Today's Reading - Acts 13

In today's first reading, St. Paul walks into the synagague and gives the Isrealites and all of us a short birds eye view of salvation history. I thought I'd share this today because its not only an amazing journey, but a reminder of how Our Father keeps His promises. And for a great study and adventure through salvation history, there no other book I can recommend, than Scott Hahn's "A Father Who Keeps His Promises"

So Paul got up, motioned with his hand, and said,
“Fellow children of Israel and you others who are God-fearing, listen. The God of this people Israel chose our ancestors and exalted the people during their sojourn in the land of Egypt. With uplifted arm he led them out,
and for about forty years he put up with them in the desert. When he had destroyed seven nations in the land of Canaan, he gave them their land as an inheritance at the end of about four hundred and fifty years. After these things he provided judges up to Samuel the prophet. Then they asked for a king.
God gave them Saul, son of Kish,
a man from the tribe of Benjamin, for forty years.
Then he removed him and raised up David as their king;
of him he testified, I have found David, son of Jesse, a man after my own heart;
he will carry out my every wish. From this man’s descendants God, according to his promise,
has brought to Israel a savior, Jesus. John heralded his coming by proclaiming a baptism of repentance to all the people of Israel; and as John was completing his course, he would say,
‘What do you suppose that I am? I am not he.
Behold, one is coming after me; I am not worthy to unfasten the sandals of his feet.’”
Acts 13:13-25

Preparing for Christ's Birth

It's a story familiar to all of us. The tale of a virgin giving birth, a child laid in a manger and shepherds greeted by angels. But what if we had never heard the story before? Lets place ourselves as first century Jews who are hearing this plot for the first time. Were the events prior to Christ's birth a fulfillment of what had been prophesized for centuries? Let's all try and go back into the first century Jewish world so as to discover many of the spiritual treasures by looking more deeply into the mystery of Christ's coming in Scripture.

Daniel 9: 20-23

20 While I was speaking and praying, confessing my sin and the sin of my people Israel, and presenting my supplication before the LORD my God for the holy hill of my God; 21 while I was speaking in prayer, the man Gabriel, whom I had seen in the vision at the first, came to me in swift flight at the time of the evening sacrifice. 22 He came and he said to me, "O Daniel, I have now come out to give you wisdom and understanding. 23 At the beginning of your supplications a word went forth, and I have come to tell it to you, for you are greatly beloved; therefore consider the word and understand the vision. "

24 "Seventy weeks of years are decreed concerning your people and your holy city, to finish the transgression, to put an end to sin, and to atone for iniquity, to bring in everlasting righteousness, to seal both vision and prophet, and to anoint a most holy place."

Malachi 3:1

BEHOLD, I send my messenger to prepare the way before me, and the Lord whom you seek will suddenly come to his temple; the messenger of the covenant in whom you delight, behold, he is coming, says the LORD of hosts

Luke 1:8-23

8 Now while he was serving as priest before God when his division was on duty, 9 according to the custom of the priesthood, it fell to him by lot to enter the temple of the Lord and burn incense. 10 And the whole multitude of the people were praying outside at the hour of incense. 11 And there appeared to him an angel of the Lord standing on the right side of the altar of incense. 12 And Zechariah was troubled when he saw him, and fear fell upon him. 13 But the angel said to him, "Do not be afraid, Zechariah, for your prayer is heard, and your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you shall call his name John. 14 And you will have joy and gladness, and many will rejoice at his birth; 15 for he will be great before the Lord, and he shall drink no wine nor strong drink, and he will be filled with the Holy Spirit, even from his mother's womb. 16 And he will turn many of the sons of Israel to the Lord their God, 17 and he will go before him in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just, to make ready for the Lord a people prepared." 18 And Zechariah said to the angel, "How shall I know this? For I am an old man, and my wife is advanced in years." 19 And the angel answered him, "I am Gabriel, who stand in the presence of God; and I was sent to speak to you, and to bring you this good news. 20 And behold, you will be silent and unable to speak until the day that these things come to pass, because you did not believe my words, which will be fulfilled in their time." 21 And the people were waiting for Zechariah, and they wondered at his delay in the temple. 22 And when he came out, he could not speak to them, and they perceived that he had seen a vision in the temple; and he made signs to them and remained dumb. 23 And when his time of service was ended, he went to his home.

[1] Edward Sri. Dawn of the Messiah. Servant Books. Chapter 1.

"In Remembrance"

“In remembrance” (Luke: 22:17–19). These words in Jesus’ institution of the Eucharist harken back to the Old Testament concept of Anamnesis. The word, translated “memorial,” or “remembrance,” indicated a festival or practice or object intended as a link for future generations with a distinctive act of God. More importantly, as there were a handful of Greek words that can describe a "remembrance" of something, anamnesis is the only word that refers exclusively to a sacrifice.

Through the anamnesis, God’s people sensed their personal participation, along with the original generation, in the act God performed for them. Therefore, the institution of the Eucharist, in observing it we are drawn back into history and realize that we truly were there at the Cross.

What Jesus did then echoes throughout history, as real today as in the 1st century, for we appropriate by faith all that Jesus accomplished in giving His body and blood for our sakes.

14 When the hour came, he took his place at the table, and the apostles with him. 15 He said to them, “I have eagerly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer; 16 for I tell you, I will not eat itc until it is fulfilled in the kingdom of God.” 17 Then he took a cup, and after giving thanks he said, “Take this and divide it among yourselves; 18 for I tell you that from now on I will not drink of the fruit of the vine until the kingdom of God comes.” 19 Then he took a loaf of bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and gave it to them, saying, “This is my body, which is given for you. Do this in remembrance of me.”

The Holy Bible : New Revised Standard Version. Nashville : Thomas Nelson Publishers, 1989, S. Lk 22:14-19

Protestant and Catholic Bibles

What's the difference between Protestant and Catholic Bibles? Here is the historical answer to the question that lead to many interesting conversations in my life. It also denies the false notion that Catholics added seven books to the Bible.

After you have read this article, (Which I found on twopaths.com), please visit the amazon link and provide yourself with the Original King James Version released in 1611 for further clarification.

_________________________________________________________________

The First Christian Bible

At the time the Christian Bible was being formed, a Greek translation of Jewish Scripture, the Septuagint, was in common use and Christians adopted it as the Old Testament of the Christian Bible. However, around 100 A.D., Jewish rabbis revised their Scripture and established an official canon of Judaism which excluded some portions of the Greek Septuagint. The material excluded was a group of 15 late Jewish books, written during the period 170 B.C. to 70 A.D., that were not found in Hebrew versions of the Jewish Scripture. Christians did not follow the revisions of Judaism and continued to use the text of the Septuagint as the Old Testament.

Protestant Bibles

In the 1500s, Protestant leaders decided to organize the Old Testament material according to the official canon of Judaism rather than the Septuagint. They moved the Old Testament material which was not in the Jewish canon into a separate section of the Bible called the Apocrypha. So, Protestant Bibles then included all the same material as the earlier Bible, but it was divided into two sections: the Old Testament and the Apocrypha. Protestant Bibles included the Apocrypha until the mid 1800s, and the King James Version was originally published with the Apocrypha. However, the books of the Apocrypha were considered less important, and the Apocrypha was eventually dropped from most Protestant editions.

Catholic and Orthodox Bibles

The Roman Catholic and Orthodox Churches did not follow the Protestant revisions, and they continue to base their Old Testament on the Septuagint. The result is that these versions of the the Bible have more Old Testament books than most Protestant versions. Catholic Old Testaments include 1st and 2nd Maccabees, Baruch, Tobit, Judith, The Wisdom of Solomon, Sirach (Ecclesiasticus), additions to Esther, and the stories of Susanna and Bel and the Dragon which are included in Daniel. Orthodox Old Testaments include these plus 1st and 2nd Esdras, Prayer of Manasseh, Psalm 151 and 3rd Maccabees.

_________________________________________________________________

[1] Twopaths.com

[2] Amazon.com - Original King James Version of the Bible. 1611 Edition

By Whose Authority? (Part II)

In order to deal with the issue of authority, we must make sure that we are clear on something. Often times our Protestant brethren make the argument regarding authority out to be Church vs. Scripture. This is a false dichotomy. It isn't an either/or argument...it is a both/and argument.

Catholics do believe that scripture is materially sufficient in matters of faith and morals, we just don’t believe that it is formally sufficient. What is the difference? The difference between formal and material sufficiency is the difference between having a brick house and having a big enough pile of bricks to build a house. Drawing on this analogy, Christ is the builder and he uses the mortar of Tradition and the trowel of the Magisterium to build His brick house of revelation from a mere pile of bricks (Mt. 16:18, Eph. 2:19-22; 1 Tim. 3:15). It is these three elements together -- written Tradition (that is, Scripture), unwritten Tradition, and the Magisterium -- that hand down the fullness of revelation, who is Jesus Christ. [1]

Many protestants will say that sola scriptura has its safeguards to prevent them from falling into doctrinal error; they believe in having good hermeneutical (how to apply the text) principles by which one must base his understanding of scripture (ie. using clear texts to interpret unclear, interpreting the New Testament in light of the Old, etc.) We can agree to this as well. However, how do we determine the difference between a “clear text” and an “unclear text?” Is a text clear because one understands it, or is it because one thinks he understands it? If we take the sentence: “I never said you stole money”, we can emphasize different words in the sentence and arrive at vastly different meanings. The sentence is pretty simple, yet we can misinterpret it very easily. It is much easier to hold a face to face converstion with someone than it is to write letters. Why? Because we could hear inflection and read body language. As it is, we are merely reading the written word.

We also must recognize that biblical interpretation is more than just good exegesis (interpreting a text on the basis of the text itself). Biblical scholarship can very easily be reduced to merely dissecting a corpse. We must look at the genre of the book as well as the four senses of scripture: literal, anagogical, allegorical and moral. We should then put ourselves in the historical context of the audience for which it was written. In the case of the NT, that would be first century Jews. First century Jews had a covenantal world view that we don’t really understand. Now if SS is to be adhered to, how does the average person do this? Some of us have the advantage of being well educated. Many of us have the resources available to do in depth personal study? How can one interpret the bible if they have no Bible and even if they did, they couldn’t read it? The only access to scripture that may people have had in previous generations is what they heard in church. If you look at the patristic sources, they were trying to determine the canon so that they would have a list of books that were suitable for being read in church. The context of scripture is the liturgy. In the account of the disciples on the way to Emmaus, the Scriptures came alive for the disciples after Jesus took, blessed, broke and gave bread with them. Is that a coincidence that these are the same words used at the last supper? These are the same words we hear every time we attend Mass. We read the Word of God, then we commune (literally) with the Word of God. As Scott Hahn has said many times, "a protestant studies the menu while the Catholic or Orthodox enjoys the meal."

I recently read the question: “Why is there a need for scripture and the Church…why not one or the other?” Well, why do we have textbooks and teachers? Why do we have the constitution as well as the Court? Why do companies have business plans and boards? Why does baseball have umpires? Why do we have the phrase, “that isn’t what I meant?” There will always be a need to clear up confusion.



[1]http://cuf.org/faithfacts/details_view.asp?ffID=133)

The Wedding At Cana

We all have an idea on how busy and sometimes even a little stressful wedding planning can get. For myself, I left a lot of details and planning to Melissa. She had a good idea of what she wanted for our wedding, and I loved every part of it. However, the one thing that I wanted to be a part of more than any other was deciding the scripture readings for the Ceremony.

This was one of the better things we enjoyed about our wedding, but also the most difficult. The toughest part was narrowing it down to four passages from Scripture. The Old and the New Testament, the Psalms and the Gospels all have so many great passages, and we did our best to decide which ones we wanted for our special celebration.

Here I want to focus on the Gospel of John Chapter 2, and more specifically, The Wedding at Cana. I’ve taken the time to study this chapter over the last few months looking at it light of two key points, the Eucharist and The Blessed Mother. It’s been both illuminating and enlightening for me. And I want to take the time right now to share with you what I initially hoped to hand out to everyone who attended our wedding but unfortunately never found the time to do so until now. Most important though, I would like to thank Father Scott for his homily at our service. Revealing to us to the connection between Mary (who Jesus refers to as ‘woman’) and Eve (who God refer to as ‘woman’ in the Book of Genesis). Father Scott explained to us as Eve was called to be the mother of all living in the Old Testament, Here in the New Testament we have Mary being called as a new Eve, the mother of all living. And again, its not coincidence that Christ refers to her as ‘woman.’

Here we are at The Wedding at Cana. I sometimes wondered why Jesus chose a wedding celebration for the scene of His first public miracle? Then I remembered somebody in the Book of Exodus who preformed a smiliar miracle, Moses. Moses changed the waters of the Nile into blood (Exodus 7:14-22) in the Old Covenant. Jesus now changes water into wine, ushering in His New Covenant. He offers the New Wine, purchased by the shedding of His blood on the cross for our redemption.

Moreover, the wedding at Cana prefigures the marriage feast of the Lamb (Revelation 19:7). We should all understand how weddings play an important role in our lives as they do in Sacred Scripture. I like to ask, whose idea was marriage anyway? Does the sacrament of matrimony make any difference from just living together? Or is it just a matter of a piece of paper as some might suggest? Since Jesus and His Mother, Mary, chose to attend this wedding and then played instrumental roles in it, it might help to look at the sacrament of marriage a little more closely.

Marriage was at the hear t of God’s plan from the beginning. God said, “it is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him a helper fit for him” (Genesis 2:18). Therefore, in the very act of creation, God creates woman and brings her to the man, that they may become one flesh. God has been in the matchmaking business from the very beginning. And just as the couple at Cana invited Jesus to their wedding, Melissa and I have invited Jesus into our marriage relationship. We invite God to be the third person who holds our marriage together.

We all know how marriage has come under attack in contemporary society. The permanence today of one man and one woman faithful until death has come down to partners deciding to walk away from marriage whenever they wish. So, how can marriage withstand the storms and tribulations that occur in life if the Lord is not invited? Without the presence of God and the grace of the sacrament, marriages begin to turn and fall, especially when they remain in the same direction that society has come to accept. The couple at Cana invited Jesus to their wedding. In hard times, one spouse may lift up the other and when both are down, Jesus can hold them together in the midst’s of the storm. God’s grace is always available in the sacrament, for those who call upon Him and seek His help.

I’d like to leave with a quote from Vatican II, Gaudium et Spes, 48.1

Marriage is God’s Plan. Sacred Scripture begins with creation of man and woman in the image and likeness of God and concludes with a vision of the “Wedding Feast of the Lamb.” The intimate community of life and love which constitutes the married state has been established by the Creator. . God Himself is the author of marriage.

Rapture: David B. Currie

Lately, my family has found it pretty easy to shop for me when it comes to birthday’s and holidays. Its come down to books or amazon gift cards to buy more ‘books’. Either way I’m content because everything results in me getting a new book(s). So this Christmas, with much thanks to my aunt Pearl for my amazon gift card, I was able to pick up three new books! However, one of them had a little more excitement to it than the others because it was sitting on my amazon-shopping list for about 4 months. The book is titled, “Rapture: The End-Times Error That Leaves the Bible Behind” written by David B. Currie."

I remember hearing about this book when I was listening to Dr. Brant Pitre’s talk on ‘The End Times.’ Dr. Pitre highly recommended this book for anybody doing any type of study on the ‘Last Things.’ And of course, little did I know, that not only had one of my favorite Catholic Theologians highly recoommend this book, but another favorite Catholic Scholar of mine, Dr. Scott Hahn, provided the foreword for it! . . I KNOW!!

I’ve provided a small text from the foreward to give you an idea of some of Dr. Hahn’s thoughts on Currie’s remarkable work.

“Rapture is much more than its title suggests. It’s more than a topical treatment of a Fundamentalist fad. It’s more than a book of apologetics. Its more thana refuation of an interpretive error.
I’m tempted to describe it as a virtual summa of apocalyptic texts and prophetic positions. In Rapture, Currie gives us a comprehensive collection of the biblical texts that Fundamentalist Protestants have commonly interpreted as end time predictions. He subjects each passage to sane and sober analysis, correcting errors along the way, and establishing a range of reasonable intrepretations, all in harmony with the Catholic Church’s living Tradition.”


[1] “Rapture: The End-Times Error That Leaves the Bible Behind” written by David B. Currie.

Noah as a New Adam

Michael Barber has provided an interesting post on Noah as a New Adam

Read it here, Noah as a New Adam

Temptation of Jesus: Part 2 of 4

As we continue our study on, The Temptation of Jesus (Edward Sri's study on the Gospel of Matthew, Mystery of the Kingdom), we are now going to take a closer look at His first temptation in the desert.

Israel's first test. The first of Israel's trials involved hunger. In the Book of Exodus we can all recall when Moses parted the Red Sea and led all the Israelites away from bondage and into the desert. The Israelites celebrated their new found freedom as they were no longer slaves of Pharaoh. However, they soon faced their first problem: Where would they find food in the desert? How were they going to eat? Their rejoicing quickly turned into panic. We might of expected Israel to trust in God to provide, instead we see the people turned against Moses, saying "You have brought us out into this wilderness to kill this whole assembly with hunger" (Ex 16:3). Israel's failure: Not trusting the Father.

Sri now looks at Jesus' first test. Similarly, we all know that Jesus also faced hunger in His first temptation with the devil. The devil wanted Jesus to use His power as the Son of God to break His forty days of fasting. You see, the Father sent the Spirit to lead Jesus into the desert to pray and fast for forty days, for Jesus to turn the stones into bread would be to exercise His messianic authority for His own self interest and thus depart from the Father's will. Now, remember Israel's failure of not trusting the Father, well Jesus does not waver from trusting the Father. In fact, He quotes Deuteronomy 8:3 (a passage that brings to mind the story of Israel's first test), saying "Man shall not live by bread alone" (Mt. 4:4). Jesus overcomes the first major fall of Israel in the desert.

[1] Exodus 16:3

[2] Deuteronomy 8:3

[3] Matthew 4:4

[4] Mystery of the Kingdom. Edward Sri

The Temptation of Jesus (Part 1 of 4)

In the following post I will share a multi-part study on Jesus overcoming the three temptations of the devil (Mt 4:1-11). , taken from Edward Sri's study on the Gospel of Matthew entitled, Mystery of the Kingdom. By taking a closer look at how the three temptations of Jesus relate to the first three major trials of Israel in the Exodus, we’ll be able to identify that the failings of Israel are symbolically overcome by Jesus’ victory over the devil. Finally, we’ll recognize how Jesus’ victory over the devil sets the tone for the rest of His public ministry, and how the Church’s annual celebration of Lent helps us experience the victory of Jesus in our own lives today.

The Real Enemy
Jesus’ battle in the desert was not a fight that many of the people around Him expected. Instead of confronting the Romans, who were the evil oppressors of the Jews in Jesus’ day, Jesus marched into the desert to combat a much fiercer opponent; the devil. Jesus shows all of us that the real enemy was much bigger than the Roman Empire or any other pagan nation. The true enemy was the power of sin and Satan. To focus on driving out the Romans would be to miss the point. Thus, Jesus did not come to fight the Romans, but to treat the root of the problem; the sin of Israel and the sin of all humanity. If sin were conquered, Israel and all of us truly would be free.

‘In the Destert’
The fact that Jesus spent forty days in the desert shows how He symbolically relived the story of Israel’s forty years in the wilderness during the Exodus. We shall see in the following posts that Jesus faced the same trials Israel faced in the desert, but instead of failing like the ancient people of God did, He proved Himself to be a faithful Israelite. Jesus remained faithful precisely where Israel had been unfaithful.

Part 2 of this study to follow. .

[1] Mt 4:1-11. New American Bible
[2] Mystery of the Kingdom. Edward Sri. Publsiher, Immaus Road

Stephen K. Ray Responds to the Belief by the 'Bible Alone'

Catholic Author Stephen Ray responds in a letter to a man strictly defining his belief by the Bible alone. .

“In a recent letter to a man who said it was just “me and the Bible”, I wrote the following challenge: “You say you have not time to read other books, only the Bible. You say when you read the Bible it is just you and the Holy Spirit. Very cozy, but are you correct? No. Little do you realize – maybe because you don’t read and study widely – that even in your intimate moments with the Bible and the Holy Spirit, you are utterly dependent on the Church. Deny it though you may, it stands irrefutable. Between you and the Bible is the Church! If you were given the original inspired writings from the pen of the apostles, the original autographs of the New Testament, you wouldn’t have a clue as to what they said. Your first problem would be the fact that the hundreds of writings before you are in an ancient foreign language. Can you read minuscule Greek and Ancient Hebrew and Aramaic? You forget that the Bible did not just drop into bookstores prepackaged in English and leather. Even if you did know Hebrew or Greek, it wouldn’t have been the Holy Spirit who taught you, but a man, a Catholic scholar, no doubt.
“Of the hundreds of documents before you, would you have known which were inspired and which were not? Would you be adequate for the task of discernment? No, again you are dependant upon the Church and her bishops. Next, how did that nice Bible get into your hands so you can enthrone it in your heart? It got there through the agency of the Church! More precisely, from Catholic monks. Who translated it meticulously by hand in candlelight? Who copied it into the many languages of the world? The Catholic Church preserved and protected the Bible, with a scribe’s loyalty and dedication, so that it would make it through the darkness brought on by the barbarian hordes from the north. How many of these Fathers and their flocks gave their lives to preserve the Bible so you can read it today? And what if you were in another country? Would you be able to read, since the vast majority of people have always been illiterate? Before the printing press, would you have been able to afford the three years’ wages to buy your own personal copy? And if you couldn’t have your own copy, or were illiterate, how would you have known the Scriptures? From the Church, right? Right. The Church would have read it to you during Mass.
“Do you read the Bible with an unbiased purity of mind, or are you influenced by certain doctrinal presuppositions, and where did they come from? So, there you sit reading your Bible and thinking it is only you and the Holy Spirit, but there is much more involved, brother, and it would behoove you to remove your head from the sand and acknowledge the Catholic Church that gave you the book. You sit with translators and traditions on your right and on your left. The less you know of history, the original languages, the culture of the biblical times, the traditions of the Jews, the teaching of the Fathers, the formulations of the creeds and councils, etc. ., the more vulnerable you are to misunderstanding, deception, oversimplification, unnecessary complication, and heresy.”

[1] Stephen K. Ray. Crossing the Tiber. Evangelical Protestants Discover the Historical Church. Publisher: Ignatius. Pgs. 62-63

Short Reflection on the Structure of The Lord's Prayer

Like most of you, I’ve been praying the Our Father as far back as I can remember. Praying it every night before bed, as well as every Sunday at Mass. I can even remember family members, catechism teachers, and priests telling me to reflect on the words of The Our Father and to ask the Lord to help me live out a better life with sincerity. Little did I know that it was the CENTERPIECE of the most famous sermon (sermon on the mount) ever preached. Their is no doubt that the Lord’ Prayer is a long awaited gift. As Scott Hahn states, “Certainly, this prayer is itself an answer to a sustained request on the part of humanity: “Lord, teach us to pray” (Lk 11:1).” [1]

Recently, however, I’ve learned something new from the Lord’s Prayer, something that I’ve unable to recognize until now. I’m not going reflect so much on the actual words of the Lord’s Prayer, or their significant meanings, but I am going to look more upon the structure and inner logic of Our Lord’s Payer. I’ve never troubled myself to look at the structure of the Lord’s Prayer to understand how this can be a huge help for all of us when prepare our petitions for the Lord.

The Lord’s Prayer is one unified, compact, model prayer consisting of seven petitions, divisible into 2 parts: the first “God-ward,” the second “us-ward.” With this understanding, lets take a closer look at its structure. The first part is clearly “God-ward,” focused on “Thy name,” “Thy Kingdom,” “Thy will.” The second half, however, turns the attention to us and our needs: “give us,” “forgive us,” “lead us,” “deliver us.” The sequence is significant, because it reverses the instinctive order of our petitions. When we pray spontaneously, we tend to begin with our troubles, our frustrated desires, and our personal wish list. But Jesus shows us that we need to be less self-centered in prayer and more God-centered – not because God needs our praise, and His ego is fragile, but because He’s God, and we aren’t. [1] Now this all may be nothing new to most of you, but it definitely can helped some of us become more aware of how to prepare our own petitions for Our Heavenly Father.

[1] Hahn. Author of Understanding "Our Father" Biblical Reflections on The Lord's Prayer.

Why Wash in the Jordan?

When we read through the early chapters of the Gospels we might wonder why John the Baptist made Israel wash in the muddy waters of the Jordan? Wouldn’t it have made more sense for the prophet to preach in Jerusalem? Or wouldn’t the Temple in Jerusalem have been a better place for the ritual washing of repentance?

John was a prophet, and prophets were known for performing symbolic actions with rich, prophetic meanings. For example, the prophet Jeremiah smashed a pot to symbolize the destruction of the Temple, Hosea took a prostitute as a wife to signify how Israel was an unfaithful bride to Yahweh, and Ezekiel shaved with a sword, not for a closer shave, but to signify the impending invasion of Jerusalem.

Prophets performed provocative acts that were aimed at making a mark in the memory and bringing about a change of heart in their audience. John’s directing the people of Jerusalem and Judah into the Jordan was an action filled with meaning.

The Jordan was a religious and national symbol for the Jews. At the climax of the first Exodus, when Israel escaped from Egypt, Joshua led Israel through the Jordan and into the Promised Land. Crossing the Jordan long ago marked Israel’s release from Egyptian captivity at the beginning of Israel’s possession of the Promised Land. Now John was calling Israel to come back to the Jordan and reenter into the Promised Land. Like their ancestors before them, Israel was to go out to the wilderness and then reenter into the Promised Land. John was offering Israel a fresh start, a new beginning. Isaiah had foretold that the wilderness would be the place of origin for Israel's new exodus. The crowds grew in anticipation and excitement, for it looked like John was beginning the new exodus, the fulfillment of the prophetic promises made by Isaiah – this time not from Pharoah, or even Caesar, but from Satan.

Many wondered whether John might be the Messiah, the one to lead Israel through a new exodus and redemption. John, however, was not the next Joshua. He made it clear that he was simply preparing the way, saying, . .

"I baptize you with water, but he who is mightier than I is coming, the thong of
whose sandals I am not worthy to untie; he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit
and with fire (Lk 3:16)."

[1] Luke 3:16
[2] Tim Gray, Author of Mission of the Messiah. Pgs. 21-22

Why the Temple Meant the World to Israel

In my previous post (video clip), Dr. Scott Hahn provides a great understanding of how the ancient Israelites saw the whole world as a temple in Genesis & Book of Exodus. Another great Biblical Scholar of mine, Michael Barber, in his book, Coming Soon: Unlocking the Book of Revelation (pg 16-17), gives us more information on the connection between the Temple and the World, and relating it to Jesus’ discourse in Matthew 24. . .

“Why did Jesus describe the end of the world when he predicted the destruction of the temple (Mt. 24:1-2)? The answer is connected to the way God ‘writes’ the world.

To ancient Israel, the temple was a miniature model of the world. When Moses built the tabernacle (a mobile temple) and Solomon built the temple itself, they did so in ‘sevens’ – seven days, seven months, and seven years. Why? They imitated the way God created the World in seven days. In fact, the Book of Job describes creation in terms of temple building (Job 38:4-7). The temple is a scale model of the world, and the world is one giant temple.

The temple meant the world to Israel – literally. The temple was the symbol of the world. For Jesus and the people of Israel in His day, then, the destruction of the temple symbolized the end of the world. That is why Jesus’ sermons on the end of the world are always given in the context of a prediction of the destruction of Jerusalem and its temple.

And Jesus was true to His words. In AD 70, about forty years after He ascended back into heaven, Jerusalem and its temple were destroyed. With this event, the ritual order of the Old Testament came to a definitive end. The temple sacrifice and the Old Testament priesthood were no longer possible. Jesus was right – the end came within one generation (Greek word, ‘gene’ refers to a period of 40 years) {Mt. 24:34}.

Furthermore, Christians heeded Jesus’ warning: “Then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains, and let those who are inside the city depart” (Lk. 21:21). The early Christians escaped from Jerusalem and fled to Pella just before the Roman legions arrived to besiege Jerusalem. Not a single Christian perished.
Moreover, Jesus’ warning to flee Jerusalem can also be understood spiritually as an admonishment to abandon the obsolete temple sacrifices. Now that He has come and has offered Himself as our sacrifice, there is no longer the need for the Levitical system of priestly sacrifice. Jesus is saying, “Don’t be attached to it, but flee!””

[1] Matthew 24:1-2

[2] Job 38:4-7

[3] Michael Barber, Author of Comming Soon. Unlocking the Book of Revelations

Scott Hahn: Eucharistic Kingdom

Scott Hahn on Reading Genesis, 'Liturgically.'

Humility

The word "humility' derives from the Latin word for dirt, humas. This tells us something about the quality of lowliness inherent in humility for what could be lowlier than the ground beneath one’s feet?

Humility is the virtue by which we acknowledge our own limitations and imperfections knowing that God, our loving father, is the Creator and Author of all life. It allows us to freely submit ourselves to Him without pride and in willing service to others.

Here are just a few of the many Scriptural teachings on the beauty and importance of the virtue of humility:

Matthew 8:8 “The centurion answered him, ‘Lord, I am not worthy to have you come under my roof; but only say the word and my servant will be healed.’”

Matthew 23:11-12 “He who is greatest among you shall be your servant; whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted.”

James 4:6, 10 “God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble’. . (therefore) Humble yourselves before the Lord and he will exalt you.”

One final verse to ponder is Luke 18:13² , which contains one of the most simple, heartfelt and humble statements of trust in the Lord,
“God, be merciful to me a sinner!”³

[1:a] Matthew 8:8
[1:b] Matthew 23:11-12
[1:c] James 4:6, 10
[2] Luke 18:13
[3] Patrick Madrid, author of 'Where is That in the Bible?