Bible
The Leper, the Centurion, and Jesus
January 23, 2012
Jesus Healing the Leper, William Brassey Hole
Matthew 8:1-13 was the Gospel reading for the Third Sunday after Epiphany in the Extraordinary Form of the Roman rite.
The humble leper
We hear about the cleansing of the leper who with humble faith asked, but did not demand, that Jesus cure him. God can do anything He wills and often He waits for us to acknowledge submission to His will before He grants our request. This abandonment to God’s good pleasure brings us close to Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane who in agony submitted to the Father, ” Saying: Father, if thou wilt, remove this chalice from me: but yet not my will, but thine be done” (Lk. 22:42).
Because we are all sinners, our souls are leprous to one degree or another. We all need to be made clean in the sacrament of Confession. Our bodies, too, are often afflicted with disease and frailties. The sicker we are, the more we need to throw ourselves on the merciful Christ with the words of that leper of long ago: “Lord, if Thou wilt, Thou canst make me clean.”
Every physical, mental, emotional, or spiritual adversity we suffer can be met with these words. All are an opportunity to practice humble faith and place ourselves in the loving hands of Christ. If we take time to think about it, our asking in this manner is an opportunity to experience peace of heart.
The humble centurion
Centurion Beseeching Jesus, William Brassey Hole
In the same gospel we hear the tale of the Roman centurion who is used to ordering others around and getting instant obedience. But he, too, approaches Jesus with a humble heart full of compassion for his suffering servant and complete faith in Jesus’ power to heal, even at a distance. From this encounter with the Lord we have the powerfully compelling words, “Lord, I am not worthy that Thou shouldst enter under my roof, but only say the word, and my servant shall be healed.”
From this passage in Matthew we draw the beautiful prayer we say together before receiving Holy Communion: “Lord, I am not worthy that Thou shouldst come under my roof, but only say the word and my soul shall be healed.”
In the traditional Latin Mass we say this prayer three times. Why? Because in Hebrew expression there is no comparative or superlative as we have in English. Thus, the triple repetition of something signifies the greatest emphasis possible in what is being said. Since much of the Traditional Mass originates from the time of the apostles, we find this custom retained in the Latin expression of the Hebrew culture. Thus, we, in praying this prayer three times at Mass, emphasize our great lowliness in the face of Jesus, our helplessness to cure ourselves, and our great faith in Jesus. A second reason for the triple repetition is acknowledgement of the triune God. Jesus is the second Person who cannot be separated from the Father and the Holy Spirit.
I write a lot from the viewpoint of suffering in this world. Often we suffer because our souls need healing. We need God’s help to root out anger, resentment, envy, covetousness, and many other evils from our hearts/souls. Often, physical suffering can be eliminated or greatly ameliorated by the healing of the soul. This prayer of the centurion prepares us to receive the healing power of Christ in Holy Communion when we say it at Mass.
When we are not at Mass but on a bed of pain, we can repeat this prayer as an offering to God as we unite ourselves to the Passion of Christ and seek His aid in conforming ourselves to the will of God.
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R. Now and forever!
(Click on the link above to read why I end my posts this way.
Why the Catholic Church Prays for the Dead
November 4, 2011
Offering Mass for the Poor Souls
November is the month in which we Catholics especially remember those who have gone before us to eternal rest but who have need of additional purification before being admitted to heaven. Monday is the weekday devoted to the Poor Souls throughout the year.
Newsflash: the Catholic Church didn’t invent purgatory. God did. The practice of praying and offering sacrifice for the Poor Souls, called that because they cannot any longer help themselves to acquire that perfect charity necessary for the beatific vision, actually began among the Jews long before the birth of Christ.
The Latin “purgo” means “to cleanse morally, purify, expiate.” Purgatory refers to the process of final sanctification of the soul who has not been directly admitted to heaven upon death.
The Catholic Church teaches from Sacred Scripture and Tradition that:
1. We would die separated from Holy God, except:
2. Jesus died in our place, taking our sins to the cross. Then he rose from the dead, to give us a resurrected life in Heaven.
3. Those who accept this and seek forgiveness will have their sins removed and will live united with Jesus in Heaven.
4. Those who understand this yet reject it will die in their sins, unable to enter Heaven, thereby choosing Hell.
5. The souls who die loving Jesus but have failed to love others fully (what we do unto others we do unto Jesus; see Matt. 25:40) must be purified before they can experience the fullness of Heaven because “nothing unclean shall enter into it” (Rev. 21: 27) When we incur a debt to God through sin, the debt must be fully discharged or we die unclean even though forgiven.
6. We are all sinners; even after we’ve been freed from Original Sin in our baptisms. We cannot become holy by our own efforts.
The necessity of purgatory can be likened to a man who murders another person, whether in cold blood or by accident. When he is caught, he either confesses and is sentenced or is tried and found guilty on the evidence. Even if he apologizes to the family and friends of the one he murdered and is forgiven, he must still go to prison to make atonement for his sin under the law. If we have not atoned for our sins in this life, God, in his mercy provides for that final purification when we die because Christ opened the gates of heaven for us and we must be in perfect charity with God to enter.
When did the belief in purgatory originate?
It is impossible to say exactly when the Jews began to believe the doctrine of purgatory, but we find references to it in the Old Testament. In Wis. 3:1-7, God tells us:
“But the souls of the just are in God’s hand; no torment will touch them. In the eyes of the foolish they seemed to be dead; their departure was reckoned as defeat, and their going from us a disaster. But they are at peace, for though in the sight of men they may suffer punishment, they have a sure hope of immortality, and after a little chastisement they will receive great blessings, because God has tested them and found them worthy to be His. He put them to the proof like gold in a crucible, and found them acceptable like an offering burnt whole on the altar. In the hour of their judgment they will shine in glory and will sweep over the world like sparks through stubble.”
We find additional allegorical (see my post on How to Get More From Reading the Bible) or outright references to purgatory in Dan. 12:10, Zechariah 13:9, Malachai 3: 2-3, and 2 Maccabees 12: 43-46. Each of these verses tells of the need for purification or prayers for the dead.
For the sake of validity, we must also say here that all the books of the Old Testament recognized by the Catholic Church were in use and accepted as the Word of God by the Jews a full 200 years before Christ was born. The final ratification of the complete books of the Bible that were in use from the Apostolic age on occurred at the councils of Hippo (393) and Carthage (397). The bishops and Fathers of the Church present discerned at those councils the canon of the inspired Word of God and so the Bible remained until the 1500s when various individuals under their own authority began excising books that did not support their new theologies.
Purgatory in the Jewish Tradition
The roots of Christianity are Jewish. Before Christ’s birth Rabbi Shammai (50 BC – AD 30), a key major teacher of early rabbinical Judaism, is on record as having interpreted Zechariah 13:9 as referring to a state of purification after death. Rabbinic literature interprets Isaiah 66:15-16 and Malachi 3:2-3 as referring to the purgatorial process, and even the Talmud in Sabbath 33b mentions purgatory. [1]
The Jewish historian Josephus commented on the endurance of the Jews under siege in the year 63: “Just as if deep peace enfolded the city, the daily sacrifices, offerings for the dead, and every other act of worship were meticulously carried out to the glory of God” (The Jewish War).
Observant Jews today chant the Kaddish for their loved ones. The Mourner’s Kaddish asks God’s forgiveness for any sins the departed may have committed, begging Him to grant the departed eternal peace. The Jews also offer alms and good deeds for the dead as is tradition in the Catholic Church. [2] We can see from this that the belief in purgation after death is very ancient. Jesus and the apostles would have considered the doctrine of purgatory a given and all Jews hearing their words would have understood the meaning just as today nobody needs explanations of Michael Jackson’s Thriller.
The New Testament on purgatory
If the Jews were wrong about their belief in a place of purification, Jesus would have surely corrected this in His preaching. However, He reinforced it, as did Matthew, Paul, Peter, John, and the writer to the Hebrews. In Matthew 5: 26 Jesus says: “Amen I say to thee, thou shalt not go out from thence till thou repay the last farthing.”
Note that Jesus does not say “until I pay the last farthing for you.” He justifies us with His blood, and without Him nothing we do of ourselves will merit heaven, but we must take responsibility for our actions and be cleansed before entering the presence of our heavenly Father (Rev. 21: 27). This cleansing may take place on earth or it will take place after death.
St. Paul in 1 Corinthians 3:13-15 says:
“Every man’s work shall be manifest; for the day of the Lord shall declare it, because it shall be revealed in fire; and the fire shall try every man’s work, of what sort it is. If any man’s work abide, which he hath built thereupon, he shall receive a reward. If any man’s work burn, he shall suffer loss; but he himself shall be saved, yet so as by fire.”
The quote is in concordance with the verses of Zechariah and Malachai cited above regarding the refiner’s fire. Other New Testament references are: Timothy 1:16-18, Hebrews 12:14, Hebrews 12:22-23, 1 Peter 4:6.
Early Christian practices expressing belief in purgatory
Church doctrines derive from the written Word and oral Tradition handed down from the Apostles, the last of whom was John and with whom revelation ended. The tombs and catacombs of the early Christians contained graffiti or inscriptions with words of petition for peace and rest. It is also known that the practice in Apostolic times was to use a diptych at the altar which contained the names of the dead to be remembered at Mass. These practices of the early Church show belief in purgatory because those in heaven have no need for our prayers of supplication on their behalf.
Purification
Saint Catherine of Genoa is known for her treatise on the Poor Souls. In Fire of Love!: Understanding Purgatory
“Some recent theologians are of the opinion that the fire which both burns and saves is Christ himself, the Judge and Savior. The encounter with him is the decisive act of judgment. Before his gaze all falsehood melts away…. Yet in the pain of this encounter, when the impurity and sickness of our lives become evident to us, there lies salvation. His gaze, the touch of his heart heals us through an undeniably painful transformation “as through fire”. But it is a blessed pain, in which the holy power of his love sears through us like a flame, enabling us to become totally ourselves and thus totally of God. In this way the inter-relation between justice and grace also becomes clear: the way we live our lives is not immaterial, but our defilement does not stain us for ever if we have at least continued to reach out towards Christ, towards truth and towards love. Indeed, it has already been burned away through Christ’s Passion. At the moment of judgment we experience and we absorb the overwhelming power of his love over all the evil in the world and in ourselves. The pain of love becomes our salvation and our joy.” [3]
From both Scripture and Tradition we can say confidently that the doctrine of purgatory is true; some souls do endure a state of final purification because they have not died in perfect charity; it is temporary; the people in this state have been assured of salvation; and we can help them in their purification with our prayers, almsgiving, sacrifices, and good deeds on their behalf. By remembering the Poor Souls this way, we are exercising charity and participating in the communion of saints which we profess in the Apostles’ Creed.
The Church prays in the Tract of All Souls Day (1962 liturgical books):
Absolve, O Lord, the souls of all the faithful departed from every bond of sin. And by the help of Thy grace may they be enabled to escape the avenging judgment and enjoy the bliss of everlasting light.
[1] http://www.fisheaters.com/purgatory.html
[2] http://www.yahrzeit.org/qak.html#Catholics%20do
[3] http://www.vatican.va/holy_father/benedict_xvi/encyclicals/documents/hf_ben-xvi_enc_20071130_spe-salvi_en.html
Sunday Snippets – A Catholic Carnival
October 23, 2011
Welcome to Sunday Snippets, a meme hosted by RAnn at This That and the Other Thing. I’ve met so many really neat bloggers participating in this roundup, and learned a lot, too. Why not join us with your contributions and comments?
This week I excerpted some of Dom Guéranger, O.S.B.’s exegesis on last Sunday’s Gospel, The Man Sick of Palsy. Any time I can understand the Bible better, it’s exciting and my prayer life improves. The post led me to dust off an old article and rewrite it for this blog on How to Get More from Reading the Bible.
I’ve been meaning for quite some time to write about The Vocation of the Consecrated Virgin, something the Church revived in 1970. If you’ve never heard of it, don’t be surprised. I hadn’t either until I met one and we got to talking. Every diocese should have as many of these wonderful women as possible.
At Sabbath Moments I wrote a little about friendship with God and our apostolate as Christians.
Finally, the Rule of St. Benedict prompted me to write a short post on Refraining from Doing Good? A quote from St. Bernard puts everything into perspective.
God bless all my readers.
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R. Now and forever. Amen.
(Click on the link above to read why I am ending my posts with this.)
How to Get More from Reading the Bible
October 19, 2011
Reading the Bible
I was, unfortunately, well into my late 50s before I learned to read the Bible according to a method or structure quite evident in the writings of the early Fathers of the Church but which I had never had explained to me. Thanks to the Catechism of the Catholic Church which explains in #115-119 the senses of Scripture, I had now a key to crack open the Bible in a more complete way.
The Holy Bible is the Word of God, the same Word who is God, Jesus Christ. He himself said in John 8:12, “…I am the light of the world: he that followeth me, walketh not in darkness, but shall have the light of life.” When we read the Bible, we are in a personal, intimate encounter with Christ who wishes to give us the light of life.
Getting Started
Before starting to read the Bible, it is important to remember we are in the presence of God, and to ask the Holy Spirit to enlighten us on the truths contained in it. Remove all distractions such as television, music, etc. because God does not yell at us over worldly noise, He speaks in a quiet voice ever inviting us to “Come follow me.” (Luke 18: 22) By opening the Bible we are inviting God to be our guest and we must give Him our full attention.
The senses of Scripture
Whether we read the Old Testament or the New, we can gain considerable insight by doing it according to ancient tradition which distinguishes between two senses of Sacred Scripture, the literal meaning and the spiritual meaning. [1]
According to St. Thomas Acquinas, “All other senses of Sacred Scripture are based on the literal.” [2] The literal sense is the meaning of the words. When we read in Genesis that God created everything in six days and on the seventh He rested, the literal meaning takes the words at face value.
We can’t stop at the literal meaning, though. We must continue with the spiritual sense, which according to ancient tradition is divided into three ways of looking at a passage:
1. the allegorical sense,
2. the moral sense, and
3. the anagogical sense (Greek “anagoge” which means “leading”. Leading to our final end, that is).
This spiritual sense of the Bible is the answer to our longing to know and follow Jesus better every day of our lives so that we may join Him in heaven some day.
The allegorical sense
When thinking about the allegorical sense of a Bible passage, we can develop a much more profound understanding of it by asking the simple question, “Where is Jesus in this?” For example, when God tells the Israelites in Exodus 12 the rules for the Passover and what He will do for them, it prefigures the sacrifice of Jesus, the Lamb of God on the cross.
The moral sense
St. Paul shows us the moral sense of Scripture when he tells us in 1 Corinthians: 10:11, after giving us a perfect example of the allegorical sense of Biblical interpretation, that these things “are written for our correction, upon whom the ends of the world are come.”
Considering the moral sense of a Scriptural reading leads us to act justly towards God and others. Understanding that “justice” in the Christian sense means to give others their due according to their dignity as human beings and God His due as our creator and Supreme Being, we can examine our consciences to discover how to be a better person. The Two Great Commandments are our litmus test. The question here is, “What does Jesus want me to do now in light of this passage to behave more justly towards God and others?”.
The anagogical sense
Resurrection, 1520, Marco Basaiti (active 1496-1530 in Venice), Oil on canvas, Accademia Carrara, Bergamo
When we add the anagogical sense of interpretation to a Bible passage, we consider it within its eternal significance, how it points us toward our final heavenly destiny. The raising of Lazarus is allegorical to the Resurrection of Christ. The Resurrection of Christ and his ascension into heaven is anagogical to our being raised up by Christ on the last day and taken up with him to our permanent home if we have been His faithful followers. The question to ask ourselves when interpreting a Bible passage anagogically is, “How does this lead me to my final end of union with God and the saints for all eternity?”
A few more thoughts
Nearly everything in the Bible is linked. We must take passages within context and not as isolated phrases independent of what is written before and after. This approach applies both to Bible study and to simple, prayerful reading which often leads us into mental prayer or meditation where we have a conversation with God over how He wishes us to apply His Word in our lives.
If we stop at the literal meaning of the Bible we’re missing a lot of points God is making to us. If I were a dog, I’d be a bloodhound because I have a mania for following something to its end. I can’t stand to have unanswered questions about the meaning of sacred scripture. That’s why I bought the Catena Aurea by St. Thomas Aquinas. In these volumes, one for each of the Gospels, he has collected the writings of the various Fathers of the Church on each Gospel passage. Another very valuable resource is McKenzie’s Dictionary of the Bible which I bought in the 1960s and is a fabulous work. I also use Biblos for research, especially when I want to trace the meaning and usage of Hebrew and Greek words and find the context in which they’re used. Occasionally I use the Jerome Biblical Commentary, too, and a Bible concordance.
Most people won’t want to go to the lengths I do for various reasons. A book of meditations on the liturgical year may be a better option, such as Divine Intimacy by Father Gabriel of St. Mary Magdalene, O.C.D., and Dom Prosper Guéranger, O.S.B.’s The Liturgical Year.
And you can’t go wrong by reading the writings of the saints on biblical passages. Saints Augustine and John Chrysostom, both Fathers and Doctors of the Church, and St. Bernard, a Doctor of the Church come to mind.
Smaller Manhattans
I want to plug a blog that is a great example of linking Biblical passages to Church teaching – one from which I’ve learned a great deal. Christian at Smaller Manhattans teaches catechism to sixth graders and often blogs the lessons. They are always entertaining and thought provoking. For example, he’s opened my eyes more than once to specific links between Scripture and Tradition, such as the one between Moses on the mountain, the Pope, and the Church structure we have of bishops and priests in A Royal Priesthood. Plus, you get a lot of Catholic/Christian culture from him.
How Christian approaches catechesis is also another way to understand what God is showing us in the Bible without necessarily using specific words such as “contraception”, “abortion”, “purgatory”, etc. We can learn a lot about the spiritual meaning of passages with his approach.
When all is said and done, our final goal is eternal friendship with Christ. Reading the Holy Bible according to its spiritual senses is an important way to know, love, and serve Him better to achieve that goal.
[1] Catechism of the Catholic Church #115-118
[2] Summa Theologica, I, 1,10, ad 1
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R. Now and forever. Amen.
(Click on the link above to read why I am ending my posts with this.)
Three Favorite Scripture Verses
May 17, 2011
Drawing inspiration from fellow bloggers makes participating in the New Evangelization really worthwhile for me, so I thought I’d start this blog tag and see where it goes. The method is simple:
- Write a post on your three favorite verses from the Bible and why you like them.
- Link back to this post.
- In your post tag three other bloggers to carry this theme forward, link to you and tag additional bloggers.
My three favorite verses
1. I am the way, the truth, and the life (John 14:6). This has been my #1 favorite for years. I have meditated on this verse often over the years and never get tired of it. Most of all, this verse is fundamental to an examination of conscience because it makes me think much harder about imitating Him and holding to His example.
2. To the King of ages, who is immortal, invisible, the one only God, be honor and glory forever and ever. Amen (1 Tim. 1:17). This verse is prayed every day at the hour of Prime in the Divine Office. I love it because of the pure and simple praise it offers to God. It reminds me of my proper place in relation to Him. I pray it outside the Divine Office for the sake of the many who do not know God and who have attempted to dethrone Him and put false gods in His place. It also reminds me that Christ is King and only the fool says in his heart “There is no God” (Ps. 14:1).
3. Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven (Matt.5:3). For years I just couldn’t understand the meaning of the Beatitudes. One day a priest gave me a penance to pray the Beatitudes and I wanted to knock my head hard on the pew in front of me because I was so frustrated knowing I was missing their importance. That was the day I asked God to please help me understand them.
One question I asked was, why did Jesus make this the first beatitude? After thinking it over it dawned on me that while many people are poor in this world, it doesn’t mean they are poor in spirit. Anyone can be poor in spirit. No one is excluded. This condition of the soul is fundamental to spiritual advancement. We can’t live the other beatitudes without living this one first.
I’ve grown to love this verse because it is about living totally as a child of God with the humility of Mary and Joseph, understanding that everything we are and have comes from Him and that He is fully in charge of everything. If we are poor in spirit we offer praise and thanksgiving, petition and sacrifice wholeheartedly. In this way the beatitude links to the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass and to the Our Father.
An additional meaning this beatitude links to is the great gift of the Holy Spirit, the fear of the Lord which is the beginning of wisdom (Ps. 111:10 and Prov. 1:7). I love to meditate on this Beatitude to examine my conscience on keeping a right relationship with God.
OK, now it’s your turn. If I didn’t tag you, you can still write a post on this and participate in this blog tag. Everyone is welcome.
For starters I tag:
Mary at The Beautiful Gate
Victor at Time for Reflections
Evan at Evan’s Cove
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R. Now and forever. Amen.
(Click on the link above to read why I am ending my posts with this.)
Inside the Bible – Book Review
Inside the Bible: An Introduction to Each Book of the Bible 
Father Baker is the editor emeritus (over 40 years as editor) of the Homiletic and Pastoral Review, a monthly magazine published by Ignatius Press aimed at helping priests preach and counsel parishioners better, as well as understand and celebrate the liturgy better.
Each chapter of the book is a quick and easy read in Father Baker’s clear and organized style. The chapter sections are: Place in the Bible, Date and Author, Theme, Summary, Theology, Outline, and Reflection which contains a quote from the book for a quick meditation. I found this arrangement very helpful in understanding the meaning and purpose of each book of the Bible as it relates to salvation history. When we read the Bible with better understanding of the mysteries revealed we cannot help growing closer to God, and even understand today’s events much better from a biblical perspective.
Many of us would like to attend Bible study classes, but are unable to because of various types of limitations. A book like this can’t take the place of a good study group, but it can help those of us who want to read the Bible on our own with greater understanding.
This book is helpful in another way, too. I like to look ahead to the Scriptural quotes for the coming Sunday Mass, all of which are linked to the particular season we are celebrating. Reading the appropriate chapter from Inside the Bible helps me understand the lessons each quote is illustrating better, along with the links between each.
This book is available at a very reasonable price from Amazon. Just click on the link above or on the image of the book.
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