01.23.24 Member Question Tuesday
- tmaley
- Jan 30, 2024
- 19 min read
Updated: Feb 6, 2024
Northern Virginia Catholic Bible Study & Apologetics
Every Tuesday, 7PM-8PM
This meeting format is lecture and Q&A. It is free.
House rules/notes…
Our meeting/classes are In-Person at St. John Neumann Catholic Church 11900 Lawyers Road, Reston, VA 20191 https://saintjn.org/ (usually held downstairs in Room 5), or ONLINE via Zoom (see #2).
To sign up for Zoom notifications and to receive the Meeting Recaps, go to www.meetup.com/catholicbiblestudy and join us! The Zoom Logon is the same every week: Zoom ID: 861 1782 2081 Password: 406952.
After each meeting, I send out Meeting Recaps of what we discussed. Please remember these recaps are unedited and without the pictures. The edited version with pictures will be posted on our website before the next class on the Website – https://catholiccatacombs.wixsite.com/website. Taylor will notify everyone at that time and provide a link.
Questions encouraged. If you have questions, we ask that you keep them on topic and brief. You can ask in the chat box during the class, or email through Meetup.com, or email me at ron@hallagan.net afterwards.
Respectfulness. We will be discussing differences between religions and between Christian denominations, and we agree to be respectful at all times. Protestants especially are our friends and brothers-in-Christ; in fact, I personally owe part of my return to the faith to them!
No politics. It would be easy for us to self-destruct, but that’s not our goal. Our goal is to learn/understand/apply the Bible and our Catholic faith.
Catholic Prayer & Fellowship. Are you interested in praying the rosary, etc. with other Catholics during the week? Follow fellow member Jason Goldberg at https://www.meetup.com/online-catholic-prayer-fellowship-and-spirituality/. Daily/weekly prayer is saintly!
“The Chosen” TV series. All of us seek a relationship with Jesus Christ, which is not always easy. It can help if we have seen and heard Him. The Chosen captures Jesus better than any show I have ever seen. Highly recommended.
RSVP Reminder: Please RSVP whether you are attending the meeting or just reading the Recaps afterwards. The more RSVPs, the more Meetup will give exposure to “Catholic Bible Study” – a good thing!
Catholic Catacombs Website: https://catholiccatacombs.wixsite.com/website
Bible Study Format: Each week of the month has a repeating topic, as noted below.
Each meeting: 5 min greet, prayer, 10-15 min Catholic topic, 40-45 min main topic.
Week 1: Gospel Week
Week 2: Bible Week (Gen to Rev): We are in The Book of JUDGES.
Week 3: Survey Topics Voted on by Members:
x 1) Jesus’ Greatest Parables x 2) Hell, Purgatory, Heaven x 3) Comparative Religions
4) Great Women in the Bible 5) Book of Revelation 6) Major Heresies and Church Councils
Week 4: Member Questions:
Can you provide a brief review of the origin/meaning of the (12) statements in the Creed?
How do I live my Christian faith at work when my faith is not accepted there?
Angels – who are they, what do they do? Do we really have guardian angels? What about devils/demons?
Please explain exorcisms. Do they happen, are they real?
What should our response be to those who ask us about priestly sex abuse?
What about the atheist who leads a good life? Can I be a person be good apart from God?
Miracles since the NT
What’s the difference between Charity and Love? What are the highest forms of charity?
How can I get more excited by the Mass?
Was King David good or bad? Was Emperor Constantine good or bad? Was he even Christian?
Why does God allow suffering?
What do you think a day in the life of God is like to Him?
Opening Prayer
Eucharistia: Thank you, Lord, I am grateful for your saving presence in my life.
Kenosis: Lord, I will try to empty myself as you did, to be present to others.
Metanoia: Today, every moment, I yoke my mind, my heart, and my soul to You.
Maranatha: Come, Lord, enter, and make your home with us.
And as you taught us to pray…
Our Father
Who art in Heaven, Hallowed be Thy Name.
Thy Kingdom come, Thy Will be done, on earth as it is in Heaven.
Give us this day our daily Bread;
And forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us.
And lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil. Amen.
Major upcoming holy days in the Liturgy of the Church:
February 14: Ash Wednesday, beginning of Lent
Feb 14 – Mar 28: Lent (ends on Holy Thurs/Last Supper)
Today
Prison service, mentoring, Our Father/love
Gospel Reading for this Sunday – Mark 1:21-28 – Exorcist Sunday
Quote of the Week:
Whether you're an entrepreneur, a writer, a teacher, a stay-at-home-mom, or a designer, you have an unfair advantage. You have the God who is "able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine" living inside of you (see Ephesians 3:20). Let that truth inspire you, like Joseph, to boldly take on the problems nobody else will touch. When you succeed, give God the glory and you will have succeeded again.
We will review a different apologetics or exegesis term each week (below)...
Apologetics and Exegesis Terms
Apologetics – to defend a belief.
Catholic Apologetics– to defend the Catholic faith using reason, tradition, & Scripture.
Exegesis – the study and interpretation of Scripture (it’s what we do here every week; you are all exegetes).
Eschatology (Greek, eschaton=last/end): the study of the End Times – the Second Coming of Christ (also called
Parousia), Judgement Day, Heaven and Hell.
Bible = The OT = The Torah (Pentateuch, Books of Moses), the Prophets, the Writings (Wisdom, Novellas)
The NT = The Gospels and the Epistles (Epistles: New Test Letters (Paul), Catholic Letters, and Revelation).
Best Bibles – The Didache Bible, Ignatius Edition; Ignatius RSV 2nd Catholic edition; Augustine Bible; Douay Rheims (Jerome). Starters: Bible Basics for Catholics-Ave Maria press.
Church – Greek kyriakon house of the Lord: building for Christian worship; the whole body of Christian believers.
Ark of the Covenant: a) The golden chest holding the 10 Commandments; b) Mary’s womb holding the Word of God
Tabernacle - the portable sanctuary used by the Israelites in the wilderness during Exodus the from Egypt and then in the Temple in Jerusalem by Solomon (and again later by Herod). Latin tabernaculum – tent; temporary dwelling place.
Temple – Latin templum - space set aside for sacrifice/worship; replaced the Tabernacle; the Temple in Jerusalem.
Synagogue – Jewish house of worship often w/facilities for religious instruction. Greek synagogue: assembly/gathering.
Church Authority – The Church is the only authority given by Jesus Christ to interpret the Word of God: "Whatever you bind on earth will be bound in Heaven" (Mt 18:18-20). Otherwise, there could be a different interpretation for every Scriptural passage for every person who ever read them, resulting in division vs unity (which is why there are 10,000 different Protestant churches and 17+ Eastern Orthodox churches). Catholic Church teachings are nothing more than the Church’s interpretation of that which has already been revealed by God, either through Scripture or what has been handed on from Apostolic Tradition. This body of the Church’s interpretation is called the “Magisterium” and it is not superior to the Word of God, but its servant. The Church cannot make up anything outside what has been handed to it, but rather guards and teaches it (CCC#86, 890). The Church believes that Divine Revelation ended with the Apostles.
Doctrine refers to all of the official teachings of the Church. They fall into the first three categories:
Those that the Church teaches authoritatively but not infallibly. Elements within these can change.
“Ex cathedra” means when the pope “speaks from the chair of Peter.” Infallible, indirect revelation.
Dogma: Those teachings which the Church has infallibly taught to be divinely revealed.
“Theological Opinions” are teachings that express a pope’s views in a subject but are not doctrine/not binding. Encyclicals fall into this category.
Heresy is the rejection of dogma. If someone rejects a teaching belonging to the first or second categories of doctrine, it may be sinful, but it does not rise to the level of heresy.
Epiphany – Epiphany means a sudden appearance or manifestation from above. In Christianity, it refers to the manifestation of Jesus Christ being the Savior of the World to the gentiles (Magi) 12 days after Christmas. Often applies to knowledge.
Theophany means the appearance of God, such as Yahweh to Moses on Mt. Sinai, or at the Transfiguration. Note “phany” in both words, from the Greek phainein = to appear. [Theo=God + phany=appear]
Eucharist –the Lord’s Supper. The bread & wine become Jesus’ body/blood. From Greek eucharistia = thanksgiving.
Mass – the celebration of the Last Supper/Eucharist. “Mass” is from the Latin missa meaning “to send (out).”
Evangelize – to make the Kingdom of God present in our world.
Forgiveness – letting go of past harm to God or others; it presumes repentance, which presumes changes in behavior
Mercy – withholding harsh treatment or judgment that is justified.
God as Father/He/Him – scriptural tradition (God is not a gender); God does set the gold standard for fatherhood.
Man – generic for mankind, humanity. Man always believes, even if only in himself. Below are belief options.
Deism – belief in a supreme being/creator who does not intervene in the universe, or who is indifferent to it.
Theism – belief in the existence of God or gods, especially the believe in one God who is creator of the universe and is actively engaged in some way, intervening in it and sustaining a personal relationship with his creatures. Polytheism.
Atheism – relatively new in human history, the belief that gods of any kind do not exist.
Agnosticism – belief that God may or may not exist but we do not, or cannot, know.
Preternatural – means “outside the natural”; refers to the preternatural state of grace Adam & Eve were in before the Fall.
The “World” – as used in the Bible, this term pertains to the nonreligious, secular world, or our material, temporary lives. In fact, the word “secular” (Latin seaecularis) = worldly/temporal. Biblically, “this world" usually has a negative connotation, i.e., “The fall of man resulted from our choosing this world/ourselves over God.” This world is not intrinsically bad, as God made all things good. It is man that reduces it to something less. The earth is home to all our “worldly temptations” that seek to block the light of Heaven in our lives.
“A lie travels around the globe while the truth is still putting on its shoes.” – Mark Twain
Add: Concupiscence, Octave, Justice, Mercy, Righteous, Patience, Kingdom, Righteous, Hyperbole, Soteriology, Apostolic Succession
Gospel reading for Sunday, Jan 28 – Jesus the Exorcist!
Context: So far in Mark, we saw the Baptism of Jesus, his beginning to preach the Kingdom of God, his call of the first Apostles, the healing of the man’s hand in the synagogue, and now Jesus is in another synagogue in the town of Capernaum where he will perform his first exorcism. Yes, exorcism, which involves demons and happens to be our next question after we finish the Creed (Angels).
All demons are fallen angels. And we learned in Genesis 3, after the Fall of Man, evil/the devil followed man into the world. If you ever want to test this, remove humans from the planet and ask yourself, is evil still there? No. It only exists where humans exist. In fact, before Jesus came, Satan had the run of things to a greater degree. Man had no hope of being saved until Jesus conquered death for us on the cross. However, man still has the free will to choose himself over God, and thus the devil is still busy because he lives under the premise of MLC (Misery Loves Company!).
Our reading today is Mark 1:12-13. Although Jesus will engage demons, it is not his first encounter. After his baptism by John the Baptist, the Holy Spirit lead him into the desert to face the head of all demons, Satan himself. If Jesus came to undo the Fall of Man, it was only courteous of him to pay Satan a visit. In truth, Jesus had to experience the same temptations as our first parents, except undo their mistakes by responding correctly. It was the first step.
Notice how quickly Mark moves through the story compared to the other Gospels. The following is all in Chap One:
Then they came to Capernaum, and on the sabbath Jesus entered the synagogue and taught.
The people were astonished at his teaching, for he taught them as one having authority and not as the scribes.
In their synagogue was a man with an unclean spirit; he cried out, "What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are—the Holy One of God!"
Jesus rebuked him and said, "Be still! Come out of him!"
The unclean spirit convulsed him and with a loud cry came out of him.
All were amazed and asked one another, "What is this? A new teaching with authority. He commands even the unclean spirits, and they obey him."
His fame spread everywhere throughout the whole region of Galilee.
The Jewish Sabbath was a Saturday, the last day of the week, the 7th day of Creation in Genesis. Did the Christians change the Sabbath Day?
No, the sabbath is still the sabbath (Sat), the last day of the week. Christians worship on the first day of the week – Sunday (often called the 1st day of the week, or the 8th day). The main reason is that Jesus rose on the “8th day” (Sunday), which is what we call the “Lord’s Day,” not the Sabbath.
By undoing the Fall of Man, Jesus ushered in what Scripture calls a New Creation. So, whereas the Sabbath – the 7th day – represents the completion of the first Creation, the 8th/1st day represents first day of the New Creation, the Lord’s Day. Some Scriptural references may help:
And at the end of the sabbath, when it began to dawn towards the first day of the week, came Mary Magdalene and the other Mary, to see the tomb. (Mt 28:1)
On the first day of the week, two disciples were walking to a town called Emmaus… (Luke 24:13-30).
On the first day of the week when we gathered to break bread, Paul spoke to them because he was going to leave on the next day, and he kept on speaking until midnight (Acts 20:7).
On the first day of the week each of you should set aside and save whatever one can afford, so that collections will not be going on when I come (1 Cor. 16:2). (You can see Sunday collections had a very early beginning!)
Q: What is significant about Capernaum?
Capernaum was the home of Peter, Andrew, James, John, and Matthew. And it became Jesus’ headquarters.
Q: What is a synagogue?
It's not the Temple – the only one of those was in Jerusalem (destroyed by the Romans in 70AD). By the first century, there would have been a synagogue – a place for Jews to gather on the Sabbath – pray, sing psalms, read scripture, learn, and talk about the meaning of it.
When you think about it, you can see how the synagogue service closely resembles the first half our Mass – the Liturgy of the Word. The sacrifices at the Temple was replaced by the sacrifice of Jesus, the Liturgy of the Eucharist.
Q: What does this mean? "What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us?
Gen 3:15 contains the first prophecy of a Messiah, “the seed of the woman will crush the head of the serpent.” The demons know this. They know the one who is to come will have some kind of power over them.
Q: I know who you are—the Holy One of God!"
First of all, we should find it interesting that the demons know who Jesus is even though humans don’t!
Second, notice they don’t say, “Messiah,” or “Son of God.” They aren’t sure exactly who is this person who is to come. We must remember that the fallen angels know Scripture better than we do. This particular reference – “Holy One of God” – they would have gotten from Psalms 106:16-17, where this term refers to the first High Priest of the Temple (Tabernacle), Moses’ brother, Aaron, who was considered to have authority over evil because of his position. This reference by the demons points to Jesus filling the role of the true High Priest, or “Priestly Messiah.” Remember, with all the different prophecies, many Jews – including at Qumran – thought there were 3 Messiahs coming – a Kingly Messiah, a Priestly Messiah, and a Suffering Messiah. As it turns out, Jesus is all three of these. Recall the three gifts from the Magi. And recall Pilate asking him, “Are you the king of the Jews” Jesus answered, “My kingdom is not of this world.” – John 18:33-34
Q: Jesus rebuked him and said, "Be still! Come out of him!" Jesus commands the spirits to “be still” or “be quiet” using the same word he uses later on to quiet the storm when they are on the Sea of Galilee. Why might this be significant?
Recall who Jesus is. Read John 1:1-3: In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made.
All of creation was under his will because they all have their existence because of him. That’s why storms and demons do whatever he says.
Q: Why did Jesus command them to shut up?
It wasn’t time to die. He was just getting started. He will speak clearly/publicly about who he is at his trial.
Q: What was the amazement about Jesus’ new authority?
First, the way he spoke about the Word of God, as if it were his own knowledge and word. Imagine that! Secondly, because he followed up his words by signs. People saw that possession by evil could be controlled/reversed.
Prison Ministry
What is “prison service,” and why do I do it?
People in the past have asked me about service at the jail where I mentor prisoners and where Gina conducts Saturday services. Some have expressed interest in volunteering. I have been asked what these services are and why do I do it.
Why?
I taught catechism for a number of years and when my kids were grown, I was thinking of stopping. I made the mistake of asking God what He thought – I was sure He would think, “Good job, Ron, you deserves a break!” Instead, that same day a verse in Matthew floated across my path, “I was in prison, and you visited me.” Trust me, I wasn’t looking for it. I had not done this before, so it took several months of trying to find out more about it, and then getting someone to call me back, but that’s how it started in 2012.
Another reason for doing service is that I led a very unChristian life in my earlier years and I eventually concluded I would need to give back till the day I die. However, I will admit that at some point along the way it no longer felt like an obligation but rather what I should be doing anyway. All these years later, and especially busy running a business, I can see how easy it is to forget about God or those in need, and so this helps me keep my head out of the clouds.
What we do.
We come under an umbrella in the county called Prison Ministry, which coordinates religious involvement in the jail. It takes about a month to get cleared to volunteer.
There are three ways someone can do Catholic volunteering: Weekly Services, Bible Study, and Mentoring.
Weekly Services. I volunteered for Weekly Services for my first 7 years (and I still do all the scheduling for the Catholic volunteers). Weekly Services last about two hours each Saturday although a volunteer is usually only scheduled one Saturday per month. It’s a classroom setting with a group of inmates who sign up to come. We usually follow the Mass format – where there can be singing and praying, the Sunday readings, discussion about the readings, even music or movies. But there’s room for adding creative elements, too. As I mentioned, Gina has been serving women inmates for many years and she adds things like making religious art. Occasionally, I am able to schedule a priest who comes in to hear confessions and gives the Eucharist.
Mentoring. About 5 years ago, the Prison Ministry was desperate for mentors, and I was asked, so I agreed. I still do the scheduling for the Weekly Services but for some reason they don’t allow volunteers to do both services.
Mentoring is one-on-one. It’s part of helping them rethink their lives before they re-enter society, and hopefully make God a part of that. I often ask them about their friends and who is going to come calling after they get out – the same ones who helped get him into jail? If so, I ask him if he needs to leave those friends behind and start over. If so, then I offer to do some role-playing with him so he is better prepared when they call him.
I am currently mentoring a 21-year-old Af.Am. kid who has been in a year so far for “malicious wounding” (he injured someone with a gun). I usually see him on Fridays. We start with a prayer and then discuss whatever he wants to first. He had just spent a week “in the hole” for hitting another inmate. I asked why he hit him, and he said the guy was verbally abusing him constantly, and he asked him to stop a bunch of times but the guy kept doing it, so he hit him. “In the hole” just means individual isolation.
He said he was back in his regular cell now and the other inmate is leaving him alone.
A sample isolation cell is below.
Anyway, our plan for this day was to discuss the meaning of the Our Father. I said before we could start it was important to understand what love is, because the Our Father is basically a love map. I asked him if he could explain what love was. He said it was complicated! I said yeah, especially in this day and age, but actually it’s not, so let’s see if we can simplify it. I’ll give you 2 love not’s, and 2 love is’s.
Love is not sex and it’s not ice cream.
Love is not about satisfying ourselves.
Love is caring. It’s caring about others. The highest love is caring about others so much that you’ll do anything to help them.
Love is not the same as “like.” People we love sometimes do things we may not like, but we still love and care about them. We may even not like ourselves sometimes, but that doesn’t mean we don’t care what happens to us. Now don’t get me wrong, liking people is preferable! When we care for someone and like them, this is the basis for friendships. When this combination is taken to the next level – and both of you care about the other one more than yourself – then this is what you could be considering a life-long marriage.
When Jesus says we must love our neighbor, you can see this isn’t about “feeling.” That’s more in the like category. He means we should care about them, particularly care for their salvation. All Christians should care about the salvation of others, or they aren’t Christians.
Now for a tough one. Jesus says we should love our enemies. How do we do that?
Well, thank goodness we don't have to like them, right? And loving our enemies does NOT mean accepting their bad behavior. Never. But he is asking us to think for a minute and separate their behavior from the person, to see him or her the way God sees them. He does that with us, does He not? God sees us do stupid, selfish things, and he doesn't condemn us to Hell, does He? If He did, we’d all be in Hell. So, then, neither should we hate or condemn people. Instead, God hopes we stop the bad behavior so we can get into Heaven. How do we imitate God? Sometimes, the highest form of caring is to pray for someone. So, we can pray for our neighbors and enemies. We can just say, “Lord, help that person, they need it! And, if you want me to do something different, please tell me.” Now you’ve loved your enemy! How hard was that? The spiritual difference between hating a person and praying for them is HUGE. One moves you closer to God and Heaven by like a million miles.
In short, to love means to will the good of another. To be Christian is to wish for the salvation of others. When you pray for your neighbor or enemy, you’ve done both!
Do you understand and agree with any of this so far, or should I stop?
No, I agree. I like it.
God knew this wasn’t going to be easy for us, and so that’s the reason He gave us the Lord’s Prayer/Our Father. It’s a map for getting there. It’s the ladder to Heaven.
But first, one more thing about understanding love. Do you know what a noun and a verb are?
Ah, yeah.
What?
A noun is a thing and a verb is action?
Good, I’m impressed! So, then, if love is caring, would you call that a noun or a verb?
A verb.
Right. You see, people can say they are “in love,” but oftentimes they don’t know what they are talking about. They’re just talking about their own feelings. Sure, that’s important, but if that’s all there is, then it becomes a selfish thing. How much do you really “care” for the other person – not in words, but in your behavior, over extended periods of time? If we don’t put our love into action, then it’s just empty words. And I say “for extended periods of time” because we all know anyone can fake it for short periods of time, am I right?
Does this make sense?
Yes, but this is a lot to take in.
Haha, I know, it took me half a lifetime to learn it, but see, you’re getting it at 21, so you’ll have a head start.
Sometimes an analogy helps. You want an analogy?
Sure!
Okay, think of love as a kind of garden. Do you garden, Zaire?
Nope.
Neither do I, but we know what it is, right?
Yeah.
If you care for the garden – if you fertilize it, and you water it, and you prune the dead branches off, and you keep the weeds away – then the garden will become a beautiful garden, right?
Yeah.
That’s how relationships work. Notice that the garden is only as good as the care you put into it. The minute you stop, the weeds start taking over. This is called the “work” of love. But the result – true love – is worth far, far more than the cost.
And one other thing. When you put love and care into the garden, do you see results right away?
No, it takes a while.
Yes. That’s also like any love we do. If we expect immediate results or reciprocation, then this is weak love, selfish love. Love is an investment – it’s like the garden – and the results grow over time, but then they last longer that way.
Now, can love also be a noun? Sure, absolutely, but always it is as a result of the verb love.
Enough on love for today?
Yeah, that’s enough!
Okay, let’s get back to the Our Father. We’ll just start with the first two words: Our Father. Zaire, do you have a father?
Nope. Well, he wasn’t around. Never met him.
Well, then, what are you supposed to think of the words, “Our Father,” if you never had a good experience with any father?
I’m assuming God the Father would be what a father is supposed to be.
Oh, what’s that?
Someone who is interested in me. Interested in what I’m doing, asks about me. He shows me stuff, so I don’t have to learn everything by myself, cause I don’t know what I’m doing half the time. And I think he is someone who would be around to help me when I need help. That would be a good father, in my opinion.
You have absolutely described a loving father. A caring father, yes! You’ve never had a loving father but you still know what one is, don’t you!
That’s because we have a biological father and a spiritual and eternal Father. The job of the biological father is to try and be like the eternal Father. But the reason we know right and wrong, and good and bad, and a good father and bad father is that our eternal spiritual Father breathed his Spirit into us, and so we have His spiritual genes. That’s why we want to be like Him. God is good, just, loving, forgiving, and wise. Isn’t’ that exactly what you and I want to be? We didn’t learn that from other humans because no human has ever been all those things. We got that from Him!
Let me ask you, when you get the chance to be a father, you are going to have to make a choice: you can take the easy path and be like the father you never met, or you can take the harder path and be like the one you just described. Which one do you think you want to be?
I want to be like the real father.
That amazing and beautiful. You know, the real Father – God – cares for us so much that he became a human to save us from ourselves, even knowing we’d spit on Him and nail Him to a cross. That’s what a real father does.
Let’s stop here and we will pick up next week with the meaning of “Our.”
Closing Prayer of Ignatius
Lord Jesus Christ
Take all my freedom, my memory, my understanding, and my will.
All that I have and cherish you have given me. I surrender it all to be guided by your will
Your love and your grace are wealth enough for me.
Give me these, Lord, and I ask for nothing more. Amen.
Hail Mary
Full of grace, the Lord is with thee
blessed are thou amongst women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus.
Holy Mary, Mother of God,
pray for us sinners now and at the hour of our death.
Amen.
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