Yes, I ordered another Bible. How many can one have? Well, if you're curious enough, I guess you can't have too many. Plus, if you consider all of the rooms in your house that need to have one, and the fact that one should always travel with you, I don't have enough, yet.
I bought a new one recently, from adoremusbooks.com. This is an awesome site for religious education stuff, for homeschool materials. Although, I will say that it is predominantly Catholic materials, there are still non-Catholic stuff, like Math, English, Science resources that don't always have Catholic teachings in them. I like to go here when I am ordering a set of books, that if I bought them through a homeschool curriculum publisher, they'd be much more expensive.
Anyhow, this Bible is called "The Catholic Teen Bible" in the Prove It! series, put out by Our Sunday Visitor. This Bible is so awesome in that it has all sorts of sections included for teens to read that clarify our faith. It has articles that help address common questions that teens would have about God, humanity, sin, Catholicism, prayer, Mass and the Church. I love it!
I started reading a bunch of the sections to my husband, Donald, and he seemed impressed, too. There is a section on vocations, and talks about marriage, and it being a covenant and solemn commitment. Of course, we always KNOW this, but it is so nice to read out loud, as a reminder that it does mean something. We're not just roommates. We're not just partners, but two souls that have come together to live our lives as images of God and his love for us. Sort of a big commitment, huh? Marriage meant a lot to me before I came back to Catholicism, but it has become somewhat richer since I have read more on the purpose of humanity.
What does the Catholic faith have?
-St.Peter was appointed by Jesus Christ, Himself, to look over the Church and to keep the Word passed on. Our Popes have a clear line all the way to St.Peter as shepherds of the Church. John 21:15-17
-We have traditional prayers that have been used by the faithful since the time of Christ, and before, that have been spoken to God many times over.
-We have a Church with awesome tradition that has been handed down and is practiced in any Church you walk into at any Mass. You can always know what to expect to happen, what to say, when to stand, kneel, sit, and reflect.
-We have Jesus Christ, himself, in the Blessed Eucharist. We, Catholics, believe that he is there, present in the Eucharist, and it is a feeling almost indescribable when consumed. Mark 14:22-25
-If Jesus Christ was not really present in the Eucharist, why are there people who try to steal the Holy Eucharist, only to try to desecrate it away from God's House? He is there!
-Mary, Our Mother. Catholics do not worship Mary, but we do pray for her intercession. Why? She is the mother of Our Lord! Who would be better to ask for help than she. I must say that coming back to God and His Church is not very easy, for such a stubborn person as me. Being away from God is like being away from my own father, for an inexcusable length of time. I am rebuilding the relationship, and it's not as easy to speak to Him. I don't know why. Maybe I have a few more steps, spiritually, that I need to take, and I'll be much more comfortable. However, having become a mother, myself, I can feel Mary. I can feel a closeness and relate to her. I think about all that my children will go through in life. Never will they go through what Jesus went through, thank God! But life has many trials, and I wince at the thought of my children ever being hurt, by anyone or anything. I can look to Mary when motherhood gets a little sticky. I can look to Mary when my marriage is a little hectic. She is my calm, and I know that she is a good source to go to when I need support.
-The last on my list is just the fantastic gifts in which we experience Jesus's presence. Those gifts are the Sacraments: Baptism, Eucharist, Confirmation, Reconciliation, Anointing of the Sick, Holy Orders (imagine a Father Eamon!), and Matrimony. All of these were moments that Jesus spent with his disciples, and we Christians are allowed to spend with him, now. So cool!
Time is closing in. I want to sit and read more on Fatima. I need to sit and read ALL about Fatima. So much is going on the world, and, not to sound too conspiracy theory, signs are slowly popping up that we are about to have a great battle. I wonder if my anxiety and dread (the best word I can think of) are misplaced. I have to wonder if these are those instinctual feelings that are like what animals get when something bad is about to happen. You know how animals get weird right before a storm? Has God given us that instinct to know when it is "time"? All I can say is that I am so glad to be much closer to home plate, right now. I made it back to the Church, and now all I have to do is pray, read, act (for my children and loved ones), and wait.
Okay, so this Bible will help me, maybe in deciphering all of this, right? I don't know. I know that I am pretty excited. I have a children's' Bible for the kids, but it is mainly stories. It's not the Bible, cover-to-cover. I have gone to the children's Story [clue word] Bible several times to see how the gospel of the week is worded, and it's not there! How crazy is that? So, I got the teen version as I am hoping it will serve my two up into their teen years. Okay, I will share more as I read it, and offer any more information on it.
Thank you & May God Bless.
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