Saturday, November 7, 2015

Listen to the Heart of Christ

Have you ever heard the phrase "heart of Christ?" It can refer to Sacred Scripture. Before Christ suffered and died for us, Scripture was unclear. Not even Jesus' chosen disciples understood what God was revealing to them. After Jesus' Passion and Resurrection, Christ's heart was made known to us, and the unity of God's plan, of which Christ Jesus is the center and heart, was communicated with the gift of the Holy Spirit.  

Now it is our turn to listen to the Heart of Christ (Sacred Scripture) for the Holy Spirit.


1st Pillar of the Catechism:  What Catholics Believe

1.  Read Scripture. Go to the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops site: www.usccb.org. Click on the Bible tab. Then, click on Today's Reading and this Sunday's readings will appear. Use the calendar to find Daily Scripture for every day of the year.

2.  Reflect on Scripture. Go to the November 8, 2015, Today's Reading page. Click on the Reflections - Video link found on the left side of the page. Find the 2015-11-08 Reflection by scrolling down and looking at the November column. Click on the 11-08 reflection and watch the video clip. 

3. Spend some time exploring the Bible. You may want to better Understand the Bible, look at a particular Book of the Bible, or find help with a particular Scripture Verse.

"To read Sacred Scripture means to turn to Christ for advice," St. Francis of Assisi. 2 Tim 3:16-17, "All scripture was inspired by God and is useful for teaching, for refutation, for correction, and for training in righteousness, so that one who belongs to God may be competent, equipped for every good work."   

Final Thoughts

As we close this section of study, consider one of the most asked questions: How do I read Sacred Scripture? 

  • First, when reading the Word of God, prayerfully listen to the Holy Spirit speaking to you. For example, when Scripture touches your soul with thoughts like "wow" or "that means a lot to me right now," recognize that this is the voice of the Holy Spirit talking with you. Pause for God to soak into your soul. You may even want to start a Bible journal to write down what God is saying to you on a certain day.  
  • As Catholics, we are also attentive to the whole, unified Scripture. And we read Scripture within the living Tradition of the whole Church

What does this mean? "The Bible, a collection of Sacred Scripture, is like a long letter written by God to each one of us. For this reason, we must interpret the whole message with a view to its heart and mystery: Jesus Christ, of whom the whole Bible speaks, even the Old Testament. Therefore, we need to read Scripture with the God's whole plan in mind. We cannot pick out details while paying no attention to the unity of God's message. Finally, the Church draws her life and strength from Sacred Scripture. The living memorial of God's Word is carried in the Church's Tradition. Besides the presence of Christ in the Eucharist, there is nothing that the Church honors more reverently than Christ's presence in Sacred Scripture. This is why at Holy Mass we receive the Gospel standing, because in the human words, we hear God himself speak to us," (YouCat). 

There is so much to learn about Scripture. I pray you never stop reading God's Word. And if you ever wonder, "How did Sacred Scripture come about in the first place?" Or, "What was the Catholic Church's role in creating the Bible?" Here's an article about how the Bible came from the Catholic Church and how the Bible was put together: Scripture Proves the Church.

References:  CCC 111-114, YouCat 16, 19

Faith Opportunity:  Need to buy a Catholic Bible?

36 comments:

  1. Alex Rosner

    I chose to use the USCCB resource. I bookmarked a page from the website about religious liberty because I thought it was well written. I believe that having easy access to an article like that will help me grow my connection to Jesus and our faith.

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  2. I chose to use today's video clip as my resource. It spoke to me in ways that I should be more like Mary, as everyday she would try to piece the parts of our faith together. This will help me become closer to God when he communicates with me through prayer.

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  3. My source was the USCCB website and the daily reading for this Sunday. I bookmarked the page so I can easily access it whenever I find myself needing to read scripture. This page will allow me to grow closer with my faith because I can go on any time to read about Jesus and our faith.
    Jason Klink

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  4. The source that I used was USCCB site. I bookmarked this page so I can get to it when ever I need or want to use it. This helps me get closer to god and Jesus because now I can go read scripture when I want to learn something or just am feeling down.
    Cameron Heesen

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  5. I chose the USCCB site as my source. From the "Today's Reading" portion of the site, I learned that true faith in God will be your savior in the end. I printed this off and placed it on my desk so that I see it every day because sometimes, I admit, I forget about God. I feel that this will not only help me think of God more often, but bring me closer to him as well.
    Thomas Noltner

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  6. I chose the article USCCB. I learned that you do not need to be afraid of God. He does everything for a reason. I subscribed this site, so I will get emails with new information and articles. Sometimes I forget about God and sometimes I think He is making my life miserable, but I know He is doing all those things for a reason.

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  7. Derek Erdmann

    I chose to read the Scripture reading for today. I listened how to be persistent and I learned that asking God for help in my life. I need to be persistent and pray more often,

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  8. I chose the reading for today on the website USCCB. I could go onto this website every few days and read what it says. This will show me how to follow God more and why I should pray.

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  9. As a resource, I chose the USCCB website and their provided bible in order to assist my faith in the greatest way. My biggest admitted downfall in my faith is having a disconnectedness between the bible and it's scripture, and my understanding. For this reason, I plan to read the bible, interpreting Jesus Christ's teachings and other biblical stories. This simple action allows me to become closer with God and create a more intelligent comprehension of my faith.

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  10. Brandon Strupp

    I chose the usccb daily readings page as my source. This page helps me get closer to Jesus because when I am feeling down or in need I can come back to that page, which I bookmarked on my computer. It also helps me get closer to Jesus because I can read scripture when I want to, and don't have to get a Bible out and page through it or wait for church on Sundays, but I can got right to this website and read the readings for not only the current week, but for previous and future weeks as well.

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  11. Tyler Rakowski

    I learned in the scriptures 11-8-15 that widows refer to us as people who go to church and give and have faith to God. Even though you cant see him he is always there. In the scriptures I learned that if we trust God he is always there to help you.

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  12. Maddison Stachura
    I learned that we need to be and bring more disciples into the community. It taught me to help those who ask for it, and not to ignore them. The Scripture taught me to treat those who may seem different or unimportant with respect.

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  13. Sydney Dulak
    I felt like the scriptures today sounded a lot like what people do today in middle school.
    The scriptures talk about how the Catholics wanted to be friends with the genitals. So to be friends with them they did all the same stuff that the genitals. They even started to believe in the genitals religion.That is a lot like what kids do today to fit in and have friends, but sometimes doing what others do is not right especially when it get's you into trouble.

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  14. I learned in the scripture of Elijah and the widow that God always answers your prayers and even you think he is not there he always with you

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  15. Sean S.
    I learned that if you do and beleive in god you will be happy

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  16. I read the Scripture from Saint. Paul to the Romans. Paul is telling the Romans to sin no more. He tells them to give themselves to God because God is everything. He tells them to not let sin have power over the Romans. Christ is our future so we have to strive to be with Christ and for Christ.

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  17. What I learned from the scriptures is that you should trust God and when you do trust him then he will provide for you. like the widow who trusted God when she gave Elijah the bread and water which was to be her's and her son's last meal but she did not starve since God provided for her because of her good deed

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  18. I read the reading from November 13 and realized that all the beauty in the world is not just from nature but from God and God gave us all of the world.

    Colton Doll

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  19. I learned that to follow and continue in Jesus' footsteps you must leave some things behind. Jesus' call can come at a not so convenient time, but you must answer immediately, not when it is most convenient for you.
    nov.30th scripture
    A.L.

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  21. The scripture I read was about how wisdom makes us ready for Jesus's coming to Earth. However, Catholics believe that Jesus is already with us on Earth while the scriptures are being read and proclaimed. Wisdom will help us realize that Jesus is always spiritually with us, but will also make us realize that He will someday be physically with us.

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  24. Mine was the comment of Luke 18:35-43

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  25. Matthew M

    I learned from Luke 18:35-43 that your faith can save you even in a hard time.

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  26. Matthew M

    I learned from Luke 18:35-43 that your faith can save you even in a hard time.

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  27. I chose today's reading.It was about how the Israelities were bad people and law breakers. I learned that the communities back then did have bad people that didn't care about anyone and hurt people. I also learned about how the king tried to help people. I want to do less wrongdoing and help others more.

    Sean Waldvogel

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  28. Today's reading is about how we should be friends with others and don't fight.Also we should believe in one God and don't be tempted to follow other gods.
    Connor C

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  29. I did not realize that the bible scriptures are online, it is very helpful if you miss the day before and want to read the scripture.

    Taylor M

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  30. I chose the online scripture as my resource. This site allows you to access the weekly readings. I can use this if I want to reflect more on what was said during mass. There is also a reflection video which can help if I am confused about any of the readings or what I should be taking away from them. This resource will help me to follow Jesus more closely and build a relationship with God by allowing me to be more active with the weekly scripture.
    Frankie D

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  31. I learned that God always means good through his works and he fulfills his promise like in the reading where the woman never ran out of flour or oil after she used up the rest of her supplies to make bread for the profit Elijah.

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  32. I learned that God always means good through his works and he fulfills his promise like in the reading where the woman never ran out of flour or oil after she used up the rest of her supplies to make bread for the profit Elijah.

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  33. I am reflecting on today's responsorial psalm. I learned that Jesus does not force anyone to worship him, but since he is a good king, people do worship him.

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