GO!

Arise starts this week. If you're not assigned to a group or haven't heard from your leader, call Joe DePalo: 508 528-6609 DEPALO@comcast.net

To get ready, read Luke 24:13-35. This is what your group will be sharing.

Ten points for fruitful Scripture Reading.*

1. Catholics can read the Bible. They should read the Bible. The Church encourages Catholics to make reading the Bible part of their daily prayer lives.

2. Pray at the beginning and the end. Reading the Bible is not a novel. Begin with a prayer to open your mind to understanding.

3. Use a Catholic Bible. The King James Bible is missing 5 books that are in the Catholic Bible. Get the entire Catholic edition. A Catholic edition will have an imprimatur notice on the back of the title page. An imprimatur indicates that it is Catholic.

4. The Bible isn't a book. It's a library. The Bible is a collection of 73 books written over many centuries. The books include history, prophecy, poetry, songs, letters, accounts, and geneology.

5. What the Bible is and what it isn't. The Bible is the story of God's relationship with His people. It is not history, science or a political manifesto.

6. The sum is greater than the parts. Read the Bible in context. What happens before and after helps us understand better.

7. The Old relates to the New. The Old Testament shed lights on the New.

8. You aren't alone. By reading and reflecting on Sacred Scripture, Catholics join others who have put Bible reading in their lives. We read the Bible within the tradition of the Church to benefit from the holiness and wisdom of all the faithful.

9. What is God saying to me? The Bible is addressed to each one of us in our own unique situations. Ask, "What is God saying to me?"

10. Reading isn't enough. You need to meditate on the message and put it into action in your life.

* United States Conference of Catholic Bishops