Scott Hahn's Study Guide for The Lamb' s Supper - Softcover

Hahn, Scott

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0307589056 ISBN 13: 9780307589057

Publisher: PRH Christian Publishing, 2010

Synopsis

Scott Hahn's The Lamb's Supper in one of the bestselling Catholic books of all time with sales in excess of 250,000 copies. Now, the popular author and theologian has crafted a helpful study guide for that momentous work. Included are brief essays, notes, questions for reflection, and bibliographical information that supplement, complement, and illuminate the original work.

About this title

About the Author

Dr. Scott Hahn is the author (or editor) of over forty books, including several recent titles (Joy to the World, Evangelizing Catholics, Angels and Saints, and Consuming the Word), along with best-selling titles like Rome Sweet Home, The Lamb's Supper, Hail Holy Queen, A Father Who Keeps His Promises, Lord Have Mercy, First Comes Love, Swear to God, Understanding Our Father, Scripture Matters, Spirit and Life, Understanding the Scriptures, Catholic Bible Dictionary, Many Are Called, Signs of Life, Reasons to Believe, Answering the New Atheism, Ordinary Work Extraordinary Grace, and Living the Mysteries. His academic publications include Kinship by Covenant: A Canonical Approach to the Fulfillment of God's Saving Promises (Anchor Yale Bible Reference Library), The Kingdom of God as Liturgical Empire: A Theological Commentary on 1-2 Chronicles, Covenant and Communion: The Biblical Theology of Pope Benedict XVI, Letter and Spirit: From Written Text to Living Word in the Liturgy, and Politicizing the Bible: The Roots of Historical Criticism and the Secularization of Scripture (1300-1700). He is the editor of the academic periodical, Letter & Spirit: A Journal of Catholic Biblical Theology, and co-editor of the Ignatius Catholic Study Bible. An exceptionally popular speaker and teacher, Dr. Scott Hahn has delivered thousands of popular talks and academic lectures, nationally and internationally, on a wide range of topics related to Scripture, Theology and the Catholic faith. Hundreds of these presentations have been recorded and distributed by Lighthouse Catholic Media. He has appeared on hundreds of television programs on the Eternal Word Television Network (EWTN), where he has also been the regular host and presenter on several popular 13-week series (including Our Fathers Plan, The Lamb's Super, Genesis to Jesus, Consuming the Word). Founder and President of the St. Paul Center for Biblical Theology (www.stpaulcenter.com / www.salvationhistory.com ), Dr. Hahn holds the Fr. Michael Scanlan, TOR Chair of Biblical Theology and the New Evangelization at Franciscan University of Steubenville, where he's taught since 1990. He also holds the William and Lois McEssy Distinguished Visiting Professor of Biblical Theology and the New Evangelization at Mundelein Seminary in Chicago. In 2005, he was awarded the Pope Benedict XVI Chair of Biblical Theology and Liturgical Proclamation at St. Vincent Seminary (Latrobe PA), which he held through 2011. He also held the Cardinal Laghi Chair of Catholic Theology from 2002-2004 at the Pontifical Seminary Josephinum (Columbus OH). Scott graduated from Grove City College in 1979 with his BA in Theology, Philosophy and Economics (magna cum laude). He graduated from Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary in 1982 with his M.Div (summa cum laude). Scott received his Ph.D. in Theology from Marquette University in 1995 (summa cum laude, Phi Beta Kappa). He was ordained in 1982 at Trinity Presbyterian Church (Fairfax VA). He entered the Catholic Church at the Easter Vigil, 1986. Dr. Scott Hahn was born in 1957, and has been married to Kimberly since 1979. They live in Steubenville Ohio and have six children and twelve grandchildren.

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.

Hahn: STUDY GUIDE FOR THE LAMB'S SUPPER

study session 1 Foreword by Father Benedict Groeschel, C.F.R. Summary and Key Points

•This book brings together several powerful spiritual realities.

•Eschatology is the study of “last things.”

•It is important that we conduct our study with a proper sense of the sacraments.

At my invitation, Father Benedict Groeschel wrote a foreword to The Lamb’s Supper. Father Benedict approaches the subject of the book from a very different perspective. He is a priest and I’m a layman. Father Benedict is a “cradle Catholic” and I’m a convert. Yet we converge upon a common faith; and, for very different reasons, we see a clear relationship between three realities that many people see as distinct or even unrelated: the Mass, the end times, and the Book of Revelation.

Father Benedict emphasizes the contrast between his own experience and mine. For me, the book is all about exciting “discoveries” I made in my studies. For him, the book is about an everyday reality he has known since he was an altar boy. These elucidations are not a novelty to him, but rather what he has “thought about the Eucharist for decades.”

Father Benedict also emphasizes certain things that are distinctive about Catholic doctrine and practice. He refuses, for example, to classify the Mass as a religious “service,” preferring terms such as “Divine Liturgy” instead. Similarly, he speaks of his own priesthood as a share in the priesthood of Christ, who is our only true priest.

He is especially concerned with the “sacramental” quality of the Church’s worship. According to tradition, a sacrament is an outward sign, instituted by Christ and entrusted to the Church. Through signs that can be perceived by the senses, the sacraments bestow divine grace.

Father Benedict notes that many people are disturbed by the prospect of the end of time, but he is himself at ease with the possibility of its fulfillment in his lifetime or its indefinite delay.

Along the way, he introduces us to certain key terms, such as eschatology, the Church’s doctrine of the end of time. He encourages us to study “carefully” and “learn.”

Scripture

Revelation 4:8–11; 5:9–14; 7:10–12; 19:1–8

Doctrine

Catechism of the Catholic Church, n. 2642: The Revelation of “what must soon take place,” the Apocalypse, is borne along by the songs of the heavenly liturgy but also by the intercession of the “witnesses” (martyrs). The prophets and the saints, all those who were slain on earth for their witness to Jesus, the vast throng of those who, having come through the great tribulation, have gone before us into the Kingdom, all sing the praise and glory of him who sits on the throne, and of the Lamb. In communion with them, the Church on earth also sings these songs with faith in the midst of trial. By means of petition and intercession, faith hopes against all hope and gives thanks to the “Father of lights,” from whom “every perfect gift” comes down. Thus faith is pure praise.

Song

COME, DIVINE INTERPRETER

By Charles Wesley

(To the tune of “For the Beauty of the Earth”)

Come, divine Interpreter,

Bring me eyes your book to read,

Ears the mystic words to hear,

Words which did from you proceed,

Words that endless bliss impart,

Kept in an obedient heart.

All who read, or hear, are blessed,

If your plain commands we do;

Of your kingdom here possessed,

You we shall in glory view

When you come on earth to abide,

Reign triumphant at your side.

Questions for Reflection and Discussion

1.Before reading this book, had you ever connected the Mass with the end times and the Book of Revelation? Had anyone ever made the connection for you?

2.How, do you think (or would you guess), are these three things related?

3.Is your own experience of the Mass closer to that of Father Benedict Groeschel or that of the author of this book? Or does your experience share elements of both? Explain your answer.

4.How do you feel about the possibility of the world ending? What hopes or fears does it arouse in you?

5.What, do you think, separates a sacrament from a mere “service” of the sort Father Benedict mentions?

6.What will you look for in your study of “the end times”—your study of eschatology? What are your interests, concerns, expectations, or worries about the climax of history?

7.Have you ever had an experience at Mass that you considered a glimpse or foretaste of heaven? Has anyone you know had such an experience?

Edition details

• Publisher: PRH Christian Publishing
• Publication date: 2010
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0307589056
• ISBN 13: 9780307589057
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 112