A Thought on "Ignorance of Scripture"

Ok, I'm just going to come out and say this: I don't enjoy reading the Bible. I know that it's the story of Christ and it's part of the reason we have hope, but every time I think about picking it up, my brain goes into shock because I worry that I'm going to misinterpret everything and that I'm going to get cocky for reading it, and that somehow I'm not going to do it right.

I know St. Jerome said "Ignorance of Scripture is ignorance of Christ," but I freeze up every time I consider picking up the Bible. Once and a while I'll read my favorite psalms or my favorite bits of the Gospel, and I get my weekly dose of Scripture at Mass, but I've never read the Bible page by page.

I'm not sure "ignorance of Christ" is necessarily a bad thing. I ought to know a little about Him, at least, but I think it's a little like that bit from The Return of the King (because everything always has to be about Tolkien all the time) when Pippin says,

"Dear me! We Tooks and Brandybucks, we can't live long on the heights."

"No," said Merry. "I can't. Not yet, at any rate. But at least, Pippin, we can see them and honour them. It is best to love first what you are fitted to love, I suppose: you must start somewhere and have some roots, and the soil of the Shire is deep. Still, there are things deeper and higher, and not a gaffer could tend his garden in what he calls peace but for them, whether he knows about them or not. I am glad that I know about them, a little."

I don't know if I'm living my life the right way, but the way I'm doing it is knowing just a little about Christ and then trying to find Him in things that I'm not petrified of. And maybe I should read the Bible even though I'm petrified, but I don't feel like I'm doing anything terrible by not reading it. That is all.