I believe that God’s enemy wrings his hands with glee when hearing God’s children tear each other apart with discussions that lead us from Christ.
Corki says: “A good Bible study should always be able to link the Scripture with the CCC and with living out the Sacramental life of the Church. Without those elements, you are just studying the words in the Bible, not doing an actual Scripture study.”
Absolutely untrue! I am doing a Catholic Bible Study of John with the CCC right now, and I have studied John with BSF (and am re-doing the BSF version in injunction with the Catholic one). Actually, I will be specific, which so many of you critics have failed to be. It is “Come and See” Catholic Bible Study by Fr. Ponessa & Laurie Manhardt. The Catholic one is only one facet to the richness of Christ’s words in John, and I think the authors would agree. In this study the CCC does focus on the Sacraments, and many “new” Catholics have remarked on how valuable this is to them. Saying that any other study, such as BSF or any Catholic study that does not link the CCC, is “just studying the words in the Bible” precludes any relationship with the Holy Spirit! This is very narrow and judgmental thinking.
Again, posters, please provide some specifics with your arguments, or start to question your motives in your criticisms: Are you leading others from Christ? Are you doing the work of God’s enemy?
Specifics! What “good Catholic studies”? Justify your comments! Why are they more insightful than BSF? Where do I get these studies? Don’t tell me what your neighbor-friend-Catholic woman-daughter-in-law experienced! Have you been in BSF yourself?
TexCatholic4JMJ says: “I found that other Catholics in the group (when we would talk away from BSF) did not “catch” the misinformation. So it is possible for some to be misled–right out of the Church.”
And I can tell you that I have been in Catholic studies that worship and adore Mary, and continue to do so when they are called on it.
RocketRob says
… the fact is that non-Catholic (perhaps even anti-Catholic) doctrine is presented on a regular basis…almost each and every week. This has been discussed and well established in prior posts on this thread.
I disagree that this has been “well established”. In my 13 years with BSF I have heard little doctrine that disagrees with Catholicism. Mostly, it has to do with the word “alone” added by Martin Luther. Maybe I am blessed to have the teaching leaders I have had, or maybe I have warned them before hand. And like I have said all the attacks in BSF on the Catholic Church have come from former Catholics.
kage_ar asks: “Simple question, you keep dodging it. Has BSF led you to a deeper acceptance of the teachings of the Catholic Church or not?”
Yes, with immeasurable zeal for the Mass, the Holy Eucharist, the Sacraments, for God’s house!
mdcpensive1 says: “BSF can be good for some but not fulfilling. This is like the Old Covenant that only pointed to the realities that were to come that was Jesus Christ in the New Covenant. It was good but not the best.”
Let me ask you this: Have you ever sat at a death vigil for your son after a logging accident? Have you ever witnessed a grandchild dying of cancer and wondered, why Almighty God, so young? Have you ever watched a young family become destitute because the husband chose cocaine over them? How about a father who abandoned his family simply because he had to “find” himself? Have you ever had someone ask you to pray for a son who will do prison time for a drunken driving homicide? Have you ever had a family member be abused by the one we trust the most, our priest?
These are the prayers of many of my friends who attend Mass, receive the Eucharist and Sacraments, and are “good” Catholics. But they are receiving unbelievable strength from Scripture as well and call their lives blessed. Please don’t say BSF is unfulfilling until you have been tested in God’s fire as we have been. If the Mass and Sacraments were all we needed in this life, we’d all be saints.
, trust your instincts. Unless you are a trained apologist as kage_ar suggested or are doing research on how non-Catholics view the Bible, this type of Bible study really doesn’t offer anything for a Catholic. As someone mentioned, we are so lucky to live in this time with so many great Catholic Bible studies available. Good luck in your endeavor!