Site	Description
Readings on a daily bases	Bible readings for today’s Mass readings by Joe Kelly of Holy Spirit
	100 Pamphlets of what Catholics believe
Catholic Etiquette - Funerals	Catholic Etiquette - Funerals
Catholic Etiquette - Mass	Catholic Etiquette - Mass
How to Make a Good Confession	How to Make a Good Confession
What the Church Teaches	Annulments - What the Church Teaches
Growing in Faith	Discovering hope and joy in the Catholic faith.
Partners in faith	Helping our children grow in their Catholic faith.
Today's Mass Bible Readings (1)	The United States Catholic Conference of Bishops offers the full text for today’s Mass readings
Today's Mass Bible Readings (2)	Catholic Eternal Word Television Network (EWTN) offers daily scripture reading text and an audio version of the homily from morning Mass at Our Lady of the Angels Monastery in Hanceville, Alabama
Online Homilies - Father Joe Kempf	The Assumption Catholic Church in O'Fallon, MO offers audio versions of Father Joe Kempf's homilies. Father Kemph was winner of the "Great Preacher Award" from the Aquinas Institute of Technology in 2004 and is a frequent presenter at the Los Angeles Religious Education Congress. These homilies can be listened to online or downloaded and saved for listening on am MP3 player.
Mass Bible Readings - you select date	The United States Catholic Conference of Bishops offers the full text of the Roman Catholic lectionary for weekdays and Sundays.
Catholic Bible Online	The United States Catholic Conference of Bishops offers the full text of the New American Bible
Bible Pronunciations	By LIFE TEEN "Bible Geek" - Mark Hart
Bible Reference & Parables	Easy to follow indexes and commentaries for the parables and the four Gospels
List of Parables
Lectionary Index by Scripture (1)	Lectionary Cross-reference and has podcast link
Lectionary Index by Scripture (2)
Catholic Bible Study
Catholic Resources for Bible & Liturgy	by Prof. Felix Just, S.J., Ph.D. - University of San Francisco Contains many links for advanced research
Gospels Parallels	Provides convenient side-by-side comparison of texts in either the Four Canonical Gospels or Three Synoptic Gospels; uses Revised Standard Version of bible

Bible and Lectionary Frequently Ask Questions

What does the word Bible mean?
A derivative of the Latin, biblia, meaning collection of books.
When was the Bible written?
Over two thousand years, beginning in the time of Moses, and ending around 100 AD.
How was the Bible put together?
Debated and discerned for over three hundred years, the Bible took shape during the Councils of Rome and Hippo, before listing the canon (official list of inspired books) at the Council of Carthage (397 AD), and having the canon forever defined at the Council of Trent (1545-1563).

How is the Bible broken up?

Two main parts: Old and New Testament.
Old Testament - 46 books
New Testament - 27 books
Three kinds of writings…..Historical (past), wisdom (present) and apocalyptic (future).
The Old Testament points to the New Testament.
The New Testament "unpacks" the Old Testament.

What does the word gospel mean?

A derivative of the Latin, "evangelion", meaning the "good news."
Is the New American Bible (NAB) the only translation of Scriptures we can read from at Mass?
After May 19, 2002, the revised Lectionary, based on the New American Bible will be the only Lectionary that may be read at Mass, except for the current Lectionary for Masses with Children which will remain in use.

How is the Sunday Lectionary arranged?

The Church has a three year cycle for Sunday readings, called "A", "B" and "C". Starting 27 November 2005, we are in Cycle B.
What's the difference between the Catholic and the Protestant Bibles?

Catholics and Protestants share the same New Testament. For a while Luther considered Hebrew, James, Jude and Revelation as inferior and put them at the end of his New Testament translation. Calvin seems to have had reservations about 2 and 3 John. Eventually all differences were reconciled and the Protestants and Catholics agreed with the fourth-century church councils which established the approved listing of books of the New Testament as we have them today.
The Catholic version of the Old Testament differs from the Protestants. The Catholics have a Greek version called the Septuagint which was used by Hellenistic Jews in Alexandria in North Africa before the time of Christ. This was the version used by the early Church. Luther chose another version, the Hebrew version, which was used by Jews in Palestine.
The Protestant version does not include the books of Tobit, Judith, Wisdom, Sirach (Ecclesiasticus), Baruch, 1 and 2 Maccabees, and that part of Daniel called the book of Susannah. Certain editions of the Bible will include these books under the title "Aprocryphical books of the Bible." Catholics consider these books as part of the inspired word of God.

How is the Lectionary arranged?

The Lectionary is arranged in two cycles, one for Sundays and one for weekdays.

The Sunday cycle is divided into three years, labeled A, B, and C. 2005 is Year A, 2006 will be Year B, 2007 will be Year C, etc. In Year A, we read mostly from the gospel of Matthew. In Year B, we read the gospel of Mark and chapter 6 of the gospel of John. In Year C, we read the gospel of Luke. The gospel of John is read during the Easter season in all three years. The first reading, usually from the Old Testament, reflects important themes from the gospel reading. The second reading is usually from one of the epistles, a letter written to an early church community. These letters are read semi-continuously. Each Sunday, we pick up close to where we left off the Sunday before, though some passages are never read.

The weekday cycle is divided into two years, Year I and Year II. Year I is read in odd-numbered years and Year II is used in even-numbered years The gospels for both years are the same. During the year, the gospels are read semi-continuously, beginning with Mark, then moving on to Matthew and Luke. The gospel of John is read during the Easter season. For Advent, Christmas, and Lent, readings are chosen that are appropriate to the season. The first reading on weekdays may be taken from the Old or the New Testament. Typically, a single book is read semi-continuously (i.e., some passages are not read) until it is finished and then a new book is started.

The year of the cycle does not change on January 1st, but on the 1st Sunday of Advent (usually late November) which is the beginning of the liturgical year.

In addition to the Sunday and weekday cycles, the Lectionary provides readings for feasts of the saints, for common celebrations such as Marian feasts, for ritual Masses (weddings, funerals, etc.), for votive Masses, and for various needs. The Lectionary used in the United States also includes a special appendix containing readings for use on Thanksgiving Day. These readings have been selected to reflect the themes of these celebrations.

How did Catholic reluctance to read the Bible begin?

Prior to the Reformation, Catholics were not reluctant to read the Bible. Those Catholics who were educated were able to center their spirituality around the Bible. I am thinking of outstanding Scripture scholars like Origin, Jerome, and Augustine. Thomas Aquinas based his theology on a deep understanding of the Bible. Until the printing press was invented, education of the masses was at a very low level in comparison to today. Handwritten copies of the Bible were difficult to produce. Because these copies were so few and precious, they were often chained to the lectern in a church to make sure they were not stolen. At this time, a style of Christian living arose in many places in the church that didn't seem to be in agreement with the Scriptures: clericalism was rife, there were the money-making indulgences, avarice, papal military power, good works more important than faith; and an impersonal ecclesiastical bureaucracy often stifled the freedom of the Spirit.

The reformers revolted against all this and based their actions on various verses of the Bible. Once the Bible was translated into the vernacular and Mass produced by the newly invented printing press, education of the masses improved, and people could read firsthand the arguments of Luther and the other reformers. Christianity was divided into two camps: the Protestant camp, those who thought the Bible was the sole authority in religious matters; and the Catholic camp, those who thought the Pope together with Tradition and Scripture was the sole authority.

Catholics moved to the defensive. Catholic authorities greatly feared "private interpretations of the Bible." Although the Bible had been and was still the Word of God, the free reading and private interpretation of the Scriptures by Catholics were restricted. The interpretation of the Bible was kept in the hands of clerics. The laity were told to be cautious lest they misread the Bible as the reformers had done. Fortunately, today, Catholics are encouraged to read and study the Bible.

Do Catholics believe that they have to work out their salvation?

Catholics believe that salvation is a free gift from God. When Jesus died and rose He paid the price for our sins. That salvation is a wonderful gift. I receive that gift by an act of faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. This gift is not something that I can earn. It's outright free. But now the question arises, "Do I have to do anything once I have that gift?" Well, of course. The gift from the Lord requires a response. We must love and worship the Lord. We must care for His people. The parable in Matthew 25 speaks of works of love for the poor as a key to attaining salvation.

Back in the 1500's Luther got very upset with the Roman Church over the issue of Indulgences. Catholic leaders were selling indulgences that gave the buyer a guarantee that he or those for whom he bought the indulgences, living and dead, would be freed from the punishment their sins had incurred. In many ways.

Luther was correct to object to the practice of selling indulgences as it was carried out in his time. Indulgences in themselves are really quite beautiful. They come from the store of loving acts of Christ and members of His Body. For example, if someone you love is suffering right now with arthritis or cancer, for a Christian, that suffering is not wasted or meaningless. It is united with the sufferings of Christ in a way that transcends time. That suffering can now be applied to help a struggling person perhaps on the other side of the planet. The help comes in the form of grace.

One of the clearest explanations of this power of human suffering comes from the words of St. Paul to the Colossians 1.24: "I am now rejoicing in my sufferings for your sake, and in my flesh I am completing what is lacking in Christ's afflictions for the sake of his body, that is the church." Indulgences speak of the power of our suffering being united to the suffering of Christ. The Father unites our suffering with those of Christ and brings the grace of salvation to people around our world today. Indulgences speak of the value that God places in our suffering. What a beautiful gift.

The granting of indulgences sometimes lost its deep spiritual significance and was merely a means of manipulation and a way of gaining money. The impression for some was that the Church was saying that salvation could be bought or worked out by prayer or mere human effort. We can never do anything that would merit our salvation. Still, given this gift, we must strive with all our power to be as worthy of this love by loving God and our neighbor as we love ourselves.

Lent

The forty-day period is symbolic of the 40 days spent by Jesus in the desert. The number forty has many other Biblical references: the forty days Moses spent on Mount Sinai with God; the forty days and nights Elijah spent walking to Mount Horeb; God made it rain for forty days and forty nights in the days of Noah; the Hebrew people wandered forty years traveling to the Promised Land; Jonah in his prophecy of judgment gave the city of Nineveh forty days time in which to repent.

Jesus retreated into the desert, where he fasted for forty days, and was tempted by the devil. Jesus overcame all three of Satan's temptations by citing scripture to the devil, at which point the devil left him, angels ministered to Jesus, and he began his ministry.

It was also traditional belief that Jesus lay for 40 hours (instead of the biblical three days) in the tomb,^[3] which led to the forty hours of total fast that preceded the Easter celebration in the early Church.^[4] The main ceremony was the baptism of the initiates on Easter Eve. The fast was in preparation to receive this sacrament. Later, the period from Good Friday until Easter Day was extended to six days, to correspond with the six weeks of training, necessary to instruct the converts who were to be baptized.

Converts to Christianity followed a strict catechumenate or period of instruction and discipline. In Jerusalem near the close of the fourth century, classes were held throughout Lent for three hours each day. With the legalization of Christianity (by the Edict of Milan) and its later imposition as the state religion of the Roman Empire, its character was endangered by the great influx of new members. In response, the Lenten fast and practices of self-renunciation were required annually of all Christians. The less zealous of the converts were thus brought more securely into the Christian fold.

Traditionally, on Easter Sunday, Roman Catholics may cease their fasting and start again whatever they gave up for lent, after they attend Sunday mass. Other Western denominations have also followed this general principle to a greater or lesser degree.