A Lamp to My Feet and a Light to My Path: The Joy of the Bible

1. A lamp to my feet and a light to my path: The Joy of the BibleA lamp to my feet and a light to my path:  The Joy of the Bible Evergreen Catholic Schools 2019 Formed and Strengthened by the Word

2. Pope Francis on the Bible • The Bible is not a beautiful collection of sacred books to study – it is the Word of Life to be sown. • The Bible is the best vaccine against closure and self-preservation. It is the Word of God, not ours, and it takes us away from being at the centre, preserving us from self-sufficiency and triumphalism, constantly calling us to come out of ourselves. • Let us pray, and let us ensure that that the Bible does not remain in the library among the many books that speak of it, but rather that it runs through the streets of the world and waits where people live.

3. What is the Bible? • B – Basic • I – Instructions • B – Before • L – Leaving • E – Earth!

4. Why Read the Bible? • How much do you really know about the Bible? • Until Vatican II the Bible was not a large part of the “Catholic” life and worship. • Fear of misinterpretation was a constant source of worry for Catholics…Catholic were expected to own one but Bible reading was Protestant!

5. The fact is you probably know much more about the Bible than your parents…and that is a little scary!! • Do you ever just sit and read the Bible? Is it easy?

6. It’s hard to read the Bible! • It is a complicated book! • It is a collection of books; • The books were often edited by a number of authors over periods of centuries; • Originally an oral Story that eventually got written down; • The Story of a family…not one that always got along or saw eye to eye!!

7. Bible as “The Word of the Lord” • We are part of that religious family and all that it entails. • The written Tradition revealed is God’s Word • God’s Word through human authors • Not to be taken literally – God dictated the Bible through a number of secretaries – Catholics are not Biblical Fundamentalists. • For Catholics, the Bible is the inspired Word of God

8. Pope Benedict XVI (2008) “Verbum Domini” • “The Christian faith is not a ‘religion of the book’: Christianity is the ‘religion of the word of God,’ not of a ‘written and mute word, but of the incarnate and living Word'” (No. 7)

9. What’s Inspired? • Human authors wrote down God’s message in their own words and within their own limits…as humans they – or we – cannot go beyond that. • Inspired can also mean people filled with God’s Spirit – a hunger to know God better. An experience that becomes a revelation that strikes the heart of not one but many and is written down to share.(Breathed in – Genesis 2:7 - breathed into his nostrils the breath of life)

10. Sorting the human from the divine writing is not always easy…for this we receive help from the Church - both official statements and from many people of faith who have dedicated their lives to studying and investigating the scriptures meaning.

11. The Bible is a Library • This collection has been formed over a 2000 year period. • For Catholics there are 46 books in the Old Testament and 27 in the New Testament (Protestants have 39 in the OT) • Different books can contradict (e.g. Psalm 30 states that there is no afterlife or happiness after death - compare with Daniel, Maccabees and the entire New Testament!!)

12. Inerrancy or Infallibility? • Deuteronomy permits divorce, prophet Malachi says God detests divorce, Jesus call remarriage after divorce adultery. • God’s relationship with God’s people is a developing relationship. Our understanding of God changes and grows just as human relationships change and grow. • God takes us where we are and leads us toward fuller truth. (e.g. women in scripture) • Dei Verbum: Brown "solidly, faithfully and without error that truth which God wanted put into sacred writings for the sake of salvation,” meaning that Scripture is inerrant only "to the extent to which it conforms to the salvific purpose of God,“ And Collins “Bible is without error only in matters essential to salvation

13. Literary Forms Matter!! • Know the form of writing can help us understand the books you read. • Da Vinci’s Code - fiction or non-fiction? • Is Genesis 1-11 a science textbook or religious truth (theological treatise)? Literary form called myth. • Genesis 12-50 a history book or a retelling of a family story with lessons learned and passed on?

14. Literary Forms • Numbers - a census and inventory together with history and revelation • Deuteronomy - a retelling of the previous four books. • Kings, Chronicles, Judges - more like modern histories • Psalms - hymns sung in the Temple • Song of Songs - erotic love poetry • Revelations - (Apocalyptic) written in code

15. If the Bible is treasure, how can I find that hidden treasure? Five Clues: • Find a comfortable Translation • Don’t Start on Page One • Take digestible helpings • Put Yourself inside what you read • Let the bible spark your prayer

16. 1. Find a comfortable Translation • Bible was originally written in Hebrew, Greek and Aramaic – not English!! • Early English Catholic Bible were written from translations of the Latin, from the Greek, from the original Hebrew -translations can lose power over time • Since 1943 (Divino Afflante Spiritu) Catholic have been encouraged to use the “best” translations.

17. Translations:All translations have their weaknesses and strengths: • Literal (can be harder to read) • NRSV (Can Liturgy) • NAB (US liturgy) • Jerusalem (British) • Less literal or paraphrase (often much easier to read) • NIV • Good New Bible • The Living Bible • The Message

19. Comparison of two translations: • But we will not boast beyond our measure, but within the measure of the sphere which God apportioned to us as a measure, to reach even as far as you. • 2 Corinthians 10:13 (NASB) (reading level 11) • But I won't brag more than I should. Instead, I will brag only about what I have done in the area God has given me. It is an area that reaches all the way to you. • 2 Corinthians 10:13 (NIrV) (level 2.9)

20. 2. Don’t start on page one! • Bible not a regular book – it only seems to start a the beginning • The creation accounts came very late in Israel's understanding • Genesis – most interesting collection of stories in Old Testament • Next Exodus – but by Chapter 20 it bogs down in details our branch of the family has long forgotten! • Find a good reading guide (available everywhere!)

21. 3. Take digestible helpings • When eating a cow, start with a steak, not the whole hind end! • Break the bible down into smaller portions: a few verses, maybe a chapter, a whole book? Maybe over a course of a month! • Many ways of starting…ask your friend for their favourite passage? Start with yours. • Turn to the person next to you and tell them yours? (Is. 49

22. Isaiah 49:15-16 • “Can a mother forget the baby at her breast and have no compassion on the child she has borne?Though she may forget,    I will not forget you!See, I have engraved you on the palms of my hands;

23. Pick a Story or Topic • A story about Jesus that has already captured your interest • a concordance maybe – investigate a single topic (Websites galore!!) • Pick a character – Moses, David is fascinating, Elijah, Balaam and his Ass, Judith who won a war single-handedly? • Or a journey (Exodus), a law book (Leviticus), a history (Judges, or Kings or Chronicles….or The Acts of the Apostles)? • Or what about Mary, Peter entertaining, Paul zealous … Jesus? • Or just open your bible and embark on a treasure hunt!

24. 4. Put yourself inside what you read • You are part of the family that is telling this story. There is a lot of family resemblance! • Many of the family customs and traditions have changed and it may be difficult to follow – have handy a good Bible resource – too many to mention. • Here are some methods of praying the bible:

25. Ignatian Spirituality (See James Martin - The Jesuit Guide to (Almost) Everything: A Spirituality for Real Life • Bring the Bible to life – St. Ignatius Loyola • Ignatian spirituality would have you imagine yourself in the scene, close your eyes and imagine what being a part of the Exodus would be like – the sand, the smoke from a cooking fire, tents, children playing, adult mumbling about Moses and the direction he was leading them…

26. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TSJHQ5PI4Tk • Read. Pick any passage in Scripture. Slowly, thoughtfully, savor the Word. Linger whenever a word or phrase touches your heart. • Reflect. What is God saying to you in this passage? Offering you? Asking you? • Respond. Respond to God from your heart. Speak to God of your feelings and insights. Offer these to God. • Rest. Sit quietly in God’s presence. Rest in God’s love.

27. 5. Let the Bible spark your prayerLectio Divino • Read a verse or short paragraph from Scripture. Read it again. • Once you enter the text, many questions arise…why not take them to the author! • How do you feel on the hillside listening to Jesus discuss the implication of putting others first and yourself second? • Or the rich young man (ourselves) unable to do what Jesus suggests and he (you) walks away? • What do you say to Jesus – how do you respond to God? • Get others talking about it too – involve staff, family, friends… • Read it again…

28. Pope Benedict XVI (2008) “Verbum Domini” • “The documents produced before and during the Synod mentioned a number of methods for a faith-filled and fruitful approach to sacred Scripture. Yet the greatest attention was paid to lectio divina, which is truly capable of opening up to the faithful the treasures of God’s word, but also of bringing about an encounter with Christ, the living word of God” (No. 87).

29. Where to go from here? • If you do not own one – buy a good Bible! • All are good – make sure it contains the Deuterocanonical/Apocrypha (A Catholic bible) • New Revised Standard Version is what is used in the Canadian Church for liturgy and is good for academic study. New American (US Catholics or New Jerusalem – UK Catholics are good too) • Just reading for pleasure? Try the NIV (New International Version) or Good News Bible.

30. Find a good resource to help you! • It will make a big difference in understanding and your faith. Try: • Mackenzie’s Dictionary of the Bible (1965) • Commentaries (New Jerome; Collegeville) • Bible for Dummies; Complete Idiots Guide to the Bible • Literally thousands of other books and websites (careful thought)

31. Importance of sharing Tradition with Students • The word tradition derives from the tradere which means to hand on. It can mean the content of that being handed on or the process of handing on. Remember both are equally important. Best defined as a process: the Church, in her doctrine, life, and worship perpetuates and transmits to every generation all that she herself is, and that she believes (CCC 78). This process is accomplished by the power of the Holy Spirit acting in the Church.

32. How was (is) Tradition passed on? • Prayer • Worship • Teaching • Story Telling/Scripture • Service “The living Tradition is essential for enabling the Church to grow through time in the understanding of the truth revealed in the Scriptures” (No. 17).

33. Pope Benedict XVI (2008) “Verbum Domini” • Sacred liturgy: “I encourage the Church’s pastors and all engaged in pastoral work to see that all the faithful learn to savor the deep meaning of the word of God which unfolds each year in the liturgy, revealing the fundamental mysteries of our faith” (No. 52). • Celebrations of the Word of God: “The synod fathers encouraged all pastors to promote times devoted to the celebration of the word in the communities entrusted to their care. These celebrations are privileged occasions for an encounter with the Lord. This practice will certainly benefit the faithful, and should be considered an important element of liturgical formation” (No. 65).

34. Pope Benedict XVI (2008) “Verbum Domini” • “Many of our brothers and sisters are ‘baptized, but insufficiently evangelized.’ In a number of cases, nations once rich in faith and in vocations are losing their identity under the influence of a secularized culture. The need for a new evangelization, so deeply felt by my venerable Predecessor, must be valiantly reaffirmed, in the certainty that God’s word is effective” (No. 96).

35. Pope Benedict XVI (2008) “Verbum Domini” • “Catechetical work always entails approaching Scripture in faith and in the Church’s Tradition, so that its words can be perceived as living, just as Christ is alive today wherever two or three are gathered in his name” (No. 74).

36. Teaching the Bible to Kids • Teachers need to be comfortable in reading and using the Bible. • They know how the books of the Bible are arranged and how to quickly and easily locate a specific book or passage. • They have a solid understanding of the biblical story of salvation history. • They are familiar with key people and events of salvation history and can tell how God’s saving power worked through those people and events. • These biblically literate adults understand that any book or passage from the Scriptures must be understood in its proper context.

37. Goals of teaching the Bible in Catholic schools • Access: We should help our children become knowledgeable and comfortable using the Bible. • Big Picture: We should help them know and understand the biblical story of salvation history. • Context: Our ministry with children should help them understand how to interpret Bible books and passages in their proper contexts.

38. Kids need to know: Access • 1. Know the Bible’s structure • eg. Old Testament/New Testament • The Law (Pentateuch), Histories, Prophets, Wisdom • Gospel and Acts, Epistles, Revelation • 2. How to locate a passage - The system for finding a particular passage in the Bible is simple.

39. Kids need to know: The big picture • Biblical stories fit into the overarching biblical story of God’s covenantal relationship with the human race, which we also call salvation history. Much of Catholic theology is based on the presumption that we know and understand the overarching story of salvation history. • God has a plan to save (heal) us all. Salvation history is the understanding that God’s plan is intentional and for all. • Too often we teach religion with random lessons and activities – students (and me) need to know that this is all interconnected.

40. Kids need to know:Context • A quote from the Second Vatican Council document, Dei Verbum, describes how to correctly interpret the Bible: • However, since God speaks in Sacred Scripture through (people) in human fashion, the interpreter of Sacred Scripture, in order to see clearly what God wanted to communicate to us, should carefully investigate what meaning the sacred writers really intended, and what God wanted to manifest by means of their words. (no. 12)

41. Quote says: • First, we must seek to understand what the original human author intended to communicate. The Church Fathers called this the “literal sense” of the Scriptures. • Second, we must seek to understand what God is revealing through the story or passage. The Church Fathers called this the “fuller sense” or the “spiritual sense” of the Scriptures. Often the literal sense and the spiritual sense of a passage are closely related. But in some Scripture passages, God reveals, through the spiritual sense, a deeper and more universal truth

42. Always remembering the age and maturity of the students: • Historical context. • Cultural context. • Literary genre.. • Unity of the whole Bible. • Living Tradition of the Church. • Coherence of the truths of faith.

43. Intimidated? • Don’t be! • You have help: • Great curriculum • Resources and colleagues with experience and education • Professional Development opportunities • Prayer and the Holy Spirit!!