It’s time for school! Yes, already! St. John School kicks off a new year this week, and we lift our teachers, students, and parents in prayer for a fruitful year of learning, growth, and relationship building with the Lord and others! We invite you to join us for the opening school Mass on Wednesday at 9 a.m. here at St. John Church followed by a Eucharistic Procession as we return our Eucharistic Lord to the school’s chapel.
And, it’s also, almost, time for the kick-off of Catholic Biblical School of Michigan’s class to begin right here at St. John Parish! We’re so excited to offer their “Bible Foundations” class here on Monday evenings, 7-9pm beginning September 15. More information will be presented next week following Masses and at their Information Night the next day on Monday, August 25 here at the Parish Center, but I would like to share with you some of my experience having taken CBSM’s classes.
While I had never delved into the Old Testament as thoroughly as we did in Year 1 of CBSM, I never felt “lost.” Actually, many of the “pieces and parts” I knew from Sunday and weekday Mass readings, started to fall more fully into place. I began to develop a larger “big picture” view of salvation history. And while the nuances of word choices and genealogies and historical and cultural background were all fascinating and aided understanding, I found that the larger part of my learning had nothing to do with “head knowledge” and everything to do with my “heart knowledge.” You know that expression sometimes used with frustration or exasperation or sometimes even awe: “You think you know a person!” Well, that would be my continual heart song of praise about God throughout my CBSM experience!
I guess, walking into the first class and year of CBSM, that I thought I “knew” God. I knew, at least, what I’d heard and experienced of him to that point in my life. Ahhh, but the most beautiful part is that God is always revealing more! And besides prayer and sacraments and the saints, etc., Scripture, his Holy Word does just that. As St. Augustine wrote, “The Holy Scripture are our letters from home.” (Remember Dcn. Dave just last week reminding us that this is not our home? We are on pilgrimage here on earth.)
Over and over again, just in Year 1 of CBSM, God revealed to me more and more of who He is. Did I “know” that he is loving, all-knowing, and all-powerful? Of course! Did I then or do I now “know” or fully comprehend the depths of his love, beauty, and goodness? No! But I began to know more of it and continue today to revel in it every time he reveals a new layer or has its power sink fully into my heart and mind. His hesed (covenantal love) captivated me, and I pray to grow deeper in love with Him each day, not just as a feeling but in the way I unite my will to His.
Over and over throughout that year of class, application questions like these would encourage us to delve into the heart of God: “What does this particular passage teach about God?” (Exodus) “What do we learn about God through these creative acts? (Genesis) “What do these stages (in the kingship of Saul) teach about how God can work in our lives?” (Samuel)
How can God work in our lives? One insight I was struck with while reading the book of Samuel is that he wants to help us be who he made us to be; he graces us with what we need, places us in places and circumstances that can precipitate a change. As with Saul, it is up to us whether the doors of our heart open and respond to the Lord’s call or reject and ignore the invitation.
Is the Lord calling YOU to deeper relationship, to discover more about his heart, not just for his people but for you personally through a Scripture Study class? Is Catholic Biblical School perhaps a way that he is inviting you to do so? I encourage you to discern that in prayer over the next few weeks, attend the Info Night, ask me questions, reach out to CBSM. Our Lord is all about invitation, desiring to reveal more and more of himself to us, drawing us into deeper relationship and action.
Whether you’re “well-versed” in the Bible, a beginner, or anywhere in between, this class offers depth while also providing a “foundation”; it offers historical and etymological details while also tying in application to today’s world; it offers the experiences of Biblical figures while also connecting to the individual learner (me/you) here and now. I would eagerly sign-up for this class again this year were I not already registered for Year 2 of Encounter School in Brighton! It’s that good! I pray the class will fill and that many of our parishioners are there learning more about the great depths of our Lord’s love for each of us personally.
Blessed be Jesus!
Shayne
P.S. – Cathyrn Torgerson will be our instructor this year. She was my instructor for Year 1 back in 2020, and she is incredibly knowledgeable with an evident love of the Lord!