👉Watch Tuesday's recorded class here👈

Catholic Understanding & Biblical Defense Class 10/6/26

Every Tuesday, 7PM-8PM (EST), 🖥️Zoom ID: 861 1782 2081  🗝️Passcode: 406952

Join to receive notifications and study notes on Meetup: www.meetup.com/catholicbiblestudy

Past classes are posted on our Catholic Catacombs Website:  www.CatholicCatacombs.org 

House Rules and Catholic Resources…

1.     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!

2.     Questions. We encourage questions although we ask that you keep them on topic and brief. You can ask during the meeting, or in the chat box, or if you prefer you can email us through Meetup.com, or Ron directly: ron@hallagan.net.

3.     Respectfulness. We will be discussing differences between Christian denominations and religions in general, and we seek to be respectful at all times. Protestants especially are our friends and brothers/sisters-in-Christ; in fact, I owe much of my return to Christianity to them. Therefore, any critique of our brethren is in loving pursuit of apostolic truth.    

4.     No politics.  It would be easy for us to self-destruct, but that’s not our goal :). Our goal is to learn, understand, and apply the Bible and our faith to our everyday lives.

5.     Word on Fire. Bishop Robert Barron has reached millions through his 10 min Sunday homilies, podcasts, educational series and certifications, bibles, and other lectures and apologetics. www.wordonfire.org 

6.     Hallow App. Daily prayers and reflections, especially for the high holyday seasons. www.alex@mail.hallow.com 

7.     Catholic Answers – www.catholic.com. Best site for Catholic Apologetics there is.

8.     Dynamic Catholic. Interested in daily inspirations to grow closer to God and the Church, not to speak of the many educational resources? Sign up for Matthew Kelly’s powerful insights, quotes, and reflections at www.dynamiccatholic.com.

9.     “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 series captures Jesus better than any show I have ever seen. Highly recommended. 

10.Cursillo. Interested in meeting with other men or women weekly over coffee to discuss God in your personal and professional life? Join Cursillo (cur-see-yo). Contact Jennifer Pence (Jennifer.pence@gmail.com) for more information.       

Bible Study Format

Our Bible Study is a combination of Exegesis and Apologetics.

Each meeting is (rough

ly) as follows:

15   min   Apologetic Reflection

15   min   Upcoming Gospel Reading

30 min   Weekly topic/theme

1 hour

Week 1:    Gospel Week – we study several Gospel stories, especially the tough ones.    

Week 2:    Bible Week – we are working our way through the Bible. We are studying the New Testament. 

Weeks 3 & 4:   Survey Topics chosen by Members (explanations of our faith & apologetics):       

1.     Prison Ministry Stories  2. Plenary Indulgences  3. Gen 1-3 (Creation Story, Adam & Eve, the Fall of Man)

4.  Faith vs Doubts – does having doubts make us bad Christians? 5. Explanation of the Mass & Eucharist

6.     Dead Sea Scrolls   7. Catholicism vs modern cosmology vs evolution  8. Gifts/Fruits of the HS, 7 Deadly Sins     

9.  How to experience the Love of God-II   10. The Communion of Saints   11. Comparative Religions                          

12. Catholic vs Protestant beliefs

·        Don’t forget to RSVP.

·        Taylor will send a link to everyone with today’s notes.

·        The class is recorded if you want to listen to it anytime.

·        I will occasionally ask for volunteer readers…

Opening Prayer       

Bless us Father as we study Your plan of salvation and redemption for humanity,

a plan in which each of us has a role to fill and a journey to take…

And as Jesus 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 holy days:             All Saints Day (Nov 1)

                                                www.masstimes.org:  Mass or Confession anywhere/anytime in the world!

Today’s Agenda…

Reflection:  Feast of Our Guardian Angels, Oct 2

Gospel Reading for 28^th Sun in Ord Time 10/11: The Parable of the Royal Wedding Feast, Mt. 22:1-14

                Topic:  How do we experience the Love of God? – Part 2

Follow up to Last Week:  What is the difference between Catholic and Christian?

All Catholics are Christian and always have been. For the first 1,500 years, Catholics were the only Christians.

History: For the first 15 years after Jesus ascended, the followers of Christ were called “The Way” (for “the Way, the Truth, and the Life – John 14:6). By the mid-40s, we started being called “Christians” (after Christ), and that has always remained so. By the end of the first century, we were also called “Catholic,” meaning universal, because Christ came for all mankind. ‘Catholic’ and ‘Christian’ were used interchangeably until the 16^th century when Protestantism started up and split off from the Catholic Church. At that point, “Catholic” was retained by the Roman Catholic Church, but we are still “Catholic Christians” – the same Church created by Jesus Christ 2000 years ago. Protestants also call themselves Christian, so this may be part of the confusion. Christ is also the center of Protestant teaching; they just lack the fullness of the truth that Jesus handed down to us, particularly as it relates to Scripture and Tradition, the Magisterium, the Sacraments, and Apostolic Succession.    

Reflection: Feast of Our Guardian Angels

The Catholic Church teaches that each human being has a guardian angel assigned to them, whose role is to guide, protect, and intercede for that individual throughout their life. These angels are personal and have a direct relationship with the individuals they guard, whether the individual is aware of it or not.

“Lift up your head! Your angel is with you to minister to you in times of temptation and loneliness, just as angels cared for Jesus during his time in the wilderness (Mk 1:13). 

Even children have them. Remember, children were completely without status in the ancient world, yet Jesus clarifies this is not the case in the Kingdom. In fact, he links their status as members of the Kingdom to their guardian angels in Heaven.

See that you do not despise one of these little ones, for I say to you that their angels in heaven always look upon the face of my heavenly Father. – Mt 18:10

Where else do we see angels guarding a human? 

     In many places. Many unnamed angels are considered guardian angels. In the story of Lot (Abraham’s nephew), God sends messengers (angel means “messenger”) to warn him and his family of the destruction of Sodom (Gen. 19:12-22). When Lot delays leaving, the angels take hold of him and lead him out of the city. Once again, we see angels that have been assigned to guard human beings.

     We also see this in the Psalms:

“For He will command his angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways…” – Psalms 91:11

     One might also consider how the angels came to minister to Jesus after his 40 days in the desert after engaging Satan. That is their role. If Jesus needed ministering to, how much more do you think we need ministering and oversight?

We already pray to the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, and we ask Mary and the saints for their intercessory prayers. Should we ask the angels to pray for us also? 

            Absolutely, we can. Remember, the reason we ask Mary or the saints to pray for us is because praying for others is considered an act of love, which is what all Christians are called to do. Mary, the saints, others in Heaven, and also Christians on earth are all part of the Body of Christ, and our number one purpose as part of Christ’s Body is to love others. In a broader/more spiritual sense, the Angels are also part of the Body of Christ, and so we may ask them for their prayers as well, although you can be pretty sure that your guardian angels are already doing that.  

The Opposition.

Per Thomas Aquinas, in a dark and distorted way, the demonic operation mirrors the angelic one. Where God assigns a guardian, Satan deputizes tempters. The structure is real – though the motivation is pure envy and hatred rather than love. The fallen angels are committed to the abiding sin of envy, whereby they grieve over man's good and also over divine excellence. This envy is not passive. It is actively directed at souls. Therefore, it is comforting to know God has assigned each of us good and holy Guardian Angels.

Why would God send these spiritual messengers to help us? Why wouldn’t he just take care of us himself? 

Aquinas explains that the Scriptures make clear that God delights in using secondary causes, so that his creatures can participate in his active providence of the universe. That is why each of us is called to pray (intercede) for one another. Due to our changeable and fallible natures, each of us has been assigned a heavenly guide. Once we’re in heaven, we won’t require a guide anymore, and our angel will become our friend.

Were Guardian Angels professed in the early Church?

Guardian angels were attested to by Origen in the early third century, and later corroborated by Church Fathers such as St. Basil, St. Jerome, St. John Chrysostom, and St. Augustine. Even with the advent of the Protestant Reformation, figures like Martin Luther continued to insist on the reality of guardian angels.

Feast Day – The Church celebrates the “Feast of Guardian Angels” every Oct 2. At its heart, this tells us that the veil between heaven and earth is thinner than we often assume. It shows us that even here on earth, we believers can share “in the blessed company of angels” (CCC 336).  Just by their being present to us, our guardian angel surrounds us with the life of heaven.

The Parable of the Royal Wedding Feast, Mt. 22:1-14

Context:

Similar to our readings the last two weeks, Jesus is still preaching to the Jewish leaders in the Temple on Holy Tuesday. This is the third parable he tells them (I have to believe they all took a lunch break at some point).

This one is a Royal Wedding Feast. There are numerous nuptial references and images used in the O.T. Scriptures depicting a union between God or the Messiah and His people (2Sam7:14; Ps.2:7, 89:26-27; Hos1-3; Isa54; Jer2-3; Ezek16,23).

Some of Jesus’ parables are reflections of everyday life experiences; others are deliberately unusual or even hyperbolic. Today’s parable falls into this latter category because the behavior of the guests is outrageous and Jesus’ audience would have recognized the strangeness of the story. The twists and turns of the plot are totally governed by the message Jesus is seeking to convey through the story’s characters and events.

Story preview

The king’s son is to be married and so he sends out invitations to the wedding. Those “invited” to the Wedding Feast represent the religious leaders of Jerusalem. They were in the best position to recognize Jesus as the promised Son of David, but refused. Similar to last week’s Parable of the Wicked Tenants in the Vineyard, those invited either ignored the invitations or killed the messengers who brought them. The king is outraged at this response and destroys their city. The messengers represent the prophets and destruction of Jerusalem would point to the Babylonians around 600 BC.  

Finally, the king resends invitations, this time to anyone and everyone his servants can find, good and bad. As you might guess, this resembles Jesus inviting sinners and prostitutes to the Kingdom – all who are willing to repent of their old ways.    

The Parable of the Royal Wedding Feast

Matthew 22:1-14

Once again, Jesus spoke to the chief priests and elders in parables, saying, "The Kingdom of Heaven is like a king who gave a wedding feast for his son. He dispatched his servants to summon the invited guests to the feast, but they refused to come.

Again, he sent other servants and said, 'Tell those who are invited: "Behold, I have prepared my banquet, my calves and fattened cattle are killed, and everything is ready. Come to the wedding feast."'But they ignored the invitation and went away, one to his farm, another to his business. The rest seized his servants, mistreated them, and killed them. The king was enraged, and he sent his troops to destroy those murderers and burn their city. 

Then he said to his servants, 'The wedding feast is ready, but those I invited were not worthy. Go therefore into the main roads and thoroughfares and invite to the banquet as many as you can find.'So the servants went out into the streets and gathered everyone they found, bad and good alike, and the wedding hall was filled with guests. But when the king came in to meet the guests, he saw a man who was not dressed in a wedding garment. The king said to him, 'My friend, how is it that you came in here without a wedding garment?' But he was speechless.Then the king said to his attendants, 'Bind his hands and feet, and throw him into the outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.'For many are invited, but few are chosen."

Exegesis/Interpretation

The Jews were used to wedding themes especially from Psalms and Isaiah, but Jesus throws in many twists here. The messengers are killed, the king burns down their city, commoners from the street are invited, and some guy is thrown out of the wedding for wearing the wrong wedding garment!  Clearly, this is no ordinary wedding.

Jesus starts out saying the Kingdom of Heaven is like a wedding feast. Who is the king?

God

Who are the servants sent to notify everyone about the wedding?

            The first servants that were sent represent the OT prophets, who were sent to Israel to call them back to God. Some of the prophets were ignored, others were killed. The servants delivering the second invitation represent the apostles and early disciples of Christ. Many are martyred.  

Who were the initial invited guests that refuse to come to the wedding?

            The original chosen people of Israel, especially the leaders in Jerusalem.  

The story says the king destroyed the murderers and burned their city. What does this represent?

            It represents the destruction of Jerusalem by the Babylonians in 597 BC. It also likely points to the upcoming destruction of Jerusalem by the Romans in 70 AD.

The king said, “The wedding feast is ready” before the last group of people were invited. Why was it “ready”?

            The bridegroom – Jesus the Messiah and Son of God – is now present on the earth.  

Who did the final list of guests represent?

            The rest of the world, including the poor, the outcast, and sinners. 

What does this wedding represent?

            In Jewish expectations, the OT nuptial references represented the coming of the Messiah. The “marriage” was between the prophesied “son of David” and the Jewish people.  Now that the Messiah has come and is the Son of God, the wedding represents the marriage of God and humans, which totally reverses the Fall of Man and opens the gates of Heaven. That’s why this is a Royal Wedding. It is the “New Covenant” between man and God.

Although many do not realize it, every Mass celebrated daily around the world renews and sustains this Covenant between us and God, preparing us for the consummation of the Kingdom at Jesus’ Second Coming/Advent (Parousia).

One man at the wedding feast is not wearing the proper garment. Who does this man represent?

It is said to have been an ancient middle eastern custom to present each guest invited to a royal feast with a festive robe to be worn on the occasion. To find the deeper meaning Jesus is attaching to the garment,  we need to look at the O.T. Scriptures for a clue, in which case we find several references to wedding garments. We will look at one, Isaiah 61:10:

“I will rejoice greatly in the LORD; my soul exults in my God;

For he has clothed me with garments of salvation and with a robe of righteousness…”

Note it is God who provides the garment of salvation, meaning salvation (forgiveness) is a gift from God to fallen man. However, the garment is also a robe of righteousness, which refers to man’s renewed status – a life of righteousness. As Jesus says in Matthew 7:21, “not everyone who calls him ‘Lord’ will enter Heaven, but only those who do the will of my Father” (= works of charity).  The point of this exchange is that, even though our sins have been paid for and everyone has been invited, no one can presuppose automatic entrance simply by showing up. The wedding garment symbolizes our love of God and neighbor. These are actions, not just feelings. The Protestant teaching of Sola Fide (Faith Alone) is not enough.

But he was speechless.

Greek: ἐφιμώθη – literally, he was tongue-tied. He could make no reply. It was similar when God asked Adam what happened in the Garden just after they ate from the tree. It was Adam’s chance to repent and ask forgiveness, but he didn’t. The same can be said to be true in this case, but he had no excuse to offer. His silence condemned himself. 

Throw him into the outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

Grinding or gnashing of teeth was an expression used for anger, weeping, or extreme sadness. It is describing what the Jews referred to as Gehenna, a burning garbage pit outside of Jerusalem as a symbol of the place for the damned. It is eternity without God, which we now call Hell.   

On the one hand, this parable has included hyperbole in several instances, and this could be such an analogy. Then again Jesus uses hyperbole when he is trying to make an important point that won’t be forgotten. He is saying we don’t want to end up outside of God’s kingdom after this life. He can’t emphasize that enough. The “outer darkness” stands in sharp contrast to the light, joy, and fellowship of the wedding feast. It is depicting final exclusion from God’s kingdom and the dreadful reality of Hell, where those who reject God’s grace and invitation are separated from His presence forever.

Many are invited but few are chosen. Who are the “chosen”?

Many are invited – in fact everyone has been invited. It is not God's desire that any should perish. He has sent His Son as our Bridegroom, and He has given us all we need through the Sacraments to be dressed in the wedding garment of divine grace to enter into an intimate relationship with Christ the Bridegroom. God invites everyone, but He also asks us to make a radical choice of putting the kingdom of God before everything else. The choice is ours alone.

Conclusion:  the “chosen” are those who respond to God’s call. Everyone is invited, but not everyone accepts. In the end, those who are not chosen have “un-chosen” themselves. 

Member Topic:  How can we experience the love of God? – Part II

Recap of Part One

Every person’s relationship with God and experience of His love will be different because we are all different – not only our genetic and environmental backgrounds, but we’re all in different spiritual places as well.

That said, we are like the infinite faces on diamond – but our center (God) is the same. And because all our pathways point to God, there will be numerous common denominators we share on this journey and in our experiences.      

The first common denominator is already present in the very question of our topic, for the very desire to experience the love of God is given to us by God. It’s one of God’s many calling cards, as He tries to call us to Him. This is captured in John’s statement, “God loved us first” (1 John 4:19).   

Love

We also reviewed the meaning of love, noting that love does not always equate to feeling intense emotion. Example: we can love others in our lives but that doesn’t mean we have warm and fuzzy feelings towards them all the time. Love is far more than feelings.  

The highest form of love begins with wanting what is best for the other. Note that when we do loving things for others, good feelings often don’t come until afterwards, which points to the next common denominator:  Joy works backwards.

God’s love is no exception – good feelings may indeed come after, but the point is feelings by themselves do equal love.

Relationship

A relationship with God involves two fundamental aspects of every individual:  Personal (inward) and Others (outward).  Each one requires the other and each supports the other.

1)     Personal (inward)

All love involves relationship. All relationships require communication. Communications requires dialogue. This is as true with humans as it is with God. In fact, God created us for relationships. The more open, honest, and regular our  communications are, the better our relationships. Then, when our actions and behavior support our words, love begins.  

Humans have a spiritual nature which allows us to communicate in the spiritual realm. Dialogue with God is called prayer. There is formal prayer and informal prayer. There are prayers of praise, gratitude, confession, petition, and intercession. All of these can be formal or informal, and each one is valuable and necessary to a relationship, especially one with God.

Without this communication, there is no relationship. And the more often we talk to God, the better our relationship will be.

As for personal prayer, Jesus instructs believers in Mt. 6:5-6 to go into a room, shut the door, and pray to God in secret. He also gives us many examples of his personal prayers to the Father by going off and praying often. Notice his prayer below does not follow formal Jewish prayer but is in his own words (informal): 

“I thank you, Father, Lord in Heaven and earth, that you have hidden these things from the wise and revealed them to the childlike.” – Mt. 11:25-26     

Do you have a relationship with God?

How often do you talk with Him?

How many of these conversations do you have?

·        Praise – i.e., I praise you, my Lord. You are my beginning, my end, and my every breath in between.  

·        Gratitude – i.e., Thank you for my existence so I can have this relationship with you. Thank you for kindness, forgiveness, understanding, and advice.  

·        Confession – i.e., Lord, I think I messed up. What do you think?  I thought so. Yes, I can do better. I want so much to improve and be a better person. Can you please help me? Discuss.

·        Petition – i.e., Lord, I need your help because I am feeling anxious. Discuss. Or, Lord, I am in pain! I offer it up to You to do with as you wish, but I will also be very grateful if you could ease my suffering and restore my strength.  

·        Intercession – i.e., Lord, my spouse is having a difficult time at work, please bless and heal everyone and lift them up to a better place.  

·        Every prayer should end with… May Your Will, not mine, Be Done!

We don’t need to say all of these every time, but they are samples of what our conversations should be. Or rather, they are conversation starters. Praise and Gratitude because God represents all that is good and true and what we aspire to be, Confession because this leads to our improvement and He is our perfect therapist, Petition because He wants us to come to him for our needs always, and Intercession for others because that is what love does.   

Remember, the Lord not only forgives us for-the-asking but is our perfect Therapist, Counselor, and Comforter. These are the foundations of our relationship.  

NEXT: 

2)     Other (outward)

Above, we discussed our personal/inward relationship with God, and although this is only half of it, it is incredibly important and continually necessary because it our foundation for the second part, which extends outwards to others.

When we integrate 1 & 2 above, the love of God begins to accelerate in us, like leaven in bread.      

Closing Prayer

Dear God,

I don't just want to know about You – I want to truly know You.

Thank You for loving me right where I am, flaws and all, and for inviting me to move nearer to You.

Teach me how to sit in stillness and listen for Your voice. Give me a deep hunger for Your presence and Your word, desiring You above everything else this world has to offer.

Guide my steps and direct my heart so that my everyday life is drawn closer to Your side.

Hail Mary, full of grace,

the Lord is with thee.

Blessed are thou among 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.