Fall 2016: The Letter of James

Welcome!

This fall our Solid Grounds Bible Study will be reading The Letter of James.  James is the first of what are known in the New Testament as The Catholic Letters--one of the seven letters, along with The Letter to the Hebrews, that are not attributed to the Apostle Paul.

If one were to summarize The Letter of James, it would best be said that it is a reminder that, as Christians, everything we think, say, and do must reflect our faith.  People should know that we are Christians without our ever having to tell them!

Our study of James will run from September 8-November 10.  (See the entire class schedule in the column on the right.)  We will meet every week at St. Patrick Catholic Church in the Marian Lounge at 9:00am.  To register for our class, fill out the Registration Form and drop it off at the church office or information desk.  Prepayment of the $30 class fee to cover the cost of the textbooks must be made with registration. The registration deadline is August 25. Information is also available at the Solid Grounds page on St. Patrick's website.

In addition to the two textbooks covered by the class fee, all participants are asked to purchase a copy of the Ignatius Catholic Study Bible.  This is the translation that we use in our study.  The Ignatius Catholic Study Bible is available as the complete New Testament as well as its individual books.  Bring proof of registration to St. Patrick Book & Gift, and you'll receive 15% off the regular retail price of the Ignatius Bible used in our study.  You may also wish to purchase a journal or notebook to record the answers to the questions posed in our lessons or record any additional notes or questions you may wish to have addressed during our meetings.

The books included in the registration fee are The Early Christian Letters and James: A Bible Study Guide both by acclaimed New Testament scholar, N.T Wright.  Dr. Wright is often hailed as a modern-day C.S. Lewis due to his ability to write about deeply theological and philosophical topics and make them easily accessible to everyone.  His appeal?  Wright is a storyteller and teacher at heart.

The Early Christian Letters includes commentary on The Letter of James, and James: A Bible Study Guide divides the letter into nine weekly lessons providing questions for discussion and prayer to reflect upon the scripture passage covered.

Please join us this fall for our study of The Letter of James.  Register, and we will see you on September 8.  Our first meeting will give us an opportunity to get to know one another and learn more about our plans for the coming weeks.  We have made it a tradition of reading a book over our summer vacation and discussing that book at the first meeting.  This year, we are each reading a book of our own choice.  At that first meeting we will each take a few moments to share our impressions of the book with the rest of the group.  If you do not have time to read a book prior to the September 8 meeting, please consider sharing one of your favorite books about our faith.  The idea is that we get a chance to learn more about the faith, and we get to go home from our first meeting with a list of great book suggestions to keep us reading for the weeks and months ahead!

Extra for Hebrews 10

Chapter 10 is an important chapter for the study of the Letter to the Hebrews, especially considering the way that it is interpreted through the lens of the Catholic faith as compared to the way that it is interpreted by other Christian denominations.  Dr. Wright, the author of our guide, Hebrews for Everyone, certainly reads this chapter differently than we, as disciples of Catholic dogma, would read it.  During our meeting, I knew that it was important for us to discuss these differences.  Unfortunately, I wasn't exactly on top of my game that morning after having a trying week health-wise (nothing too serious, so don't worry) and having just flown in from the east coast later the afternoon prior.  And so, during our meeting, I made the promise to post my notes on the website.  I'm hoping I made more sense as I was typing up those notes than I did during our talk.

As wonderful as Dr. Wright's guide has been for our study of the Letter to the Hebrews, this week's lesson was a study in the differences we have with our Protestant brothers and sisters when it comes to understanding what the Catholic Mass means and what we understand happens every time that we gather for the Sacrifice of the Mass.  So far, we've only had to discuss major differences with the content of Hebrews for Everyone this one time.  I don't want you to think disparagingly about this author or this work.  Most of the commentary literally has been "for everyone."  It's this one chapter (so far anyway) that I thought was problematic.

Click on this link, and it should bring you to the notes I made this week.
Hebrews 10
See you on March 3.

Extras for Hebrews 8

As promised, I am posting the "extras" that should help with this lesson and on into the rest of the letter.

The first link will take you to the site from the St. Paul Center for Biblical Theology based out of Steubenville. Talk about extras!  This is a site you should bookmark on your computer and come back to over and over again. It's a treasure to find good, trustworthy, interesting, and easy-to-understand Catholic study and reflectional materials.  The information that I think will be most helpful for now is on the page with Lesson One: The Master Key that Unlocks the Bible. The Master Key, of course, is Covenant. WARNING: Don't blame me if you spend an hour looking around at all that this site contains. You can simply say, "Thank you."

The second extra that I had promised was a paragraph from a talk that Scott Hahn had given about the Letter to the Hebrews. If you would like to read the entire piece, which delves into the complete Lettter to the Hebrews and has helped me understand each chapter at a much deeper level than I would have ever been able to do on my own, it's called "The Eucharist as the Meal of Melchizedek."  Otherwise, here is the excerpt that I read in class today:

“I read that a hundred times before the obvious meaning hit me like a brick in the face. [Jesus] is a priest in heaven ministering now in the sanctuary and he's got something to offer and he's continually offering it. He's just not bleeding and dying and suffering any more. He's not killing any more animals, but he's continually offering the once and for all sacrifice which is himself; but it's a continual sacrifice. It's a perpetual offering. He's not dying, but he's still offering. That's exactly what the Catholic Church teaches about the Mass.

In fact, we're going to be offering this sacrifice forever in and through and with Christ. Not bloody animal sacrifices but our hearts and our souls and our bodies in union with the One whose body and blood, soul and divinity are perfect and pure -- the only acceptable sacrifice which makes our otherwise unacceptable sacrifices perfectly acceptable”

Last but not least, here is the paragraph from the Catechism of the Catholic Church that is referenced in our Ignatius Bible in the notation for Hebrews 8:8-12:

“The perfect fulfillment of the Law could be the work of none but the divine legislator, born subject to the Law in the person of the Son.  In Jesus, the Law no longer appears engraved on tables of stone but ‘upon the heart’ of the Servant who becomes ‘a covenant to the people,’ because he will ‘faithfully bring forth justice.’  Jesus fulfills the Law to the point of taking upon himself ‘the curse of the Law’ incurred by those who do not ‘abide by the things written in the book of the Law, and do them,’ for his death took place to redeem them ‘from the transgressions under the first covenant.’”  CCC 580

Okay. I think that's it. Let me know if there's anything that I've forgotten.

Thanks again for all of your hard work. By our discussions, I can tell it's all beginning to click for us. What looked so overwhelming at the beginning, is coming together. That's the beauty of studying one small part of the Bible at a time and then getting together to hear all kinds of impressions of what that part is trying to reveal to us about God and our faith.

See you all on February 4 for Chapter 9.

Levels of Heaven? Mansions? What's Going On?

At our last discussion, as we came across Hebrews 4:14 (the lesson was actually for Hebrews 5, but the last two verses of chapter four were included in our lesson), we wondered about the part of 4:14 that said that Jesus "has passed through the heavens."  Sort of makes it sound like he overshot, doesn't it? 

In the notation in our Ignatius Bible on this verse, it says that, "Christ ascended into the most intimate presence of God in heaven." It goes on to explain that, "Jewish tradition sometimes speaks of multiple levels of heaven." As it sometimes does, our discussion then veered off, this time as we got to wondering what heaven is like. We were wondering about the idea of Jesus preparing "mansions"--that answer will be a part of our next class discussion, so stay tuned. Of course, no one can truly know for certain. 

I promised to do some research about the "levels of heaven" as well as the ultimate question we had: Are there "different" heavens for different saints?  I'll let you know what I found prior to beginning our discussion on our lesson for Hebrews 6, but I also wanted to post a link to an article that might just answer some of the other questions that you may have about what we can imagine heaven to be like based on scripture and the teachings of the Catholic Church. 

The article I wanted to share with you is on the Catholic Answers website. What is Heaven? is by Tim Staples who is the Director of Apologetics and Evangelization for Catholic Answers. The article is a bit lengthy and will take some quiet contemplation to soak in the answer he is giving, but if we can't take a few minutes to try and understand heaven now, how interested are we really in spending an eternity in the place he is describing? Right?

Our next class will be our last one in 2015, so I wish you all a Blessed Advent, a Merry Christmas, and a most Happy New Year! See you on January 7. 

Welcome!

You found it!  This is the web page for our Solid Grounds Bible Study.

This year there will not be a study guide posted for each lesson since we have a separate workbook that provides questions for each chapter of the book of scripture that we are studying.  However, it is still a good idea to check into the site on occasion to see if there is anything that is posted regarding our lesson or something we may have discussed at a previous meeting.

This week I am posting a link to a podcast that has a more complete answer to a question that came up at our first meeting.  Someone had asked about the Pope's announcement about priests being allowed to forgive the sin of abortion in the confessional.  Because we had so much to talk about that day, it was impossible to give a good, thorough answer to that question, and so I thought that I would give you an opportunity to get an answer that provides a better understanding of what the Pope intended with this announcement.

All you have to do is click on this link to the Busted Halo Podcast, and then you can either push the play button and listen to it on the device you are on right now, or download it and put it on your iPod or other listening device and listen to it later.  This is the best, and as I said, most thorough answer that I have heard so far to this question about the forgiveness of abortion or, for that matter, any serious mortal sin.

The next time we meet, let me know if you visited this site and had a chance to listen to the podcast.  Just curious to know if you were able to find it, and if it's a valuable resource to you.

See you on September 17.

2015-2016 The Letter to the Hebrews

This year our Solid Grounds Bible Study group will be reading The Letter to the Hebrews, which is considered by many to be one of the most important letters in the New Testament.

Hebrews, more like a homily than the other traditional "letters" of the New Testament, was written to encourage Jewish Christians to remain faithful to the New Covenant.  The author reveals how Jesus is now the new and everlasting temple.  Jesus is the altar, the sacrifice, and the High Priest.  During this study, we will learn the true meaning behind the dogma of the Sacrifice of the Mass.

We had our subject.  Now the search began for just the right materials for our study.  As a subscriber to Fr. Robert Barron's weekly homilies, I had taken note of the frequent references he would make to the acclaimed New Testament scholar, N.T. Wright.  Dr. Wright is often hailed as a modern-day C.S. Lewis and has written the most extensive New Testament commentary series since William Barclay.  After some research, I quickly decided that the Hebrews edition of The New Testament for Everyone series by N.T. Wright would be our commentary guide for this year's study.  In addition to Hebrews for Everyone, we will also be using the Hebrews for Everyone Study Guide. 

So now, some general information about the study.  The Solid Grounds Bible Study group meets on Thursdays from 9-11am in the Marian Lounge at the Church of St. Patrick.  Our first meeting for the 2015-2016 study will be held on September 3.  Meetings  are held on a (somewhat bi-weekly) schedule.  Our entire schedule can be found just to the right of this post along with the other class information.  It will also be distributed on an informational sheet at our first meeting.

In order to register for the study, you can download the registration form from the Church of St. Patrick Adult Education Page (check the "Bible Study" tab), or pick up a registration form at the Church of St. Patrick.  Then bring your completed registration form, along with the $30 class fee, to St. Patrick Book and Gift.  The registration deadline for this class is August 23.  You will be notified when your materials are ready to pick up.

In addition our textbooks, we have traditionally recommended purchasing the Ignatius Catholic Study Bible translation for use in our class.  This is an excellent Catholic translation that helps us understand scripture through the lens of the Catholic faith--our sacraments, Tradition, and liturgical rites.  The cost of this Bible is not included in the class fee.  This Bible comes in several different editions starting at $11.95 for the individual booklet of the Letter to the Hebrews, and from $24.95 up to $44.95 for the entire New Testament in paperback, hardback, or leather cover.  The Ignatius Catholic Study Bible is available at St. Patrick Book & Gift as well as other Catholic and major booksellers.

Finally, you may be wondering what you need to do to prepare for our first meeting on September 3.  First of all, put it on your calendar and make it a priority to attend!  This is the best opportunity to get all the important information that you'll need for our year of study.  Then we would welcome you to read a good Catholic book and be ready to give a short (a very short) review as we go around and introduce ourselves to one another.  If the summer has slipped away from you, or if you're late in finding out about this "assignment" that our former members received at the end of last year's study, please come prepared to recommend one of your favorite Catholic books from past reading.  The idea is for all of our participants to go home with a list of book recommendations for the next time they're looking for a good Catholic book. 

We do hope that you'll join us this year for our study of the Letter to the Hebrews.  Any other questions?  Please contact the church office.  See you in September!

Titus 3

Once again, I am so sorry to have to have missed the last meeting of our year of study of the Pastoral Letters.  Thanks to Madge for taking over for me and for the entire group to pitch in and help in the discussion of the third and final chapter of St. Paul's Letter to Titus.  I know it was a busy day at church and some had other obligations to help with the preparations for the Triduum.  If that was the case, I do hope that you'll take the time to finish the final lesson on your own.  The last chapter of this letter is an important wrap up for the study of all the Pastorals.

It was an appropriate day to finish the study of the Pastorals.  Traditionally, Holy Thursday is the day that all priests renew their priestly promises.  And as the Church celebrates the Mass of the Last Supper, we commemorate the institution of the Holy Eucharist and the priestly Order--all guided by Paul's Pastoral Letters.

Here are my notes for the lesson:
Titus 3 Notes

If you missed the meeting and would like to come to our breakfast on April 16, please email or call me by April 14 so that I can make reservations. 

Thanks so much for a wonderful year.  Watch the bulletin in late summer for registration for next year's study of the Letter to the Hebrews.  Have a great summer!