Word of God Sunday

The Church annually celebrates Sunday of the Word of God in late January to reflect on the extraordinary gift of God’s word. The Bible or the Scriptures make up a central part of Christian worship because they uniquely reveal God to us through God’s own inspiration. While these writings are indeed sacred, it’s helpful for us also to bear in mind what makes them sacred.

The word Bible comes from the Greek βιβλίον (biblion), a word that means book. The word Scripture is from the Latin word meaning “to write.” The Scriptures are the written tradition of God’s revelation to his people. From that point of view, the Bible is a book like any other book.

What makes the Bible different is not the written form but the substance of what it conveys. The prologue of the Gospel According to John (NABRE) tells us that the Word of God, Jesus Christ, was in the beginning with God. In Jesus we find the expression of God made manifest and living for us. It is God himself who makes the words of the Scriptures powerful in our lives today and allows the Bible to transcend being a mere book like every other book.

How often do you read and reflect on the Scriptures? Do you read them to encounter God, or do you read them the same way that you read any other book?

related topics: word of God

you also may like our study of Scripture & the Rosary (digital only)
Scripture & the Rosary: New Testament Mysteries, Old Testament Parallels, a 26-lesson Catholic Bible study with an imprimatur, looks at the biblical foundations of the Rosary. The study includes lessons on Pope St. John Paul II’s Rosarium Virginis Mariae (Rosary of the Virgin Mary), the Apostles’ Creed, and the Luminous Mysteries as well as the original 15 Mysteries of the Rosary. Color photographs of stained glass windows depict key scenes in the lives of Jesus and Mary. Free digital lessons rotate throughout the year on our website.

Click on the picture of the statue of Moses with horns (above) to learn more about Lost in Translation. A new entry is archived each Monday. Contact us to receive Lost in Translation by email every week. You may use any of the contact links on our website to ask Matthew a question.