Do Roman Catholics read the Bible?

Answer 1

Catholic AnswerRoman is an epithet first commonly used in England after the protestant revolt to describe the Catholic Church. It is never used by the Catholic Church.

Catholics are highly encouraged by the Church to read the Holy Bible, in fact, it is encouraged so much that there is an indulgence that can be gained for the faithful soul who spends just 15 minutes out of his/her day reading The Bible.

Not only this, but perhaps it should be remembered that it was the Catholic Church that compiled the Bible in the 5th century, the Church that edited it, used It's divine authority in order to confirm that it was indeed inspired and true, the Church that introduced it into liturgy and every facet of human life, the Church that preserved it in her monasteries when the barbarians invaded Europe, the Church that translated it into Latin when the original manuscripts in Aramaic and Greek were still existent, the Church that copied it out by hand, painted it in gold and rare dyes, made its covers from precious metals and gems and which commonly chained one on a stand in most churches so that it was accessible to all, contrary to Protestant affirmations that it was not available to the common man.

Catholic priests are supposed to study five to six years regarding Biblical exegesis, Biblical history, ancient languages (optional), the Biblical sermons and studies of the early Church Fathers, as well as Church documents and Tradition regarding the Bible and its interpretation from the earliest times. When a priest is ordained, he is expected to continue his Biblical studies for the rest of his life, he prays from it, reads it, lives it. Priests are to instruct the faithful then in all this knowledge of the Bible during sermons and catechism classes since the common man usually does not have the ability, time or inclination to do such studies on their own. Contrary to the Protestant position, Catholics believe that reading the Bible without guidance from someone invested with Church authority - to which the Bible belongs - and who is trained in its history and interpretation, is to invite pride to seep in where difficult passages are concerned, for many wrest them into interpretations according to their own imaginings, and thus to their own destruction.

Answer 2

That's largely a personal taste. Some start at the beginning and work through and others take a more structured approach. To a Catholic, the most important part of the Bible are the Gospels.

At daily Mass, the Bible readings are structured so that the whole of the Bible is covered over a 2 year cycle.

Answer 3

First of all, Roman Catholics only technically refers to Catholic in the Diocese of Rome, in Italy. Outside of Italy, in the English speaking world, it is a leftover from a slur started in England after the protestant revolt.

Secondly, there are several ways in which Catholics read the Bible. The primary way, in which everyone is involved is at Mass. The entire Bible is covered in a series of four readings at Mass each Sunday. The first reading is from the Old Testament, the second is a Psalm, the third is from the New Testament, and the fourth is from the Gospels. The Lectionary draws readings from these sources based on the liturgical year. In Advent (most of December) they are preparing for the coming of the Lord at Christmas. In the Christmas season, beginning on Christmas Day and running for several weeks, we have the Lord's nativity, His Circumcision, His Baptism, His Epiphany, ending forty days after Christmas with Our Blessed Lady's purification in the Temple. Then we have Lent, when we prepare for Easter by sorrow for our sins, culminating in Holy Week, when the Passion is read. The rest of the year, through the fifty days of Easter, then Pentecost, and the rest of Ordinary Time we read our way through the Scriptures to cover Our Blessed Lord's teaching on how to live.

Individuals read the Scriptures at home in several ways, they may read the Scripture readings for the upcoming Sunday. They may take one book of the Bible to use for Lectio Divina in which they use the Scriptures to pray to God. Others may slowly, and studiously read through various books both for their own enlightment and for purposes of prayer and growing in the faith.

Answer 4

Roman Catholic AnswerAny complete Bible that has an imprimatur, and a nihil obstat, which are declarations that the Bible and/or translation are free of error and may be read. They will be found on opposite the title page along with the Bishop and Censor that granted them. Popular Bibles in English translation are the old Douay-Rheims, the Catholic Editions of the Revised Standard Version, the New American Bible, the Jersualem and the New Jerusalem Bibles, and others.

Answer 5

yes and no, the bible is full of symbols and mysteries, we take almost all of the bible and put it into our life.

Answer 6

yes