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The
Prophet Isaiah, by Raphael, c. 1511 |
The study of Sacred Scripture has become
very complicated since the Protestant Reformation. False ideas
about the message and use of the Bible are almost inescapable in modern
America. This has led to an acceptance of ideas about the Bible
that are not sound. Much of what Catholics think the Bible teaches
has come from Protestant sources, and little is known of the Catholic
interpretation of the Bible.
The most glaring problem is in the use
of the Bible. Catholics have reacted by imitating the Protestants
in their treatment of Scripture as a book that is studied independent of
the Church's life and liturgy. The Sacred Scripture program of the
Classical Liberal Arts Academy restores the word of God to its proper
place: within the life and liturgy of the Catholic Church.
Students in the Classical Liberal Arts
Academy are introduced to the Bible in a historically and theologically
sound manner. Scripture study is taught to be a daily discipline,
pursued as an act of devotion to God.
The Academy leads children through the
Catholic Church's 3-year Lectionary reading schedule over the course of
three years. Lessons are provided on a weekly bases to introduce
and guide the readings and weekly quizzes check to ensure that the
readings are completed as scheduled. While this course is intended
for students in their last three years before college, younger students
should be encouraged to begin this discipline as early as possible.
By thus introducing students to the practice
of daily lectionary reading, these important objectives are achieved:
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the Bible is restored within the life
and liturgy of the Catholic Church
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the reading of the Bible is focused on
its central mystery: the life of Jesus Christ.
-
the student is introduced to the rhythm
of the Church Calendar
-
a healthy balance is maintained between
selective and continual reading
-
readings are kept at a reasonable and
profitable length for students
-
passages of difficult interpretation are
passed over
-
weekly Mass readings and homilies
fulfill part of the weekly reading schedule
-
the student enjoys a rich selection of
resources to facilitate and supplement daily readings
How It Works
1. Students receive a lesson that
introduces the weekly readings in the Catholic lectionary. The
week begins on Sunday and ends on Saturday. The weekly lesson
provides the following information:
-
background information
that illuminates the meaning of the readings
-
the relation between the
readings and the Church calendar
-
the significance of the
readings in light of the life of Jesus Christ
-
devotional reflections
-
application of the readings across the
CLAA curriculum.
2. The student completes his daily
reading on the USCCB lectionary page, or in his own Catholic Bible
following a printed lectionary schedule. The following resources
are also available for free use from the USCCB to accompany daily
student readings, some of which may be required in the weekly lessons:
In addition to these, students can watch the
daily Mass and hear the homily on EWTN and complete their daily
lectionary readings.
3. At the end of the week, after
completing all weekly readings, the student completes his CLAA lesson
quiz which assesses and confirms his daily lectionary readings. A
parent is required to enter a password in the last question of the quiz
to verify that the student has completed his weekly readings on a
daily basis.
What if we miss a day?!
The goal of this course is to teach students
the discipline of daily Scripture reading so that they may enjoy it
throughout their lives. Obviously, this is a discipline that is
perfected over time, and there is no reason to make it miserable and
stressful. All of the weekly readings are accessible on the USCCB
website, so there is no chance of missing a reading. Students are
free to read ahead or to catch up when a day is missed.
Nevertheless, the goal is daily reading for the benefits described above
and this should be a priority in the morning.
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