Saint Jerome’s feast day is an opportunity to reflect on how we can sometimes overlook the Sacred Scriptures as an essential part of prayer, writes Colleen Vermeulen, pictured above, Director of Mission at the Catholic Biblical School of Michigan and parishioner at Christ the King in Ann Arbor. Saint Jerome was a 4th-century church father and biblical scholar who is best known for translating the Bible into Latin. He famously wrote that "ignorance of Scripture is ignorance of Christ". Colleen continues:
Though I grew up with a children’s Bible storybook and received a Bible as a gift for my First Communion, reading the Bible was never a centerpiece of my life. In high school, a Baptist friend asked me if I knew Jesus as my Savior. [I wasn’t sure!] Seeking clarity, I picked up a New Testament to highlight proof texts, but this was driven by intellectual curiosity rather than a desire for prayer.
Eventually, I made a conscious choice to become a disciple of Jesus. Yet, even as a believer, no magic lightbulb switched on when it came to the Bible. The Scriptures remained more like information and felt like a chore to read, rather than a living, indispensable source of Divine food and guidance.
My real breakthrough was slow. Over years of gradual practice, the Lord steadily drew me in. I made a firm commitment to spend daily time in prayer with the Word. What once felt like drifting in prayer evolved into a vital, daily encounter with our Lord in the Sacred Scriptures.
For me, being part of the Catholic Biblical School Ministry is a way to understand the Scriptures with the mind of the Church, inspired by the Holy Spirit–just as Saint Jerome encouraged. We exist throughout the Diocese of Lansing (and beyond!) to help followers of Jesus take the step toward a more fruitful relationship with God made present in the Holy Scriptures.
Feel adrift in prayer, like I did? Try our mini-Bible studies on a Sunday Mass reading or “Simply Scripture,” a guide for daily prayer with the Bible.
* Simply Scripture Book: https://www.avemariapress.com/.../simply-scripture-for...
* Weekly Sunday Mass Reflections: cbsmich.org/wordoftheweek
* Catholic Biblical School of Michigan: https://cbsmich.org/
