Where Should I Start?

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kyanez8728

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As a young adult and that never really read the bible or study it. I know stories and the basics. But I want to learn/know more…I’m just not sure where should I start? As an young adult what Bible should I get to read and study? I’m at a lost.
 
The New Testament Study Bible is what I use! It is so awesome with historical notes and great explanations. It was first published about three years ago and you can purchase it at any Catholic bookstore or here on the Catholic.com bookstore. Welcome!!!🙂

Just found it!

The Ignatius Catholic Study Bible
Softcover. $24.99 on the Catholic.com shopping link:thumbsup:
 
I think the best version of the Bible is the Revised Standard Version-Catholic Edition. (RSV-CE). About 15 years ago I decided I would read the Bible. I stayed with it. When I had a question I wrote it on a post-it note and stuck it on the page of the Bible. Often as I kept reading I would later have my questions answered. You can get a copy of the RSV-CE at tanbooks.benedictpress.com/index.php/page/shop:bibles/
If you are into reading the Bible on the computer you might consider www.logos.com. They have a product designed for Catholics called Verbum. Just search for Verbum at the top of the screen. They also have a Catholic Answers collection that you can purchase separately.
 
kyanez8728 said:
As a young adult and that never really read the bible or study it. I know stories and the basics. But I want to learn/know more…I’m just not sure where should I start? As an young adult what Bible should I get to read and study? I’m at a lost.
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I like the recommendation for a good Study Bible, like the Ignatius one. That can be a great help.

As for where to start, the best place to start is with the Gospels. I’ve often heard people recommend the Gospel of Mark first because it is shortest and moves at a fairly quick pace. Jesus is, of course, at the center of our Christian faith. Knowing His story is what makes the rest of the story make sense. Read through the Gospels a few times. Then read through Acts and some of the New Testament letters. Then go to the Old Testament.

When you get to the Old Testament, it can be helpful to read a book like Scott Hahn’s A Father Who Keeps His Promises to give you an overview of the central Old Testament stories and how they work as part of the larger narrative of “salvation history” (i.e. the story of God intervening in human history to offer us salvation). That will give you a conceptual framework to start from when you dive into the actual text. Since the books of the Bible are organized by type rather than placed in strict chronological order, that framework is essential to connecting the dots and understanding the Scriptures as more than a hodge-podge of unrelated stories.
 
Another approach is Jeff Cavins’ read through of the “14 Chronological Books of the Bible”. Those books are:


  1. *]Genesis
    *]Exodus
    *]Numbers
    *]Joshua
    *]Judges
    *]Ruth
    *]1 Samuel
    *]2 Samuel
    *]1 Kings
    *]2 Kings
    *]1 Maccabees
    *]Luke
    *]Acts

    This gives you, more or less, the narrative of the Bible. Lots of the prophetic books, wisdom books, and epistles don’t add to the narrative in the same way. Reading these 14 books in sequence helps to give you the “big picture”.
 
Joe_5859 said:
Another approach is Jeff Cavins’ read through of the “14 Chronological Books of the Bible”. Those books are:


  1. *]Genesis
    *]Exodus
    *]Numbers
    *]Joshua
    *]Judges
    *]Ruth
    *]1 Samuel
    *]2 Samuel
    *]1 Kings
    *]2 Kings
    *]1 Maccabees
    *]Luke
    *]Acts

    This gives you, more or less, the narrative of the Bible. Lots of the prophetic books, wisdom books, and epistles don’t add to the narrative in the same way. Reading these 14 books in sequence helps to give you the “big picture”.
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  1. Never heard of this method. I always just go from start to finish. I may try this next time just to see how it reads.
 
Boulder257 said:
Never heard of this method. I always just go from start to finish. I may try this next time just to see how it reads.
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I just noticed the list I gave from that EWTN website only had 13 books listed, so I double-checked my “Great Adventure” chart and there are a few errors in that list. Here is the list:


  1. *]Genesis
    *]Exodus
    *]Numbers
    *]Joshua
    *]Judges
    *]1 Samuel
    *]2 Samuel
    *]1 Kings
    *]2 Kings
    *]Ezra
    *]Nehemiah
    *]1 Maccabees
    *]Luke
    *]Acts

    That EWTN Q&A was from ten years ago. Either it was a typo or Cavins tweaked the formula since then. :o
 
Joe_5859 said:
I just noticed the list I gave from that EWTN website only had 13 books listed, so I double-checked my “Great Adventure” chart and there are a few errors in that list. Here is the list:


  1. *]Genesis
    *]Exodus
    *]Numbers
    *]Joshua
    *]Judges
    *]1 Samuel
    *]2 Samuel
    *]1 Kings
    *]2 Kings
    *]Ezra
    *]Nehemiah
    *]1 Maccabees
    *]Luke
    *]Acts

    That EWTN Q&A was from ten years ago. Either it was a typo or Cavins tweaked the formula since then. :o
Click to expand...

  1. Thank you Joe! Much appreciated:)
 
kyanez8728 said:
As a young adult and that never really read the bible or study it. I know stories and the basics. But I want to learn/know more…I’m just not sure where should I start? As an young adult what Bible should I get to read and study? I’m at a lost.
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Many Catholic churches offer Bible classes that can help one understand and answer questions. An idea would be to go online to the nearby Catholic churches, ask who has a Bible study. Otherwise, the New Testament is a good place to start.
 
kyanez8728 said:
As a young adult and that never really read the bible or study it. I know stories and the basics. But I want to learn/know more…I’m just not sure where should I start? As an young adult what Bible should I get to read and study? I’m at a lost.
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You might check your parish for bible study groups. We have three in English at different
times. Most end this month and restart in the Fall.
 
There are different translations, but also many translations are available in a “Study” edition, where things are explained in footnotes, and sometimes there are extra pages with helpful information like maps and historical background.

Also make sure your bible is “Catholic,” which mainly means it has all the books. Protestant bibles leave out certain books.

One of my bibles is The International Student Bible for Catholics, the text of which is the New American Bible. While this bible is intended for teenagers, it works fine for me (I am 55 years old). Bibles with study notes written for teens and young adults can be very useful for older adults who are learning some stuff for the first time, or older adults who, like me, have teenage kids.

When I look up Bible passages online, I most often use the New Revised Standard Version, Catholic Edition, and get it from BibleGateway.com. That website has some pretty good search tools.

I also get a lot of info from the USCCB, including their online Bible which is the New American Bible, Revised Edition.

God bless you and guide you in your reading!
 
kyanez8728 said:
As a young adult and that never really read the bible or study it. I know stories and the basics. But I want to learn/know more…I’m just not sure where should I start? As an young adult what Bible should I get to read and study? I’m at a lost.
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When I teach bible study, I always begin with the giving the understanding of our Catholic view of it is true in all aspects to God’s salvation plan for us.
I never recommend starting at the beginning, but with one of the Gospel, I like Luke, the go to Genesis and Exodus. Read Job, the Psalms and always leave Revelations to the end, it’s there for a reason.

The first time I read the bible I started each day with the daily readings as well as Sunday available at www.usccb.org. It took the three year cycle of the Church the get through but at the end it’s about 80% of the bible. With the commentary also available each day at the same site, it give a decent study.

Dcn. Frank
 
kyanez8728 said:
As a young adult and that never really read the bible or study it. I know stories and the basics. But I want to learn/know more…I’m just not sure where should I start? As an young adult what Bible should I get to read and study? I’m at a lost.
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Well as for the edition, I like the RSV-CE. The Church uses the NAB. Either is a good choice.

As for how to proceed. My opinion is that one should read the Gospels first, then Acts - the then Gospels again…And THEN choose other books to read i.e. the NT letters etc.
for me the OT is good supporting material, but it is the NT that contains the meat for our faith.

Just my opinion.

Peace
James
 
OP.

Start with the NT as others have already said. Try to study with a group from your Church if possible! The NT study bible by Ignatius Press is a good choice but I myself started with their complete RSV edition (without study notes). The best thing is to really study with a group and find some Catholic commentary to supplement your study.
 
I just noticed the list I gave from that EWTN website only had 13 books listed, so I double-checked my “Great Adventure” chart and there are a few errors in that list. Here is the list:
Genesis
Exodus
Numbers
Joshua
Judges
1 Samuel
2 Samuel
1 Kings
2 Kings
Ezra
Nehemiah
1 Maccabees
Luke
Acts
Click to expand...
That EWTN Q&A was from ten years ago. Either it was a typo or Cavins tweaked the formula since then.
Click to expand...
👍
 
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