As I answered a reader’s question about reading the Bible, I saw the need to post our family’s favorite Bible study resources. Husband and I have very different Bible Study habits, techniques, and preferences. Today I’m listing both of our favorite Catholic Bible Study resources here in hopes that you might find something for your own unique Bible study journey.
Catholic Bible Studies:
Ignatius New Testament Study Bible This is a great resource for budding Catholic Bible study. It doesn’t give all the answers when you come upon a difficult passage, but will be a great resource nonetheless. The authors are working on slowly releasing the Old Testament books (found for sale individually). This was one of the first books we added to our Catholic library after my conversion.
Sacra Pagina Series The Sacra Pagina series is for those who are interested in a really in-depth analysis of the text including Greek words and grammar. Husband really enjoys this series and is slowly attempting to add more of the books to our shelves at a reasonable price. The authors differ among the books, so there is some variation in how the exegesis is presented. Currently, I do not use these books, but Husband enjoys them immensely.
Biblia Clerus Husband found this great resource a couple months ago and has been using it every morning during his Bible time. One of the best things about Biblia Clerus (there are many great things) is the price – 100% FREE! Biblia Clerus can be downloaded onto your computer and then you can search a host of Church documents and writings from Saints, Doctors, and Fathers of the Church. There is also access to the Mass readings (with commentary), Greek and Latin renderings, and Canon Law. It seems like Husband finds some new feature on Biblia Clerus everyday. There are a couple of drawbacks: it is a little clunky to use at first, and it’s on the computer (I prefer the written page).
Catholic Bible Study Tools:
These are books that I feel every Catholic should have on their shelf. They are like the forks and knives, so to speak, that will help you savor the meal of God’s Word.
Catechism of the Catholic Church This is one book every Catholic should have on their shelf. If you aren’t sure what the Catholic Church teaches about a particular doctrine or topic, this would be the first place to look. Many suggest reading a paragraph a day as part of your Bible time. When in doubt, check it out!
Catholic Bible Dictionary This is one tool we do not yet have on our bookshelf, but is one that has been on our wishlist for quite some time. I’ve looked over its pages many times at the Catholic bookstore, but just haven’t brought myself to purchase it yet. Patience is key when building your Catholic bookshelf, or you could quickly drain the bank! It looks to be another great resource. While you can look up many Bible terms on the internet, there is something so much nicer about having a trusted author (Scott Hahn) and the printed page.
Catholic Gospel Reflections:
(The following books are a great place to go to when you need a little more information to make sense of a Gospel passage.)
Fire of Mercy, Heart of the Word (Meditations on the Gospel of St. Matthew) Vol. 1, 2, and 3
I love to read the Gospels everyday as part of my Bible study time, but recently was struggling to connect to them. I picked up our copy of Fire of Mercy, and have been enjoying the reflections on God’s Word found within its pages. There is lots of Greek, but not so in depth that it is distracting for the beginner. We currently only have the first volume.
The Lord Again, I pick up this book up along with Fire of Mercy to help me get a little more out of my Gospel reading time. The reflections are longer than in Fire of Mercy, so depending on the length of your Bible study time you may or may not get the whole reflection done.
To Know Christ Jesus Any list of reflections on the Gospels is incomplete without Sheed’s To Know Christ Jesus. This book is written in a very practical way making Jesus of Nazareth, his life, and times, come to life in our modern day.
Life of Christ (by Sheen) Life of Christ is a modern day classic from a modern day Saint. If you have trouble getting to know the person of Jesus, Sheen’s book is a great place to start.
Jesus Series by Pope Benedict is a modern help created for us by a man who was the Vicar of Christ. They are a solidly Catholic way to delve into the life of The Lord a little more.
Bonus Resources:
Catholic.com forums When I’m at a loss for what the Catholic Church teaches about a particular topic or Bible passage, I find the Catholic.com forums immensely helpful. If you can’t find what you want in the archives, you may like to start a new thread.
The Magnificat I would be amiss if I neglected to mention the Magnificat magazine (I’m not even an affiliate!). My in laws gift me with a subscription every year for my birthday and it has always provided direction when I just don’t know what to do next in my spiritual reading. The subscription is a little pricey, but all of the Mass readings are there along with the Morning and Evening prayers of the church. There are reflections on saints and devotional reading. There is also beautiful art and art study as well. I go in spurts with Magnificat. It bothers me to read scripture out of context (a hold on to my Protestant days maybe) so sometimes I prefer to read through my Bible versus reading the excerpts contained in Magnificat.
A trusted Catholic One of my greatest resources for studying the Bible under the Church’s authority is my handy, dandy, trusty, sometimes rusty Catholic – better known as Husband. While we need to be wise in choosing someone to pose our faith questions to, an orthodox Catholic companion can be a great help as you wade through The Word. Hopefully, your priest can be a good resource for you too!
Prayer I’ve taken some time to give you some resources for studying God’s Word, but prayer can be the most illuminating as we struggle with Bible passages. It goes without saying that we need to test the inspirations we are given in prayer (Satan disguises himself as an angel of light), but God is a generous teacher.
What resources of yours would you add to my list?
Other posts you’ll like:
Now that I’m Catholic… How do I read the Bible?
Busy Mama’s Guide to Self Education: Catholicism
Thank you so much for your very informative articles! I have been looking for family related Catholic Bible studies for years and have never been able to find one that was catered towards the Catholic Bible! I love the tools you have included in this article as well. I am very interested, like your husband, in the meanings behind things/words and like to get a little more background so these will definitely come in handy as we progress through our Bible study! Thank you once again and I look forward to studying the Bible as a family and also reading the Bible in a year on my own… I have tried before and never finished!
Thank you so much for your sweet words, Abby! I think it is so wonderful that you are pursuing Bible study as a family- what a gift to your children! I’d love to know more of the details about how you do that as a family.