Strategies in

Studying the Bible

REVIEW

What is the Bible?

REVIEW
 Ordo/Scripture Guide

a calendar that provides direction for the

liturgies for the day. It's primarily intended
for clergy and religious, although lay
faithful who assist with liturgical
celebrations or pray the Liturgy of the Hours
use it, too.
 7 Steps in Sharing the Bible

 1st
 Invite
 The facilitator asks someone to volunteer "to invite the Lord". The belief in
the living presence of the Risen Christ in our midst is the presupposition and
basis of our meditation.
 We want to meet the Word who became flesh and dwells among us. We
remember Jesus´ promise: "Where two or three are gathered in my name, I
shall be there with them." (Mt 18,20).
 2nd
 Read
 The facilitator announces the chosen text. First the book, then
the chapter. He/she waits until everyone has found the chapter
and only then does be announce the verse.
 When everyone has found the passage, the facilitator invites
someone to volunteer to read the text. A moment of silence
follows.
 3rd
 We dwell on the text
 "We dwell on the text. Which words strike you in a special way?"
 The participants spontaneously read aloud the word or words
that have impressed them.
 It is extremely important that a moment of silence be kept after
each person has spoken, allowing the message to "soak in". As a
result of this step, "simple" words often take on new meaning.
 4th
 We are quiet
 Theparticipants are advised to spend this time in silence
before God. "We allow ourselves to be loved by him."
"We let God look at us."
A helpful practice during this silence is to repeat a
specific word.
 5th
 Sharing
 After the time of quiet, the facilitator announces the next step:
"We share with each other what we have heard in our hearts."
 We do this to share with one another our faith experience and
to help each other to grow in the faith. The entire Sacred
Scripture is nothing less than a God experience which the
People of Israel and Jesus "share" with us.
It is somewhat strange that we can talk to friends
about almost every aspect of our life yet when it
comes to sharing with others our experience with
God, we become shy. In this Bible meditation
method, however, anyone can learn "to risk" this
sharing in a very natural and unpressured way.
 6th
 Plan of Action
 At this stage, a basic community might discuss everyday problems
as:
Someone needs help in the neighborhood...
Children need instruction in the faith...
How can we settle a discord that has arisen?...
What can we do about the cleanliness in the surroundings?...
Note: None of these problems need to have a direct connection to the
Bible passage which had been read and shared.
 7th
 Prayer
 The words of Scripture, the various experiences of God´s Word,
the daily problems - these all become fuel for prayer. Some find
this form of sharing in prayer the easiest way to communicate
with others.
 The participants are encouraged to incorporate in their personal
prayer whatever has been of special importance to them during
the meditation.
 BIBLIODRAMA

Bibliodrama comes from two Greek

words: biblion, meaning book and in
this context, the Bible; and drama,
which means action or process. It
describes a method of exploring the
biblical texts.
It evolved from a variety of origins
– psychodrama, Christian theatre,
play and theatre pedagogy, body
works, and feminist theology, to
name a few.
 LECTIO DIVINA

 Lectio Divina is a Latin word that means

“divine reading” or “Holy Reading”.
 Lection Divina is a method of prayer and
scriptural reading.
 To benefit from the reading of scriptures one must read them with
attention, constancy, and prayer.
 STEPS OF LECTIO DIVINA

The steps of Lectio Divina also known as four

moments are:
1. Lectio or reading
2. Meditatio or meditation
3. Oration or prayer (response)
4. Comtemplatio or Contemplation
Preparedness- shows evidence of being
prepared- 20 pts
Mastery- shows mastery of the topic- 15 pts
Visual Aids- Visual Aids help/relevant in
learning the topic- 10 pts
Participation- 5 pts
Seasons of
the Church
 Advent

What is Liturgy?
•From the Greek “ leitourgia ,” which means,
“public work” or a “service in the name of/on
behalf of the people”
• In Judeo-Christian usage, it means “the
participation of the People of God in the work of
God”
Symbolism of liturgical colors
 Purple –penitential character
 Rose -rejoicing
 White –festive symbol of light, innocence, purity
 Green –color of plant/trees, represents hope of
life eternal
 Red –symbol of fire & blood; indicates burning
charity and the martyrs‟ generous sacrifice
 ADVENT
From Latin “ adventus ,” a coming, approach, arrival
Lasts approx. 4 weeks, from the first Sunday nearest
the feast of St. Andrew (30 November) until
Christmas
Church‟s Liturgical “New Year” – The Lectionary for
Mass, which cycles through three liturgical years (A,
B, and C), changes to a new year at Advent during
the Lent/Easter and Advent/Christmas seasons.
 How Advent is Celebrated

"Each Gospel reading has a distinctive

theme: the Lord's coming at the end of
time (First Sunday of Advent), John the
Baptist (Second and Third Sunday), and
the events that prepared immediately for
the Lord's birth (Fourth Sunday).
Advent is characterized by a
penitential character (e.g.
purple color) and joyful
character (e.g. rose color)
GaudeteSunday –third Sunday of Advent
– Gaudeteis Latin for “Rejoice”
– Break from the penitential character of the season
– St. Paul teaches: "Rejoice in the Lord always.... The Lord is near"
(Phil 4: 4-5).
– Advent is a season of rejoicing because it revives the expectation of
the most joyful event in history: the birth of the Son of God by the
Virgin Mary
– "Hail, full of grace, the Lord is with you!" (Lk1: 28) -the angel's
announcement to Mary is an invitation to rejoice
• Advent Wreath
– Band or circle of green foliage surrounding four candles
– Used in prayer -candles lit successively in the four weeks of Advent
– Circular wreath represents God‟s eternity
– Often present in the parish and at home
– Four candles represent each Sunday of Advent
• Three purple candles -the color of penitence and fasting as well as
the color of royalty to welcome the Advent of the King
• One rose candle –reflects a lessening emphasis on penitence and
more toward rejoicing at the nearness of Christ
 SOLEMNITIES
Solemnities are the celebrations of greatest importance. Each
Solemnity begins on the prior evening with first vespers (evening
prayer) and several of the solemnities have their own Vigil
Mass. On these days, both the Gloria and the Creed are
recited. Sundays and Holy Days of Obligation (which in the
United States are the Solemnity of Mary Mother of God,
Ascension, Assumption, All Saints, Immaculate Conception, and
Christmas) are always considered solemnities. Other examples
of solemnities include the Solemnity of St. Joseph (March 19), the
Solemnity of the Sacred Heart of Jesus (Friday after the Feast of
Corpus Christi), and the Solemnity of St. Peter and St. Paul (June
29).
 FEASTS
Feasts are of second importance in our liturgical
calendar and are celebrated on a particular
day. These feasts do not have a first vespers or Vigil
Mass the prior evening. An exception would be the
feasts of the Lord which occur on Sundays in
Ordinary Time and Sundays in the Christmas
season. For example, the Feast of the Presentation
of the Lord (February 2) has its own first vespers. On
these days, the Gloria is recited but not the Creed.
 MEMORIALS
Next in line are memorials, which are classified as either
obligatory or optional. Memorials commemorate a saint
or saints. Obligatory memorials must be observed
whereas optional memorials do not have to be
observed. For example, the memorial of St. John Bosco
(January 31) is obligatory while the memorial of St.
Blase (February 3) is optional. Only the memorials of
those saints who are of “universal significance” are
observed by the whole Church and marked in the general
liturgical calendar.
 ORDINARY TIME
Ordinary Time is called "ordinary" not because
it is common but simply because the weeks of
Ordinary Time are numbered. The Latin
word ordinalis, which refers to numbers in a
series, stems from the Latin word ordo, from
which we get the English word order.
Thus, the numbered weeks of Ordinary Time, in
fact, represent the ordered life of the Church—
the period in which we live our lives neither in
feasting (as in the Christmas and Easter
seasons) or in more severe penance (as in
Advent and Lent), but in watchfulness and
expectation of the Second Coming of Christ.