PRESENTER S GUIDE M eo e og ica Knoing God Through Sacred Scripture Publisher: Rev. Jaes Socias MIDWEST THEOLOGIAL FORUM Doners Grove, Illinois
FAITH AND REVELATION Knoing God Through Sacred Scripture TABLE OF ONTENTS viii Abbreviations used for the 2 hapter 1: viii General Abbreviations 6 hapter 2: Books of the Bible 1 Ho to Use This Presenter s Guide Thirst for God Natural Revelation 10 hapter 3: 49 Art redits Knoing God Through Divine Revelation 13 hapter 4: The Old Testaent Prepares the Way for hrist 17 hapter 5: hrist Revealed in Sacred Scripture His Hidden Life 20 hapter 6: hrist Revealed in Sacred Scripture His Public Ministry hrist Revealed in Sacred Scripture His Passion, Death, and Resurrection M eo e og ica 23 hapter 7: 27 hapter 8: Divine Revelation in the Early hurch 32 hapter 9: The Transission of Divine Revelation 36 hapter 10: Sacred Scripture God s Inspired Word 39 hapter 11: Madonna of Huility by Sano di Pietro PRESENTER S GUIDE The Stcture of Sacred Scripture 42 hapter 12: Sacred Scripture in the Life of the hurch 46 hapter 13: Ansering hallenges to Divine Revelation v
FAITH AND REVELATION Knoing God Through Sacred Scripture Ho to Use This Presenter s Guide BEFORE THE FIRST SESSION Overvie of hapter 1 Be sure that you and each of the participants have a cy of this book: Guidelines Read these guidelines before you start to plan hat you ill do in each session: M eo e og ica We have also desned the Presenter s Guide to aid you in your presentation, covering one chapter per session. We encourage you to tailor the activities and questions to your participants, taking into account their knoledge level, hat they he to get out of these sessions, and the aount of tie you have to eet. For exaple, you choose to forego the Opening Activity altogether if your participants have not yet read the aterial, or you choose to oit soe of the if you are pressed for tie. ongratulations! You have been entsted to help others gro in their love of God by groing in their knoledge of the atholic faith. Whether the participants in your sessions ill be hh-school students attending relious education classes, adults ho ant to learn ore, or inquiring non-atholics ho ant to learn about the faith, e have ade this Presenter s Guide to help every participant better crehend the aterial in the book. As the presenter, your tendency be to schedule ore activities and questions than can be cleted in the aount of tie that a session lasts. Start out ith less, and have a fe questions or activities in ind if there is tie at the end of a session. You should have no proble, for exaple, introducing a discussion tic fro an earlier section after having presented the hole chapter. Faith and Revelation: Knoing God Through Sacred Scripture, Parish Edition ISBN 978-1-936045-80-8 Available fro MTF at.theologicalfo.org At the tie of registration, give each participant a suary of hapter 1 and have hi or her read hapter 1 before the first session. You ant your registrar to reproduce and distribute page 50 in this guide to the participants before the first session. It is a good idea to en and close each session ith a prayer. You choose to use the sae prayer to en and close each session, especially a pular prayer such as the Lord s Prayer, the Hail Mary, or the Glory Be. If you prefer, each session has a suggested Opening Prayer that is related to the chapter. PRESENTER'S GUIDE hapter One 1
FAITH AND REVELATION Knoing God Through Sacred Scripture Philoshy Derived fro Greek eaning literally love of knoledge, philoshy is the pursuit of tth and understanding through the application of huan reason. (p. 4) End The priary goal of the intention and the purpose pursued in an action. (p. 4) Agnosticis A belief that the existence of God cannot be knon or proven. (p. 8) Atheis The denial of the existence of God. (p. 8) Relious being A being created by God in order Key Ideas These are reprinted fro the textbook for your reference: Huans are rational beings, crised of body and soul, ho are desned for happiness. things e need. God has given us a thirst for hi that can never be fully satisfied in this life. God reveals hiself to us through reason and Divine Revelation. to us about hiself siply through the existence of creation. When God creates us, he rites knoledge of hiself on our hearts, and through that ark e can learn soething about God. (p. 9) Divine Revelation God s counication of hiself by hich he akes knon the ystery of his divine plan: a gift of God s self-counication that is realized by deeds and ords through tie, the fullness of hich as the sending of his OnlyBegotten Son, Jesus hrist. (p. 9) M eo e og ica God has desned us so that e ant and enjoy the Natural revelation What God counicates hapter 1: THIRST FOR GOD to live in counion ith God. Every huan person, by nature and vocation, is a relious being and ill not live a te huan life if he or she does not choose freely to live in this bond ith God. Because every huan person has been created to live in counion ith God, his or her ultiate happiness can only be found in God. (p. 8) AT THE BEGINNING OF THE SESSION Opening Prayer Vocabulary List These are reprinted fro the textbook for your reference: Begin the session ith an ening prayer such as the folloing or incorporate the Scripture passage that is referenced in the Opening Activity ( Wis 13:1-9; see belo): orporeal being A creature endoed ith a O God our Father, in Jesus you call all hristians to be sns of living faith. Free ill This gift fro God includes the poer By the l of the Holy Spirit, Lead e to be thankful for the gift of faith, and by that gift ay I gro in y relationship ith Jesus, your Son, and be a confident itness to hristian he and joy to all that I eet. physical body. (p. 3) of directing one s on actions ithout constraint. This akes possible the choice to love God. (p. 3) Reason Reason is the poer to ake inferences, judgents, and conclusions fro facts or preises. (p. 3) Spiritual being A creature endoed ith an Adapted fro A Faily Prayer for the Year of Faith (.usccb.org) and fro St. Augustine, onf. 10, 20: PL 32, 791 Soul The spiritual principle of the body; the Let e seek you so that y soul ay live, for y body dras life fro y soul and y soul dras life fro you. In the nae of Jesus hrist our Lord. Aen. innerost aspect of a person by hich he or she is ost especially in God s iage. (p. 3) iortal soul. (p. 3) 2 hapter One PRESENTER'S GUIDE
FAITH AND REVELATION Knoing God Through Sacred Scripture Overvie of the hapter If you did not have the registrar distribute the suary to the participants, read the suary (p. 50 in this guide) to the. Opening Activity Have the participants clete the Opening Activity (p. 2). Key Ideas Have a participant read aloud the Key Ideas (p. 2). WHO AM I? ( pp. 2 3) 6. What is free ill? It is our real but liited freedo to ake choices and pursue courses of action that e believe ill ake us happy. Vocabulary WHERE IS HAPPINESS TO BE FOUND? ( pp. 4 5) Have a participant read aloud the definitions of the vocabulary ords on page 4. Revie Allo soe tie for the participants to read or revie this section. Vocabulary Have a participant read aloud the definitions of the vocabulary ords on page 3. Revie Allo soe tie for the participants to read or revie this section. 1. What is a definition of a huan person? A huan person is a rational being, crising body and soul, ho is desned for happiness. 2. What does it ean to be a corporeal being? What does it ean to be a spiritual being? A being is corporeal in that it has a body. A being is spiritual in that it has an iortal soul. 3. What does it ean to say that e are rational beings? It eans that e have the faculty of reason, i.e., the ability to think and for abstract ideas beyond hat e perceive through our physical senses. 4. What does it ean to say that e are dependent and interdependent beings? It eans that e depend upon other persons for our develent and ell-being, and they likeise depend upon us. 5. What does it ean to say that e are desned for happiness? It eans e are created ith a natural desire for happiness, and our rational free ill is oriented toard seeking happiness. 7. What are the ajor eans by hich huan beings typically pursue happiness? Pele pursue happiness through ealth, honors, fae or glory, poer, health and physical fitness, physical pleasure, intellectual pursuits, oral pursuits, friendship, and the vision of God. 8. Explain: Our fundaental huan needs and desires are oriented toard soething that is good, but the specific ays in hich e seek to fulfill these desires not alays be good for us. We do not alays recognize the te object of our desires. Soeties, this failure leads us to seek to satisfy these desires in ays that har us such as looking for love through illicit relationships or alleviating hunger through excessive self-indulgence. 9. Ho do need, desire, and pleasure ork together for our benefit? Give an exaple. For every te huan need, there exists a desire to attain it and a pleasure in reaching it. Desire and pleasure ork together so e ill seek hat is good for us. For exaple, the need for nutrition is experienced as a desire for food ( hunger), and e derive pleasure fro satisfying that desire (eating); this akes us ant to repeat the experience. 10. Illustrate the folloing stateent ith an exaple: We do not necessarily call to ind the te end of our desires hen e act upon the, but to do so can help us use our reason in order to ake good choices. Using the exaple of eating, e usually eat because e feel hunger and ant Midest Theological Fo.theologicalfo.org PRESENTER'S GUIDE hapter One 3
FAITH AND REVELATION Knoing God Through Sacred Scripture to satisfy that desire, not necessarily because e kno e need certain nutrients in order to survive. Hoever, e cannot eat anything and everything e ant, or e risk doing har to our health. As rational beings, e need to evaluate our tions and ake good choices. So e do best to select foods that satisfy not only hunger but also nutritional needs. OUR NATURAL DESIRE FOR GOD ( pp. 5 9) GOD S SUPERNATURAL DESIRE FOR US; WHAT S NEXT? ( p. 9) Vocabulary Have a participant read aloud the definitions of the vocabulary ords on page 9. Revie Allo soe tie for the participants to read or revie this section. Vocabulary Have a participant read aloud the definitions of the vocabulary ords on page 8. Revie 14. Ho is an naturally relious? We are created by God, and e naturally seek and desire God. Our relationship ith God is part of our huan identity so uch so that, if e do not choose freely to live in this relationship, e are not living a tly huan life. If e seek te happiness, then e ust seek God. 16. What is the cliax of God s self-revelation? The Person of Jesus hrist is the fullness of Revelation. M eo e og ica 11. According to St. Thoas Aquinas, hy is it that nothing on earth can ever cletely satisfy a huan being? Our ultiate desire is for God alone. We can take pleasure and a easure of happiness in any things; nonetheless, nothing but God ill ever totally and peranently fulfill us in such a ay that e no longer desire anything else. 15. What are the to ays e can kno God? We can kno God through huan reason and through Divine Revelation, by hich e can coe to have faith. Allo soe tie for the participants to read or revie this section. 12. The huan heart desires to kno hat is te, good, and beautiful. What does this ean? Our natural huan quest for tth, goodness, and beauty is in reality a sn of our desire for God, ho is perfect tth, perfect goodness, and perfect beauty. 17. According to Dei Verbu, 2, hat is the character of the full and peranent fulfillent that God ishes to give us? It is to becoe sharers in the divine nature. Additional Activities 13. Describe to ays in hich e are ade in the iage and likeness of God. One ay is that e have reason and free ill. The other is that e have the poer to love and are called to live in a loving counion ith God and other persons. If there is tie, have the participants clete the Guided Exercise (p. 8). The Triuph of St. Thoas Aquinas by Gozzoli. 4 hapter One PRESENTER'S GUIDE
FAITH AND REVELATION Knoing God Through Sacred Scripture LOSING ATIVITIES Have the participants clete the losure or Alternative Assessent (p. 10). Ask the participants to anser the Discussion Questions (p. 10; ansers belo). These can be given as a quiz or used to lead a class discussion. Discussion Questions (p. 10) 1. What is a good definition of a huan person? A huan person is a rational being, crising body and soul, ho is desned for happiness. 2. What does it ean to be a corporeal being? What does it ean to be a spiritual being? A being is corporeal in that it has a body. A being is spiritual in that it has an iortal soul. 3. What is reason? What is free ill? Reason is the poer to ake inferences, judgents, and conclusions fro facts or preises. Free ill is our real but liited freedo to ake choices and pursue courses of action that e believe ill ake us happy. 4. Ho do need, desire, and pleasure ork together for our good? Give an exaple. For every te huan need, there exists a desire to attain it and a pleasure in reaching it. Desire and pleasure ork together so e ill seek hat is good for us. For exaple, the need for nutrition is experienced as a desire for food ( hunger), and e derive pleasure fro satisfying that desire (eating); this akes us ant to repeat the experience. 5. According to St. Thoas Aquinas, hy is it that nothing on earth can ever cletely satisfy a huan being? Our ultiate desire is for God alone. We can take pleasure and a easure of happiness in any things, but nothing but God ill ever cletely and peranently fulfill us in such a ay that e no longer desire anything else. 6. We are ade in the iage and likeness of God. What does this ean? Describe to eanings of this stateent. One is that e have reason and free ill. The other is that e have the poer to love and are called to live in a loving counion ith God and other persons. 7. What are the to ays by hich e can kno God? We can kno God through huan reason and through Divine Revelation, by hich e can coe to have faith. 8. What is the cliax of Divine Revelation? The Person of Jesus hrist is the fullness of Revelation. Overvie of the Next hapter Read this suary to the participants: The next chapter explains that everyone is capable of discerning certain tths about God and his oral la because it is ritten on our hearts by God. It explains ho reason can prove that God exists and ho faith takes up here reason leaves off. The chapter also deonstrates the difference beteen natural faith and supernatural faith. Key Ideas of the Next hapter Have a participant read aloud the Key Ideas ( p. 12). These are reprinted fro the textbook for your reference: Natural revelation is hat e can kno through the natural l of reason about God and ho he ants us to live. Through reason, e can kno that God exists; e can kno any of his attributes; and e can kno the oral la by hich he ants us to live. Because of our liitations, faith suppleents our natural knoledge of God and ho e should live. AT THE END OF THE SESSION Read the Next hapter Have the participants read hapter 2 before the next session. losing Prayer End the session ith a closing prayer. Exaples include the Lord s Prayer, the Hail Mary, or the Glory Be. NOTES Midest Theological Fo.theologicalfo.org PRESENTER'S GUIDE hapter One 5
FAITH AND REVELATION Knoing God Through Sacred Scripture Natural relion As posed to relion infored by Divine Revelation, natural relion is based upon reason and ordinary experience rather than upon Divine Revelation. It is the product of the ethical and divine understanding available to huan reason. Natural relion shos us that to be huan is to be relious. Every ancient society as relious, as are the societies of our day, both tending to the orship of false gods in isguided quests for the divine. (p. 18) AT THE BEGINNING OF THE SESSION Opening Prayer Vocabulary List These are reprinted fro the textbook for your reference: Five Ways St. Thoas Aquinas s five prosals (St. Thoas Aquinas) Opening Activity M eo e og ica for ho the existence of God can be knon through reason. These include the arguent fro otion, the arguent fro causes, the arguent fro possibility and necessity, the arguent fro degrees of perfection, and the arguent fro governance. (p. 13) Grant e, O Lord y God, a ind to kno you, a heart to seek you, isdo to find you, conduct pleasing to you, faithful perseverance in aiting for you, and a he of finally ebracing you. Aen. hapter 2: NATURAL REVELATION Begin the session ith an ening prayer such as the folloing: Have the participants clete the Opening Activity ( p. 12). Principle of causality The process of knoing God s existence through the realization that all creation ust orinate fro a First ause. Also, in a ore general ay, the philoshical tth that all things ust have a sufficient cause. (p. 14) Natural revelation What God counicates to us about hiself siply through the existence of creation. When God creates, he iprints a ark, and through that ark e can learn soething about God. (p. 16) Natural la The ethical knoledge e can 6 hapter To acquire through the application of huan reason to probe the tth that is ritten on the huan heart, as distinct fro the oral teaching derived fro Scripture and Tradition. Natural la is the rational participation of an in the plan of God as ell as the objective order established by God that deterines the requireents for pele to thrive and reach fulfillent. (p. 17) KNOWING GOD THROUGH REASON ( pp. 12-13) Revie Allo soe tie for the participants to read or revie this section. 1. In his Letter to the Roans, hat are three things St. Paul says everyone should kno fro reason alone? Everyone should kno that God exists, that he is Aly, and that there is a oral la governing huan nature that e oug to obey. PRESENTER'S GUIDE