Monthly Calendar for praying the Psalms

I follow this calendar in praying the Psalms in my daily Morning Prayer Rule. Bonus: read the book of Proverbs every month, too!

31 day months:

 1: Psalm 1-8,  Proverbs 1

 2: Psalm 9-15,  Proverbs 2

 3: Psalm 16-18,  Proverbs 3

 4: Psalm 19-23,  Proverbs 4

 5: Psalm 24-29,  Proverbs 5

 6: Psalm 30-34,  Proverbs 6

 7: Psalm 35-37,  Proverbs 7

 8: Psalm 38-41,  Proverbs 8

 9: Psalm 42-47,  Proverbs 9

 10: Psalm 48-51,  Proverbs 10

 11: Psalm 52-58,  Proverbs 11

 12: Psalm 59-65,  Proverbs 12

 13: Psalm 66-68,  Proverbs 13

 14: Psalm 69-71,  Proverbs 14

 15: Psalm 72-74,  Proverbs 15

 16: Psalm 75-77,  Proverbs 16

 17: Psalm 78-80,  Proverbs 17

 18: Psalm 81-86,  Proverbs 18

 19: Psalm 87-89,  Proverbs 19

 20: Psalm 90-95,  Proverbs 20

 21: Psalm 96-101,  Proverbs 21

 22: Psalm 102-104,  Proverbs 22

 23: Psalm 105-106,  Proverbs 23

 24: Psalm 107-109,  Proverbs 24

 25: Psalm 110-116,  Proverbs 25

 26: Psalm 117-118,  Proverbs 26

 27: Psalm 119,  Proverbs 27

 28: Psalm 120-132,  Proverbs 28

 29: Psalm 133-139,  Proverbs 29

 30: Psalm 140-145,  Proverbs 30

 31: Psalm 146-151,  Proverbs 31

30 day months

 1: Psalm 1-8,  Proverbs 1

 2: Psalm 9-16,  Proverbs 2

 3: Psalm 17-20,  Proverbs 3

 4: Psalm 21-25,  Proverbs 4

 5: Psalm 26-31,  Proverbs 5

 6: Psalm 32-35,  Proverbs 6

 7: Psalm 36-38,  Proverbs 7

 8: Psalm 39-44,  Proverbs 8

 9: Psalm 45-50,  Proverbs 9

 10: Psalm 51-55,  Proverbs 10

 11: Psalm 56-62,  Proverbs 11

 12: Psalm 653-68,  Proverbs 12

 13: Psalm 69-71,  Proverbs 13

 14: Psalm 72-75,  Proverbs 14

 15: Psalm 76-78,  Proverbs 15

 16: Psalm 79-82,  Proverbs 16

 17: Psalm 83-88,  Proverbs 17

 18: Psalm 89-91,  Proverbs 18

 19: Psalm 92-98,  Proverbs 19

 20: Psalm 99-103,  Proverbs 20

 21: Psalm 104-105,  Proverbs 21

 22: Psalm 106-107,  Proverbs 22

 23: Psalm 108-113,  Proverbs 23

 24: Psalm 114-118,  Proverbs 24

 25: Psalm 119,  Proverbs 25

 26: Psalm 120-126,  Proverbs 26

 27: Psalm 127-133,  Proverbs 27

 28: Psalm 134-139,  Proverbs 28

 29: Psalm 140-145  Proverbs 29:1-30:1-16

 30: Psalm 146-151,  Proverbs 30:17-31:31/30

29 day months (leap years)

 1: Psalm 1-8,  Proverbs 1-2

 2: Psalm 9-17,  Proverbs 3

 3: Psalm 18-21,  Proverbs 4-5

 4: Psalm 22-27,  Proverbs 6

 5: Psalm 28-33,  Proverbs 7

 6: Psalm 34-37,  Proverbs 8

 7: Psalm 38-42,  Proverbs 9

 8: Psalm 43-48,  Proverbs 10

 9: Psalm 49-54,  Proverbs 11

 10: Psalm 55-61,  Proverbs 12

 11: Psalm 62-67,  Proverbs 13

 12: Psalm 68-71,  Proverbs 14

 13: Psalm 72-75,  Proverbs 15

 14: Psalm 76-78,  Proverbs 16

 15: Psalm 79-83,  Proverbs 17

 16: Psalm 84-88,  Proverbs 18

 17: Psalm 89-94  Proverbs 19

 18: Psalm 95-102,  Proverbs 20

 19: Psalm 103-105,  Proverbs 21

 20: Psalm 106,  Proverbs 22

 21: Psalm 107,  Proverbs 23

 22: Psalm 108-113,  Proverbs 24

 23: Psalm 114-118,  Proverbs 25

 24: Psalm 119,  Proverbs 26

 25: Psalm 120-129,  Proverbs 27

 26: Psalm 130-135,  Proverbs 28

 27: Psalm 136-140,  Proverbs 39

 28: Psalm 141-145,  Proverbs 30

 29: Psalm 146-151  Proverbs 31

28 day months

 1: Psalm 1-8,  Proverbs 1-2

 2: Psalm 9-17,  Proverbs 3

 3: Psalm 18-21,  Proverbs 4-5

 4: Psalm 22-27,  Proverbs 6

 5: Psalm 28-33,  Proverbs 7

 6: Psalm 34-37,  Proverbs 8

 7: Psalm 38-42,  Proverbs 9

 8: Psalm 43-48,  Proverbs 10

 9: Psalm 49-54,  Proverbs 11

 10: Psalm 55-61,  Proverbs 12

 11: Psalm 62-67,  Proverbs 13

 12: Psalm 68-71,  Proverbs 14

 13: Psalm 72-75,  Proverbs 15

 14: Psalm 76-78,  Proverbs 16

 15: Psalm 79-83,  Proverbs 17

 16: Psalm 84-88,  Proverbs 18-19

 17: Psalm 89-94  Proverbs 20

 18: Psalm 95-102,  Proverbs 21

 19: Psalm 103-105,  Proverbs 22

 20: Psalm 106-107,  Proverbs 23

 21: Psalm 108-113,  Proverbs 24

 22: Psalm 114-118,  Proverbs 25

 23: Psalm 119,  Proverbs 26

 24: Psalm 120-129,  Proverbs 27

 25: Psalm 130-135,  Proverbs 28

 26: Psalm 136-140,  Proverbs 29

 27: Psalm 141-145,  Proverbs 30

 28: Psalm 146-151,  Proverbs 31

One of the best things the Fundamental Baptists gave me...

...is a great respect and a great love for Holy Scripture. I just finished reading part one of an article at Zenit called "What is needed for a Bible Comeback?" It's an interview with Cardinal Albert Vanhoye. Here are some quotes that struck me:

"In particular, I studied the theme of faith in John's Gospel, an obviously basic theme. For John faith consists in believing in the Son of God. This is not just adherence to revealed truth, but it is above all adherence to a person, a person who is the Son of God, who does the work of the Father, in union with the Father and who also invites us to do his work."

"My assumptions [in my study of the Bible] are clearly assumptions of faith. The Bible is a text that expresses the faith. To receive it in a serious and profound way it is necessary to be in the current that produced it. So, it is essential to approach the inspired text with an attitude of faith. On the other hand, there is also the conviction that the Bible is a historical book and not simply theoretical. It is a revelation with facts, with events; it is an existential historical reality that must be accepted as such."

"...sacred Scripture is essential for knowing Christ, for conforming to Christ..."

"[The Church needs to educate] the faithful to receive the word of God completely not only in their mind but in their heart and in their life. This is clear. The faithful need to be educated to do this. And on the other hand, in order that this be truly effective, it is indispensable that the faithful meditate on the word of God, reconsider it, reflect on it. And in this way their life will be transformed little by little by the power of the word of God."

"...'lectio divina' is a very serious method of entering into inspired Scripture. But in order for it to have an impact on life it is necessary that the last step be an application to life. It is possible to do a 'lectio divina' that stops at an attentive consideration of the text, and then a meditation. But it must be completed by an effort of the believer to apply it to life, to truly receive the word of God in his life, to make it not only present but operative."

In the last few years I've gotten out of the habit of regular, daily Bible reading, but have taken steps recently to change that by developing a Three Year Plan that will have me read the Gospels four times every year, the Psalms twice every year, and the rest of the Bible once in three years. The Psalms and Gospels have been weak areas for me, but I've gotten much better with the Psalms thanks to the Liturgy of the Hours! I'm looking forward to getting better acquainted with the Gospels.

Here's a link the Coming Home Network's reader's guide to read through the Bible and Catechism in a year (PDF file).

Some other links that may be of interest:

The Early Church Fathers on the Scriptures (small selection)

From the Congregation for the Clergy at the Holy See: Biblia Clerus, Reading the Word of God with the Church

Haydock's Catholic Bible Commentary, 1859 edition. A Catholic Bible Commentary compiled by the late Reverend Father George Leo Haydock, following the Douay-Rheims Bible. (This is the commentary only, not the Biblical text. Bible link here: the Bible at this link has commentary by Bishop Richard Challoner, 1691-1781)

The Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition Bible online.

A short list of Major Church Pronouncements on the Bible.

Just in time for the New Year...

Have you ever tried to read through the whole Bible in a year? What about the Catechism? What about both the Bible and the Catechism? Well I have some options for you! The Coming Home Network has a pamphlet you can print out to read through the entire Bible and the entire Catechism in one year. It's here (warning: PDF) as a free printout.

Are you familiar with Jeff Cavins' The Great Adventure? I've linked to the site, but let me quote here from the What is The Great Adventure? information page:

"The Great Adventure is a Catholic Bible learning system that makes the complex simple by teaching the story (the narrative) of the Bible...Jeff Cavins developed The Great Adventure in 1984 when he realized that most people, despite their strong faith, did not grasp the 'big picture' of the Bible. Though they knew selected stories, they were not able to connect them into a full narrative. His answer was to identify the books of the Bible that tell the story from beginning to end. By reading just these 14 'narrative' books, a chronological story emerges."

Mr. Cavins has a printable PDF document (also free) on his site that will let you read these 14 narrative books in 90 days. Click here for it. If you're not that ambitious, I've developed my own version of this list which allows one to read these 14 books in a year. If you're interested, e-mail me from my profile page, and I'll e-mail you a copy as a Microsoft Word attachement. Use "Reading guide" as the subject.

Also, I have a Microsoft Word document I can send you as an attachement to read the Catechism through in a year.

My guides use the following format:

February
01: 257-267
02: 268-274
03: 275-281
04: 282-289
05: 290-294

This example shows you February 1-5 of the Catechism guide. On Feb. 01 one reads paragraphs 257-267; on Feb. 02 one reads paragraphs 268-274; etc,

Both guides have little boxes before the dates you can check when you've done your reading for the day.

If I get enough time, I'll develope a plan to read the entire Bible through in 2 years. Should that ever happen, I'll post it on my blog.