Mark Hart – The Bible Geek
Mark Hart is a former teen, CORE member, and youth minister in LIFE TEEN, and now proudly serves as Vice President of LIFE TEEN. A graduate from the University of Notre Dame, and an author of three books, Mark’s creative work on videos and written resources are known internationally. In his free time, Mark travels the globe leading conferences, retreats, missions, and trainings for teens and adults alike.
Affectionately known as the “Bible Geek ®,” Mark is a man on a mission echoing the Good News to all he meets. He reaches tens of thousands of people weekly in his “Spread the Word” e-mails as he breaks open the Scriptures with humor and relevance, showing how they still apply to our modern lives. His fun-loving and comedic personality help him open teens up to scripture in a unique way, while bringing to light the depth of what it means to be a Catholic Christian.
Mark currently lives in Phoenix, AZ with wife, Melanie, the woman of his dreams and their two daughters, Hope and Trinity.
Mark has traveled throughout North America, Europe and Australia teaching and preaching the faith to hundreds of thousands of youth and adults. He has spoken at World Youth Days and dozens of Diocesan Youth Conferences and Eucharistic Congresses. His summers are spent evangelizing at Steubenville and Notre Dame Summer Youth Conferences, and through LIFE TEEN Camp experiences. In addition, Mark trains youth ministers at National LIFE TEEN Conferences and Retreat experiences, leads Parish Missions and speaks on college and high school campuses around the country.
An author, speaker, director and teacher, Mark’s work both written and spoken, is known across the country and world. While he serves as the Vice President of LIFE TEEN, he is known to tens of thousands simply as the “Bible Geek ®” Mark passionately echoes the gospel to all he encounters. He is as deep as he is funny, and his love for his wife and daughters is second only to his immense love for Jesus Christ.
Visit Mark at www.lifeteen.com
Downloads
1. How do we know that people who lived after Jesus actually believed that the Bible was God’s word? Did they believe and read the same Gospels as us? I heard that the Bible didn’t come around in published form until hundreds of years later. Which would mean the early Christians didn’t have it to believe in?
2. What is the difference between the King James and Catholic Bibles? Would you help explain the differences in Bible translations?
Show Two
1. My friend told me that you read the Bible in a certain order starting with Matthew. Is this true or can I read it from beginning to end
2. What does “fear of the Lord” really mean? I didn’t think we were suppose to be afraid of God. Isn’t God all loving?
Show Three
1. As Catholics, are we to believe and take the Bible literally contextual? For example is the story of Adam and Eve true or is it made up?
2. Do Guardian Angels really exist? Can I read about them in the Bible? Sometimes I even feel attacked when I sleep. Is there a prayer I can ask them to protect me?
Show Four
1. Sometimes it gets really hard for me to deal with ridicule from classmates and others. It’s really hard to be Catholic.
2. What does INRI stand for? What does it mean?
Show Five
1. What are we supposed to take from the different Gospels? It seems they are trying to get across different things when I read them.
2. What does it mean to be made in the image and likeness of God in Genesis? Does that mean that we look like God or He looks like us, or neither?
Show Six
1. Some of my non-Catholic friends told me that we aren’t a Bible-based religion. I told them that the Catholic church put the Bible together and pointed them to your other answers about it, (which was GREAT by the way). But what do I tell them when they say that all we do is say prayers made up by humans instead of reading the Word of God?
2. A lot of religions say the Revelation is a foreshadowing of what is to come. Is that what it is?
Show Seven
1. A Protestant brother of mine was arguing with me about First Timothy Three: 2 to 5, and he told me that Bishops were told to marry and I wasn’t sure what to say.
2. What is Opus Dei?
Show Eight
1. Christmas, Jesus’ birthday, is always on the same day, December 25th. Why is it that Easter, Jesus’ resurrection, is on different days every?
2. What did Jesus mean when he said that he did not come to bring peace…but a sword?”
Show Nine
1. Do you know any passages in the Bible that answer the question IF God exists?
2. How do you make your faith a part of your relationship when the person you are dating is NOT Catholic?
Show Ten
1. My brother is serving 10 months in Kuwait and I was wondering if there are any bible passages about being a soldier of God?
2. Hey Mark, I was wondering where in the Bible this saying comes from. “If you are ashamed of me, I will be ashamed of you before My Father.”
Show Eleven
1. If we commit venial sins, can we receive Holy Communion?
2. Where is the part in the Bible about “tomorrow not being promised”?
Show Twelve
1. Some of my friends and I are giving a talk on faith and family, and we are having trouble Bible quotes. Where do you think is the best place for us to look?
2. What’s the “longest” book in the Bible?
Show Thirteen
1. Where in the New Testament do we find the Scriptural evidence for the
Church’s teaching about Christ’s true presence in the Eucharist?
2. What is the Old Testament backing for it, is there one?
Show Fourteen
1. Why do we celebrate Advent? What does it mean and what’s it all about?
2. What is the significance of the Advent Wreath, the nativity set, the different colors, etc. we see in Church?
Show Fifteen
1. Five tangible things people can to do to start reading the Bible.
2. What is a “good” teen bible?
Show Sixteen
1. How can I talk about my faith with my family and friends, especially during the holidays?
2. What if they throw up issues about the Church that I don’t know how to answer?
Show Seventeen
1. What makes Mary any different than you or me? What if Mary had said, “No”?
2. How did the tradition of there being three magi start up if Matthew:2 doesn’t give a number of Magi? How did they get named? Basically, I need some more information on how this Catholic tradition got started.
Show Eighteen
1. I get distracted easily, not just in my prayer life, but in my spiritual life as well; how can I help myself get back on track when I lose sight of God?
2. Why don’t teens pray more? And why is that teens are more scared to praise God…when their friends are around?
Show Nineteen
1. What Biblical verses deal with abortion? My supposedly Christian friends think abortion is okay and I need some passages to help explain why abortion is so wrong.
2. I am really trying to understand embryonic stem cell research, and I still do not understand why the Catholic church is against it, if it is saving lives? Can you help me?
Show Twenty-One
1. How do we keep our teens Catholic?
2. What is Lifeteen and how did you get involved?
The importance of reflecting and praying with the Scripture before we go to mass on Sunday. Mark reflects on the prophet Jeremiah and the Beatitudes.
Show Twenty-Five
Mark reflects on Holy Week…Passion (Palm Sunday), Holy Thursday, Good Friday, and Easter.
of Egypt, out of the house of bondage. You shall have no
other gods before me. You shall not make for yourself a
graven image, or any likeness of anything that is in heaven
above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water
under the earth; you shall not bow down to them or serve
them.
The Ten Commandments – Second & Third Commandment
shall labor, and do all your work; but the seventh day is a
sabbath to the Lord your God; in it you shall not do any
work.
long in the land which the Lord your God gives you.
covet your neighbor’s wife, or his manservant, or his
maidservant, or his ox, or his ass, or anything that is your
neighbor’s.
You shall not desire your neighbor’s house, his field, or his
manservant, or his maidservant, or his ox, or his ass, or
anything that is your neighbor’s.
Scripture and Tradition
The Gospel of Matthew
The Gospel of Luke
Revelation
James
