Category: Read Like a Catholic

Posts that discuss how to read classic works “in the tradition,” as well as posts intended to demonstrate what that looks like in practice.

Learning to See the Bible Whole

A recent book by John Bergsma, Bible Basics for Catholics: A New Picture of Salvation History, helps Catholics regain a sense of the unity of Scripture and points the way to grasping the real meaning of the Bible.Continue readingLearning to See the Bible Whole

Learn to Read Intelligently, Even When You Are Out of Your Depth

Check out my new blog on Catholic Social teaching, where I demonstrate a 4-step method of understanding almost anything you read.Continue readingLearn to Read Intelligently, Even When You Are Out of Your Depth

Biblical Illiteracy and the Modern Reader

U. S. Postage stamp commemorating Katherine Anne Porter

Teaching Katherine Anne Porter’s “The Jilting of Granny Weatherall” to Biblically illiterate college students reminded me of the great extent to which Western literature assumes familiarity with the Bible. Continue readingBiblical Illiteracy and the Modern Reader

Reading and the Moral Imagination

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Aristotle and C. S. Lewis agree: reading good fiction is good for you. It develops your moral imagination, by allowing you to imagine the consequences of actions in particular situations.Continue readingReading and the Moral Imagination

The Ancient Christian Art of Spiritual Reading

Reading the Bible doesn’t have to be — and shouldn’t be — an intellectual grind. Lectio divina is the ancient way of not only reading but praying the Bible.Continue readingThe Ancient Christian Art of Spiritual Reading