A Catholic Introduction to the Bible: The Old Testament

This is the holy grail of all study guides of the Old Testament. Dr. Brant Pitre teaches the Jewish Roots of Christianity like no other. He explains why we do what we do as Catholics in our worship to make every gesture, come alive with great meaning and understanding. I will be using this extensively as I teach my parishes Women's Bible Study. We are watching every single DVD that he has. He is one of the most renouned professors in our Catholic seminaries today. This book is truly a treasure.

Love this book. Lots of information. We'll written and understandable.

Good reference book

This is a very well organized Old Testament (OT) Bible companion with excellent detailed scholarly commentaries and behind the scenes explanations to make the OT more relatable to modern readers trying to make sense of ancient texts. Quite heavy at 1060 total pages and text size is perfect for reading. The first chapter begins with an integrated approach to Scripture: exegesis and theology, faith and reason, Scripture and tradition, and the OT in relation to the NT. The second chapter is dedicated to explaining the OT canon process and why Catholics understand those seven (7) books as canonical. The third explains what the Pentateuch is and the fourth is for the origins of the Pentateuch. All these introductory chapters are very useful for background understanding before delving into Genesis. The OT Bible has both Nihil Obstat and Imprimatur endorsements, important for Catholics. I don't find anything that is objectionable to any Christian tradition so I highly recommend it for OT study from a scholarly yet very approachable writing style.

I had a hard time reading the Old testament. I thought I needed a study guide. I chose this book and found out it was essentially a study guide BUT without the "Old testament" text. However, rather than 2300 pages of Old Testament - this book is 1564 pages of SIMPLY EXCELLENT explanation, background...etc. It is such a thorough explanation that months later I was shocked to realize I did not actually READ the Old Testament. I'm not advising that but I can tell you- if I had read the Old Testament only I would have less than 1/3 the understanding I have now. I highly recommend this thorough book by Bergsma and Pitre

book came in perfect condition/brand new/very comprehensive and detailed/content. i have not started reading book yet. this book received really high ratings/great reviews. look very forward to reading it in future. i already know it is a great book. writer of book/john bergsma/is a very great writer. i have read other book/s by him john bergsma/noted theologian and scholar so glad i ordered this book/received it in 1 day also

I just received my copy today and I can say that I was pleasently surprised. This is a gorgeous book and the presentation is amazing on its own, much more than I expected. A word of warning though, it's on the heavy side and it's quite big so I don't think I can carry it with me, it kinda looks like a home Bible in terms of size and weight. As far as the content, I haven't finished it yet, but from my experience Dr. Pitre always has a lot to contribute. Overall if it's anything like Pitre's "The case for Jesus" then it is definitely one of the best purchases I've made through amazon. ***Update So the book is well balanced and seems to strive to keep in mind not only the latest research and scholarly information, but it also provides a bit of background into the cultures, languages and myths that lie behind many of the referneces in the Bible. I think the biggest strength is its attempt to keep an impartial view as much as it can. On the other hand, this means that some books do not get as indepth a treatment as possible, specially toward the end of the book. That being said, it's definitely full of insights for those of us who have not formerly studied the ANE, and it does so from a perspective that is not afraid of being open to the faith.

This book is written for seminarians, deacons, and grad students, none of which applies to me. But I am interested in learning more about the old testament this year and I think this will be a great resource. Being a Catholic publication, it includes all of the Canonical Books and sections that were deleted by Martin Luther during his rebellion, and which are omitted in the KJV version. It includes two indices, a scriptural index and a subject index, as well as tables in the various sections for quick reference. It is no lightweight in scholarship, but it is easily accessible to high school readers. One could read it straight through, or use it to clarify the daily readings, or to supplement one’s Bible study. (Nihil Obstat and Imprimatur given.)

Llegó un día antes de lo planeado. El libro llegó en excelente estado, sin golpes ni abolladuras. Por dentro, el libro es de pasta dura, de tela, y color negro. Obtuve un gran libro por lo que pagué; fue una buena compra.

Few author's have the exquisite skill required to make otherwise complex subjects accessible. This is a marvellouwly well-crafted and most informative survey of the Old Testament, mainly from a Catholic point of view - although like most genuine scholars, this author also utilizes other pertinent sources. Therefore, despite its length, this volume is truly accessible rather than being intimidating. Indeed, I have rarely found any work dealing with the Bible such a helpful read.

This book is an absolute must for anyone who is wanting to explore the Old Testament from a Catholic point of view. I am currently using it to help me lead a study on the books of Samuel, and the outlines and information presented are perfect for this. It does not contain the text, and I would recommend that you use it in conjunction with the RSV2CE. Due to having complete coverage of the OT, it is the most complete book you could invest in as a Catholic to start you off. It has an impeccable academic standard, of course, though I don't think that it is designed for this purpose, so seminarians will want to start their research here and then go to the more detailed works of Biblical scholars on the individual books and do the usual research. However, for preparing homilies, Bible studies, catechetical instruction and for general knowledge, this would have to be the best go-to book out there. God bless the editors, authors and readers.

Contra: Right now I have read a third of the book and couldn't find a week point. If you want to, you could criticise, that not all arguments of the Liberals are mentioned and explained completely. But I am glad Pitre and Bergsma not to have done that, because the book would have been even more longer and less interesting... (furthermore they try to summarize the most important of their arguments) Pro: catholic - well researched - speaks about relevant contents (questions that normal people have, if they read the bible) - interesting digressions - really helps you to understand the biblical roots of the catholic faith - counters well the liberal arguments against the reliability of the bible - relatively easy to read... For theologians as non-theologians a great enrichment!

Acervo rico