The Catholic Mass Is A Cure For Scripture Blindness.

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It is good to get a full meal of scripture. Some non-Catholics understand this full meal to especially include more volume, more verses and more intellectual digging AND they expect to get this at their Sunday Community Worship. But for extra knowledge (which must be shared or else it turns into pride), we can attend a weekly bible study group as well as pray scripture with the Catholic Divine Office. However, the Catholic Sunday (and daily) Community Worship, which is the Mass, is not just a study or a lecture event or a recitation either. Rather we Catholics believe we actually assist at the Mass. We offer our own selves with Christ and through Christ to the Father. Everything that goes on in the Catholic Mass is beyond the everyday world.

Therefore, the scripture reading in daily Mass is MORE special than scripture read anywhere else because it is said in the Mass. There is emphasis on quality, not just quantity. During the moments of the Mass, the Father, Son and Holy Spirit speak more profoundly with the insights that we are currently in need of hearing, than at any other time we hear scripture.

In light of the fact that the Scribes and Pharisees knew all about scripture but they were not humble enough to apply its lessons to their own lives, it is clear that God's assistance is required. They also overlooked key ideas in scripture which Jesus frequently had to point out to them. The same scripture blindness can happen to those who do not HUMBLY assist in the Mass. Such blindness might lead one to believe that "verse quantity" is all that matters. That blindness is the price paid for not accepting these two difficult teachings: 1)to eat the flesh of Jesus in order to have life within you and 2)for all Jesus's followers to be ONE under the Church founded by Peter, the rock.

Scripture needs to be brought to life. The Mass does this most fully, we cannot do this much by ourselves. Note: Our mere presence at Mass is not enough, we must also HUMBLY offer ourselves when we are there, always humble.

The Catholic Mass Is A Cure For Scripture Blindness.

Do you agree?

-- Michael Hitzelberger (michael.hitzelberger@vscc.cc.tn.us), May 24, 2002

Answers

Today's Mass scriptures: Jas 5:9-12; Psalm 103:1-2, 3-4, 8-9, 11-12; Mk 10:1-12.

-- ('@'.'), May 24, 2002.

Michael,

Great post. I had read (I think in "Why Do Catholics Do That?" sorry, forget the author - one of the first books I read when I chose to examine my faith) that during a three year cycle, all of scripture is read during Mass. I do not think that is necessarily true, but I know we cover the majority of Scripture during each three year cycle.

If anyone knows how much is read during these cycles, I would really love to know.

-- Glenn (glenn@excite.com), May 24, 2002.


The mass takes on a whole new meaning when we are 'familiar' with Scripture and, yes, we are fed the flesh and blood of Jesus Christ by receiving the Eucharist.

But, we do need more than the mass. We must get to know God's word and what it means and how to apply it in our every day lives. We, as Catholics, do not get to know God's word through a homily on Sundays..We get to know God's word by being 'fed' his word on a daily basis, we must be part of a group who is knowledgeable in the Word and knows how to translate it. Much of God's word is symbolism and we cannot take it literaly.

I love the Mass, love receiving the Eucharist, but also believe we need to be fed more Scripture - that is how we truly get to know Our Lord and we as Catholics can do that by going to a Bible Study.

MaryLu

-- MaryLu (mlc327@juno.com), May 24, 2002.


Great post! Is there scripture reading Monday through Friday at daily mass? I think I read somewhere that all of those readings combined with Sunday and Saturday masses comprises the entire Bible in a three year period. What is the Divine Office? And how would I go about getting involved in an extra-prayer meeting or Bible study during the week?

Love,

Gail

-- Gail (Rothfarms@socket.net), May 24, 2002.


Dear Gail,

When I attend daily mass, the priest we have is so good. He is teaching us so much about God's word. He spends a lot of time on the homily and we are really getting a good education in scripture.

I am not sure what the Divine Office is, but I am sure Fred, John, Xavier, Eugene, etc...they mus know. I think it is prayes that a priest has to say every day - it is mandatory reading, but I am not sure.

As to where you can find a Bible study, check your weekly bulletin to see if there is something going on in your church, or check with someone in the rectory in your parish - they may be able to help you. If your parish does not have one, they may know one that does.

Attending a Bible study group, or a prayer group, with good, knowledgeable leaders is very helpful in learning how to read the Bible - not so much 'how' to read it, but what the Scripture 'really' means. We may think it means one thing, and it means something else entirely. I have been to many Bible groups - learned a lot at a protestant bible study - sorry, Fred, but I did... :)

I am still in first grade, though. I will never catch up to the people on here. I like reading the Psalms, and the 4 Gospels....and enjoy some of the Old Testament.

My parish is starting a 3-year Bible Study this fall and I am looking forward to that. I think I will sign up for one-year at a time, though.

Hope you find a good group, Gail and I will pray that God leads you to one. MaryLu

-- MaryLu (mlc327@juno.com), May 24, 2002.



MaryLu - I have to say this " Your a hoot and so loveable " for I immedialty thought of the story regarding the mustard seed. You will be a wonder to behold.

-- Jean Bouchard (jeanb@cwk.imag.net), May 24, 2002.

Gail & MaryLu,

Thank you very much. Great Post.

What is Divine Office ?

The most important prayer that the Church offers(since the ancient times) to Almighty God after the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass is the Officium Divinum, or Divine Office, contained in a liturgical book called the Breviarium Romanum, or Breviary. In fact, the Mass is part of the Divine Office, and they are so intertwined in the public liturgy of the Church that one is really incomplete without the other.

This same Office is chanted by monks in monasteries, nuns in convents, members of lay orders, as well as devout Catholic faithful, throughout the world. To give praise and glory to God throughout the hours of the day in the name of the Church, the clergy are placed under the duty of praying it daily. From this fact, it is called the Office, the word in this sense coming from the Latin word officium, meaning duty.

Recent popes, like Pope St. Pius X and Pope Pius XII, have encouraged the laity to participate in saying the Office as well and for this reason have bestowed rich indulgences upon those of the faithful who do so.

The Divine Office itself is made up of the 150 psalms of the Old Testament, so divided throughout the seven days of the week that all the psalms are recited in one week. The psalms, the divinely-inspired poetical prayers, principally of King David, have always been the center of the Church's liturgical worship, just as they were at the temple during Old Testament times.

Besides the psalms, there are readings from Sacred Scripture, commentaries on Sacred Scripture from the Fathers and Doctors of the Church, and short accounts of the lives of the Saints. These readings follow the Church's calendar of liturgical seasons and feasts of the saints.

St. Vincent de Paul (1581?-1660) tells us that "the Divine Office is the school of all virtues. The master who teaches us in it is the Holy Ghost, the source of all truth; it is also the Prophets, Apostles, and Saints of God."

The Divine Office is divided into eight "hours," according as God is to be praised continuously throughout the hours of the day. If one observes the ancient times, Matins and Lauds are prayed before sunrise. Prime, Terce, Sext, and None are prayed during the first, third, sixth, and ninth hours of daylight. (For example, Scripture tells us that Our Lord hung on the cross from the sixth to the ninth hour, that is, from noon to 3:00 p.m.) Vespers is said as dusk falls, followed by Compline, which completes the day and the cycle of hours. However, the Hours may be said at any time at one's convenience.

Divine Office is also known as Liturgy of the Hours or Breviary.

It is called the Liturgy of the Hours because the different parts of it are intended for different hours of the day. In "Divine Office", the word "Office" has its older meaning of "function, purpose, duty". "Breviary" has the same root as "abbreviation". It is so called because it is a single compendium that brings together antiphonals, lectionaries, responsories, and other sources of liturgical materials.

Personally speaking I too use the Divine Office as my daily prayer, though I am young & unmarried. In fact it is recommended by the Church for every faithfull, including normal people like us. You can recite it personally(alone).

Every time I recite the Divine Office I find myself in them. The reading and the Psalms often speak about the suitation in which I am, and many times answere to all my questions & problems .

Thinking of going for it, then I tell you its really great.....go ahead, you will meet the Holy Trinity, Saints and Angels every time you recite them.

If you want to see what it is like just click on the url mention below. http://www.universalis.com/cgi-bin/display/lauds.htm

This webiste does not have the complete Divine Office. But the beauty of this site is that it provides you regular HOURS (morning & evening) every day. If you would like to have it on your mobile phone (WAP), then this website will do it for you.

God Bless

Xavier

PS : Dont forget to adjust the required time zone on the website in order to see the correct Hours of the readings. Its only a one time job. Also read FAQ for more info.

-- Xavier (xavier_david24@yahoo.com), May 25, 2002.


Thank you Xavier for that 'complete' answer. You really are a true and devout Catholic person. Are you thinking of becoming a priest or Deacon?

I was never encouraged to read the Divine Office and don't know anyone else who was, but I am going to look into it. I thought it was only for priests.

MaryLu

-- MaryLu (mlc327@juno.com), May 25, 2002.


Thank you, Gail

I was going through a difficult time when I was introduced to God's Word and it was not a Catholic priest or Catholic person who recommended I read the Bible, that it would change my life around.

It was a Born-Again Christian man. He asked if he could give me a little book to read and it turned out to be the New Testament. He told me to start with John.

This student was ready and the teacher appeared. Before that, I would pick up the Bible, start to read it, but never understood what I was reading. This time, I was ready, and I was able to understand what I was reading, highlighted everything. I still have that little book and carry it with me always. It was the beginning of my journey into healing and the beginning of my personal relationship with Jesus. The journey continues and will continue until my last breath.

It never fails to amaze me how God sends the right people into our lives at the right time - how sometimes we are the student and sometimes we are the teacher.

Out to do some yard work and enjoy this beautiful day!

MaryLu :)

-- MaryLu (mlc327@juno.com), May 25, 2002.


MaryLu - Readin gof The Office is becoming more ane more popular with some of us. I have been involved with them now since '92.

-- Jean Bouchard (jeanb@cwk.imag.net), May 26, 2002.


Jmj

Hello, Xavier.
You provided much good information about the Divine Office to Gail and MaryLu. However, you must have copied-and-pasted part of your message from a pre-Vatican-II site, as it contains some information that is no longer correct. I'll reproduce a portion of what you posted, and I will insert comments in brackets [ ] when necessary.
I began to pray parts of the Liturgy of the Hours in 1990. That's when I was blessed to come across an ad for a used set of the four-volume version (tons better, but much more expensive than, the abridged one-volume version), as well as a class offered to teach the laity how to pray the hours.

------------------------ QUOTE -------------------------
What is Divine Office?
The most important prayer that the Church offers (since the ancient times) to Almighty God after the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass is the Officium Divinum, or Divine Office, contained in a liturgical book called the Breviarium Romanum, or Breviary. In fact, the Mass is part of the Divine Office, and they are so intertwined in the public liturgy of the Church that one is really incomplete without the other.
[Actually, the Mass is not part of the Divine Office, but separate from it. The Mass, the Office (Liturgy of the Hours), and the rites of the sacraments make up the whole Liturgy of the Church.]

This same Office is chanted by monks in monasteries, nuns in convents, members of lay orders, as well as devout Catholic faithful, throughout the world. To give praise and glory to God throughout the hours of the day in the name of the Church, the clergy are placed under the duty of praying it daily. From this fact, it is called the Office, the word in this sense coming from the Latin word officium, meaning duty. Recent popes, like Pope St. Pius X and Pope Pius XII, have encouraged the laity to participate in saying the Office as well and for this reason have bestowed rich indulgences upon those of the faithful who do so.
[Very true. The laity were especially encouraged after Vatican II to read or chant Morning and Evening Prayer, the "hinges" of the Office.]

The Divine Office itself is made up of the 150 psalms of the Old Testament, so divided throughout the seven days of the week that all the psalms are recited in one week.
[This is no longer true, the Liturgy of the Hours was drastically revised in the late 1960s. Most of the "psalter" (150 psalms) are spread out across a four-week (not a one-week) cycle. A few psalms that have violent and cursing language are omitted altogether.]

The psalms, the divinely-inspired poetical prayers, principally of King David, have always been the center of the Church's liturgical worship, just as they were at the temple during Old Testament times. Besides the psalms, there are readings from Sacred Scripture, commentaries on Sacred Scripture from the Fathers and Doctors of the Church, and short accounts of the lives of the Saints. These readings follow the Church's calendar of liturgical seasons and feasts of the saints.
[There is one hour, the Office of Readings, that is centered on a long text from the Bible and a long non-Biblical text. In addition to texts from Fathers and Doctors, the modern Office of Readings also has readings from Vatican II and from male and female saints of all eras.]

St. Vincent de Paul (1581?-1660) tells us that "the Divine Office is the school of all virtues. The master who teaches us in it is the Holy Ghost, the source of all truth; it is also the Prophets, Apostles, and Saints of God."

The Divine Office is divided into eight "hours," according as God is to be praised continuously throughout the hours of the day.
[There are now seven "hours."]

If one observes the ancient times, Matins and Lauds are prayed before sunrise.
[These are now called Office of Readings and Morning Prayer. The Office of Readings may be prayed at any convenient time throughout the day.]

Prime, Terce, Sext, and None are prayed during the first, third, sixth, and ninth hours of daylight. (For example, Scripture tells us that Our Lord hung on the cross from the sixth to the ninth hour, that is, from noon to 3:00 p.m.)
[The hour of "Prime" was suppressed by the reform. The other "little hours" are now called Mid-Morning, Mid-Day, and Mid-Afternoon Prayer.]

Vespers is said as dusk falls, followed by Compline, which completes the day and the cycle of hours. However, the Hours may be said at any time at one's convenience.
[Vespers is now called Evening Prayer. Compline is Night Prayer, said just before retiring. It is no longer true that "the Hours may be said at any time at one's convenience. Prior to the reform, some priests were praying all eight Hours, one after another, contrary to their spirit. Now they must be spread throughout the day, according to their names.]

Divine Office is also known as Liturgy of the Hours or Breviary. It is called the Liturgy of the Hours because the different parts of it are intended for different hours of the day. In "Divine Office", the word "Office" has its older meaning of "function, purpose, duty". "Breviary" has the same root as "abbreviation". It is so called because it is a single compendium that brings together antiphonals, lectionaries, responsories, and other sources of liturgical materials.
-----------------------END QUOTE ----------------------

God bless you.
John

-- J. F. Gecik (jfgecik@hotmail.com), May 26, 2002.


MaryLu,

Thanks for your compliment. You are a very kind hearted soul. I am in no way thinking of becoming a priest or a deacon. I am a Catechumen :) 27, and a creative director. Just waiting for Miss Right, whom God will send in my life, at the right time.

God Bless

-- Xavier (xavier_david24@yahoo.com), May 28, 2002.


Hello John,

Thank you for your valuable inputs. My purpose of writing the earlier post was just to give a brief info on Divine Office. You did it better by updating the same.

E.& O.E :)

God Bless

-- Xavier (xavier_david24@yahoo.com), May 28, 2002.


I had a wonderful priest friend who once said that the Reformation was like the Great Divorce where the Protestants got the Scripture and the Catholics got the Sacraments. :)

He hoped to help his parishoners to understand that Catholics had the Sacraments and the Scriptures and thus had the fullness of the grace of God.

Coming into the Church in the RCIA program I also see this need in our church for everyday ordinary Catholics to pick up their Bibles (to get one if they don't own one!) and start reading their Bibles. I have had many, many women come to me and ask me about how to start reading the Bible. They are HUNGRY for it!

One of the best ways to get accquainted with the Bible is to read, ahead of Sunday, the readings for that Sunday. It is amazing how much more a person can get out of hearing God's word on Sunday when you have familiarized yourself with the readings ahead of time. This is true for people who are just starting to read the Bible and also for people who are very familiar with the Bible. Truly then the Mass becomes a full meal of scripture and of Eucharist.

I encourage everyone to get to know God's Word, the Bible. Join a Bible Study, or even and Introduction to the Bible workshop or meeting. Look for such opportuntities. They are out there.

Scripture and Tradition, an unbeatable combination!!

cksunshine

-- cksunshine (ck_sunshine@hotmail.com), May 28, 2002.


Dear Xavier,

You are the same age as my son. He has a beautiful girlfriend, (inside and out), a very gentle, loving and sensitive person.

He met her when he wasn't "looking" for that special someone - on a train...turns out they knew each other in high school, hadn't seen each other in years and here they met on a train.

He stopped into St. Patrick's Cathedral on this particular day, lit a candle to St. Anthony (St. Anthony, is the saint of lovers, in addition to many other things) and he met his girlfriend on the way home...long, romantic story....but he attributes his meeting her to the intercession of St. Anthony!

The right girl will come along for you too, Xavier and she will be a lucky girl indeed! :) MaryLu

-- MaryLu (mlc327@juno.com), May 28, 2002.



The Word Among Us is a good publication and it is available on lie too. Youcan buy your own Sunay Nissal too. My wife and I both have one and I use it constantly to help me to become familiar with the readings prior to the MASS and it has intrductions for each reading that helps to show us how the relate to each other. The church also has a Missal for the Daily readings too. Try it all. Oh yes some Chureches actually publish the lists for the Daily and weekend masses in the bulletin for all to study our GOD's word daily. ENJOY

Blessings.

-- Fred Bishop (FCB@heartland.com), May 28, 2002.


Hello, Fred and CKSunshine.

If a person doesn't have a missal, but wants to see past, current, or future readings, the U.S. Catholic bishops' Internet site has a very good page for this.
Or suppose you want to write a message here and insert into it a brief quotation from a recent reading heard in Church. You should be able to find it through the linked page, so that you can copy and paste.
JFG

-- (jfgecik@hotmail.com), May 28, 2002.


MaryLu,

Thank you once again. I will surely remember your son and your daughter-in-law in my prayers. I never knew that St. Anthony was also the patron saint of lovers. Thanks for that info. A personal question, (though I think I should not ask this on the forum) I would like to ask you ....are you from the Far East(Taiwan / Hong Kong side), since I knew one of my client by name of JennyLu from Taiwan settled in HongKong?

Peace & Prayers

-- Xavier (xavier_david24@yahoo.com), May 29, 2002.


Good morning Xavier,

Ha,ha.....no, I am not from the Far East. My birth name is Maria Lucia...ha,ha - that is so funny...

Have a good day, and don't forget St. Anthony! MaryLu

-- MaryLu (mlc327@juno.com), May 29, 2002.


Thank you Fred for that information, and thank you John for the link. What invaluable resources!

And now a question...

Can you recommend a good Catholic Study Bible? There are many good Study Bibles out there, but most do not include the deuterocanonical books (I had to go look that word up again to spell it right! :), that is the 7 books that we Catholics include in the Bible.

Any recommendations would be appreciated! Thanks!

cksunshine

-- cksunshine (ck_sunshine@hotmail.com), May 29, 2002.


Sunshine,

I would recommend the New Jerusalem Bible (published by Darton, Longman, and Todd, Ltd or Doubleday). It's not officially a "study Bible," but I would recommend it for these reasons:

1) In addition to chapters, the text is divided into named subsections and paragraphs to add structure.

2) The language is not archaic (thee/thou)...pretty easy to read.

3) It's got a good number of footnotes with explanations for translation issues.

4) It's got the Deuterocanonical books.

5) Each book (or group of books) in the Bible has a lengthy introduction section.

6) Maps at the end of the book help understand where things happened throughout the Bible.

God bless,

Mateo

-- (MattElFeo@netscape.net), May 29, 2002.


Hi Cksunshine,

The Navarre bible is supposed to be an excellent study bible, and though they have not convered all the books, I believe they are going to be completing it soon. I say I heard it is good a study bible, because I, myself have not read it, but was told to pick it up by a priest that I know. He said that it is definitely worth the money and that there is an English/Latin en face.

You can find it here under the catalog section.

Also, for those of you out there thinking about praying the Divine Office I would highly recommend it. Personally, for me, it keeps me focused, disciplined (praying at certain hours), and helps to expose me to both Scripture and the writings of the Church, be it Fathers or Councils. This is incredibly helpful when I don't get a chance to read the Scriptures on my own, for one reason or another, and helps me to avoid the ignorance of Christ, for, as St. Jerome has said, "ignorance of Scriptures is ignorance of Christ."

I will tell you though, it takes a little getting used to, but it is not hard to learn. Once you get accustomed to the basic layout and formula to follow in praying the Divine Office, it becomes very beautiful in that you realize that your prayers are being offered with the entire Church. I find that if you pray it at around the same time as an order, seminary, or parish, you can unite your own single prayers with those of others that are also uniting their prayers to the faithful, be it secular or religious.

Again, I highly recommend this form of prayer to all those that desire to do so.

God Bless

-- Brian (sacerdos@hotpop.com), May 29, 2002.


Brian,

I also like the "Navarre bible." It is a wonderful resource. One point is that it's physically a "collection of books." This is good on the one hand, because it's easy to carry around a single book that contains the Gospel of Luke, if that's all that you are reading. Its downside is that it would be a bit awkward to show up at a Bible study with a set of a dozen books. :-)

Just my $0.02,

Mateo

-- (MattElFeo@netscape.net), May 29, 2002.


I have the CatholicStudy Bible which is an approved St Joseph version by the Oxford University Press. It has a good number of footnotes and a Large book section in the front by several Catholic authors who help explain the books throughout the Bible. You can find it easily at Barnes and Noble for around 30 bucks. It is loaded with good info to help the reader.

-- Fred Bishop (FCB@heartland.com), May 29, 2002.

MaryLu,

Thank you ! Never meant to offend you.

St Anthony pray for Us

Peace & Blessings

-- Xavier (xavier_david24@yahoo.com), May 31, 2002.


No offense taken, Xavier! MaryLu :)

-- MaryLu (mlc327@juno.com), May 31, 2002.

Thank you so much for the recommendations. It is very hard to choose!

cksunshine

-- cksunshine (ck_sunshine@hotmail.com), May 31, 2002.


You have made up my day, MaryLu :)

Peace & Blessings

-- Xavier (xavier_david24@yahoo.com), June 03, 2002.


Hey, thanks for all the posts on my question. Love them all. I took a vacation from my computer. Today's scripture at mass:

2 Pt 1:2-7

Psalm 91:1-2, 14-15b, 15c-16

Mk 12:1-12

-- Mike H (michael.hitzelberger@vscc.cc.tn.us), June 03, 2002.


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