Northern Virginia Catholic Bible Study & Apologetics House rules/notes… Online via Meetup/Zoom or In Person at St. John Neumann Catholic Church 11900 Lawyers Road, Reston, VA 20191 https://saintjn.org/ Meetup is www.meetup.com/catholicbiblestudy Zoom Meeting Logon info is the same every week: Zoom ID: 861 1782 2081 Password: 406952 I will send out Meeting Recaps the same night as our sessions – these are unedited versions without pictures. An edited version with pictures will be posted on our website https://catholiccatacombs.wixsite.com/website/recaps before the next meeting. Taylor will notify everyone at that time. 1. Questions encouraged. If you have questions about anything, you can ask in the chat box, email the Meetup group, or me at ron@hallagan.net. 2. Respectfulness. We will be discussing differences between religions and Christian denominations, and we agree to be respectful at all times. Specifically, Protestants are our friends and brothers in Christ; in fact, I personally owe part of my return to the faith to them! 3. 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. 4. Catholic Prayer & Fellowship. Are you interested in praying with other Catholics during the week? Fellow member Jason Goldberg has started “Catholic Prayer, Fellowship, and Spirituality Meetup.” Sign up at: https://www.meetup.com/online-catholic-prayer-fellowship-and-spirituality/. 5. “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 the real Jesus as close as any show I have ever seen. Just watch the first two with Mary Magdalene and you will see what I mean. 6. 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! Consider it your way of evangelizing! Please RSVP when you get the Meetup invite weekly. Our Bible Study Format: 5 min greeting/prayers, 10-15 min Catholic topic, 40-45 min on the main topic from weekly List below: Week 1: May 2 - Gospel Week: Sermon on the Mount, cont’d Week 2: May 9 – Bible Week (Gen àRev): We are in EXODUS, the 2nd book of Moses. Week 3: May 16 – Survey Topics Voted on by Members: We are currently beginning Christian Comparisons/World Religions.
Ö 1) Jesus’ Greatest Parables Ö 2) Hell, Purgatory, Heaven 3) Christian Comparisons/World Religions
4) Great Women in the Bible 6) Book of Revelation 7) Major Heresies and Church Councils
Week 4: May 23 – Member Questions:
1. Does the path get harder the closer we get to God? Things that were bad before now look bad. Acedia. Monks/nuns
2. The History of the Mass going back to Cain & Abel, all leading to the sublime meaning of the Eucharist.
3. Can you review origin and meaning of the 12 statements of belief in the Creed?
4. “Who am I?” It seems we all ask this question at some point in our lives. Some ask it all the time. How do you answer this?
5. Are Charity and Love synonymous? How are they different? What are the 4 highest forms of Charity?
6. How many Gospels have the story of Jesus’ calming the storm? Are they the same story?
7. Why was God full of vengeance and violence in the OT? Or was that simply an interpretation by those of that time?
8. Can you provide an intro/overview of the OT books?
Catholic Catacombs Website: https://catholiccatacombs.wixsite.com/website/recaps
Major upcoming events in the Church
Pentecost – May 28
The Day the Israelites received the Ten Commandments The Day the Church (us) received the Holy Spirit
50 days after the First Passover 50 days after Easter
Beginning of the Mosaic Covenant Beginning of the Catholic Church/New Covenant
Opening Prayer
Dear Father, as we discuss our first, worldly Exodus with Moses
In the light of the heavenly Exodus you accomplished on Calvary
Grant us further insights into true freedom and shed light on the lessons of our forebears.
We ask your blessings upon all of us here, our families and friends,
And all those who are in need of your healing.
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.
Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on us all.
Amen.
Week Two is Bible Timeline – We are in Exodus, The Ten Commandments
1. God helps free the Israelites, but for what? This gets to the very essence of the meaning of freedom. What is freedom? What is free will?
2. Are the Ten Commandments orders from God? They are not. But then why do they say, "Thou shalt…?"
3. Did God have a particular purpose to how he ordered the Ten Commandments? God does nothing by accident.
4. Why do the Jews and Protestants number the Commandments differently than Catholics?
5. Brief explanation of each Commandment.
Week Two is Bible Timeline – We are in Exodus
Interpreting Scripture
In addition, Catholic exegesis must consider scripture’s literal and/or spiritual sense.
The spiritual sense can be subdivided into the allegorical, moral, and anagogical senses.
When we interpret Scripture there are multiple levels of meaning to consider. “God’s Word” is like that, beginning with an event’s literal and possible spiritual sense, within their historical and cultural context, to the foreshadowing of future events whether in this world or after this life. With all this in mind, let’s take a look at the possible spiritual sense to the Exodus story so far.
In our last session, we saw God open the Red Sea so the people could escape Pharaoh. The sea closed on Pharaoh and his army. In a spiritual sense, one can see the Israelites as all of humanity – a desperate humanity enslaved to this world – and God saving humanity through the Red Sea – a type of Baptism to new life.
The Pharaoh and his army would then represent all that is wrong with the world, from enslaving people and murdering infant children to continually going back on his word. This sinful part of humanity is washed away in the sea – as we might all agree it should be – again, a kind of baptism.
But now, even with new life ahead, the task remains for God to begin teaching people a new, more righteous path.
Is this not the story of humanity thus far?
Does this example mean that all Biblical stories are all figurative?
Of course, not. The chart above is not about finding “the one level” of understanding, but multiple levels, always beginning with the literal sense intended by the author at the time and in the context of the writing. It makes a dramatic difference in context, or example, if the text is written in a time of peace and prosperity or after being taken into captivity after losing a war! In any case, God speaks to us at multiple levels, and in some cases all the literal and spiritual senses apply, as is likely the case with the Passover and Last Supper.
Where we left off…
Freedom that refers to bodily freedom is the lowest level of the meaning of the word, and the highest meaning is the freedom to choose between good and evil, right and wrong, and meaningfulness and wastefulness.
As this higher meaning indicates, our free will is about making moral choices, not about choosing which way you are going to drive to work today, or what color socks to buy.
Q: How can we differentiate between our animal instincts and our free will?
Animals follow their instincts and don’t make moral choices, which is why we don’t accuse them of making wrong decisions (murder, rape, theft, etc.). They are “morally” innocent.
Humans are animals also, and therefore we have similar instincts. However, we also have a spiritual intellect and free will, and therefore we can overrule our instincts. With our free will, we make much higher (moral) decisions, and therefore are accountable for making bad decisions (murder, rape, theft…). We are “responsible” for our actions.
You might then say that our animal nature is our lower nature, and our spiritual nature is our higher nature.
Q: What does having freedom mean for humans?
Basically, human freedom comes down to whom we choose to serve – ourselves or others/God.
The choice to serve oneself takes neither much freedom nor intelligence. Serving the self comes automatically, since it is just a modern version of our survival instinct: to protect oneself or put oneself first at all costs. You might say that the modern/spiritual version of our survival instinct is our ego since the ego also seeks to put us first at all costs!
Said differently, one can conclude from this that using our free will to serve our lower animal instincts (self-protection, self-gratification…) is a form of slavery to the ego, because like an addiction, serving self almost can’t be helped. True freedom is learning to rise above our lower self and this takes effort, self-discipline, and, at times, self-sacrifice.
Q: What is the image below and how does it relate to freedom?
The parable of the Prodigal Son. The son took his father’s inheritance and ran off spending it on women, fine food, and drink until he crashed. That’s one form of freedom – serving our lower, animal self.
Then he decided he had been a fool and sought to return to his father and family and earn his freedom the proper way– which involved love and self-discipline. This is another form of freedom– serving our spiritual, higher self.
Q: What does this have to do with Exodus? God helped “FREE” the Israelites? Do you think all this involvement on God’s part – the ten plagues, the Passover, escaping the Pharaoh’s army – was just for their physical freedom?
As we have seen, the Israelites had nearly revolted against Moses three times before they even reached Mt. Sinai. They seem selfish with bad attitudes. What possible benefit would occur by releasing them into the world?
God did not just free them to be physically free. Let’s look at what God said to Moses:
Then the LORD said to Moses, “Go to Pharaoh and say to him, ‘This is what the LORD says:
Let my people go, so that they may worship me. – Ex 8:1
God wanted to free them so they could come and worship Him! Let’s think about this!
Q: What does it mean to worship God?
To worship God means to learn the meaning of truth, love, and goodness, and to commit to a life of trying to live this way.
We must admit that, if that happens, it is something that the world might stand up and take notice of – and that the world would benefit from. It is a big IF. But that is what this covenant relationship with God was about. Not only will this be a new start for them, but a whole new way of life that could actually become a light to the world. In fact, God calls all of Israel to become a kind of “kingdom of priests” who will administer God’s blessings to all nations.
Conclusion
After escaping bodily slavery, God now has the task of teaching humans to escape moral slavery – what Jesus came to complete. God is creating a new kind of people and the Mosaic “covenant” would be a foundational downpayment on His plan to save mankind.
God has a big job ahead of Him. The Israelites were not only difficult before Sinai; they were even worse afterwards. This was the reason they spent 40 years in the desert – not because it took that long to get to Canaan!
Mt. Sinai to Jericho – 300 miles (~ 1 month)
Exodus 19: The Israelites Reach Mount Sinai
Israel travels 6 weeks after the Passover and arrives at Mt. Sinai. Ancient Jewish tradition counted 7 more days of encampment at the foot of Mt. Sinai before Moses receives the Ten Commandments. Thus, seven weeks (49 days) have passed and God’s revelation is on the 50th day.
This is the same mountain (“The Mountain of God”) that Moses first met God in the burning bush back in Ex. 3:1). Back then, the mountain was called Mount Horeb, but now it is being called Mount Sinai. The likely reason is that Hebrew name for “bush” (sene) became Sinai, commemorating that great encounter between God and Moses.
Moses went up to the mountain of God. Then the LORD called to him saying: This is what you will say to the house of Jacob; tell the Israelites:
“You have seen how I saved you from the Egyptians, how I bore you up on eagles’ wings and brought you to myself. Now, if you obey me completely and keep my covenant, you will be my treasured possession among all peoples, even though all the earth is mine. You will be to me a kingdom of priests, a holy nation.” That is what you must tell the Israelites.
So Moses went and summoned the elders of the people. When he set before them all that the LORD had ordered him to tell them, all the people answered together, “Everything the LORD has said, we will do.”
The Ten Commandments
We are used to seeing the Ten Commandments in an abbreviated order, but this is not how it was delivered. The commandments are rooted in a narrative that provides much context. For instance, Exodus 20:2 precedes the commandments and gives the following context:
I am the LORD, your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage.”
This tells us the context is the Lord’s love that sought them out to set them free. There can be no other reason.
Q: How will the undisciplined, Egyptian-addicted Hebrews ever learn to navigate this world of difficult choices?
God will provide them an instruction manual – the Ten Commandments. When we read on, especially in the next two books, Numbers and Leviticus, we find that God also establishes many rituals for the Jews. God is going to fill their days with new rules to consecrate their lives – and all their thinking – to holy things.
Q: What is holy?
Holy and sacred both mean “good” but they also means “separate” – as in totally separate from their worldly work – and also separate from the pagan customs and religions around them.
Humans are ‘creatures of habit’ and many humans, perhaps these Hebrews especially, have lots of bad habits and weak wills. In their new lives, they will be surrounded by many bad pagan cultures and religions that cater to fallen sensibilities rather than our higher selves. God is therefore going to fill their lives with moral rules to teach them about justice and fairness, and rituals for giving gratitude to God and for the repentance of their sins.
Q: To whom were the Commandment given, where, and when?
They were given to Moses, on Mt. Sinai, 50 days after the first Passover. Also known as Pentecost, or Shavuot.
The Ten Commandments
I am the Lord thy God, thou shalt not have strange gods before Me.
Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain.
Remember to keep holy the Sabbath Day.
Honor thy father and mother.
Thou shalt not kill (murder).
Thou shalt not commit adultery.
Thou shalt not steal.
Thou shalt not lie.
Thou shalt not covet my neighbor’s wife.
Thou shalt not covet my neighbor’s goods.
Q: We might start out by asking how these commandments were organized by God. He provided the order, right?
We can see that the first three involve God. This is how all prayer should begin, by lifting our eyes to God, because that is always our ideal starting and ending point, not us.
The 4th Commandment – to honor one’s parents – bridges the first set to the second set. He does this for two reasons: It’s easy to disrespect one’s parents, especially as they get older. Yet love of others begins at home, with them, the ones who brought you into the world and raised you, regardless of their mistakes and shortcomings.
The 5th through 10th Commandments are about loving and respecting others. This new ordering of life that God was giving them was going to be a heck of a ride.
Q: What about ourselves? Where are we in these Commandments?
We are in ALL of them. Every one of them is about us.
True, none of them say, "Thou shalt make myself greater than the others,” but that’s the rest of the world that God is separating them from.
Q: What is meant by “Commandment”?
Exodus 20:1 says, “And God spoke these words” which are later also called instructions, statutes, decrees, and commandments by Moses. If we look up the Hebrew word, we get this: הַדְּבָרִ֥ים (had·də·ḇā·rîm), meaning a word, a cause, and an explanation.
I came to realize this word “commandment" wasn’t meant to order us around, for if He really wanted to that He could have just forced them to do whatever he wanted. The Ten Commandments are, in effect, an instruction manual.
Q: What about the fact that the commandments say, “Thou shalt”?
1) We all have free will, but it is also true that IF we wish to be good people, have a relationship with God, and enter Heaven, then we MUST love God, honor our parents and the Sabbath, and we MUST NOT kill, steal, lie, or sleep around with our neighbors’ spouses. Perhaps it could say, “Thou shalt… if you want to get into Heaven!”
2) Moral laws are a lot like physical laws except that physical laws result in movement and moral laws result in justice. We can see how physical laws work – i.e., the law of gravity says that if I drop this stone, it will fall to the ground. When I follow a moral law (i.e., honesty) trust is created. If I break a moral laws (i.e., I steal), an injustice happens.
However, with moral laws we cannot always see the result and, in fact, we see people get away with murder, figuratively and literally. Yet, even in this uncertainty, humans still know that justice or injustice has occurred, and we often get upset and/or demand that justice happen.
Humans have never seen consistent justice anywhere EVER in history – in fact, quite the opposite. So then why do we think – with great certainty – that things “should have been this way” and “ought to have been that way”?
Q: We’re so cocksure and demanding about “justice,” why doesn’t it just happen immediately, like gravity?
1) Because moral laws like justice are spiritual laws, breathed into us by God. It came with our spiritual intellect and free will. These moral laws – goodness, fairness, patience, compassion, love, and happiness – are eternal characteristics of God and Heaven. We are made in his likeness, remember? We know the greatness of these things and we want them. But like Eve hanging around the Tree of Good & Evil, we keep wanting them on our own terms without God and without any cost to us.
2) In the spiritual realm, justice does result immediately, like gravity, which is why Satan and the fallen angels fell from grace instantly. Justice was quick. However, as Genesis 3 explains, humans were given a second chance, which means justice has been suspended to give us time to fix ourselves, to make amends, and to seek forgiveness. That’s a good thing, because if justice was immediate, then we would already be in Hell.
Conclusion: The truth of the Ten Commandments is that they articulated a morality infinitely above that of all the existing nations at the time – above even that of the wisest of mankind to whom revelation was previously unknown. There is no compendium of morality in Confucianism, in Buddhism, in the religion of Zoroaster, or of Egypt, or of Greece or Rome, which can be put in the category of the Decalogue. God wishes to show the Israelites who the real God is – and to have a relationship with them. His commandments are the path of life to this end.
Q: Do the Jews and Protestants have a different order to the Commandments?
Yes, but although “ten” commandments are stated, there is no numbering system provided in the Bible. How Jews and Christians have ordered them have changed over time, and the particular order doesn’t change the meaning of the Commandments. You are free to order them differently if you like, but it will be harder to communicate with others about them.
The Protestant ordering follows the Jewish ordering. Catholic order them according to Augustine’s recommendation in the 5th century.
Q: What is the difference?
The full first commandment for Catholics is:
I am the Lord thy God, thou shalt not have strange gods before Me. You shall not make yourself any graven images (idols) of anything in the heavens or on the earth or in the sea.
It is our opinion that these form one and the same commandment. Graven images refers to the “strange gods” mentioned in the first statement, but God was also warning the Hebrews against the Egyptian practice of worshiping idols they made of their nature gods.
The Jews separate this into two commandments, and the Protestants adopted this format:
(1) I am the Lord thy God, thou shalt not have strange gods before Me.
(2) You shall not make yourself any graven images (idols) of anything in the heavens or on the earth or in the sea.
As for the Catholic practice of having statues and images of Jesus, Mary, and the saints, these are images of God (Jesus) and his holy ones, not pagan idols. Also, on Mt. Sinai God instructed the Israelites to construct the Ark of the Covenant with two statues of archangels on top. Clearly, these were not pagan idols, either.
Q: Wouldn’t this have left them with eleven Commandments?
It would have, but they also combine the last two Catholic commandments into one, which keeps it at ten. The Jewish and Protestant version for their tenth commandment is:
(10) Thou shalt not covet they neighbor’s house. Thou shalt not covet thy neighbor’s wife, or his servants, his ox or donkey, or anything that belongs to him.
Augustine’s recommendation, which the Church has followed since, was that because of Genesis 2:22 (Eve from the rib of Adam), women are not “possessions” but equal to man, and therefore the wife should be separate – and put first. Therefore, the Catholic version is:
(9) Thou shalt not covet my neighbor’s wife.
(10) Thou shalt not covet my neighbor’s goods.
Closing Prayer
Hear O Israel
O Body of Christ, Communion of Saints, and Universal Church:
The Lord is God and the Lord is One
Whom we love with all our hearts, all our minds, all our souls, and all our strength (Deut 6:4-5, 11:13).
We love our neighbors as ourselves (Lev 19:18), and this includes praying for our enemies (Mt 5).
Lord, for this we need You to bless us all, forgive us our sins,
and grant us the healing of understanding and the light of your wisdom
as we work to become united as one people in the Holy Spirit.
MYWNOBD
Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee. Blessed art 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.
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