RELIGION REVIEWER

The Literary Forms

Every time we read and reflect the word of God, its message is always relevant and important
to us. God's word is true for all men and at all times.

The word of God is effective.

God's word is not only something to be read or to be studied or to be talked about or to be

The word of God is penetrating.

The word of God searches our desires and intentions. We cannot hide anything from God.
Literary here means, the writings found in the Holy Bible.

Literary types of the Holy Bible

Biblical Creation Accounts are stories that relate to us how and why God created the world
and the human beings. Creation stories are found in the book of Genesis.

Examples of Biblical Creation Accounts are:

Genesis 1:1-31; 2: 1-4- First Story of Creation

Genesis 2:4-25-Second Story of Creation

Epic Narrative, such as the exodus story, is to be understood in its exaggeration, .An epic is a
long narrative poem about the deeds of a historical hero.

Examples of Epic Narratives are found in Exodus:

Exodus 14:10-31-Crossing of the Red Sea

Genealogies They secure the lineage of a descendant by tracing his family tree to some very
important persons.

Genealogy or Family Tree is a recorded history of the descent of a person or a family from an
ancestor. (Webster's Dictionary)

Examples of Genealogies found in the Old Testament are in:

Genesis, Numbers, 1 Chronicles, Ezra, Nehemiah and Ruth.

The Gospels contain two genealogies of Jesus, Matthew 1: 1-17 and Luke 3: 23-38.

The genealogy of Matthew runs from Abraham to Jesus in a descending order, the genealogy
of Luke runs from Jesus to Adam in ascending order.

During the Advent and Christmas Seasons, we attentively listen to the Genealogies and Infancy
Narratives of Jesus, Our Lord and Savior.

Psalms are simply called praises or praise songs. The Book of Psalms is a collection of 150
prayer poems. Psalms are classified into three major categories: hymn, lament, and
thanksgiving.
Examples of these Psalms are: Thanksgiving Hymn –

Psalm 136- Magpasalamat Kayo sa Panginoon Hymn of Praise –

Psalm 148-150-Jesus is Life Individual Lament –

Psalm 139-Yahweh, You are near Community Lament - Psalm 80- Save us, O Lord

The Passion Narratives appear in all four Gospels. The passion narratives relate the suffering,
death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. The passion narrative comprises the conspiracy of the
Jews; the betrayal of Judas; the preparation of the Passover; the Eucharist; the way to
Gethsemani and the prediction of Peter's denial; the arrest of Jesus; the trial before Pilate; the
sentence of death; the crucifixion; the death of Jesus; the burial of Jesus; and the watch at the
tomb.

Examples of Passion Narratives are:

John 19:16-30- The Crucifixion and Death of Jesus

During the Season of Lent, we are drawn to be more remorseful of our sins because of the
Passion Narratives of Jesus.

On Easter Season, we rejoice with the whole Church because of the resurrection of Jesus.

Parables are wise sayings and short stories of Jesus in order to set forth his teaching.
Parables are short stories drawn out from the experiences of Jewish daily life. Parables were
taught by Jesus in order to convey a moral and an eternal truth. The number of parables in the
Gospels is estimated as low as 35 and as high as 72.

During the Ordinary Time in our liturgical year, we are sustained by the varied parables taught
to us by Jesus.

Our personal prayer can only become an authentic encounter with the Lord if it is based on his
Word.
FAITH IS OUR RESPONSE TO GOD
How can we live the value of faith?

We live the value of faith when we entrust our whole self to God: our mind, our soul, our heart,
and our strength.
We put all our hope in him, believing that he will never forsake us in our daily struggles.

This value of faith is tested through peer pressure. Part of our growth as teen-agers is
experiencing peer pressure.
Peer pressure is finding ourselves coping with the demands and expectations of our friends,
classmates, and peer groups.

If we are in such situations, let us ask for the grace of faith so that we may overcome peer
pressure and become truthful and humble of who we really are and of what our capacities are.
It is perfectly alright if we cannot please everybody as long as we have faith, then we will be at
peace.

We believe that by faith we completely submit our intellect and will to God. When we give to
God our whole being, we are doing an "obedience of faith."

The word "to obey" comes from the Latin word "obaudire" which means "to hear or listen to."

In the Old Testament, we have Abraham as the model of such obedience in faith. Abraham is
the father of all who believe.

By faith, Abraham obeyed God when he was called to go out to a place which he was to receive
as an inheritance. (CCC 143-146)

We proclaim our faith in the Blessed Trinity: Father, Son & Holy Spirit
For us Christians, believing in God is believing in His beloved Son. We believe in Jesus Christ
because He himself is God. We cannot believe in Jesus Christ without sharing in His Holy
Spirit. The Holy Spirit reveals to us who Jesus Christ is. We believe in the Holy Spirit because
He is God. (CCC 150-152)

We believe that (1) faith is a gift of God, (2) faith is a free response of every person, (3) faith
seeks understanding, (4) faith is important for our salvation, (5) faith is lived in the community,
(6) faith is perseverance in God.
Faith is a grace from God. He touches our hearts and calls us. He enlightens our minds so that
we may accept and believe in Him.

Faith is our free response as an individual. God does not coerce us to believe in Him. He calls
us to know and serve Him in a spirit of love and freedom. That is why, nobody is forced to
embrace a faith against his will.

As Christians, we desire to know better the God we believe in. Our faith in God is not blind
obedience but one which seeks understanding. The more we know God, the deeper we love
Him.

Our faith in God is not an isolated action but lived in the community, the Church. It is the
Church that believes first, then nourishes and sustains the faith of her members. We believe
that the Church is our teacher in the faith.

The Church teaches us how to persevere and to hold fast to our faith. We can persevere to the
end by nourishing our faith with the Word of God, with the sacraments, with prayers, and with
good works. (CCC 153-168)

The Church teaches us that our Christian faith has three

Believing - Our faith involves our convictions as Christians. With faith, we experience a
personal knowledge and relationship with Jesus Christ. That is why, we are able to confess
that He is our Lord and our God. Jesus, himself, assures us that if we believe in Him, He will
surely dwell within us.

Doing - Our Christian faith involves commitment. St. James, the apostle, reminds us that faith
without good works is dead. Commitment in faith urges us to follow and obey what Christ
commands us especially giving loving service to our needy neighbor, giving justice and love to
the poor, and safeguarding and caring for Mother Earth. Our love for God is clearly manifested
through love of neighbor.

trusting / Worshiping - Besides believing and doing, faith also involves entrusting ourselves to
God. This trusting faith grows and is nourished through prayer and worship especially through
the liturgy. This liturgy is the Catholic community's official public worship.
As Catholics, we celebrate our faith in prayer, in the
sacraments, and in the liturgy.

The Second Plenary Council of the Philippines (PCP II) is calling all Filipino Catholics for “a
renewed worship.”

St. Paul reminds us that we cannot worship God in our churches and then disregard him in our
daily activities.

The fruits of our prayer are concretely manifested with the kind of life that we live, the values
and behaviors that we express.

A renewed prayer life and worship is based on our realization of God’s presence in our midst
which leads us to gratitude, thanksgiving, adoration and love of Him.