The Book of Job

Our Summer Bible Series is an opportunity for adults and young adults who want to renew or expand their understanding of Scripture. The series is presented by highly qualified scripture scholars but is appropriate for participants with little or limited understanding of the Bible.

Description

The Book of Job from the Old (Hebrew) Testament is a powerful and dramatic examination of the problem of human suffering; beyond that, it is a conversation about God and humans' relationship with God.  The book is a literary composition, not a transcript of historical events and conversations.  It is named after its main character, who apparently was not an Israelite. The contents of the book, its artistic structure and elegant style, place it among the biblical and literary masterpieces of all time.

In this four-week series, Dr. William Mulcahey will guide participants through selected passages of the story, some typical speeches of Job’s friends, and Job’s desperate, heart-wrenching effort to understand why God allows innocent people to suffer.

Dr. Mulcahey writes:  Have you ever heard the quote: “Sometimes when you wonder why you can't hear God's voice during your trials, remember the teacher is always quiet during the test”?
According to Kathleen M. O’Connor, an expert on both trauma, its effects and The Book of Job, “Job is any suffering individual, the shelter-less, ill, abandoned, shame, ignored, abused, and belittled. Job is whole communities invaded by foreign armies, starving from lack of food, oppressed by dictators or military and economic systems. Job’s voice cries to all of us. To know our own suffering and to open us to caring for the suffering of others, for all suffering is sacred.”

Weekly Readings

• Week One/August 7 -- Read Job 1-2; 4-5 ;8; 11.
• Week Two/August 14 -- Read Job's speeches in chapters 6 & 7, 9,10, 12 through 14,19, and chapters 28-31.
• Week Three/August 21 -- Read Job 32-37
• Week Four/August 28 -- Read Job 38, 40-42.

Take-Away

Adults and young adults who participate in this opportunity will:
• Gain insight into our personal suffering and sorrows;
• Understand the sorrows and suffering of the world around us;
• Grow in our understanding of the relationship between God, humankind, and suffering.

About the Presenter

Dr. Bill Mulcahey is retired Director of Campus Ministry and professor at Mount Mercy University in Cedar Rapids. Bill received his Licentiate in Sacred Scripture (S.S.L.) from the Pontifical Biblical Institute in Rome. He served for fifteen years in basic Christian communities and higher education in Latin America, and for 12 years as Director of Campus Ministry and professor in the Philosophy, Religious Studies, and Campus Ministry Department at Mount Mercy. Bill also serves as an instructor for the Archdiocese of Dubuque's Lay Formation and Hispanic Diaconate Formation Programs. Bill and his wife Damaris reside in Cedar Rapids and are members of St. Matthew Parish.

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Registration

• By phone: call 319-233-0498.
• By email: Director of Adult Faith Formation
• Online: Click here to register online

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