Bible Alive Advent Study: The Infancy Narratives of Matthew and Luke

Please enjoy "an online, self-paced tutorial" on the birth of Jesus as depicted from TWO DIFFERENT theologies we find in the New Testament, that of Matthew and Luke. Learn what the Gospels are and ARE NOT. Please go through the introductory materials through the conclusion. Learn the difference between truth and fact and discover the truth about Christ's birth.

Step One: The Birth of Jesus -- Two Gospel Narratives

Step Two: Introductory Matterials and Proper Interpretation of the Gospel Matterial

Step Three: The Gospel of Matthew's Infancy Narrative

Step Four: The Gospel of Luke's Infancy Narrative

Step Five: Conclusion: The Historicity of the Infancy Narratives, Similarities Between Matthean and Lucan Infancy Narratives, The Birth of Jesus Today, and Self-Check

Bible Alive: Faith through Christian History

Bible Alive: Faith through Christian History

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Answer the following questions:

1. How does faith relate to revelation? What did the most ancient Christians think faith was?

2. What caused Christian understanding of faith to develop?

3. What is the epiphanic model of revelation?

4. Who were the “Fathers of the Church” and what did they think about faith?

5. What did St. Justin Martyr do for understanding of faith? What is faith according to St. Justin? What is a believer according to St. Justin?

6. What concerning faith was St. Irenæus of Lyon interested? What is a believer according to St. Irenæus?

7. What was faith according to St. Clement of Alexandria?

8. What is meant by “gnosis” and “Gnosticism”? What influence did Gnosticism have over our understanding of faith?

9. What is faith according to St. Augustine of Hippo?

10. What is the only motive or foundation for faith?

11. How does faith and human freedom relate?

12. Describe Semi-pelagianism.

13. Is there any human cooperation involved in faith?

14. What is meant by “nonhistorical orthodoxy” and its approach to Sacred Scripture and the documents from Church teaching?

15. Describe the Second Council of Orange and what happened there.

16. What is the extremely important, yet rarely known teaching of Augustine and the Council of Orange? What ramifications does it have for fundamentalist Catholic and other 20^th and 21^st century Christian apologists?

17. Describe faith in the Middle Ages. What is the doctrinal-theoretical model?

18. What did St. Thomas Aquinas have to say about faith? Is faith only about the intellect?

19. What is the source of faith? What is its goal?

20. What was faith for Martin Luther?

21. What was the Council of Trent? Describe it. What was it in response to? What did Trent say about faith? What does faith have to do with justification? What is justification?

22. Explain the various positions about revelation and its possibility held by “modernity.”

23. Define rationalism, fideism, and traditionalism. How did these views help shape the First Vatican Council? What did Vatican I think about faith? How did Vatican I broaden or widen our understanding of faith?

24. What is the communicative-theoretical model of revelation and how did it arise?

25. What two new aspects about faith did the Second Vatican Council emphasize?

Bible Alive: Faith in John

Bible Alive: "Faith in John"

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Answer the following questions:

1. Read John 17:3. It seems that for John, faith is similar to what Paul thinks about it. But what does John place greater stress on concerning faith? To believe in Christ is to ______ Him.

2. Read Jn 16:30 and and 6:69. Is the object of faith more explicit in John than elsewhere in the New Testament? Who is the object of faith?

3. Read Jn 5:19-27, 12:44, 49, 14:1, 6-11, 16:27-30; and 1 Jn 2:23. Who, according to John, shares a unique unity with the Father? Say I have faith in this one; who then automatically have I faith in also?

4. Read Jn 14:15-23, 15:15, 26, 16:13. Can the knowledge of God be assimilated independently, or by human power, according to John? What is the only way this can be?

5. Read Jn 6:44-46, 57. What is the only way by which we share in Christ’s own filial knowledge of God?

6. Read Jn 3:16-17, 36, 5:24; 1 Jn 3:1, 15, 5:12-13. What, according to John, does the believer already possess? What is this? What does it consist of (Jn 17:3, 24, 26; 1 Jn 3:1-2)?

7. Read Jn 2:22, 5:47, 8:45. There is something unique about John’s take on faith. What is it? What then is faith according to John?

8. Read Jn 17:20. What also must I place my trust in, according to John, of which faith consists?

9. Read 1 Jn 5:7-12; Jn 1:29-35; 14:12-14. What does faith involve, according to John? Is the role of this figure emphasized in John’s writings? Does creation play a part in this according to John? What Catholic principle then is especially stressed in John’s writings.

10. Read Jn 3:36 (cf. 3:18-20). What does faith bring us, according to John? What does unfaith bring us, according to John?

11. Read Jn 1:10-11. What is the greatest tragedy according to John?

12. Read 1 Jn 3:23. What for John is the work of faith? Is this like Paul?

13. Let’s summarize faith in John. Gather all these themes.

Bible Alive: Faith in the Synoptic Gospels & Acts

Bible Alive "Faith in the Synoptic Gospels & Acts"

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Answer the following questions after watching the slideshow.

1. Describe faith according to the theology of the Synoptic Gospels.

2. Read Mt 9:28 and Mk 4:40 and Lk 8:25. What does Jesus in the Synoptics demand?

3. Read Mk 5:34, 36, 9:23, 11:22-23; Lk 17:6. In the Synoptics, the act of faith is being first directed toward whom?

4. Read Mk 8:27-30, 38. In the Synoptics, is faith directed toward another person? If so, to whom? Of what would that faith, according to the Synoptics, consist?

5. Read Mk 9:37; 12:1-11, 35-37; Mt 10:32-33, 11:27-30, 16:17-19. What lies behind every utterance of Jesus about faith in the Synoptics? Describe it.

6. Let’s summarize Synoptic faith. Gather all these themes.

7. Describe faith according to the theology of Acts.

8. Read Acts 8:12-14. Describe faith in that passage. What is being received? From who? In what form is that which is given?

9. Read Acts 5:14, 9:42, 11:17, 15:1. In Acts, who are “believers”? Can they be people who get convinced of what the Apostles tell them and stay alone? Why or why not? What, according to Acts, is the object of belief and on what is that centered?

10. Read Acts 2:36. Make no mistake—what, according to Acts, is the heart of faith?

11. Read Acts 2:38, cf. 10:43-48, 18:8, 20:21. How does one express, according to Acts, acceptance of the crucified and risen Jesus as Lord?

12. What else, according to what we have seen so far, does Acts say faith requires?

13. Since, according to Acts, God’s Word is personified in Christ, what does faith necessarily involve? Can this relationship be individualistic, one-on-one (see Acts 9:1-5)? Why or why not?

14. In what we have seen so far, in Acts can faith simply be a subjective attitude, or must it be something more? If so, what does it embody (according to Acts)?

15. Let’s summarize faith in Acts. Gather all these themes.