And a visual sense, hence the importance of pictures, and artwork, and statues, etc., all the things the iconoclasts wrongly rejected. And, as I am lutheran, an auditory sense, which is why the music we sing in church must reflect doctrine.
Jon
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Jon
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CopticChristian
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JustaServant
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cath4alltime
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It would be difficult but it could be done. We should love the Bible because it is God’s letter to us, many however do not. Even I made the mistake that once you became Catholic you no longer needed the Bible, of course that is not true. If we are in a relationship of love we want to know everything about our intended, how much more should we want to get to know God by reading His book
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tarboy
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If they don’t know much about the bible then they are not a spiritual Christians.
A lack of knowledge is the core problem with cafeteria catholics. They follow what seems right, and they’ve probably read more ‘spiritual’ new age books than Christian scripture.
Knowing the Bible does not require reading or memorizing the bible. The scriptures were taught orally to the faithful for a very long time.
A lack of knowledge is the core problem with cafeteria catholics. They follow what seems right, and they’ve probably read more ‘spiritual’ new age books than Christian scripture.
Knowing the Bible does not require reading or memorizing the bible. The scriptures were taught orally to the faithful for a very long time.
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JustaServant
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So you would agree with fundamentalists that Bible knowledge=spirituality?
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jpaul1953
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Hey JustaServant,
I would say that to answer this question correctly we should go back in time prior to the printing press. I believe as I’m sure you do that there were many very humble followers of Christ back then who knew minimal about the bible, except what they got from Mass. Many bible stories we hear during Mass we do hold onto, but the tougher messages in the Bible go right over our heads.
Today we have great access to the Bible and I take the opportunity wisely. Does this make me a better Christian? Only if I obey the messages I receive through my new knowledge.
I believe we are judged based on what we know and what we do with this knowledge. People use to live by their understanding of the 10-commandments alone. That was what they were taught to do. So if they followed the commandments correctly they were living in the light of God. If not, they weren’t.
I think you get the jist on how I see it. I hope this is helpful.
Respectfully,
Jpaul1953
This is what one of the saints had to say about this.
*Ignorance of Scripture means ignorance of Christ
St. Jerome*
It is most important to know the bible. Sometimes this is not emphasised enough by church leaders. But we need the word of God.
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dean24us
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I agree with this statement. Assuming that a person if otherwise faithful to Catholic teachings (e.g., going to mass, loving God with all your heart, loving your neighbor as you love yourself, etc), I don’t believe that we are necessarily required to read the Bible to be “Good Catholics” (though it DEFINITELY does hurt). Since Catholic teachings are in accordance with the Bible, living in accordance with Catholic teachings inherently results in “knowledge of the Bible”, even if the person doesn’t know where in the Bible a particular belief comes from.
Just a bit of a twist on the OP to help understand my reasoning… Can an illiterate person (a.k.a. a person who is not capable of reading/studying the Bible) who’s only exposure to the Bible is what he/she is “spoon fed” from involvement in the Church lead as holy a life as a literate person? I think both history and personal reasoning would cause most people to answer ‘yes’.
God bless,
Dean
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JustaServant
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tarboy
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JS, You assume many wrong things in creating your ‘StrawMan’ to tear down.
I don’t know any fundies that think bible knowledge = spirituality
I do know fundies & non-fundies that believe studying scripture leads to christian spirituality
Maybe an analogy will help you ‘see the light’
Does the act of reading a calculus book make you a mathamatician? (NO)
However, studying a math text, doing exercises, and having guidance from a qualified teacher can lead to competency in math.
You seem to be arguing one can become a calculus pro / spiritual christian without actually studying the topic. Please explain how that is possible!
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cmforte
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If you go to Mass every Sunday, or especially every day, you will hear the entire Bible. And hear the priest’s interpretation of it that would ideally agree with the Magisterium’s interpretation. I asked a variant of this same question, “Why should I study the Bible if I hear it at Mass and know the Gospel?” a few years ago.DING! DING! DING!
You win the the prize behind the curtain.
Christianity existed for 1500 years without a printing press, without people knowing how to read, and yet were still Christians.
This is what I was trying to get to with the thread “The Bible keeps you from sin or sin keeps you from the Bible.”
In conversing with fundamentalists its very hard to get them to see this. It’s not denegrating the Bible, its using it as it was intended.
-Chris
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tarboy
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To be clear, the Sunday & Feast Day lectionary repeats on a three year cycle and covers essential teaching** but not the full bible (<50% of NT)**
Year A: Gospel of Matthew
Year B: Gospel of Mark
Year C: Gospel of Luke
John is used on Easter, Lent & Christmas
If you attend weekly, listen earnestly, and ponder the teachings thoughout the week, then you will know alot about the Bible.and be a spiritual Christian.
However, if you attend less frequently, are easily distracted, and don’t revisit the Sunday reading/homily throughout the week, then you are not feeding your faith and probably don’t know much about the bible
To put a twist on this, can someone be a spiritual Catholic without studying the Catechism? I would say “No” since many essential points are not covered explicitely in regular Mass.
Personally, I’d put regular study of the Catechism above reading the Bible since it has distilled the essential Scripture plus teachings of the ECF. That will juice up your spirit.
There is a huge difference between attending mass, and going through the motions vs really learning doctrine. God expects more than lib service.
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cmforte
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You’re right. There’s also large parts of Revelation not read.
I kind of agree with you on the Catechsim. On here, for example, I and others routinely have to refer to it to help us explain the Catholic interpretation of Scripture verses in certain debates.
-Chris
-Chris
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