Sunday of the Word of God
Celebrated on the Sunday after the Epiphany
12 January 2025
Goal: To deepen the knowledge of the Holy Scriptures among the faithful, to create an atmosphere of prayer and reflection on the Word of God, to encourage the practice of common and personal reading of the Bible.
10 suggestions for holding the Sunday of the Word of God in the parishes of the UGCC:
Prayerful reading of the Gospel of Mark in the parish
At the centre of the church, place an open Bible on a lectern. Open it to the Gospel of Mark.
Announce to the faithful that they can come up at a time convenient for them and read one or more passages verses. This can happen both at particular times (for example, after the Divine Liturgy) as well as at another random time (e.g. set hours or just an open church that day).
In the church, you can additionally enhance the atmosphere for listening, reflection and prayer (soft light, candles, the smell of incense, turn on quiet spiritual music).
Emphasize to the parishioners the importance of reading and meditation, inviting everyone to participate. Explain that this is both reading and prayer.
After reading each passage, you can offer a moment of silence for personal reflection.
The event should end with a joint prayer and an appeal to read the Bible regularly at home.
Deepening familiarity with the Bible
In the parish hall or some other space (preferably in a place where you can use a projector), hold a discussion about the Bible. To begin with, give a short presentation that will bring out some interesting facts about the Bible, explain what the Bible is, its structure, and also explain how to read and pray with the Holy Scriptures. Then it would be excellent to discuss and share with the faithful about their experiences (what they know about the Bible and how often and in what way they read the Holy Scriptures).
After this, you can have a joint reading of one of the passages of Holy Scripture, followed by a brief explanation of the text and offering answers to the questions of the faithful.
A text for presentation and conversation can be found at the link (Ukr): https://ct.ugcc.ua/bibliyniy-apostolyat/materialy-dlya-biblijnogo-apostolyatu/tematychni-statti/29923
Reflections on Bible passages
Prepare short quotes from the Bible in advance, printed on separate cards. Before or after the Divine Liturgy, each faithful receives one card with a biblical passage. The priest or catechist explains that this is an opportunity to reflect on the Word of God and share thoughts with others.
The faithful can be invited to discuss the meaning of the passages read in small groups (of family, friends), and then share their reflections or questions.
You can find biblical quotes at various online links, like: https://bibleconclusions.com/bible-verses-for-catholics/
Bible quiz
The faithful can also be invited to take the quiz game “Bible Experts” and assess their knowledge of the Holy Scriptures. The quiz consists of three levels of 10 questions, with the first level being the easiest, and the third requiring more in-depth knowledge. Each question has several multiple-choice options, with only one correct answer. After you have chosen one of the answers, the program shows the only correct one (in case your answer was incorrect).
There are several ways to play the quiz. One of them is to individually pick a category and level (there is a separate one for each level), or scan the QR code and complete all the tasks of each level. Or another option is to test yourself on your knowledge of the Holy Scriptures together with your family or parish community.
Using modern tools, in particular the Kahoot application, you can spend time in an interesting and informative way, and encourage the faithful to study the Holy Scriptures more thoroughly.
Here’s one English Bible Quiz:
A different kind of English Bible Quiz:
A Ukrainian Online Quiz:
https://kahoot.it/solo/?quizId=8f42de01-facd-4ddd-b325-11ed515117f8 – Level 1
https://kahoot.it/solo/?quizId=b87a5a03-fa0d-43d6-9fb9-eef6d41fbb75 – Level 2
https://kahoot.it/solo/?quizId=488d24c2-9b6a-4ca6-83ff-4c78e5c5589f – Level 3
Bible Scholars (Ukr) #1
Bible Scholars (Ukr) #2
Bible Scholars (Ukr) #3
Prayerful reading of the Holy Scripture in a group setting
Prayerful reading of the Holy Scripture involves work in a small group (up to 20 people), it can be within the parish community or a family. Prayerful reading consists of preparation, three stages and the conclusion.
Usually, a passage from the Gospel is taken for consideration: either a paragraph or even several verses. After an attentive, thoughtful reading, the participants in the meeting choose the lines that most appealed to them and try to share with others what exactly struck them about these words, expressing their thoughts if desired. [It is important that the prayerful reading of the Holy Scripture meeting in the parish takes place under the guidance of a competent person – a Pastor, a Sister or a Catechist, who is able to explain difficult-to-understand passages of the Holy Scripture and give good advice. The meeting begins and ends with a prayer together.
Such meetings inspire, unite and enrich, they are a good opportunity for communication. But the main thing is that listening to and reflecting on the Holy Scriptures focuses us on the desire to fulfill the Word of God in our everyday lives, to live by the Word of the Gospel.
If the prayerful reading of the Holy Scriptures is being held for the first time, it is worth having the leader talk about the importance of this practice for Christians and about the method itself.
You can view the presentation on the method of prayerful reading of the Holy Scriptures at these links: https://ct.ugcc.ua/bibliyniy-apostolyat/materialy-dlya-biblijnogo-apostolyatu/metody-molytovnogo-chytannya-svyatogo-pysma/29070 (Ukr), or See some English resources in “11. Summary” below, like: –
Preparation and prayer:
Participants sit in a basic circle of any shape, with a candle (or lamp) is lit and the leader leads a prayer. The best is to the Holy Spirit (“Heavenly King”, or “Our Father”) or any other prayer, for example from the 1st hour: “O Christ, the true light, who enlightens and sanctifies everyone who comes into the world, mark us with the radiance of your countenance so that we may see the unapproachable light. Let our life be straight along the path of your commandments, through the prayers of your most pure mother and of all your saints. Amen”.
1st stage of reading: “What impressed you the most?”. The leader reads the selected passage of Holy Scripture for the first time. Then he invites those present to reflect: “Let us try to think for 2-3 minutes in silence about what impressed each of us the most from what was read: a word, a phrase or a sentence”.
2nd stage of reading: “What does God want to tell me?”. It is advisable for the leader to ask one of the participants to read the same passage of Holy Scripture a second time. After the reading, the leader invites us to reflect again: “Let us reflect now in silence: what does the Lord God want to say to me now? …Here and now personally with this word or phrase that He spoke to me through the reading?”
3rd stage of reading: “What do I want to say to God?”. The leader instructs yet another participant to read the same passage of Holy Scripture a third time. Invitation to reflect: “What do I want to say to the Lord in response to His word to me?”
Closing prayer
The leader concludes the meeting with a prayer. This can be a prayer that everyone knows (e.g. “Hail Mary”), or another prayer:
His in life, so that I may find my happiness in following Him and be, among the brothers and sisters with whom I live, a witness to Your Gospel of salvation. I ask You for this for the sake of our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.”
For those wishing to hold regular meetings for prayerful reading of the Holy Scripture, we offer appropriate programs developed by the Patriarchal Catechetical Commission (Ukr)
And, again, see some of the links in “11. Summary” below (English)
Watching films on a biblical themes
Organizing a joint viewing of a film based on biblical stories or events, with subsequent discussion. Such a viewing will help visualize biblical events, better understand the cultural and historical context of the Holy Scriptures, and also promote emotional immersion in its message. This is especially useful for young people and those who are just starting to be interested in the Bible, because such an approach makes it more accessible and understandable.
It is important to choose a high-quality film that does not contradict the teachings of the Church. On the Internet you can find many offers of films on a biblical theme, for example:
We add links to films whose translation was carried out by the Patriarchal Catechetical Commission and the Catechetical and Pedagogical Institute of the Ukrainian Catholic University: “In the Footsteps of Christ”, “Paul”. They can be found at the link:
The site should be revised to include all the episodes of In the Footsteps of Christ and the correct signatures of Paul: Павло: з Тарсу до світу. с 7. Я закінчив біг or Павло: з Тарсу до Світу. 1 серія. Світло з неба | Патріарша катехитична комісія
After watching, it is worth making time to invite participants to express themselves: what moments impressed them, what seemed incomprehensible, what lessons can be learned for their own lives. A priest or catechist can summarize the conversation by emphasizing the main idea of the film in the light of faith. Then, participants can be encouraged to read the relevant biblical text at home and reflect on it.
Reading and discussing a book on a biblical theme
The format of reading and reflecting together on the texts of books creates an opportunity for spiritual growth, learning with others and deepening relationships between members of the parish community, discovering new aspects of the Word of God. For your attention, we offer the book by the famous Italian biblical scholar Giorgio Zevini “The Bible – God’s “love letter” to people”
You can organize reading and discussion of the book by Giorgio Zevini “The Bible – God’s “love letter” to people” in the parish as a series of meetings that combine in-depth familiarization with the text and joint reflection. This book, written by a famous biblical scholar, helps to discover the Bible as the living and relevant Word of God, which carries a message of love for every person. Its accessible style and deep content make it ideal for joint reading in a parish environment. You can get acquainted with the book by clicking on the link:
English US Bishops’ Conference: https://www.usccb.org/offices/new-american-bible/study-materials
Video Introduction to St. Mark (Eng):
For children, we suggest
A more in-depth course for studying the Holy Scriptures
For those who wish to explore and better understand the Word of God, we offer to take the online course “Introduction to Biblical Studies”. The course contains both certain informative aspects and an attempt at theological understanding of biblical issues, in order to encourage the student to further scientific work with the texts of the Holy Scripture.
The course provides general information about the Holy Scripture, its history and context of origin. The specifics of God’s Revelation in history, its sources, the relationship between Scripture and Tradition are studied, followed by a presentation of theological issues: inspiration, truth and holiness of Scripture, the Canon of the Old and New Testaments.
The course is posted on the online platform of the Ukrainian Catholic University and is open to all who wish to grow in faith and prayer. To take the course, you can follow the link:
https://open.ucu.edu.ua/course/view.php?id=227#section-23 and register (Ukr).
Summary:
At the end of the Sunday of the Word of God, we encourage a joint discussion in the church or parish hall, inviting the faithful to share their impressions and thoughts.
This format will help involve parishioners in the life of the Church, teach them to practice reading and praying with the Holy Scriptures, and help build a vibrant parish community.
In English:
– Lectio Divina
– Praying with Sacred Scriptures
– A Prayerful Reading of the Acts of the Apostles