the bible

why do non-catholics always think catholics do not read and focus on the bible enough. honestly it seems we really don't and as i grew up in the church, it was not something that was taught as thoroughly as my non-catholic friends. the catholic church does not have bibles in pews as do other churches. i would appreciate some answers to this.

wonder4u

Non-Catholics believe this because this is what they’ve been told and so they believe it..

Not having a Bible in the pew does not necessarily mean that we discourage the reading of Scripture or that we ignore it. In fact, the entire Mass is either Scripture reading or contains a concept from Scripture. Since the readings from Scripture are included in the missals, Bibles aren’t really necessary. If one feels they need a Bible during Mass they are always welcome to bring their own. I did so for a long time until I realized I didn’t use it at Mass… but, rather, read it primarily at home after Mass and during the week.

It’s unfortunate that you weren’t taught to read more Scripture growing up. Seems that might be a common problem… but this problem does not lie with the Church but with the family.

In addition to Amber's great thoughts I would add these thoughts...

I think one of the big reasons non-Catholics seem to teach and learn so much of the bible is because that's all they really have so that's all they really focus on. They don't have a valid Eucharist, they don't have a valid teaching authority like our magisterium, they have no real history or Sacred Tradition which gives us the fuller Word of God. We Catholics have access to everything God intended us to have in this life, whether we take full advantage of it or not.

To say that they are kind of right, I think is missing the mark a bit. Like Amber said, the Mass is primarily Scripture throughout. We have 4 readings from scripture every Sunday and 3 every weekday along with a homily that is supposed to open those readings up for us even more. Your average non-Catholic group has 1 or 2 services a week with any variation of how much or how little scripture they actually read each time, usually decided on by the minister/pastor/preacher/reverend.

Now, with no set schedule of readings, most non-Catholics get very select passages from scripture presented to them. Most have never heard many parts of the bible simply because they are not taught ALL of the bible. They skip or gloss over many parts because it just doesn't fit into thier version of Christianity and theology.

Our Church, with the set schedule of readings will go through the bible almost completely in 3 years if you attend only Sunday Mass and I think it's 2 years if you attend Mass every day.
I can gaurantee that most if not all non-Catholic/non-Orthodox Christians have not read the entire bible even once. They simply don't have complete bibles since the protestant revolt and very few have bothered to get a Catholic bible to read the books they have missing.

Now, that many Catholics haven't been taught to read and study the bible in the home could very well be true in the recent decades. That is the fault of the parents mostly. They haven't done their jobs well enough in that regard, but I don't think it is true of all families...just some of them, mine included. In Catholic school though, we did read and study the bible, so the statement can't be as broad as the non-Catholics are making it seem.
I do see a big turn around in regard to many issues within Catholocism recently though. Those who are 20's/30's seem to be more fired up for the Faith and are teaching their kids well...also, the huge influx of people converting because they studied themselves into the Church is a big help. Their zeal is helping to get us cradle Catholics more fired up.

All in all I would say the protestants are generally not right in their assertion, but as with everyone, we have much room for improvement.

thank you amber and bill for your helpful responses. i now have another question i hope u can help me understand i will begin a new thread. wonder4u

Now, with no set schedule of readings, most non-Catholics get very select passages from scripture presented to them. Most have never heard many parts of the bible simply because they are not taught ALL of the bible. They skip or gloss over many parts because it just doesn't fit into thier version of Christianity and theology.

Hi! I'm new here and am enjoying reading the posts. I have to point out this is not true for all non-Catholics. And, it does seem to me that many Catholics simply do not know their Bible. Very few Catholics can give me Scriptural references for their beliefs. I do get told to read the Early Church Fathers or the Cathechism or papal declarations, which aren't really helpful to me. I have taken that advice, though. I have read some of the Early Church Fathers. Do I see the Marian devotion -that to me appears extreme - in the first centuries (to the extent it is practiced today)? Do I see references to indulgences (to the point that they're practiced today?) No. Anyway, I'm rambling, but these are huge stumbling blocks to non-Catholics looking into the faith. I'm not looking to start any arguments....I'm searching for the truth, and blanket statements about "Protestants" (of which I assume you consider me) cherry-picking verses from the Bible to back up our beliefs doesn't help. By the way, we follow a liturgical schedule of readings, also.

searching wrote:

Hi! I'm new here and am enjoying reading the posts.

Hi Searching, and welcome to the forum!

I just wanted to say hello and make a couple of recommendations.

If you like conversion stories, you might enjoy this book. All of the contributors are Lutheran converts.

There We Stood, Here We Stand : Eleven Lutherans Rediscover Their Catholic Roots Edited by Timothy Drake, Foreward by Richard John Neuhaus

A great website is that of Catholic Answers. You'll find lots of helpful information about Catholicism there:

www.catholic.com

They also have a radio show called Catholic Answers Live. You can hear all of the past shows on the internet:

http://www.catholic.com/radio/calendar.php


Again, welcome to the forum. God bless you on your journey!

Cindy

searching wrote:
Hi! I'm new here and am enjoying reading the posts. I have to point out this is not true for all non-Catholics. And, it does seem to me that many Catholics simply do not know their Bible. Very few Catholics can give me Scriptural references for their beliefs. I do get told to read the Early Church Fathers or the Cathechism or papal declarations, which aren't really helpful to me. I have taken that advice, though. I have read some of the Early Church Fathers. Do I see the Marian devotion -that to me appears extreme - in the first centuries (to the extent it is practiced today)? Do I see references to indulgences (to the point that they're practiced today?) No. Anyway, I'm rambling, but these are huge stumbling blocks to non-Catholics looking into the faith. I'm not looking to start any arguments....I'm searching for the truth, and blanket statements about "Protestants" (of which I assume you consider me) cherry-picking verses from the Bible to back up our beliefs doesn't help. By the way, we follow a liturgical schedule of readings, also.

I agree that there are many Catholics who would do well to know the Bible better and to learn a Biblical defense of their faith, especially since there is one... and as Christians, we are all called to be able to give a reason for the hope we have in Christ...

As for Marian devotion, I completely understand your view. Before I was a Catholic, I also thought there was entirely too much emphasis on Mary... In fact, I thought that Catholics put Mary on par with God... It was relief to me, as I was considering Catholicism, to learn that I didn't HAVE to ask for Mary's intercession in prayer if I wasn't comfortable. And even though I now have a different understanding of the teachings on Mary, I still struggle with opening my heart up to her. I feel that will change in time, however. The teachings on Mary all have at least implicit grounding in Scripture and the defense of them is logical enough for me to accept... However, I also see that there are some people who misuse the teachings about Mary and elevate them to an almost superstitious level. I rest in the fact that this is NOT the teaching of the Church, and is instead the fault of the individual who does so...

Indulgences... gosh, I haven't even been able to wrap my head around that teaching yet. When I read about it, it makes perfect sense, but I haven't managed to retain what I've learned about it... too confusing! All I know is that my perception of it was radically different than the actually teaching... and I was relieved to learn that what I'd believed was mostly myth.

I didn't come from a background (non-denominational) where they had ANY sense of liturgy at all, including readings. They would usually quote a few verses and speak on their interpretation of them... and, in many cases, would throw in some ambiguous insults about organized religion (including high Protestant denominations). In addition, I had felt for a long time that certain passages were ignored. I'd ask questions and get some pretty strange answers that didn't seem to fit what I was reading in black and white. It was one of the reasons that brought me on my faith journey in search of truth. So, BillC hit the nail on the head concerning my experience. But I agree that not ALL Protestants are taught this way. It just seems to be something experienced by many... One thing I now admire about Lutheranism is how it's retained a sense of reverence and liturgy that is so lacking in many other non-Catholic Christian faith traditions.

Anyway, sorry to be long-winded... just wanted to throw in my 2 cents! Welcome to the forum!

Thank you both for your comments and suggestions.

this is from one Cathholic perspective. We HEAR scripture at Mass. Hopefully we are listening and think most of us are.

But more than that hopefully we go out and LIVE what we hear.

It seems often in scripture Jesus runs into ppl who listen but don't hear.Or ppl who close their hearts and just don't get it.
There is a passage on this too.The seed that falls.
Now once you wrap your head around that then you see how Catholics are fed.
Further,the Word of God IS Jesus Himself.
Now i read the comments re Indulgences etc.
Hope this helps. Now for a Catholic we accept(or at least are supposed to)the authority of the Church.That is distinct from non Catholic denominations.
We base this upon Jesus giving the Peter the keys and the power to bind and loose.

As well as the verse that is often disputed-Peter being the rock. However,we'll by pass that for now.
We know that Jesus gave Peter the keys and we know Jesus gave the power to bind and loose.
Authority.

Indulgences is directly related to the Catholic teaching of purgatory. It may be that if you understood this doctrine then indulgences wouldn't be that difficult.
But the bottom line-authority.
That's usually THE biggest wall between us.

As for Mary.I think the reason it looks like an overemphasis in the Catholic Church is that she's barely mentioned outside the Catholic Church(except EO).
Now if you go from nothing at all to this much it probably does look like too much.
You could ask yourself who you'd prefer as a mother? Eve or Mary.
God Bless,
p4p