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When the annual Applied Biblical Studies Conference, held on the campus of Franciscan University of Steubenville, wrapped up on July 29, 2011, the staff of the St. Paul Center was more than pleased. The conference, which featured talks on the Gospel of Matthew by Dr. Scott Hahn, Dr. Brant Pitre, Dr. Michael Barber, Fr. Pablo Gazenz, Dr. John Bergsma, and other Center Fellows, was itself a rousing success. Equally successful, however, was the annual Journey Through Scripture Parish-Based Bible Study Training Session, which takes place every year in conjunction with the ABS conference.
This year, over 135 men and women participated in the three-day training session, which gave attendees the knowledge and materials they need to launch the Bible study series in their own parish. This year, three of the four Journey Through Scripture studies—“Genesis to Jesus,” “The Bible and the Blessed Virgin Mary,” and “The Bible and the Sacraments”—were presented by St. Paul Center staff and fellows. The fourth study—“The Bible and the Mass”—will return next year.
As in years past, the feedback the Center received was tremendous.
“I am a cradle Catholic who has done minimal Bible reading,” confessed one attendee. “But now I’m no longer intimidated by the Bible.”
“It has long been on my ‘bucket list’ to come here,” wrote another. “I simply took the workshop as part of the experience. I learned so much, however, that now I want to share it in my parish.”
“I consider myself very knowledgeable about the Bible,” a third participant told us. “Nevertheless, I was blown away by some of the talks.”
Much of the rest of the feedback echoed those sentiments. Phrases such as “the best program I’ve experienced,” “absolutely astounded,” and “my heart was on fire” cover the pages of the evaluation forms and emails we’ve received over the past few weeks. Needless to say, we’re thrilled that the fruit of our hard work and your support has paid off in such a satisfying and, for many, life-changing way.
We’re also excited to announce that three of the Journey Through Scripture studies—“Genesis to Jesus,” “The Bible and the Mass,” and “The Bible and the Sacraments”—are now available in their entirety in Spanish. That includes the PowerPoint slides, presenter notes, student notes, and lesson outlines. From this point forward, at all future Journey Through Scripture training sessions, attendees can opt to receive the materials in both languages.
Likewise, those currently presenting one of the English language studies in their parish, but who would like to offer the studies in Spanish as well, simply need to call the St. Paul Center at 740-264-9535 or email mattleonard@salvationhistory.com, to receive a CD with all the necessary materials.
The Spanish-language studies have been two years in the making, and were made possible by a generous grant from Santiago and Wilma Rosado. For their generosity and the hard work of their entire team, the St. Paul Center is extremely grateful.