Owning a bible

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Dogmatic

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What if I don’t want to own one? Am I bad? I’d rather just go to mass and here God’s word or read the large print liturgy of the hours!
 
I don’t know what my beliefs are about that either. Some Bible translations “seem so sketchy” to me. They seem to change scripture to the point I get confused to what it really means. So I would also like to know which translation is best? I don’t want any translation that is “too permissable.” There are some things God was dead set against. So I want a Bible that tells it like it is.
 
If you own one Bible, you should own several. When I’m seriously studying Scripture (as opposed to praying on a single passage for the five minutes of downtime I’ve got) I pull out at least three or four translations and a Concordance. Having a commentary is also helpful, though realize that five commentators will give you six stories - each is speaking to his or her own time, place and situation.

If you don’t own a Bible, it’s very important to at least have something to help you in your spiritual formation. I’ve found two books quite helpful lately - “The Born-Again Catholic” by Boudreaux, and “The Imitation of Christ” by Kempis.
 
Since for the most of the Church’s history, the laity could not read. Bible’s were not available. If available, were only available in a scholarly language (Latin is one of these).

So not having a bible put’s you in the company of most people before Gutenburg’s printed bible.
 
Buy a bible. And the best translation for English, IMO, is the RSV-CE. The problem with relying on the readings during the mass and during the liturgy of the hours is that it is, by necessity, very incomplete.
In a given liturgical season, I will often focus on reading the book of the bible being covered by the readings at that time. For example, now I am reading the Acts of the Apostles. When you do this, and attend daily mass, you come to realize that the Church cannot even come close to fitting all of the Bible into its liturgies.
You are not bad, but none of us should be satisfied with how we are. Conversion is a life long call to holiness.
 
Statistics are here… if you only go to church on Sundays and major feasts, you get to hear less than 4% of the Old Testament, and less than 41% of the New Testament during a three-year-cycle. If you attend daily Mass, you almost hear 72% of the New Testament and less than 14% of the Old Testament over two years. None of that’s counting the Psalms.

If that’s acceptable to you… 🤷 It’s cool that you’re doing the Liturgy of the Hours-- they have some excellent material in there-- but you shouldn’t pretend that there’s a substitute for reading the Bible. Read it if you want to read it; don’t read it if you don’t want to; but be honest with yourself.

Me personally? I find that I’ve really enjoyed online sources where I’m able to compare multiple translations simultaneously, or when I want to look up a particular chapter or verse as part of a discussion. I do have four or five print Bibles in the house, and I’ll go to one of those when I want to do sustained reading, rather than reading isolated snippets.
 
Dogmatic said:
What if I don’t want to own one? Am I bad? I’d rather just go to mass and here God’s word or read the large print liturgy of the hours!
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No, you do not have to own or read the Bible; however, remember the quote from St. Jerome," Ignorance of Scripture is ignorance of Christ". The Mass and LOTH are from the Bible, but you are missing out on a HUGE part of our salvation history if you do not read the bible on your own beyond what you hear in Mass or pray in LOTH.
 
Thanks for the replies, but I’ve owned like 8 bibles so far and none really has given me as much spiritual inspiration as the LOTH or Mass. Maybe I’m just misled, Latin, Greek, Hebrew, Catholic versions, Protestant versions all the same, I even tried reading plans and stuff, but it never seemed natural or inspirational. Most saints didn’t have a bible of their own, so that’s an encouraging thought.
 
“My dear young friends, I urge you to become familiar with the Bible, and to have it on hand so that it can be your compass pointing out the road to follow.”
~Pope Benedict XVI
 
The Bible is God speaking to you. Why would anyone not want that?

-Tim-
 
The Church encourages reading the Bible, and owning a Bible makes the opportunities more available. In some ways it would be like asking my wife if I’d be a bad husband if i did not have pictures of her because i find it more inspiring when i see her in person. Well, no, i could still be a good husband, but having pictures of her is nice for me to look at when i am not with her.

But everybody is different. For me i am always knee deep in Scripture, its my passion. But there are plenty of people in much better tune spiritually than me who are totally oppposite, ive learned not to judge others spiritualality.
 
Dogmatic said:
Thanks for the replies, but I’ve owned like 8 bibles so far and none really has given me as much spiritual inspiration as the LOTH or Mass. Maybe I’m just misled, Latin, Greek, Hebrew, Catholic versions, Protestant versions all the same, I even tried reading plans and stuff, but it never seemed natural or inspirational. Most saints didn’t have a bible of their own, so that’s an encouraging thought.
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I believe that many saints had access to Bibles. Certainly the religious saints did.

I suggest a good bible study, Jeff Cavins or Scott Hahn.

-Tim-
 
Does anyone read a contemporary bible, just for a fast reading off larger amounts to get the “bigger picture”?
 
Unfortunately, the Protestants got the jump on us, so I use the NIV Disciple’s Study Bible. Mine is 20 years old, and is out of print now. I’ve seen them on eBay for as high as $885.00 with a normal price of about $400.00. The second edition is going for about $90 in hard cover. The reason these Bibles are going for high dollar is because they contain over 10,000 notes. The Cathloics do not micro manage each verse in the Bible and the Protestants do. That make owning a Protestant Bible a good bet. With 10,000 note to help you understand what is being said, the Bible becomes a very interesting story that all hinges together.
 
I have not found the ideal Bible but the Ignatius Study Bible (new testament only) is probably a good place to start.

This edition is a workin progress, and it will probably be years before there is a complete Ignatius Study Bible.

So far, it uses the Revised Standard Edition - 2nd Catholic Edition, which is a very good translation (based on the King James Version). I think it has some interesting notes to facilitate Catholic Bible study.

Another level “up” from a study Bible is a Bible commentary. This is usually a more expanded study, often focusing on a few verses at a time. I’m currently subscribed to the Ancient Christian Commentary on Scripture from Intervarsity Press. These volumes ship about every two months, and I have received three so far (at around $30 a pop). These commentaries are from early church writers. I find their insights extremely helpful and inspirational. Not being a Catholic publishing house, IVP does not always present a 100% Catholic viewpoint.

I’m just finishing the second of the volumes I have received, so far. There’s a hefty number of volumes in this series. I expect that it will keep me busy for a few years.

The message of the first two volumes (Romans, Mark) is: stop sinning. Live the new life in Jesus Christ. (don’t kid yourself) Your faith should lead you to live a sin-free life. The worst mistake anybody can make is to sin.

Do you want a Bible to teach you anything else?
 
johndoe100 said:
Unfortunately, the Protestants got the jump on us, so I use the NIV Disciple’s Study Bible. Mine is 20 years old, and is out of print now. I’ve seen them on eBay for as high as $885.00 with a normal price of about $400.00. The second edition is going for about $90 in hard cover. The reason these Bibles are going for high dollar is because they contain over 10,000 notes. The Cathloics do not micro manage each verse in the Bible and the Protestants do. That make owning a Protestant Bible a good bet. With 10,000 note to help you understand what is being said, the Bible becomes a very interesting story that all hinges together.
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Catholics have micro-managed every verse in the Bible for many centuries, just not in a dime a dozen manner (not just referring to volume but quality) like many Protestants have. Catholics have written commentaries going back to no later than the 200’s, and then there are catenas and glosses. One of the greatest micro-managing of each passage is the glossa ordinaria. The Haydock Bible is still top notch. To act as if Protestants some how have a monopoly on Bible tools is just so untrue!
 
Thanks, I have been looking for a Catholic Bible Commentary. *The Aquinas Study Bible will be a big help with Matthew, Mark, Luke & John plus the 10 Commandments and the Creed.

Any word on when the whole Bible will completed? *Until then I’m stuck with my NIV.
 
johndoe100 said:
Unfortunately, the Protestants got the jump on us, so I use the NIV Disciple’s Study Bible. Mine is 20 years old, and is out of print now. I’ve seen them on eBay for as high as $885.00 with a normal price of about $400.00. The second edition is going for about $90 in hard cover. The reason these Bibles are going for high dollar is because they contain over 10,000 notes. The Cathloics do not micro manage each verse in the Bible and the Protestants do. That make owning a Protestant Bible a good bet. With 10,000 note to help you understand what is being said, the Bible becomes a very interesting story that all hinges together.
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My parents bought me that Bible when I was a teenager; I had no clue it was worth that much!! 😃

I won’t say Protestants have a monopoly on the Bible market, but they do dominate it. We receive the CBD (Christian Book Distributors) catalog every few months in the mail. It is a Protestant book company. Each catalog has nearly 10 pages of just Bibles. There are Bibles for students, woman, men, teens,and seniors. Hard cover, leather, large print…etc. The options are endless.

You definitely need a good Bible though. St Jerome’s quote is so good, it’s worth reading again. “Ignorance of Scripture is ignorance of Christ.”
 
johndoe100 said:
Unfortunately, the Protestants got the jump on us, so I use the NIV Disciple’s Study Bible. Mine is 20 years old, and is out of print now. I’ve seen them on eBay for as high as $885.00 with a normal price of about $400.00. The second edition is going for about $90 in hard cover. The reason these Bibles are going for high dollar is because they contain over 10,000 notes. The Cathloics do not micro manage each verse in the Bible and the Protestants do. That make owning a Protestant Bible a good bet. With 10,000 note to help you understand what is being said, the Bible becomes a very interesting story that all hinges together.
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I don’t know that suggesting a Protestant Bible to a Catholic is the way to go. :confused:

There are many Catholic Bibles available, as well as study guides. I have found that in homeschooling our children, Antiquities of the Jews, by Flavius Josephus, to be invaluable as an aid to the Bible.
 
Just get the Douay Rheims Bible. As far as I’m aware, it’s the most accurate, Catholic bible. You can read it here if you want, to see if it’s easy enough for you to read.
drbo.org/

Or you can try the NAB translation, since that’s the one the churches use.
usccb.org/bible/books-of-the-bible/
 
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