Breaking Open The Word Of God

Volume three in a three-part series that functions as a pastoral tool for sharing the word of God; focuses on Cycle C and emphasizes using the lectionary in catechesis throughout the year.

Breaking Open Gods Word: A Three-year Cycle of Reflections on the Sunday Readings of the Liturgical Year invites readers to embark upon a journey through the riches of the Catholic Churchs three-year lectionary for readings for Sunday Mass. The lectionary, a sequence of appointed passages from the texts of the Old and New Testaments, pairs readings with the seasons and feasts of the church year. Sister Celine Goessl, a member of the Sisters of Mercy of the Holy Cross, has taken a lifetime practice of prayerful listening to the messages God shares through scriptural texts and brought it into conversation with her immersion in the details of daily life to create the collection of reflections appearing in Breaking Open Gods Word. The intent of this collection is to help Gods Word enflesh itself in the readers daily life and to empower him or her to take action to live as Christs presence in other peoples lives. You may watch the changing of the seasons in your parishs worship and hear the variety of texts read at Mass. As you do, and you find life presenting you with ever-changing challenges to your faith, Breaking Open Gods Word offers to accompany you on your daily journey. Along the way, Sister Celine Goessls prayerful reflections can offer you inspiration and guidance for living and witnessing faithfully in whatever circumstances you face each day.

"It is not enough to understand the Lectionary readings in their liturgical context. Knowledge of the biblical context of the Lectionary readings is vitally important, especially for facilitators of RCIA and other faith-sharing groups and for those who proclaim the Word. Breaking Open the Lectionary provides this essential background information by placing the readings for each Sunday of the liturgical year in their biblical contexts, as distinct from their contexts in the Lectionary, and explaining how knowledge of these contexts affects our ability to understand what the inspired authors intended to teach." "Breaking Open the Lectionary will help those who break open the Word to avoid misinterpreting Scripture by providing readers with the background information needed to recognize when the application of a particular passage to a person's life is faithful to the Bible and when it is not. While the book is for Cycle B, the readings for the Third, Fourth, and Fifth Sundays of Lent in Cycle A are also included for RCIA groups. Three sets of discussion questions - for Breaking Open the Word groups, other faith-sharing groups, and Bible study groups - round off each Sunday."--BOOK JACKET.

The final book of the Bible, Revelation prophesies the ultimate judgement of mankind in a series of allegorical visions, grisly images and numerological predictions. According to these, empires will fall, the "Beast" will be destroyed and Christ will rule a new Jerusalem. With an introduction by Will Self.

"Breaking Open the Word assists leaders of adult and teen Christian initiation, as well as Bible study groups, to "break open" and explore the word of God proclaimed in the Sunday liturgy. The Scripture readings in this book are taken directly from the texts use during the Mass, the Lectionary for Sunday Mass. After each reading, the pastoral commentary and reflection questions by biblical scholar Mary Katharine Deeley facilitate meditation and discussion, bringing Scripture alive and making it relevant to today. Breaking Open the Word can be used on its own or in combination with Liguori Publications' Journey of Faith RCIA program. Each reading is cross-referenced to a Journey of Faith lesson, enabling a Lectionary-based approach to catechesis for Christian initiation. Separate volumes of Breaking Open the Word are available for each year of the three-year liturgical cycle, and each includes additional materials for use during Lent and the Easter Triduum. Mary Katharine Deeley, MDiv, PhD, serves as the pastoral associate and director of Christ the Teacher Institute for the Sheil Catholic Center at Northwestern University"--

Breaking Open the Word assists leaders of adult and teen Christian initiation, as well as Bible study groups, to "break open" and explore the word of God proclaimed in the Sunday liturgy. The pastoral commentary and reflection questions by Biblical scholar Mary Katharine Deeley facilitate meditation and discussion, bringing Scripture alive and making it relevant to today. Breaking Open the Word can be used on its own or in combination with Liguori Publications' Journey of Faith RCIA program. Each liturgy is cross-referenced to a Journey of Faith lesson, enabling a Lectionary-based approach to catechesis for Christian initiation. Separate volumes of Breaking Open the Word are available for each year of the three-year liturgical cycle, and each includes additional materials for use during Lent and the Easter Triduum. Each volume of Breaking Open the Word features: The lectionary readings for all Sundays of the liturgical year, Advent through the Feast of Christ the King Readings for the third, fourth, and fifth Sundays of Lent for use when the Scrutinies are celebrated with the Elect The lectionary readings for the Easter Triduum The lectionary readings for those occasional Sunday feasts that supersede Ordinary Time celebrations Scripture commentary for each Sunday's Lectionary readings Discussion questions for every set of readings A cross-reference linking each Sunday's Lectionary readings to the Journey of Faith catechetical lessons A collection of brief gathering prayers and dismissal prayers for each phase of the initiation process

Landmark Text Now Revised and Expanded for a New Generation We all face hard times and obstacles in life--whether physically, emotionally, spiritually, financially, creatively, or relationally. Yet we have a God who is with us and for us. A God who, as Micah 2:13 says, is a "Breaker" who goes before us. Now revised and expanded, this new edition of Barbara Yoder's best-selling book will help you discover that the same God who led Moses and broke open the way for his people is leading the church today--and he will break open any way or route he has ordained for us to go through. Yet he does not do it alone. You are part of the breakthrough. Every believer filled with the Spirit has access to God's breaker anointing. We can move forward, therefore, with faith, confidence, and bold, courageous action. He is waiting for us to step out and change our lives, cities, and nations. God the Breaker goes before us--and where he goes, nothing can hold us back.

In this unique resource, Fr. Michael E. Connors, CSC, gathers and expertly guides the collective wisdom of experienced preachers and homilists to provide a unique resource that examines the preacher’s unique role as shepherd and a spiritual leader. The chapters will investigate these dual roles according to the roots of the Catholic spiritual tradition and provide practical advice for priests, deacons, seminarians in homiletics classes or preaching classes, retreat leaders, RCIA catechists—all who preach. Preaching as Spiritual Leadership provides solutions to the following questions: How is preaching embedded in the Church’s pastoral mission? What does it mean to be a shepherd and spiritual leader for others? How can a preacher flourish in the role of spiritual leader? How can we lead others into committed discipleship through preaching? To be a shepherd and spiritual leader, the preacher must be in some sense a mystic, who is filled with the Lord’s gracious presence, a presence to be shared with others. Homilists are a sacramental people, they must also be a mystagogues: ministers who can both lead the community’s ritual celebrations, and help the People of God to plunge into the liturgy with lively faith, to touch the holy realities behind them.