Episode 103: Year B – 32nd Sunday of Ordinary Time
In this episode, we focus on six details that relate to apologetical conversations found in the Mass readings for this upcoming 32nd Sunday of Ordinary Time, Year B. Four of the six details come from the second reading, which is taken from Heb 9:24-28. The topics that come to fore are the Sacrifice of the Mass, the scope of Jesus’ atoning sacrifice, Purgatory, and Mary’s sinlessness. The last two of the six details come from the long version of the Gospel reading, taken from Mk 12:38-44. The related apologetical topics are Catholic liturgical and devotional prayers and titles of honor among the clergy.
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Hey everyone,
Welcome to The Sunday Catholic Word, a podcast where we reflect on the upcoming Sunday Mass readings and pick out the details that are relevant for explaining and defending our Catholic faith.
I’m Karlo Broussard, staff apologist and speaker for Catholic Answers, and the host for this podcast.
In this episode, we’re going to focus on six details that relate to apologetical conversations found in the Mass readings for this upcoming 32nd Sunday of Ordinary Time, Year B. Four of the six details come from the second reading, which is taken from Heb 9:24-28. The topics that come to fore are the Sacrifice of the Mass, the scope of Jesus’ atoning sacrifice, Purgatory, and Mary’s sinlessness. The last two of the six details come from the long version of the Gospel reading, taken from Mk 12:38-44. The related apologetical topics are Catholic liturgical and devotional prayers and titles of honor among the clergy.
Let’s get started with the second reading, again, taken from Hebrews 9:24-28. The author writes,
Christ did not enter into a sanctuary made by hands,
a copy of the true one, but heaven itself,
that he might now appear before God on our behalf.
Not that he might offer himself repeatedly,
as the high priest enters each year into the sanctuary
with blood that is not his own;
if that were so, he would have had to suffer repeatedly
from the foundation of the world.
But now once for all he has appeared at the end of the ages
to take away sin by his sacrifice.
Just as it is appointed that human beings die once,
and after this the judgment, so also Christ,
offered once to take away the sins of many,
will appear a second time, not to take away sin
but to bring salvation to those who eagerly await him.
The first detail, or I suppose set of details, that I want to highlight is the author’s teaching that Christ has entered the heavenly sanctuary and appears before God on our behalf to take away sin by his sacrifice. This continues the theme of Christ’s heavenly sacrifice, and by way of extension the Sacrifice of the Mass, that’s been running throughout the second reading for the past several weeks at Mass.
Some Christians might read this passage and think the author is simply referring to Christ exercising his priestly ministry by offering himself on the cross on Calvary 2000 years ago. But a closer reading suggest otherwise.
It’s true that Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross 2000 years ago takes away sin. But for the author of Hebrews, that single sacrifice is not confined or restricted to that single historical moment in time. Rather, it transcends time and is made present in the heavenly sanctuary.
Notice the author says that Christ has entered the heavenly sanctuary to appear to God on our behalf as our heavenly high priest. Given what this same author says in 8:1-3, Jesus must have a gift to offer as our heavenly high priest. So, that raises the question, “Which sacrifice could he possibly be offering?” For the author of Hebrews, it’s Jesus’ own blood.
The key lies in the contrast between what Christ has done with what the high priest would do yearly in the earthly sanctuary. The earthly ministry involved the high priest taking blood that is not his own—the blood of an animal, into the earthly sanctuary and appearing before the presence of God on behalf of God’s people, to atone for their sins.
The author of Hebrews draws a contrast between that high priest’s ministry in the earthly sanctuary and Christ’s high priestly ministry in the heavenly sanctuary. The implication is that Christ takes his own blood into the heavenly sanctuary and makes it present before the Father for the atonement of sins. And this is done once for all, with no need to repeat it.
But surely this offering of his blood is not a new offering distinct from Calvary. It must be the same single sacrifice re-presented to the Father in the heavenly sanctuary, just in an unbloody mode or manner.
So, the sacrifice that Jesus offers to the Father as our high priest in the heavenly sanctuary is his very own blood, the blood shed on the cross on Calvary. And it’s that same offering that we believe we plug into, or make contact with, every time the Mass is celebrated. The Mass is that very same heavenly offering.
Now, the apologetical significance is that this passage from Hebrews provides us a biblical basis for our belief in the Mass as the sacrifice of Christ. And even if someone is not inclined to assent to the claim that the Mass is the sacrifice of Christ, at least they can’t object to the theology because that very same theology is present in this passage from Hebrews 9. In other words, if a Christian is going to have a problem with the Catholic understanding of the Mass as the making present, or re-presentation, of Christ’s single sacrifice in an unbloody manner, then they’re going to have a problem with what the author of Hebrews is teaching, since it’s the same theology.
The next detail is the author’s statement in verse 27, “it is appointed that human beings die once.” The apologetical topic that this relates to is purgatory.
A key text that’s appealed to by Catholics for the doctrine of purgatory is 1 Corinthians 3:11-15, where Paul talks about a saved Christian having his works tested by fire on “the day,” which for Paul is the day of judgment.
Well, in light of Hebrews 9:27, where it speaks of judgment coming after death, we know that when Paul speaks of the Christian having his works tested by fire on the day of judgment it is a postmortem state of existence. And if that’s the case, then Paul is a describing a postmortem state of purification of someone who is saved, since he says if that person has any bad works, represented by wood, hay, and stumble, those works will be burned up, the implication being the one being judged will be purified.
The third detail in this second reading worthy of focus is the statement that “Christ [was] offered once to take away the sins of many.” Notice he says “many” and not all. Does this mean that Christ died only for some and not all? Some Christians say “yes.” This view is called “Limited Atonement,” a belief held by John Calvin.
But the verse in question, verse 28, doesn’t prove limited atonement. Rather, the author is speaking of those to whom the fruits of Jesus’ death are applied individually and have their personal sins taken away, which, according to the author, are many and not all. Theologians call this the subjective dimension of redemption, as opposed to the objective dimension.
The objective dimension of redemption is Christ’s sacrifice redeeming the entire human race, reuniting the human race back to God and thereby making heaven accessible for humans. The subjective dimension refers to individual humans having their sins taken away by way of the merits of Jesus’ death being personally appropriated to them through faith.
Jesus’ death is for all when redemption is taken objectively. But Jesus’s death is only for some when redemption is taken subjectively, since only some, through faith, have the merits of Jesus’ death applied to them individually and thereby have their sins taken away.
So, we can affirm with the author of Hebrews that Christ’s offering only takes away the sins of many while at the same time affirming that Christ’s sacrifice was offered for all human beings.
A fourth detail in this second reading that has apologetical significance is the author’s statement, “[I]t is appointed that human beings die once.” This text comes up in discussions about Mary’s sinlessness.
Protestants often appeal to Romans 3:23 as proof that Mary wasn’t sinless, since Paul writes, “All have fallen short of the glory of God.” On the surface, it seems that Mary would necessarily be included in the “all.”
But a stock Catholic response is that this is not necessarily so, since there can be exceptions to general statements in the Bible. And here is where Hebrews 9:27 comes into play.
The author says all human beings die once. But we know there are some exceptions. For example, Lazarus was raised from the dead and would have had to die again. Those raised from the dead at Christ’s death would have had to die again. Enoch and Elijah didn’t even die.
Now, if there can be exceptions to the general rule that all human beings die once, then there can be exceptions to the general rule that all have fallen short of God’s glory through personal sin. This doesn’t prove that Mary was sinless. But it does diffuse the challenge from Romans 3:23.
Okay, let’s now turn to the Gospel reading, again, taken from Mark 12:38-44. I’m only going to highlight two details from the first part of the Gospel, particularly verses 38-39. Mark records,
“Beware of the scribes, who like to go around in long robes
and accept greetings in the marketplaces,
seats of honor in synagogues,
and places of honor at banquets.
They devour the houses of widows and, as a pretext
recite lengthy prayers.
They will receive a very severe condemnation.”
The first question that arises is whether clothing, places, and titles of honor for clergy are bad in and of themselves? Jesus seems to say yes here, offering a severe critique of the scribes who would have been greeted with the titles of “Rabbi” and “Father,” which we know from Matthew 23:6-8.
The answer is no. It’s not the badges of honor of themselves that are bad. Rather, it’s the disordered attachment to these things that’s bad. Notice Jesus says, they “like to go around in long robes.” Matthew 23:6-8 gives a tidbit more information as to their disordered attachment, revealing that they viewed themselves as superior to other Jews. So, it’s pride that Jesus is going after here. Not the badges of honor themselves.
Therefore, this passage can’t be used against Catholics who call their bishops “your excellency,” and cardinals, “your eminence.” Nor can it be used against the Catholic practice of clergy wearing different clothing, signifying their honorable office.
The next detail is the “lengthy prayers” bit. Jesus seems to be condemning “lengthy prayers,” which doesn’t bode well for Catholics who have a plethora of lengthy prayers. But this is not the case. Dr. Mary Healy explains in her commentary The Gospel of Mark,
In an empty show of piety, and perhaps as a cover for their fraudulent activity, the scribes recite lengthy prayers. The problem is not that the prayers are lengthy per se but that they are aimed at human beings rather than at God. Like the hypocrites Jesus denounces in Matt 6:2, the scribes “have received their reward” in paltry human praise and forfeited a true and eternal reward from God. Instead they will receive a very severe condemnation (or “judgment”). Jesus’ sternest words are for those who abuse religion for personal gain or human praise and who thereby cause the weak to stumble (see Mark 9:42; 11:17; Luke 16:15).
Again, like with the badges of honor, it’s the pride and vanity that Jesus is going after here, not the lengthy prayers themselves.
So, a Catholic need not fear praying lengthy prayers, assuming their intention is pure.
Conclusion
Well, my friends, that brings us to the end of this episode of the Sunday Catholic Word. The second reading and the Gospel reading for this upcoming 32nd Sunday of ordinary time Year B, gives us opportunity to reflect on
- The sacrifice of the Mass,
- The scope of Jesus’ atonement and the objective and subjective dimensions of it,
- Purgatory,
- Mary’s sinlessness,
- Badges of honor for the clergy, and
- Lengthy devotional prayers.
As always, thank you for subscribing to the podcast. And please be sure to tell your friends about it and invite them to subscribe as well at sundaycatholicword.com. You might also want to check out the other great podcasts in our Catholic Answers podcast network: Trent Horn’s The Counsel of Trent, Joe Heschmeyer’s Shameless Popery, and Jimmy Akin’s A Daily Defense, and Tim Staples’ 1-on-1 with Tim, all of which can be found at catholic.com.
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I hope you have a blessed 32nd Sunday of Ordinary Time, Year B. Until next time, God Bless!