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This section is devoted to your spiritual nourishment through various media that we have found helpful on our spiritual journey. Please browse and hopefully you will find something that may further you on your journey.

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Bible CD-ROM Software
Reviews by Steve Egge

• Logos - Libronix Software engine-now in version 3
• The Collegeville Catholic Reference Library: CD-ROM Edition (PC) Version 2.0
• Welcome to the Catholic Church 4.0 - by Harmony Media

In 1998, I wanted to get a Bible on CD-ROM after having a difficult time finding a passage I was looking for in the print version of the "Good News Bible-catholic study edition". How was I to know they moved the "canticles of Daniel" (Daniel 3:24-91) to a separate book in the "deuterocanonicals" called "The song of the three young men"? So I started investigating. I figured if I typed in the verse or words and did a search, I could find the passage no matter what "heading" it was under in the bible. This review is not comprehensive, and I have only had "hands on" with two software packages (logos/libronix and Welcome to the Catholic Church). Also remember prices change. Many of the packages I bought then are no longer available ... but there have been significant advances!

Back in 1998 I considered 3 software packages under $100, there are many more expensive and expansive programs available above this price line. I was steered towards the "Welcome to the Catholic Church 2.0" after talking to Peter Williamson at:
Bible and Theology Discount Software (www.bibletheology.com)
3030 Roundtree Blvd
Ypsilanti, MI 48197-4813
1/800-548-6678

Peter was extremely helpful in finding out what I wanted out of a bible CD. He sells many of them and has looked at some of them personally. His prices seem less than others I found on the net. Moreover, he seemed to be a sincere, and helpful individual. If you are considering purchasing a Bible CD-ROM, I suggest you look at the packages mentioned here, check out the links, look at the Bible and Theology site for additional offerings, and give Peter a call to help narrow down your choice. Currently Bible and Theology Discount Software will match anyone's advertised price (taking shipping into account), and will give you an additional 3% discount. What Bible software package you want largely depends upon what you want the software to do for you. If you want to talk to a "voice" and get some help in making a decision... give him a call. As of 2006 they are still around and offer a good selection.

Update 2006 - of the packages I looked at then ... this is what is left:

The Liturgical Press offers The Collegeville Catholic Reference Library: CD-ROM Edition (PC) Version 2.0 in the Libronix format which includes the following:

The Collegeville Catholic Collection is my current recommendation as a starter collection for the Libronix Library system. Certainly you can get a more powerful collection of books in the new Logos 3.0 series of collections with the Scholars Library offerings. But what is nice about starting with the Catholic Reference collection from Collegeville is that it is reasonably priced (I just found it for under $100), has a great search engine, and if you like the software you can upgrade by adding one of the many Libronix Collections, The Anchor Bible Library, Early Church Fathers or whatever you wish. Going this way you will NOT be buying duplicate books...as none of the books offered through the Collegeville series are contained in any of the other Libronix works. Upgrading to a 3.0 collection not only includes more books but more "addin tools" ... be sure to look carefully at not only the books but the tools offered if you want to do some greek and hebrew language study. Things can get a bit expensive, especially if you go for the Scholar's Library Gold, but the value is there if you use the books offered. I enjoy looking at different translations of scripture passages and can view them out side by side with Libronix engine and get a better sense how what the author was trying to say could be translated into the English language. Then I can delve into the Greek or Hebrew (assuming you have the books necessary in your library for original language study). I also enjoy the ease of looking at one or two commentaries side by side scrolling along with the bible text I am studying. The software is very customizable in terms of layout. Another plus is that the Libronix engine is constantly being upgraded (now at version 3.0), adding new features and speed. I understand that Bibleworks is one of the better options for original language study, although Libronix has made great leaps in this area with version 3.0 (and Bibleworks doesn't have nearly the depth of commentaries and other works that can be found with the books that Libronix offers).

I would urge you to do a google search for the best price on the The Collegeville Catholic Reference Library: CD-ROM Edition (PC) Version 2.0 or click on the above link to buy on Amazon.com. Then you can splurge if you want and get the Logos 3.0 Scholars library or Original language library and complement the Collegeville colleciton nicely.

In addition to what I've mentioned about Libronix. You can often pick up a book or two at discount prices if you are willing to wait for their yearly and sometimes twice yearly discount sales usually in December and June. Subscribe to their newsletter "Newswire" to keep informed.

Below is an example of what you can do with Libronix and the proper books and addons:

My wanting to get at the root meaning of the word began with a comment I'd heard about how the word "meek" in the beatitudes (Matt 5:5 Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the land.) didn't mean the same as the word we use today. A friend and I browsed through a Catholic Bookstore and got nowhere with Strong's Concordance. You must realize we were both novices at using this book. Then I began a bible study class, and although I used a bible online to search and find passages, I really became curious about the bible's translation. I know no Greek or Hebrew (although I did take two years of latin in high school). I looked again at the competing software in this price range and they were perhaps better at getting to the greek and Hebrew than Logos might be, they lacked the "add on" ability that Logos has. I really liked getting the insight of the bible commentary we were using for the book in bible class. The Scholars pack seemed to fit the bill best. I haven't been disappointed. I can read the bible in one window and (at least in the NAB bible) highlight the footnotes and jump to references as I read and return easily. But also as I read I have a window open with 3 bible commentaries that scroll through as you read and show the relevant comments (by linking with the text). To get at the Greek and Hebrew you have to use the KJV of the bible as Strong's numbers were based on it. There is a free download of a Hebrew Lexicon which gives you the meaning of a Hebrew word (I didn't know that Hebrew read from right to left.). The CD comes with a Greek Lexicon. Vines Expository Dictionary of the Old and New Testament Words gives a good understanding of the meaning of the "root" word that is contained in the Greek or Hebrew text. Bibles can easily be switched by an arrow key which will cycle them through.

The answer I found (and rather quickly I might add) to the meaning of "meek" (Strong's 4239) is that the greek word means the "opposite of self-interest" or open to the working of God in your life. I have also heard it said that the ones who are the "meek" are the ones who in the Our Father when they say "thy will be done", they mean it!

I'll leave you with an example of the software search on Meek from Vines (this is just one of the books queried):

Meek, Meekness MEEK, MEEKNESS
A. Adjective.
PRAUèS or PRAOS (prauŸ" , (4239)) denotes gentle, mild, meek; for its significance see the corresponding noun, below, B. Christ uses it of His own disposition, Matt. 11:29; He gives it in the third of His Beatitudes, 5:5; it is said of Him as the King Messiah, 21:5, from Zech. 9:9; it is an adornment of the Christian profession, 1 Pet. 3:4.{indicates that all the N.T. occurrences of the Greek work under consideration are mentioned under the heading or sub–heading.} cp.{cp. compare, see also} eµpios, gentle, of a soothing disposition, 1 Thess. 2:7; 2 Tim. 2:24.{indicates that all the N.T. occurrences of the Greek work under consideration are mentioned under the heading or sub–heading.}
B. Nouns.
1. PRAUèTE÷S, or PRAOTES, an earlier form, (prauŸth", (4240)) denotes meekness. In its use in Scripture, in which it has a fuller, deeper significance than in non–scriptural Greek writings, it consists not in a person’s “outward behaviour only; nor yet in his relations to his fellow–men; as little in his mere natural disposition. Rather it is an inwrought grace of the soul; and the exercises of it are first and chiefly towards God. It is that temper of spirit in which we accept His dealings with us as good, and therefore without disputing or resisting; it is closely linked with the word tapeinophrosuneµ [humility], and follows directly upon it, Eph. 4:2; Col. 3:12; cp.{cp. compare, see also} the adjectives in the Sept.{Sept. Septuagint} of Zeph. 3:12, “meek and lowly;” … it is only the humble heart which is also the meek, and which, as such, does not fight against God and more or less struggle and contend with Him. This meekness, however, being first of all a meekness before God, is also such in the face of men, even of evil men, out of a sense that these, with the insults and injuries which they may inflict, are permitted and employed by Him for the chastening and purifying of His elect” (Trench, Syn.{Syn. Synonyms} § xlii). In Gal. 5:23 it is associated with enkrateia, self–control.
The meaning of prau¬teµs “is not readily expressed in English, for the terms meekness, mildness, commonly used, suggest weakness and pusillanimity to a greater or less extent, whereas prau¬teµs does nothing of the kind. Nevertheless, it is difficult to find a rendering less open to objection than ‘meekness;’ ‘gentleness’ has been suggested, but as prau¬teµs describes a condition of mind and heart, and as ‘gentleness’ is appropriate rather to actions, this word is no better than that used in both English Versions. It must be clearly understood, therefore, that the meekness manifested by the Lord and commended to the believer is the fruit of power. The common assumption is that when a man is meek it is because he cannot help himself; but the Lord was ‘meek’ because he had the infinite resources of God at His command. Described negatively, meekness is the opposite to self–assertiveness and self–interest; it is equanimity of spirit that is neither elated nor cast down, simply because it is not occupied with self at all.
In 2 Cor. 10:1 the Apostle appeals to the ‘meekness … of Christ.’ Christians are charged to show ‘all meekness toward all men,’ Tit. 3:2, for meekness becomes ‘God’s elect,’ Col. 3:12. To this virtue the ‘man of God’ is urged; he is to ‘follow after meekness’ for his own sake, 1 Tim. 6:11 (the best texts have No.{No. number} 2 here, however), and in his service, and more especially in his dealings with the ‘ignorant and erring,’ he is to exhibit ‘a spirit of meekness,’ 1 Cor. 4:21 and Gal. 6:1; even ‘they that oppose themselves’ are to be corrected in meekness, 2 Tim. 2:25. James exhorts his ‘beloved brethren’ to ‘receive with meekness the implanted word,’ 1:21. Peter enjoins ‘meekness’ in setting forth the grounds of the Christian hope, 3:15.”*{* * From Notes on Galatians by Hogg and Vine, pp. 294, 295.}¶{¶ ¶ indicates that all the N.T. occurrences of the Greek work under consideration are mentioned under the heading or sub–heading.}
2. PRAUèPATHIA (prauŸpaqiva ), a meek disposition, meekness (praus, meek, paschoµ, to suffer), is found in the best texts in 1 Tim. 6:11.¶{¶ ¶ indicates that all the N.T. occurrences of the Greek work under consideration are mentioned under the heading or sub–heading.}

Vine, W. E., Vine’s Expository Dictionary of Old and New Testament Words, (Grand Rapids, MI: Fleming H. Revell) 1981.

Now let's discuss another piece of software: Welcome to the Catholic Church 4.0. This is a recent (2006) upgrade from version 3.0

It has a very "churchy" interface with some nice background music, (one would almost expect incense to come out of the computer, however in the preferences it can be turned off). The interface in version 4.0 has been updated with a double pane navigation system giving you a choice of browsing in the right pain or expanding topics and drilling down to the desired document in the left pane. The right handed pane interface invites you to browse the contents, by doing so I have been pleasantly rewarded. The strong point of the program is in the amount of material of the church they offer: Stations of the cross, the Life of Christ, Mysteries of the rosary, prayers, and Catechism of the Catholic Church, and lots of church documents.. There is a wealth of Catholic information. The main addition to version 4.0 is the Summa Theologica by St. Thomas Aquinas.

The bible has lots of * asterisks that you can move your mouse to and get a pop up box with more information and reference ... like the footnotes at the bottom of the page in many bibles. I enjoy these unobtrusive comments. In a recent bible study class, I found it easier to read the bible on the computer screen and click on the comments as they occurred - jumping to the referred passages and back than to read the bible on paper and search for the proper footnote. With version 4.0 there is a new "Related" that can be opened and appears on the right side of the interface. While reading the bible, it allows you to switch between NAB and RSV version and also get dictionary definitions to words, commentary through the Catena Aurea (which was written by the early church fathers compiled by Thomas Aquinas), as well as links to the Catechism. WTCC doesn't have the power of Libronix in that you can't purchace additions from an extensive library of offerings and it doesn't allow delving into the original Greek and Hebrew texts to get at the nuances of words used in a different time and place. It is, however, a very substantial collection of Catholic Bibles and information that will help you on your journey through not only the bible but church doctrine and teachings. Libronix does not, as of this time, does not offer any of the "books" (other than the two bibles) that are contained in WTCC 4.0 making it complementary to any Libronix offering. In a recent e-mail from Bill VanSmoorenburg at Harmony Media he says "WTCC 4.0 is a library system. You will download the newest documents and updates for free and we will be adding new books that are related to the collection already there - the browsing area will be expanded also". So it appears that the new interface brings many more options to WTCC.

There are a few nuances about version 4.0 I should point out. The Liturgical year readings are not as well done as they were in version 3.0 in that the table format seems to be lost. Also the last year given is 2006! This is made up for by a link to the internet under "extras" which takes you to the Unites States Catholic Bishops site for today's reading. From there you can navigate to Sunday's reading if you wish. It also has links to 5 Catholic news agencies including the Vatican. The newer 4.0 interface is more usable than those in the past with improved ability to select text and copy and paste to another application. There is also a new "check for updates" in the preferences. Hopefully this will allow a better implementation of the Liturgical year readings to be downloaded. Gone from version 3.0 is the "index" panel but this is no great loss.

With version 4.0 Harmony Media has given you the ability to download the full program for your perusal. It is the whole program with its entire content. You can only run it once without it asking for the unlock code. I called Harmony Media for the upgrade price and downloaded and unlocked version 4.0 within minutes and saved on shipping as well! It sells for $99 at Harmony Media and it is a good value. You might want to search on google or some other site for the best price. Be sure it is version 4.0. Check out the Harmony Media site to see what the current version might be, it seems to be upgraded on somewhat of a yearly basis. If you browse the Harmony Media site you will also see many other interesting bits of software, such as the Catechism of the Catholic church (this is contained in Version 4.0 of WTCC), Early Church Fathers, Butler's Lives of the Saints, The Teachings of John Paul II, the Summa Theologica (part of this is also in WTCC 4.0), and OSV's Catholic Encyclopedia.

My hope is one day either Harmony would migrate to the Libronix interface, or Libronix would offer the same Catholic books and Documents contained in WTCC.

I hope your bible study and understanding of the Word will be enriched by one of the bible software products discussed.

--Steve Egge

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