Before his death on the cross, Jesus gave his disciples a new commandment:
"Love one another. As I have loved you, so you also should love one another"
(John 13:34)
God speaks to us in many ways. One way God speaks to us is through the Bible. The Bible is the most important book in Christian life because it is God's message, or revelation. The Bible is the story of God's promise to care for us, especially through his Son, Jesus.
It tells the most magnificent of all stories - the story of how we've been redeemed. The Bible is also full of wisdom for daily living. It teaches us how to treat other people, how to handle our fears and sorrows, how to get our priorities straight. The wisdom of the Bible shows us how to become the people we were meant to be. The Bible is not just one book; it is a collection of many books.
The Bible is made up of two parts: The Old Testament and the New Testament. The Old Testament contains 46 books that tell stories about the Jewish people and their faith in God before Jesus was born.
The first five books of the Old Testament - Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy are referred to as the Torah, meaning "instruction" or "law." The central story in the Torah is the Exodus, the liberation of the Hebrew slaves as Moses led them out of Egypt and to the Promised Land. During the journey God gave the Ten Commandments to Moses and the people.
A beautiful part of the Old Testament is the Book of Psalms. A psalm is a prayer in the form of a poem. Each psalm expresses an aspect, or feature, of the depth of human emotion. Over several centuries 150 psalms were gathered to form the Book of Psalms. They were once sung at the Temple in Jerusalem.
The New Testament contains 27 books that tell the story of Jesus' life, death, and resurrection and the experience of the early Christians. For Christians the most important books of the New Testament are the four Gospels - Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. Many of the 27 books are letters written by leaders such as Saint Paul.
The New Jerusalem Bible (NJB) is a 1985 update to the 1966 Jerusalem Bible, both of which are translations of the Bible widely used by Catholics, as translated directly from Hebrew, Greek or Aramaic.
Below you can find each section of the New Jerusalem Bible:
10 COMMANDMENTS (Old Testament)
Christ's word abides in us in the way it governs our lives, and in the way we act upon it. That is what John means when he said in John 3:21-22:
"Beloved, if our heart condemn us not, then we have confidence toward God and whatsoever we ask, we receive of him, because we keep His commandments, and do those things that are right in His sight." |
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The Ten Commandments guide us in making choices that help us to live as God wants us to live. The first three commandments tell us how to love God; the last seven tell us how to love our neighbour:
- I am the Lord your God: you shall not have strange gods before me.
- You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain.
- Remember to keep holy the Lord's Day.
- Honor your father and your mother.
- You shall not kill.
- You shall not commit adultery.
- You shall not steal.
- You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.
- You shall not covet your neighbor's wife.
- You shall not covet your neighbor's goods.
| READING ABOUT JESUS' LIFE IN THE BIBLE (New Testament)
About one-third of the people on earth today are Christians. They base their lives on the teachings and promises of Jesus Christ. For 2000 years Christians have spread the news about Jesus, and many have even been put to death because of faith in him. Who is this man who has made such an impact on the world? |
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The purpose of Jesus' coming into the world was to establish the kingdom of God, and so the Lordship of Jesus and the kingdom of God are inseparable. The real purpose of being a Christian is to become a child of God through Jesus Christ.
As believers in Jesus Christ, we are called to a new life and are asked to make moral choices that keep us united with God. With the help and grace of the Holy Spirit, we can choose ways to act to keep us close to God, to help other people, and to be witnesses to Jesus.
As Jesus only lived to express God to mankind so the Christian must live to express Jesus to the world.
As Jesus consecrated Himself to the service of God and was completely surrendered to God's will, so the Christian must also be with Jesus.
As Jesus did all to glorify God, so too must the Christian for Jesus. Only thus is Jesus enthroned as our Lord.
JESUS' TEACHINGS: Sermon on the Mount & The Beatitudes
The Beatitudes are the teachings of Jesus in the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5:1-10). Jesus teaches us that if we live according to the Beatitudes, we will live a happy Christian life. The Beatitudes fulfill God's promises made to Abraham and his descendants and describe the rewards that will be ours as loyal followers of Christ:
Blessed are the poor in spirit,
for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Blessed are they who mourn,
for they will be comforted.
Blessed are the meek,
for they will inherit the land.
Blessed are they who hunger and thirst for righteousness,
for they will be satisfied.
Blessed are the merciful,
for they will be shown mercy.
Blessed are the clean in heart,
for they will see God.
Blessed are the peacemakers,
for they will be called children of God.
Blessed are they who are persecuted for the sake of righteousness,
for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
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CATHOLIC BELIEFS BASED ON THE BIBLE
The following is a listing of Bible teachings and beliefs of the Catechism of the Catholic Church.
Fruits of the Holy Spirit
Holy Days of Obligation
Marks of the Church
The Precepts of the Church
The Beatitudes
The Ten Commandments
Works of Mercy |
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Fruits of the Holy Spirit
"Just so, every good tree bears good fruit, and a rotten tree bears bad fruit. A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a rotten tree bear good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire. So by their fruits you will know them." (Matthew 7:17-20)
This passage in Matthew's Gospel helps us to understand the Fruits of the Holy Spirit, which are the observable behaviors of people who have allowed the grace of the Holy Spirit to be effective in them. The tradition of the Church lists 12 fruits:
| Charity |
Generosity |
| Joy |
Gentleness |
| Peace |
Faithfulness |
| Patience |
Modesty |
| Kindness |
Self-control |
| Goodness |
Chastity |
Holy Days of Obligation
The Holy Days of Obligation are the days other than Sundays on which we celebrate the great things God has done for us through Jesus and the saints. On Holy Days of Obligation, Catholics attend Mass.
2 Holy Days of Obligation are celebrated:
January 1st - Mary, Mother of God
December 25th - Nativity of Our Lord Jesus Christ
Marks of the Church
The Church can be both seen on earth and felt in our hearts. This is why we call the Church the Mystical Body of Christ. The Church has four important qualities, or marks:
The Church is one. We have one Lord and we share one faith. We receive one life in the Holy Spirit.
The Church is holy. The Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are holy. In the sacraments, we receive all we need to make us holy.
The Church is catholic. Catholic means universal. Jesus told the apostles to teach all nations. The Church reaches out to all.
The Church is apostolic. Jesus founded the Church with the apostles. The pope and bishops continue their mission today.
Precepts of the Church
The Precepts of the Church describe the minimum effort we must make in prayer and in living a moral life. All Catholics are called to move beyond the minimum by growing in love of God and love of neighbor.
The Precepts are as follows:
Attendance at Mass on Sundays and Holy Days of Obligation
Observance of the days of fast and abstinence
Providing for the needs of the Church
The Beatitudes
The Ten Commandments
See Bible Section at top.
Works of Mercy
Corporal and Spiritual Works of Mercy are actions we can perform that extend God's compassion and mercy to those in need.
The Corporal Works of Mercy are kind acts by which we help our neighbors with their material and physical needs.
feed the hungry
shelter the homeless
clothe the naked
visit the sick and imprisoned
bury the dead
give alms to the poor
The Spiritual Works of Mercy are acts of compassion, as listed below, by which we help our neighbors with their emotional and spiritual needs.
instruct
advise
console
comfort
forgive
bear wrongs patiently
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