How-to-read-the-Bible

Reading the Bible

How does the Catholic version of the Bible differ from the Protestant?

The Bible used by the Catholic Church differs from that used by the Protestant Churches. The Catholic Bible contains 73 books, which include the deuterocanonical books – seven additional books (Tobit, Judith, Wisdom, Sirach, Baruch, and 1 and 2 Maccabees) as well as additional parts of Daniel and Esther that are not found in the Protestant Bible. These deuterocanonical books were included in the Septuagint, the Greek translation of the Hebrew Scriptures used during Jesus' time. In contrast, the Protestant Bible has 66 books, following the canon of the Hebrew Bible established by Jewish rabbis around 90 AD.

A number of English translations of the Catholic Bible have been used over the years. The Catholic Bishops Conference of England and Wales has most recently approved the use of the English Standard Version (ESV) Catholic Edition to be read in church, starting from Advent 2024. This is a modern and accurate English translation of the Bible, based on the Revised Standard Version (RSV).

How should I read the Bible?

The Bible is a collection of books in broadly chronological sequence, with considerable overlap between certain books reflecting different traditions. For example Deuteronomy and Leviticus both focus on the law which the people of Israel were expected to follow, but they take different perspectives. This commonality of content with differences of emphasis can be seen most clearly in the four Gospels. The purpose of the books also differs considerably, with some acting as a historical record, whereas others focus on the prophets or are a collection of wisdom literature, and yet others are songs of praise.

Great Adventure Bible

While it can certainly be done, reading the Bible from start to finish is challenging and is not necessarily the best way to get a clear view of the story of salvation. One way to read the Bible recommended by our Diocesan teaching staff has been developed by a US Catholic scholar, Jeff Cavins. Jeff has developed a colour-coded timeline approach that walks the reader through the key books of the Bible. This system, and the accompanying study version of the Catholic Revised Standard Version of the Bible, are published by Ascension Press and are described in more detail here.

Other editions of the Bible

There are many editions of the Bible at different price points. The Catholic bookshop St Pauls Multimedia has a web page dedicated to different Catholic Bibles that can be ordered online.

Word on Fire Bible

The Word on Fire Institute, led by Bishop Robert Barron, is currently publishing a beautiful and inspiring study Bible in sections: see here for more details.

Online version of the Bible

The Revised Standard Version of the Catholic Bible can be read online here.

Additional Bible study resources

Bergsma and Pitre’s ‘Catholic Introduction to the Bible’ (2018, Ignatius Press) gives an excellent, accessible but thorough treatment of the historical, theological and liturgical aspects of each Bible book, and provides a useful introduction before reading the biblical text itself.

The Zondervan Atlas of the Bible allows one to understand the geography of the Bible, as well as the historical context.

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Planning your Visit

Welcome to our parish

We are pleased to have you as a member of our varied community. We have people from all walks of life and from many countries and we hope you will feel at home here.

Meet us at Tea and Coffee after Mass

Why not stay for tea or coffee after Mass on the first Sunday of every month - both at Hawkhurst and Goudhurst - and meet Fr Ethelbert and your fellow parishioners?

Parish Register

We would appreciate you filling out your details in the Parish Register form and returning it to us. You can do this by emailing a scan to the parish office, putting it in the post, or dropping it in to the Parish Office in person.

Volunteering

It would be great if you could help out the parish by volunteering. We have a lot of activities going on and it's a great way to meet others in the parish. If this is of interest, please download the Parish Volunteer form and return it to us as above.

Donating

We are self-financing as a parish and need to raise funds to support our Priest in Charge, maintain our buildings and fund our activities. We receive no subsidies from the Archdiocese or the wider church. We would be most grateful if you would consider taking out a Standing Order to support us. Applicable to those who pay income tax, this allows us to recover any basic rate tax that you pay to HMRC, increasing the value of your donation by 20%. If you would be happy to do this, please download the Standing Order form and return it to us as explained above.