Recently Ascension conducted a survey asking Catholics what they are looking for in a Bible. The answers we received were very telling, to say the least.
Over half (fifty-eight percent) said they wish they better understood the historical context of the books in the Bible.
Over half (fifty-five percent) said they wish they better understood the symbolism in the Bible.
Over half (fifty-five percent) said they wish they knew where to find commonly challenged Catholic beliefs in the Bible.
And over half (fifty-three percent) said they wish they knew how to better interpret Scripture.
In observing all of this, it became clear to me that Catholics today want a Bible that gives them the overarching narrative woven through the Bible; they want to know the big picture so they can have better context for all the questions they have.
Providing something that can help people see this big picture of the Bible is no easy task. My Great Adventure Bible study series helps, but there was a palpable need for something more. Catholics don’t want to just see the timeline of salvation history, as provided in The Great Adventure Bible Timeline. They don’t want to just study the biblical story in one book and then have to pick up a separate book—their Bible—to read the actual story.
It’s apparent that Catholics who have participated in the many Great Adventure studies, and even those who haven’t and who just want a better understanding of Scripture, want an actual Bible that has the story of salvation history seamlessly woven into it in a clear and comprehensive way.
Understanding Scripture and God’s Master Plan
Clearly, there is a need for The Great Adventure Catholic Bible, a Bible that implements the Catholic understanding of salvation history into its very pages with actual timelines, maps, charts, and articles. This Bible not only provides a faithful translation of Scripture (using the Revised Standard Version, Second Catholic Edition), it also walks with the reader through the epic journey that the Bible recounts and that is so often lost amid all the individual stories.
I’m so excited that The Great Adventure Catholic Bible finally exists, and its significance is so great that I would be remiss if I didn’t share my thoughts on this remarkable milestone. After decades of teaching The Bible Timeline to hundreds of thousands of Great Adventure study participants, I am confident that The Great Adventure Catholic Bible will help immensely in my mission—and the mission of the Church—to spread the amazing story of salvation to as many people as possible.
My hope is that the Great Adventure study Bible will be a place where disciples of the Lord can come to know the heart of their heavenly father and his plan of sheer goodness. Knowing how to navigate through sacred Scripture and understanding God’s overarching plan, they will be able to receive sound direction for their lives, comfort in difficult times and correction as needed. In short, my prayer is that the modern day reader will truly come to know God and who they are within his master plan.
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