Helpful Bible Study Hints

While reading Fr. Mark Carr's "A Holy Rule for Internet Communicators," I came across some suggestions to help us in our Scripture reading and sharing.  Actually he is discussing how Catholic Bloggers should conduct themselves.  For more on Catholic Bloggers, you can link to the real article, above, or my other blog, for my spin.

Use the three color pen method taught by Mons. Jonas Abib. (Monsignor Jonas learned that Pope John Paul II used the same method.)

This means:

a.) Underline any command forms directed to the reader in red. (i.e. Phillipians 4:4 “Rejoice in the Lord Always”)

b.) Underline any principles in black (i.e. 1John 4:8 “Who does not love does not know God, because God is love”)

c.) Underline any promises in green (i.e. Romans 8:11 “And if the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit, who lives in you.”)

Actually I've seen Bibles that come with all the passages where Jesus is speaking, highlighted in yellow.  

My Bible is going to be pretty colorful.

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Both Dormition and Assumption

A place to put on your bucket list, is the Russian Museum of Icons, in Clinton, MA.    See Link.

The last time I went, I saw this Icon of the Dormition of Mary.  The docent explained that this particular Icon portrays the Eastern Orthodox doctrine on the Assumption of Mary.  The Dormition of the Theotokos and the Assumption of Mary, are both celebrated on August 15.  We are celebrating the same event.  However, the Orthodox church teaches that Mary died a natural death, but that her soul was received by Christ, and that her body was resurrected on the third day, at which time her soul was taken up, bodily into heaven.


Roman Catholics believe that Mary was "assumed" into heaven in bodily form.  Pope Pius XII, defined the docrine of the Assumption, in  Apostolic constitution, Munificentissimus Deus (1950).


Orthodox and Roman Catholics see the role Mary has played in Jesus' life.  We can see that she who played the most prominent part of His life, would be resurrected, like all of us, but more uniquely, as befitting her role.  She was the first person to say "yes", and for this reason should be especially honored.


Read Romans 8: 28-30.

Trust Me

You should make it a practice to never trust people who say, "Trust me."  Good advice.

However, sometimes you just don't have a choice.  You have to, because there's no other alternative: doctors, mechanics, lawyers, politicians, ...other experts.  Is it because of the few--the bad experiences, that we're wary of trusting?  But we should be, shouldn't we?

What about trusting God?

Oh.

Read Hebrews 11:1-2, 8-12.

Abraham trusted.  Mary trusted.  Jesus trusted.

Yikes, no wonder we balk at trusting God.   It's not that trusting God means that everything will be honky dory.  After all, we're not living in the Garden of Eden.  It means that God's promises will become true in the end.  The process of getting to the end, may not be smooth; that's where the trust comes in.  You have to believe that God will deliver.  Trust = Faith

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Prophetic Utterances

The words of the boy remind me of "priests and prophets."  Moses comes to mind.  And when I think of Moses, I think of the Ten Commandments.  And when I think of prophets, I think of proclamations like this boy's.  He and I think alike.

The style the boy uses reminds me of Deuteronomy.  And that's what I read for meditation, today. 

Deuteronomy it the fifth book of the Bible.  Its name means "second law."  But as far as I can see, it isn't about a second law; but rather an explanation of some of the commandments.

I am particularly thinking of the Fifth Commandment and abortion.  Read Deuteronomy 18: 9-12.

Abortion is an abomination to the Lord.