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Northern Virginia Catholic Bible Study & Apologetics  9/23/25

Every Tuesday, 7PM-8PM. This meeting is a lecture/Q&A format. It is free.

Meetings on Meetup: www.meetup.com/catholicbiblestudy

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

House rules/notes…

1. Our meetings/classes are on ZOOM every Tuesday, 7-8 PM. Sign up for Zoom notifications and to receive meeting reminders at www.meetup.com/catholicbiblestudy.  Zoom ID: 829 7355 9896  Password: 358319.  

2. 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! 

3. 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. 

4. Recaps. Within a day or two after each meeting, we will post the edited meeting notes of our discussions on our website, www.catholiccatacombs.org. Taylor will notify everyone when this is posted and provide you with a link.

5. 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-in-Christ; in fact, I personally owe much of my return to the faith to them! 

6. 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 Catholic faith to our everyday lives. 

7. “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.  

8. 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/.  

9. Cursillo. Interested in meeting weekly over coffee to discuss how God is involved in your personal and professional life? Join Cursillo (cur-see-yo). Initiation involves a 3-day retreat at Mission Hurst in Arlington. For men’s groups, contact Ron (ron@hallagan.net) and Jennifer Pence (Jennifer.pence@gmail.com) for women’s groups.      

Our Bible Study is a combination of Exegesis and Apologetics.

                            Study and interpretation of Scripture         A reasoned defense of the faith 

Format:  Each week of the month has a repeating theme, as shown below.

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

    Wk 2:    Bible Week – we are working our way through the Bible. We are studying the Prophets.  

    Wk 3:    Questions and Survey Topics chosen by Members:       

Fathers of the Church, Heresies, Church Councils    2) Near Death Experiences    3) Jesus prefigured & prophesied in the OT    4) Apparitions and modern miracles   5) What happens to pets after they die. 6) Prison ministry stories  7) Could you review of Plenary and Partial Indulgences again? 

    Wk 4:    Apologetics:

1. Gen 1-3 (Creation Story, Adam & Eve, the Fall of Man, The Meaning of the Trees) 

2. Faith and Doubt

3. Deeper meanings of the Mass    

Each meeting is (roughly) as follows:

• 15 min Catholic topic/catechesis

• 15 min Upcoming Gospel reading

• 30 min  Weekly topic/theme

            1 hour

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

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

Reader for the day… 

Opening Prayer

Dear God 

We thank you for giving us our existence so that we could enter into a relationship with You. 

Thank you coming here to show us how to live, love, and forgive 

And then paying for our transgressions so that we could enter Heaven to live with You.  

And as Jesus taught us to pray… together

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.

Upcoming major holy days:   November 1: All Saints Day 

TODAY:  

• Reflection: Rosh Hashana – The Jewish New Year

• Reading for 26^th Sun in Ordinary Time, The Rich Man and Lazarus, Luke 16:19-31

• Messianic Prophesies 

Quote of the Week – 

The best way to love someone is to tell them the truth. And the best way to tell someone the truth is with love.    – Augustine on Ephesians 4:15

Reflection

Rosh Hashana

Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year, began at sundown on Monday evening, marking the start of the year 5786. 

Jews around the world will refrain from work, attend synagogue services, and eat festive meals. The mood of the holiday is joyous, but also reflective, as Rosh Hashanah is a time of repentance as well as celebration.

A central mitzvah (commandment) of the holiday, is to listen to the sound of a shofar, or ram’s horn, being blown. The sound is a call to repentance; the root of the word “shofar” is the same as the root of the verb “to repair oneself.”

The holiday lasts for two days, owing to a tradition dating back thousands of years. The Jewish calendar is both solar and lunar, with new months marked by new moons. According to customs, witnesses would have to sight the new moon, and their testimony would have to be verified in Jerusalem. Because that process could take most of the day, that could leave little time for the New Year services on the first day of the New Year. Therefore, a second day was added to allow for the services to be performed in their entirety. That’s why Rosh Hashanah is a 2-day holiday. 

The Year 5786

The Hebrew calendar's counting is based on a literalist calculation from the biblical text, specifically the genealogies and events recorded in the Book of Genesis. The start date is not meant to signify the beginning of the cosmos but rather the creation of the first human, Adam. Many Jewish thinkers interpret the Genesis creation story as a symbolic or allegorical narrative rather than a historical or scientific account. From this perspective, the "days" of creation are not literal 24-hour periods but rather creative eons or epochs, which aligns with the scientific understandings of time. 

The Rich Man and Lazarus, Luke 16:19-31

Context:  

In the following parable, we might first notice that in the title, "The Rich Man and Lazarus," poor man Lazarus is named and the rich man is not. One reason is that their fortunes were reversed when they died, so the point is being made that the rich man loses everything in the next life, even his name. This would have surprised Jesus’ audience because in biblical times, wealth was often seen as a sign of God's favor. However, Jesus challenges this notion, emphasizing how material wealth too often runs the risk of draining one’s spiritual bank account.

Like the contrast in the parable, we have a similar contrast in Jesus’ audience. On the one side are the Pharisees, living in the love of money and of the enjoyments which money purchased; on the other side are the disciples, who gave up everything to follow Jesus.  

In the story, it says the rich man was dressed in purple and fine linen and also dined sumptuously every day. In those days, clothes and food were two determining characteristics of financial success. Purple cloth was the most expensive you could buy, which is why royalty was always wearing  purple. This rich man not only dined well, but he dined well every day in joyous splendor. The poor man, Lazarus, is not only a poverty-stricken beggar, but sick and covered with sores. 

Finally, when the rich man and Lazarus die, they go to Sheol. In first century Judaism, Sheol was the name for the “realm of the dead” – where both good and bad souls went to await God (Judgment Day). There were two places in Sheol: the good and peaceful place, called Abraham’s bosom or Paradise; and the place of torment, called Gehenna in Hebrew. These two places were thought to be visible to each other, but they were separated by an impassible chasm. 

Luke 16:19-31 

Jesus said to the Pharisees: 

"There was a rich man who dressed in purple garments and fine linen and dined sumptuously each day.

And lying at his door was a poor man named Lazarus, covered with sores, who would gladly have eaten his fill of the scraps that fell from the rich man's table. Dogs even used to come and lick his sores.

When the poor man died, he was carried away by angels to the bosom of Abraham.

The rich man also died and was buried, and from the netherworld, where he was in torment, he raised his eyes and saw Abraham far off and Lazarus at his side. And he cried out, 'Father Abraham, have pity on me. Send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue, for I am suffering torment in these flames.'

Abraham replied, 'My child, remember that you received what was good during your lifetime while Lazarus likewise received what was bad; but now he is comforted here, whereas you are tormented. Moreover, between us and you a great chasm is established to prevent anyone from crossing who might wish to go from our side to yours or from your side to ours.'

He said, 'Then I beg you, father, send him to my father's house, for I have five brothers, so that he may warn them,lest they too come to this place of torment.'

But Abraham replied, 'They have Moses and the prophets. Let them listen to them.'

He said, 'Oh no, Father Abraham, but if someone from the dead goes to them, they will repent.'

Then Abraham said, 'If they will not listen to Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded if someone should rise from the dead.'"

Exegesis = Interpretation/Explanation

The contrast between the two men could not clearer: the man who had everything vs. the man who had nothing. What is ironic about this contrast once they end up in Sheol (the abode of the dead)?

Their conditions were reversed. One is in “Abraham’s bosom” and one is in the place of torment. 

We can presume Lazarus was given justice in Sheol. Was it because he was poor?

Some think Lazarus was rewarded merely because of his poverty, but that is not true. Surely you could say it is part of God’s consideration to the extent the suffering he received on earth offset any sins he committed; but poverty alone does not cause admission to heaven (there are bad poor people, too!). Much greater than his material condition that was the fact that God saw him as a humble and righteous man, or else he would not have ended up with Abraham. Moreover, Lazarus was humble and righteous in spite of his suffering, versus someone who may have felt justified turning to violence, anger, thievery, or blaming everyone else for his situation, including God. 

Similar question for the rich man: Was he punished because of his wealth?

No, wealth alone does not determine condemnation, although wealth drags far more people down than poverty. The rich man was punished for his failure to show any mercy, kindness, or generosity whatsoever to the poor man. To the rich man, it was as though Lazarus didn’t exist. 

It is interesting to note that the rich man did not violate any of the Ten Commandments. What, then, was the sin the rich man committed? (This is one of the main lessons of the parable.) 

When we break any of the Ten Commandments, these are mostly sins of “commission,” which are acts against others or God (i.e., not honoring God or parents, lying, stealing, envy, murder). However, the rich man’s sins are sins of “omission.” In other words, it’s not what he did, it’s what he didn’t do. He did not once lift a finger to help.    

Btw, it's clear that the rich man knew who Lazarus was. How do we know that?

'Father Abraham, have pity on me. Send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue, for I am suffering torment in these flames.'

Isn’t it interesting that even in his place of torment, the rich man still treats Lazarus like a servant or slave. He almost calls to mind the first son of Adam, Cain, who when asked about his murdered brother, told God, “Am I my brother’s keeper?”

What was Jesus other objective in telling the parable? 

       The Pharisees and the Sadducees in his audience were the Jewish leaders. Jesus had some lessons for them:

1. He was condemning the Pharisees for their love of money and distaste for the poor and sick. The rich man’s description actually resembled some of the Pharisees. 

2. As for the Sadducees, who were the elite/richest of the Jewish groups: 

3. They believed that material prosperity in this life was God’s reward for moral uprightness, while poverty and illness were God’s punishment for sins. This is why they felt no need to help the poor and sick as they presumed they were being punished for some bad behavior, or bad behavior of their parents. Jesus’ parable showed how wrong this thinking was.  

4. The Sadducees were the only Jewish group that denied the afterlife, which is why they could rationalize that God was rewarding them in this life. Jesus’ parable showed how wrong they were, and that our good/bad deeds and treatment of others in this life will receive God’s judgement in the next.

I’m pivoting away from the parable, but where did Jesus go between his death and resurrection (on Good Saturday)?

“He was crucified, died, and was buried. He descended into Hell. The third day he rose again from the dead.” – Apostle’s Creed.  ‘Hell’ here means Sheol, the abode of the dead. Jesus went to Sheol to preach the Good News of the Cross and release all the good souls (Adam/Eve, Noah, Abraham, Moses, David, prophets, John the Baptist..) into Heaven. 

Another pivot: When Jesus said to the good thief on the cross next to him, “Today, you will be with me in paradise,” what was Jesus referring to?

Sheol, the abode of the dead, where he went after he died to proclaim the Good News.  

Messianic Prophesies

The Bible is unlike any other book in history. Written by over 40 authors across 1500-2000 years, it contains hundreds of prophecies pointing to the Messiah. Jesus Christ fulfilled more than 300 prophecies, many of which no human could have orchestrated – such as His birthplace, manner of death, and resurrection. 

Tonight, we will try to highlight 22 of these 300 messianic prophecies, written in the Old Testament and fulfilled by Jesus Christ in the first century AD. 

Our is study will move through three-dimensions of prophecy: 

1. Prophecies of the Messiah’s Origin (6)

2. Prophecies of the Messiah’s Mission (12)

3. Prophesies of the Messiah’s Kingdom (5)

Next: How does the first Passover lamb in Exodus prefigure Christ’s atoning work at the Last Supper, and how does the Last Supper and Jesus’ passion fulfill the Exodus Passover? Understanding this helps make us sense of the Eucharist and Jesus’ sacrifice. 

Closing Prayer: 

Come, Holy Spirit

Fill the hearts of your faithful; kindle in them the fire of your love.

Send forth your Spirit and they shall be created.

And you will renew the face of the earth.

Hail Mary

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.