Harton Benefice

Welcome to our ten village churches.

We look forward to meeting you.

Reading the Bible

The foundations of our faith are built on the words of The Bible - the history contained in the Old Testament, the poetry of the Psalms, the story of Jesus' life in the New Testament, the accounts of the early church in Acts, the letters of Paul and others and finally, John's vision in the Book of Revelation. Some parts of The Bible may be very familiar to us, others less so. Some make easy reading, offering comfort, support and hope; other parts are more difficult and challenging.

In April 2020 Covid-19 led to the closure of our church buildings for worship. However this did not stop us from being together online. Over more than a year, using the medium of 'Zoom' we met from our homes, with a cup of tea/coffee and a biscuit for 'Conversation at 10' every Wednesday morning.

Guided by our Rector, Chris, and using short video clips from 'The Bible Project' we set out to learn more about the Bible - when was it written, by whom and what messages does it send to us?

We discovered something of the styles of ancient Jewish literature and looked at many of the Old Testament books. Then we traveled over the bridge that links the Old and New Testaments.

If you followed these sessions you might like to look again at some of the material. If you weren't able to join us then don't worry because all the clips are here. Each one is short - most are less than 10 minutes and they are presented in a lively way that is easy to take in. So, just click on any of the links below at any time that suits you.

LENT COURSE 2021 - 'The Character of God'

Here are links to the video clips that help to guide us through our Lent course:

Character of God / Yahweh

Where did the Bible come from?  (45 minutes)

 

Below are links to the Old Testament chapters we explored:

Genesis Part 1Genesis Part 2

Exodus Part 1 / Exodus Part 2

Leviticus / Numbers

Deuteronomy (version1) ; Deuteronomy (Version 2)

Joshua / Judges / Ruth

Samuel (1)Samuel (2)Kings 1 & 2Chronicles 1 & 2

Psalms (1) / Psalms (2)

The Prophets

The Day of The Lord / Isaiah (Part 1) / Isaiah (Part 2) / Obadiah / Daniel

Song of Solomon (cartoon) / Song of Solomon (text)

Proverbs (cartoon) / Proverbs (text)

Job (cartoon) / Job (text)

Esther   A book in which God is not mentioned - the origin of the Jewish festival of Purim

 

. . and here are some useful insights into Bible writing styles

How to read The Bible (3): Literary Styles in The Bible (3)

Learn about Jewish Meditation Literature and discover King Solomon's Temple

St John Howsham Apse ; St John Howsham reredos

Some Jewish words:  'Shema' (Hear)'YHWH' (LORD)'Ahavah' (Love)'Lev' (Heart)'Nephesh' (Soul)'Me'od' (Strength)

Plot / Character / Setting / Design PatternsPoetry / Metaphor

Theme for the week (3 June): Atonement

 

Now for the New Testament books:

The New Testament - an overview

What does 'Gospel' mean?

How to read the Gospels

How to read the parables of Jesus

Mark - cartoon version : Mark - textual version

Matthew - part1 : Matthew - part 2

John - part 1 : John - part 2

Luke - part 1 / Luke - part 2

Acts - part 1 / Acts - part 2

NT Letters - Historical context / NT Letters - Literary context

1 Thessalonians

Romans - part 1 : Romans - part 2

Tim Mackie's talk (30 min) 'The Good News of the Bible; Heaven and Hell'

Galatians

Introduction - Spritual Beings

The Divine Council / The Satan and Demons

The Satan and Demons: Question responses

1 Peter / 2 Peter

James

Jude

Hebrews

1,2,3 John

How to read Apocalyptic Literature

Revelation - part 1 / Revelation - part 2


All the clips are from 'The Bible Project' and from our Links page you can access the full Bible Project website.

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