Fasting and the virtue of Moderation:

To forgo a thing completely is to prepare to forget it. If I never eat another piece of chocolate, I may forget all about chocolate, but I may also soon substitute something even mor e dangerous for its taste: drugs, consumerism, a hardened selfishness. 

To do something commonly but to do it in right proportion, on the other hand, is to win the struggle with it every day. 

To have one handful of salted peanuts, one piece of chocolate, one glass of wine in the midst of plenty, one car in a culture that counts its wealth in two-car garages, now that is mortification!

Both for faith in Christ and for the study of sacred Scripture we need humility. 

Jesus came to reveal God’s mysteries to us, his plans for our salvation, and the authentic meaning of the Scriptures; but only the humble will let him teach them. 

One who thinks he is wise and just, wants to do things by himself; he accepts neither Master nor Savior. 

This situation has been perpetuated down through the centuries whenever proud men have rejected the magisterium and mediation of the Church, which is the official depositary of the word of God and of the sacraments of salvation. 

Jesus once asked: “When the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on earth?” (Lk 18:8) He will certainly not find it among the proud, nor in men who are puffed up with their knowledge, but he will find it among the humble and simple.

Fasting and the virtue of Moderation:

To forgo a thing completely is to prepare to forget it. If I never eat another piece of chocolate, I may forget all about chocolate, but I may also soon substitute something even mor e dangerous for its taste: drugs, consumerism, a hardened selfishness. 

To do something commonly but to do it in right proportion, on the other hand, is to win the struggle with it every day. 

To have one handful of salted peanuts, one piece of chocolate, one glass of wine in the midst of plenty, one car in a culture that counts its wealth in two-car garages, now that is mortification!

Both for faith in Christ and for the study of sacred Scripture we need humility. 

Jesus came to reveal God’s mysteries to us, his plans for our salvation, and the authentic meaning of the Scriptures; but only the humble will let him teach them. 

One who thinks he is wise and just, wants to do things by himself; he accepts neither Master nor Savior. 

This situation has been perpetuated down through the centuries whenever proud men have rejected the magisterium and mediation of the Church, which is the official depositary of the word of God and of the sacraments of salvation. 

Jesus once asked: “When the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on earth?” (Lk 18:8) He will certainly not find it among the proud, nor in men who are puffed up with their knowledge, but he will find it among the humble and simple.

I Choose the RSV2CE

I choose the RSV2CE 

I am responsible for walking out my own salvation with fear and trembling.  Though others will be judged on what they teach. I will be judged on my response to The Word - the ultimate authority. 

God made me. And Words mean something to me. To me what is chosen in Gods word is SUPER IMPORTANT.  Because of that I want the best English translation I can possibly get. Therefore I choose to use the RSV2CE. I know I’m not a scholar but I do like to study. And God chose every word he chose to say. I believe when trying to interpret meaning it could be confused. Only the actual words are correct. So I think I would like to read the closest word for word and ask God to give meaning. 

What version I like...is not the test. God word is the test. It should not matter what I like. He says what He wants to say. (Some bad translation and bad notes)

Authority is very important. Without it we don’t know what or who to believe. 

Because the LXX is the oldest complete translation of the whole Bible and it is in the Vatican library and it has the deurocanon I will use the catholic Bible. 

(If you are looking for the oldest available edition of a more inclusive Bible, Codex Sinaiticus (circa 350 C.E.) would fit the bill. However, its Greek translations of the Hebrew Bible are not the oldest witnesses we have to the Hebrew/Aramaic scriptures. The Dead Sea Scrolls (circa 250 B.C.E.–70 C.E.) are centuries older than Codex Sinaiticus, but they are extremely fragmentary and rarely make up anything close to complete books. The Old Greek translations of the Hebrew/Aramaic scriptures—popularly called the “Septuagint”—occasionally testify to a Hebrew/Aramaic text even more ancient than the Dead Sea Scrolls (the Pentateuch began to be translated around 250 B.C.E.). In these instances, the Septuagint could, therefore, be called the oldest available Bible text. These Greek texts are, however, translations, and scholars are still sorting out the exact wording of the earliest recoverable texts. 

Because of the Masoretes’ meticulous work, some consider the Leningrad Codex (circa 1000 C.E.) or the Aleppo Codex (circa 925 C.E.) to be the best representatives of the Hebrew/Aramaic Bible. The problem is that the Masoretic manuscripts themselves are from the medieval era. At least materially, the Masoretic manuscripts are much later than the Dead Sea Scrolls, Old Greek translations, and Codex Sinaiticus. Each of these bodies of literature could in some sense be called the oldest Bible) 

Fr Luis said no translation is perfect. They all are balances of what the word says and means. Pick one and stick to it. 

I choose the RSV2CE because it is most accurate over all the others.  

All these years since I’ve came back Catholic in 2015 I picked the NABRE because I thought that was the Bible in the mass and I wanted all my readings to be one. But apparently it is not, they are still using the NAB and apparently the NAB is a bad translation. And the NABRE Bible notes that are required in every Bible deny even the faith. Learning these two very important things yesterday, I decided to in adherence to what Father Luis said pick-one and stick to it, I pick RSV2CE. 

All Bible teachers say that more than one version is best. Original (I don’t know), Very Literal, and Dynamic. Since I like to focus on only one I will read and study the Very Literal (RSV2CE), listen at mass to Dynamic (NAB), and pray with all, the DO Psalter, and Both Literal and Dynamic. And when reading others they use many translations also. This solves all my problems. I don’t have to limit myself. I am free in Jesus and He will help me understand whatever He wants me to know. 

Whatever I miss here I will receive in Heaven. I believe you Jesus and know you are guiding my decisions. 

I Choose the RSV2CE

I choose the RSV2CE 

I am responsible for walking out my own salvation with fear and trembling.  Though others will be judged on what they teach. I will be judged on my response to The Word - the ultimate authority. 

God made me. And Words mean something to me. To me what is chosen in Gods word is SUPER IMPORTANT.  Because of that I want the best English translation I can possibly get. Therefore I choose to use the RSV2CE. I know I’m not a scholar but I do like to study. And God chose every word he chose to say. I believe when trying to interpret meaning it could be confused. Only the actual words are correct. So I think I would like to read the closest word for word and ask God to give meaning. 

What version I like...is not the test. God word is the test. It should not matter what I like. He says what He wants to say. (Some bad translation and bad notes)

Authority is very important. Without it we don’t know what or who to believe. 

Because the LXX is the oldest complete translation of the whole Bible and it is in the Vatican library and it has the deurocanon I will use the catholic Bible. 

(If you are looking for the oldest available edition of a more inclusive Bible, Codex Sinaiticus (circa 350 C.E.) would fit the bill. However, its Greek translations of the Hebrew Bible are not the oldest witnesses we have to the Hebrew/Aramaic scriptures. The Dead Sea Scrolls (circa 250 B.C.E.–70 C.E.) are centuries older than Codex Sinaiticus, but they are extremely fragmentary and rarely make up anything close to complete books. The Old Greek translations of the Hebrew/Aramaic scriptures—popularly called the “Septuagint”—occasionally testify to a Hebrew/Aramaic text even more ancient than the Dead Sea Scrolls (the Pentateuch began to be translated around 250 B.C.E.). In these instances, the Septuagint could, therefore, be called the oldest available Bible text. These Greek texts are, however, translations, and scholars are still sorting out the exact wording of the earliest recoverable texts. 

Because of the Masoretes’ meticulous work, some consider the Leningrad Codex (circa 1000 C.E.) or the Aleppo Codex (circa 925 C.E.) to be the best representatives of the Hebrew/Aramaic Bible. The problem is that the Masoretic manuscripts themselves are from the medieval era. At least materially, the Masoretic manuscripts are much later than the Dead Sea Scrolls, Old Greek translations, and Codex Sinaiticus. Each of these bodies of literature could in some sense be called the oldest Bible) 

Fr Luis said no translation is perfect. They all are balances of what the word says and means. Pick one and stick to it. 

I choose the RSV2CE because it is most accurate over all the others.  

All these years since I’ve came back Catholic in 2015 I picked the NABRE because I thought that was the Bible in the mass and I wanted all my readings to be one. But apparently it is not, they are still using the NAB and apparently the NAB is a bad translation. And the NABRE Bible notes that are required in every Bible deny even the faith. Learning these two very important things yesterday, I decided to in adherence to what Father Luis said pick-one and stick to it, I pick RSV2CE. 

All Bible teachers say that more than one version is best. Original (I don’t know), Very Literal, and Dynamic. Since I like to focus on only one I will read and study the Very Literal (RSV2CE), listen at mass to Dynamic (NAB), and pray with all, the DO Psalter, and Both Literal and Dynamic. And when reading others they use many translations also. This solves all my problems. I don’t have to limit myself. I am free in Jesus and He will help me understand whatever He wants me to know. 

Whatever I miss here I will receive in Heaven. I believe you Jesus and know you are guiding my decisions. 

Temptations by patience and humility

"Many try to fly away from temptations only to fall more deeply into them; for you cannot win a battle by mere flight. It is only by patience and humility that you will be strengthened against the enemy. Those who shun them outwardly and do not pull them out by the roots will make no progress; for temptations will soon return to harass them and they will be in a worse state. It is only gradually—with patience and endurance and with God's grace—that you will overcome temptations sooner than by your own efforts and anxieties . . . Gold is tried by fire and the upright person by temptation. Often we do not know what we can do until temptation shows us what we are . . . This is how temptation is: first we have a thought, followed by strong imaginings, then the pleasure and evil emotions, and finally consent. This is how the enemy gains full admittance, because he was not resisted at the outset. The slower we are to resist, the weaker we daily become and the stronger the enemy is against us." — Thomas à Kempis, p. 32-33

AN EXCERPT FROM

Imitation of Christ