God’s Covenant Plan, Lesson 1.1

God’s Covenant Plan

Lesson One: How a Catholic Starts to Read the Bible

Lesson Objectives

  1. To learn how to read the Bible the way the Catholic Church has always read it.
  2. To understand the concepts of “salvation history” and “covenant” and their importance for reading the Bible.
  3. To learn the key points of the creation story in the Bible’s first book, Genesis.

I. Course Introduction and Overview

A. Reading the Bible Cover-to-Cover

In this class, we’re going to be reading the Bible from cover to cover. Pretty ambitious for a beginners, you say?

You’re right. We won’t be able to go in depth - you have a lifetime of Bible reading to do that. But we’re going to give you the tools you need so that you can start that lifetime of reading. When you’re done with this class, you’ll be able to follow "the plot" of the Bible, keep track of all the characters, and know what the story’s all about.

That may be news to some of you - that there’s a single plot and story to the Bible. Well there is. It’s not just a collection of individual books. All those individual books, when joined together and put in order by the ancient Church Fathers under the guidance of the Holy Spirit , now make up a single book. And this book tells only one story. We’re going to tell you what that story is and how to follow it through all the individual books of the Bible.

Before we do that , we’re going to begin in this lesson with an overview of some basic principles of Catholic Bible-reading.

B. Tips for On-Line Learning

If you’re new to on-line instruction, you may benefit from reading our Tips for On-Line Learning.

Continue to Section 2

Lesson Outline

  1. Course Introduction and Overview
    1. Reading the Bible Cover-to-Cover
    2. Tips for On-Line Learning
  2. Going By the Book: How a Catholic Reads the Bible
    1. Divine Revelation: How God Speaks to Us
    2. Interpreting the Bible: The Three Rules
    3. Scripture is Divine: Inspiration
    4. Scripture is Human: The Bible as Religious Literature and History
  3. Salvation History: The Story the Bible Tells
    1. Salvation History and Covenants
    2. The Old and New Testament
  4. Starting in the Beginning: An Introduction to Genesis
    1. The Story of Creation
    2. The Word and the Sabbath
  5. Study Questions

Other Lessons

  • Lesson Two: Creation, Fall and Promise
    • Lesson Objectives
    1. To read Genesis 1-3 with understanding.
    2. To learn God’s “original intent” in creating man and woman.
    3. To understand the sin of Adam and Eve and understand God’s promise of a New Adam and a New Eve.

    Begin Lesson Two

  • Lesson Three: East of Eden, Headed to Egypt
    • Lesson Objectives
    1. To read Genesis 3-50 with understanding.
    2. To understand God’s covenants with Noah and with Abraham and to see how these covenants look forward to, and are fulfilled in the New Covenant of Jesus Christ.
    3. To appreciate the key figures in the story of Abraham - Melchizedek, circumcision, the sacrifice of Isaac - as they are interpreted in the Church’s tradition.

    Begin Lesson Three

  • Lesson Four: On the Way to the Promised Land
    • Lesson Objectives
    1. To read the Books of Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy with understanding.
    2. To understand God’s covenant with Israel at Sinai and to see how this covenant looks forward to and is fulfilled in the New Covenant of Jesus Christ.
    3. To appreciate the key figures and events - Moses, the Passover, and the vocation of Israel as “a kingdom of priests” - as they are interpreted in the Church’s tradition.

    Begin Lesson Four

  • Lesson Five: To Kingdom Come
    • Lesson Objectives
    1. To finish reading the Old Testament (from Joshua to Malachi) and to read with understanding.
    2. To understand the broad outlines of the history of Israel in light of God’s covenant with Abraham.
    3. To appreciate the crucial importance of God’s everlasting covenant with David.

    Begin Lesson Five

  • Lesson Six: Into the Kingdom of the Son
    • Lesson Objectives
    1. To read the New Testament with understanding.
    2. To understand how the New Testament depicts Jesus as the fulfillment of the covenants of the Old Testament.
    3. To appreciate, especially, the importance of God’s everlasting covenant with David for understanding the mission of Jesus and the Church as it is presented in the New Testament.

    Begin Lesson Six