How do we read the Bible as Catholics?

  • Thread starter Thread starter katpants
  • Start date Start date
Status
Not open for further replies.
K

katpants

Guest
The way I grew up,there was some belief in divination through the Bible (like God show me what will happen with this event) etc.

Now I’ve been Catholic I feel that’s a big no go. (Plus Catechism says no) How do we read the Bible, just for comfort and guidance as Catholics?

Confused as always,

Kat:confused:
 
katpants said:
The way I grew up,there was some belief in divination through the Bible (like God show me what will happen with this event) etc.

Now I’ve been Catholic I feel that’s a big no go. (Plus Catechism says no) How do we read the Bible, just for comfort and guidance as Catholics?

Confused as always,

Kat:confused:
Click to expand...
Just read it. Like you would any other literature. Let it enter your mind.

Do not look for answers to your life issues per se. It doesn’t work that way. The insights it gives to your mind will do that.

OH, and use a Catholic version. The week’s Mass readings are a good place to start.

ICXC NIKA
 
A good thing to look up in the Catechism is the senses of Scripture. I believe we have to read the Bible first and foremost through the Church which has taught us to read the Bible first from its literal sense meaning what did the author want to convey at the time and place it was written. Then there are the other senses of Scripture.

Another good practice to do is pray the Liturgy of Hours, even if it just morning and evening prayer. Universalis.com is a good website for this.

Ohh and there is also I forget how to say it Lectae Divino??? Where you learn to meditate very deeply on Scripture passasges.
 
We read the Bible to get to know about God (study) and to get to know God (prayer/meditation).
 
Read it as often as you can. Keep the Word in your heart and ponder it, like Mary.

But keep a devotion to Mass and His Eucharist with a clean conscience. Seek the Catholic understanding of its prophecies. Pray that the Holy Spirit guides you.
 
We read it as interpreted through the Holy Spirit…Read Catechism of the Catholic Church 109-119…it’s not a long read.

Peace and all good!
 
LittleFlower378 said:
Ohh and there is also I forget how to say it Lectae Divino??? Where you learn to meditate very deeply on Scripture passasges.
Click to expand...
That would be Lectio Divina, or “divine reading” which is designed to receive the word at different senses – including and IMO most importantly, a contemplative element. It has been practiced by monks for hundreds of years but I still believe a wide majority of Catholics never even heard of it.

When I first started reading a Bible, I was watching a TV preacher and looking up references. Then one year for Lent I took a gospel (starting with John and I was happy about that) and committed to reading at least one chapter a day. It got to be so entertaining to read it “like a book” instead of a handbook of bumper sticker references, it was not even a chore and I ended up reading several chapters a day.
 
This might be a good place to start: stpaulcenter.com/studies/lesson/lesson-one-how-a-catholic-starts-to-read-the-bible

You can also read the Bible like St. Therese of Lisieux did: after invoking the Holy Spirit, simply read Scripture until you find a passage that really stands out for you, and then memorize said passage. The Gospels are a wonderful place to start, along with the Psalms and the wisdom literature. 🙂

An example of this, for me, might be Psalm 91(90). While the entirety of that Psalm is beautiful, when I first read the following it really stuck out for me. From the Douay-Rheims, starting at verse 14:
Because he hoped in me I will deliver him: I will protect him because he hath known my name. He shall cry to me, and I will hear him: I am with him in tribulation, I will deliver him, and I will glorify him. I will fill him with length of days; and I will shew him my salvation.
Click to expand...
I love the above because it is about Christ, but also because it extends to each of us, God’s adopted children.

Or from James 1:
Blessed is the man that endureth temptation; for when he hath been proved, he shall receive a crown of life, which God hath promised to them that love him.
Click to expand...
Coming across such passages is to find the little gems that God has put into your heart, and, once again, memorizing them and meditating on them is a wonderful practice.

While we must not attempt to simply flip through the Bible randomly and find answers, the Holy Spirit does speak to us through Scripture. Don’t forget that divination, ultimately, is simply seeking the impulses and movements of demons. We cannot be divining when we are attempting to listen to the voice of God in our hearts.

Here’s an example of what I mean: youtube.com/watch?v=gKNNTyUhujE
 
katpants said:
The way I grew up,there was some belief in divination through the Bible (like God show me what will happen with this event) etc.
Click to expand...
Many truths can be learned from the Bible, but I do not think it works for divination. That sounds a bit superstitious, like a belief in magic words.
 
I read the Bible every night before I turn out the light-- I read “The One Year Bible - Catholic Edition”. Every day it includes readings from the Old Testament, Epistles – Proverbs - Psalms – New Testament. Of course, I always say the last decade of the Rosary before I read the Bible!!!
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top