?