Ignite Virtual Lessons

Hello Ignite!  This is our last dive into the bible with Ed Sirois.  Now that we've covered scripture and Tradition, the Old Testament, and the New Testament, we now ask what it all means.  How are we...as Catholics...supposed to interpret the words of scripture?  Abe Lincoln even makes an appearance here!  If you haven't watched the first three, at least watch this one!

• Remember that scripture is God's word told through the limitations of imperfect humans.  It has all we need for salvation, even though it was written hundreds and thousands of years ago.
• The bible isn't intended to express true, scientific facts but rather theological truths.
• The greatest gift of God's self revelation isn't the bible, it's the person of his son, Jesus Christ.

Hello again!  No video of me in my awesome guitar tie this time, just an overview of the New Testament with Mr. Sirois.  This video is longer than the others, so if you wish only view a few minutes.  I promise it'll be enlightening!  Some notes are below, too.  And if you missed weeks 1 and/or 2, keep scrolling.

• This video is long, so it's OK to only view part of it.  Any part is good!
• Some of the live action scenes shown here are from Mel Gibson's 2004 film The Passion of the Christ.  Rated R and not for the faint of heart, I recommend it to anyone looking for an extremely vivid depiction of Christ's crucifixion!
• As of October 14, we're currently reading through Matthew's 5th section at Sunday Masses; we'll continue until we reach Advent on November 29th.
• An essential tenant of the Christian faith: all Christians believe in both the humanity and divinity of Jesus Christ, who was begotten of the Father and born of the Virgin Mary.  This is explained in John's first letter.
• St. James' line "faith without works is dead" is very important for Catholics and was a sticking point in the Protestant Reformation, when some argued that salvation is simply given to us.
• Unlike other traditions (perhaps Jahova's Witnesses), Catholics do not believe the Book of Revelation is a code book or math problem.

Hello again and happy feast!!  Today (September 30) we celebrate St. Jerome, an important guy in the development of the bible.  So watch me tell you a bit about him, and then we'll continue our study of the bible with another installment of Ed Sirois' video series.  This week looks at the Old Testament: from whence it came, how it's divided, and how it provides a foundation for all that happens in the New Testament.  Grab your bible, and let's go!

1. Quick Info on St. Jerome
2. Introduction to the Bible for Catholics (part two)

• There are many non-canonical books of the bible, books that were written by people like Thomas or Mary of Magdalene, that are not included in either the Protestant or Catholic bible.  Additional Gospels were written, some more letters from James, and some Old Testament books were withheld from the canon.  Why?  Let's talk next class!
• Ed makes mention to "the Law," the Tanak, or Hebrew Scriptures.  You have probably heard Jesus and St. Paul mention them, too.  "According to the law..." or "the law says this, but I tell you this instead..." were common sayings by these men.  Jesus came "not to abolish the law but fulfill it," and Paul taught that some parts of the Law needed to be dropped from the new Christian movement, even though Jews were the ones to begin it.  What Jesus and Paul talk about are deeply rooted in the Jewish and Hebrew worldview!
• A Doctor of the Church?  Check out this short article on what makes a saint a doctor.

Hey Ignite!!  Welcome to our first online learning experience!  It's a first, so let me know about the bugs and things I could do better.  Simply watch the videos in order, and read the summary notes below.  It'll take about 15 minutes total.  Grab your bible, and away we go!

1. Ingite Inro Video 2020
2. Introduction to the Bible for Catholics (part one)

• Two forms of revelation: Scripture and Tradition (big T)
  • In both the greatest revelation of God is a person, his Son, Jesus Christ.
• The bible is God's word, but it's expressed through the limitations of human language.
• Religion and science can coexist, even if it doesn't appear so, especially when timelines come up.
• Two ways to interpret Scripture: literal and contextual
• Many varities of bibles exist, many translations of the bible exist; generally they express the same ideas, but the nuances are different and important.
• The Lectionary (used at Mass) contains only about 30% of the entire bible.
• Get to know your bible and what it offers you!