The Bible: How to read it RIGHT & stop reading it WRONG
Many people open the Bible and read it without any idea of how to understand it and end up filled with all sorts of misconceptions. Personally, I have read the entire Bible and studied it for a lot of hours. I understand how easy it can be to read the Bible incorrectly and fall into misconceptions. Because of this, I want to help people understand how to understand this massive text.
First useful notes
The first thing to touch on is, how NOT to read the Bible. Do not read the Bible as though it was written to be a science textbook within the past century. Do not take everything in Genesis chapters 1-11 as literal statements. Do not pick up the Bible and expect to understand the 1200-page text during your first reading of it. Most people have to watch the movie Inception twice to think they understand it. The same applies for reading the Bible. You will NOT understand it during your first reading.
Do not pick up the Bible and read the first five pages to conclude that the entire Bible is irrelevant because all you read is an inaccurate timeline for the creation of the world, man was made from dust and woman from his rib, how the snake lost its legs, how all the trades of men came from Cain, that the entire world was flooded, and yet another language myth. The Bible is filled with allegories and poetic writing. The Scriptures were originally passed down orally and few people had enough literacy to read them independently. The modern tradition of reading the Bible at home is a rather new concept in the grand scheme of things.
It is also useful to remember that the Bible contains the comprehensive story of salvation. Although the Bible contains proverbs and other guidance on how to live our lives, it is filled with far more material than this alone. It is also not filled with weird creation stories from a god of the gaps to explain that which science was not able to explain at the time. Again, it is the story of salvation, a story that needs to be understood before trying to run to conclusions about certain passages.
How to read the Bible?
It is important to understand that the Bible was written as an ancient text for ancient people in ancient cultures with ancient language. This is important because we are not accustomed to reading ancient texts, instead we are a modern people in modern culture with modern language. Although the Bible is translated into English, which is a very literal language, it is not justifiable to expect to read the Bible and understand it as though it is written in plain English.
The Old Testament was originally written in Hebrew, which is far more organic and flexible than the precision and literalism within English. The New Testament was originally written in Greek, which shares similar qualities with Hebrew and lacks the qualities of Latin-based languages. For example, there have been inter-Church issues deriving from the disparity between Latin and Greek even through the beginning of the second millennium.
While reading the Bible, it will be most beneficial to understand that you likely will not understand it during your first reading, however you can take the time to try to study and understand each chapter and story as you go through it. Although it is written that a serpent spoke to Eve, it may not literally mean that a snake was in a tree and spoke from its mouth to Eve, who was completely calm when an animal started to speak to her. This same logic applies throughout the Bible, especially in Genesis 1-11. There is a lot of depth that can be understood if you are able to suspend the literal use of English language and modern culture.
It is also important to remember how the Bible was compiled in the first place. The Bible was compiled with Jewish texts in the Old Testament that were orally passed down until they were finally written over the course of several centuries. The New Testament was compiled by the Church Fathers who reviewed the proposed books in 382 in the Council of Rome. Recall that the council used three major criteria, 1) Authorship: whether the text was understood to have been written by an apostle or by someone who has apostolic authority behind him; 2) content: whether the content of the documents conformed to the traditions handed on by the apostles or contradicted them; 3) the use of the texts in the sacred liturgies of the major Churches founded by the apostles. These criteria are crucial to understanding how to read the Bible. The council wanted to make sure the texts of the New Testament were written by one of the Apostles or someone close to them, and that these documents conformed to the traditions handed on by the apostles, while also being used in the sacred liturgies of the Churches founded by the Apostles. What all this means is that “it was by the apostolic Tradition that the Church discerned which writings are to be included in the list of the sacred books.” (CCC 120). This Sacred Tradition was established by and inherited from the Apostles. If the reader omits the Sacred Tradition of the Church, they will be missing the core factors that were used to compile the Bible in the first place. Thus, it is crucial to understand that the Bible is meant to be read in union with the Tradition of the Church. Through the combination of Sacred Tradition and Scripture, people can continue to understand what it means to have Faith in Jesus Christ and to follow His commandments
Different methods
There are several different methods that can be utilized to read the Bible. We all have a unique relationship to the same God, and the same goes for reading His Word.
- Daily readings. The Catholic Church lists the daily readings with a Gospel reflection on the USCCB website, found here. This offers an easy-to-follow method to read from the Old Testament, the Epistles, Psalms, and Gospels while being able to read the Gospel reflection as well. This can help gain an understanding of the Scriptures. Please note, this method does not go through the entire Bible word for word, but instead takes you on a trip through the Bible to gain a general understanding, though with some in-depth spiritual guidance as well.
- Just open it and start on page 1. This is how I did it and how I personally like to read the Bible. Be prepared to have to force yourself to keep reading through it. There are times where it is easy such as Genesis and Exodus then other times where it is extremely challenging, such as Leviticus. With this method, the important thing is to read it all so as to familiarize yourself with the text. You most likely will not be able to cite and quote individual verses nor will you connect all the dots. But what you will be able to expect is to recall certain stories, possibly even remember certain verses when you hear them from others, and be able to converse on some level about the Bible while also being surprised what is written in there. You may even laugh.
- Read the Bible in a year following the Bible timeline from Jeff Cavins, found here. Jeff Cavins is a Catholic Bible teacher and now offers a reading plan to go through the entire Bible in 365 days. This helps the reader to get through some of the more challenging books such as Leviticus while reading the other books of the Bible. He also color codes the 12 different time periods to help the reader understand where they are in Salvation history.
- Walking with God by Jeff Cavins and Tim Gray is a great addition to reading the Bible. The authors walk you through the Bible while helping to understand some of the passages that pose as hurdles to readers. This book will help you understand how to read Genesis 1-11, what is meant by odd verses such as when Ham saw Noah’s nakedness and God hardened Pharaoh’s heart (see Genesis 9:22 and Exodus 7:13). This is a great, easy-to-read resource to add to your Bible reading.
- Bibles with commentary. I am currently reading a Catholic Bible that has footnotes throughout which help to understand various aspects about the scenarios in the Scriptures. There are many cultural notes, linguistic clarifications, and brief explanations about other things going on as well as connections to other passages. There is also the Ignatius Press Study Bible which is filled with deep commentary and connections to Scripture as well as mentions of Jewish history and tradition. The Ignatius Bible took about 25 years to complete and will be a valuable tool for studying the Bible.
- Bible in a year podcast with Fr. Mike Schmitz. This is a very popular means people use. You can listen to Fr. Mike Schmitz read the Bible each day while he follows Jeff Cavins’ Bible timeline. Father also gives a reflection and insight into the Scripture each day to help better understand what is going on in each reading.
- Bible studies are a great tool if your local Catholic Church offers them. This is a more in-depth study that can help readers gather together to understand the Bible, however I will note it does not replace your time of simply reading the Bible. It is always good to have your one-on-one time with the Living Word of God. But again, it can be great to attend a Bible study to gain more understanding of certain parts of the Bible
How to understand the Bible
It is important to try to understand the big picture of this monstrous and deep text. I am a big advocate for reading the Bible multiple times. The first read will be more of a familiarization with the Bible and stories. The second read will allow for a more in-depth study as you apply your understanding of the big picture and other stories throughout the reading. Subsequent reads will build on this to gain an even deeper understanding while breaking out seemingly small passages of the Bible.
It is important to not narrowly focus on singular passages and verses. While that is a big aspect of Scripture study, it is important to not miss the forest for the trees. When deeply studying a single passage or verse, it is important to remember the context of the surrounding passages and verses in addition to the big picture of the entire Bible, otherwise a single verse or passage may easily be distorted into something that is not.
The Catholic Church is also very open to people having their own private interpretations. The Church does cite Scripture throughout her teachings, but this does not mean the Church is declaring an absolute interpretation of these or other verses. With that said, we are not to dogmatize our own interpretations, especially if they contradict the Church teachings and Traditions passed down from the Apostles.
It is also good to ask questions as you read. In your first read, they may remain unanswered for a while, but it is still good to wonder what certain things mean and consider the possibilities. Always try to remain objective during this process and do not try to find your own thoughts in the Bible, but instead be open to the Word of God and submitting to the Truth. You can always consult with your local Priests and Deacons if there is anything unsettling or questions you would like answered sooner than later.
Also, always keep in mind what Peter wrote about Paul’s Epistles, “There are some things in them hard to understand, which the ignorant and unstable twist to their own destruction, as they do the other scriptures.” (2 Pet 3:16). By ignorant, Peter is referring to those who have not been taught the ways of reading the Scriptures. We must understand our own ignorance so as not to allow it to inhibit us in developing our relationship with God.
Misconceptions
The Bible is not meant to be a startup manual for a Church. It was never meant to be. Yes, it contains writings from the Apostles that were written to help the Churches that were new but that does not mean the Bible was compiled with the intent to instruct people on how to start a Church. It wasn’t written as a manual to start a Church because the Catholic Church, which canonized the Bible, had already been established by Jesus Christ and was already routinely establishing new Churches as people were evangelized.
Instead, the Bible is meant to be read and coupled with Sacred Tradition. This is just like the Jews who were predecessors of the Jewish Christians. They have their written Scriptures and also their oral tradition. This concept is nothing new, whereas the belief that all you need are the Scriptures is an entirely new concept when compared to the ancient history of Scripture and Tradition. Christianity is a continuation and the fulfillment of Judaism and it maintains this aspect of Jewish tradition as well.
It is imperative to understand that Scripture was born out of Tradition. The Tradition of the Catholic Church was not born out of Scripture. Objectively speaking, those who establish a tradition out of Scripture end up in confusing territory which is why there are over 30,000 denominations. Simply put, the Bible was not meant to be used as an independent Church startup manual and it should not be read as such. It was meant to be understood within the Tradition it was born out of, that is, the Tradition of the Catholic Church.
Conclusion
The Bible is a massive and deep ancient text. It is important to read it while understanding that the depth of study required will take quite a bit of time, spanning over years through multiple readings. There are many different ways to navigate through the Bible and while gaining an understanding of the story and what it means for you. The Tradition that the Bible was born out of is necessary for a proper understanding of the Bible and how Jesus commanded us to follow Him and to keep His commandments. The story of salvation is beautiful and life changing. I hope you open your heart to the Word of God.
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