Catholics and the Bible.

New Zealand Tablet, Volume XXX, Issue 14, 3 April 1902, Page 6

Catholics and the Bible.

'THE Catholic Church is made up of two simple elements -the priest and the people,' so said the Rev. John E. Gunn, S.M., at Atlanta, Ga., recently. ' Now the priest is bound under pain of mortal sin to read his breviary once every day. It takes him at least an hour ; often an hour and a half to do this. The breviary ia taken almost exclusively from the Scriptures, and so arranged

that every day a portion of the Old and a portion of the New Testament must be read, and the whole Bible is read at least onoe a year by every priest in the Catholic Church. The other element in the Catholic Church iB the layman. Now every Catholic who had*, attained the use of reason is bound to hear Mass on Sunday. At M that Mass portions of the Epißtles and Gospels are read in such a w way that at least the New Testament is read once a year by every Catholic who fulfils his duty of coming to Mass on Sunday. The Catholic priest is bound under pain of mortal sin to read portions of the Old and New Testament every day. The Catholic layman ia bound under the same penalty to read or hear read the Bible on Sunday — the two make up the Catholic Church, The Catholic Church does not forbid, but commands, her children to use the Bible. Ido not speak of private readings — frequent meditations of the Bible. I give you the law of the Church, which ought to be sufficient to show you how mistaken are those who say we do not use the Bible.'