Question for Cradle Catholics

[LeahInancsi]

Where did you learn a thorough knowledge of the Catholic church’s interpretation of the Bible?

 

[Safe_Eagle]

What helped me the most was reading a CATHOLIC bible. Taking note of the comments on the scriptures given. Catholic interpretation really made the scriptures come alive for me. Of course the early church fathers made no small contribution.

 

[puzzleannie]

I don’t know that I have a thorough knowledge of the Catholic Church’s interpretation of scripture, but the most helpful bible study I have had is Bible Basics by Steve Kellmeyer, a college text I got at STeubenville, Our Father’s Plan by Scott Hahn and Jeff Cavins, plus their seminars at Steubenville summer conferences, and various parish bible studies over the years.

When I have a question about a certain topic or passage, especially if I have to teach it, my method is to methodically read all the related passages, find the CA homepage and library articles on the topic, read up on it in the CCC, following all the scripture and document citations in the footnotes (there is a companion volume to the CCC that has those cites), and consult bible commentaries.

 

[the_phoenix]

All throughout my growing up years, because my father had a library of orthodox Catholic books (no exaggeration) and my mother taught CCD (or PSR as some would call it now) and wrote articles for the “Homiletic and Pastoral Review” which is a magazine mainly for priests, as well as letters to the editor in defense of the Pope and the teachings of the Church.

~~ the phoenix

 

[Verbum]

Hi Lea__,

There are very passages of the Bible that have an official interpretation from the Church, one of them being the Nicodemus passage about being born again, which the Church officially interprets as water baptism being necessary for salvation.

Reading the Bible as a Catholic means reading it in the light of Church teaching, as, notably, contained in the Catechism. Any interpretation of mine that does not agree with the Catechism is wrong.

Verbum

 

[melandave]

Listening to the interpretations in my priest’s sermon really helps.

Also, the Fathers of the Church.

I also use the Douay Rheims version (spelling??)

 

[stignatius]

Is it just me, or have I seen this thread before?

 

[MariaG]

Mostly through the Catechism of the Catholic Church. I would/still look up different subjects that I want more information about and then read what the catechism says. I then use the footnotes and look up all the different scripture references that pertain to each section.

It really helps me get a good grasp of scripture and Catholic teachings.

 

[Chancellare]

Where did you learn a thorough knowledge of the Catholic church’s interpretation of the Bible?

I learned more from oral means (no irony meant): Our priest taught us in the old-fashioned way.

You see, our diocese sent several priest scholars to various Universities in Jerusalem and Rome and made them teach Bible classes to our parishes. In particular, I learned about the original exegetical meanings from our priest’s studies in Hebrew texts. Perhaps we were just lucky: This particular priest graduated at the top of his class from the Hebrew University in Israel.

From there, the rest was history. I acquired a hunger for learning more about my faith. And there’s plenty to learn.

 

[psalm90]

Where did you learn a thorough knowledge of the Catholic church’s interpretation of the Bible?

That’s kind of a loaded question. It’s very specific to an individual. Rather than answer for myself, I’ll tell my impression of a 30 y/o relative.

She had mostly a public school education, and she didn’t spend much time in a state university doing a bible study anyplace.

I’d conclude from that one case that Bible knowledge can be very spotty or almost non-existent. To make matters worse, she attended a women’s group meeting where bible subjects were discussed. She was really at a loss, and mostly expressing personal opinions. And, this was despite my best efforts to encourage her along the way.

Some Jews, Protestants, and Catholics are fairly knowledgeable, but then most aren’t. There are a whole raft of reasons for this.

Not only is this a loaded question, it’s a trick question. There’s not an official commentary that would be a yardstick for knowing how knowledgeable any Catholic is. The Catechism of the Catholic Church is a large, but not exhaustive summary of Church teaching on the Bible. It’s hard to know what the Church has taught over the centuries on every aspect of the bible.

Having said all this, I think puzzleannie’s response is typical, that such knowledge is cumulative and ongoing, and depends on one’s personal history.

Maybe the OP should be narrowed down a bit. What’s the point?