Does the Bible Really Say That?: Discovering Catholic Teaching in Scripture (5 page)

CHAPTER 10

Homosexuality

These days, the issue of homosexuality is constantly present in the media and in our culture. As a result, many now hold the view that homosexual activity is just as acceptable and natural as heterosexual activity. But in spite of those Catholics who commit homosexual sins, the Church remains steadfast in her teaching: “You shall not lie with a male as with a woman; it is an abomination” (Leviticus 18:22).

While affirming the human dignity of homosexuals as men and women whom God loves and has made in his image, the Church also affirms the reality that deliberate homosexual activity is gravely sinful. Homosexuality involves a violation of natural law. When we violate God’s laws, we violate our very humanity by misusing the faculties with which he entrusted us, such as our sexuality and procreative abilities.

The
Catechism
explains:

Homosexuality refers to relations between men or between women who experience an exclusive or predominant sexual attraction toward persons of the same sex. It has taken a great variety of forms through the centuries and in different cultures. Its psychological genesis remains largely unexplained. Basing itself on Sacred Scripture, which presents homosexual acts as acts of grave depravity, [cf.
Gen
19:1-29;
Rom
 1:24-27;
1 Cor
6:10;
1 Tim
1:10] tradition has always declared that “homosexual acts are intrinsically disordered” [CDF,
Persona humana
8]. They are contrary to the natural law. They close the sexual act to the gift of life. They do not proceed from a genuine affective and sexual complementarity. Under no circumstances can they be approved. (
CCC,
2357)
¹

In the Old Covenant, homosexual activity was punishable by death. “If a man lies with a male as with a woman, both of them have committed an abomination; they shall be put to death, their blood is upon them” (Leviticus 20:13). Thankfully, in the New Covenant that punishment no longer applies, but the Church reminds us of an even
worse
eternal punishment that awaits those (whether homosexual or heterosexual) who refuse to repent and turn from their sins.

We know that the judgment of God rightly falls upon those who do such things. Do you suppose, O man, that when you judge those who do such things and yet do them yourself, you will escape the judgment of God? Or do you presume upon the riches of his kindness and forbearance and patience? Do you not know that God’s kindness is meant to lead you to repentance? But by your hard and impenitent heart you are storing up wrath for yourself on the day of wrath when God’s righteous judgment will be revealed. For he will render to every man according to his works: to those who by patience in well-doing seek for glory and honor and immortality, he will give eternal life; but for those who are factious and do not obey the truth, but obey wickedness, there will be wrath and fury. (Romans 2:2–8)

Saint Paul warned: “For this reason God gave them up to dishonorable passions. Their women exchanged natural relations for unnatural, and the men likewise gave up natural relations with women and were consumed with passion for one another, men committing shameless acts with men and receiving in their own persons the due penalty for their error” (Romans 1:26–27; see 1:18–22).

Saint Peter wrote:

God did not spare the angels when they sinned, but cast them into hell and committed them to pits of nether gloom to be kept until the judgment...he did not spare the ancient world, but preserved Noah, a herald of righteousness, with seven other persons, when he brought a flood upon the world of the ungodly...by turning the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah to ashes he condemned them to extinction and made them an example to those who were to be ungodly (2 Peter 2:4–6).

Some proponents of homosexuality try to twist the meaning of the account of the homosexual sins of Sodom and Gomorrah in Genesis 19:1–14. In this famous episode, a righteous man named Lot shielded two men (actually angels) who were guests in his home from some townsmen who sought to rape them. Some will argue that God punished Sodom and Gomorrah not for the sin of homosexuality but for “not showing hospitality.”

This argument is bogus. Read Genesis 19 carefully, and notice that Lot, an inhabitant of that city, indeed showed hospitality to these strangers. He protected them from the mob of men who wanted to homosexually rape them. A lack of hospitality has nothing to do with what happened. And you won’t find any examples of the Lord destroying a city with fire and brimstone just because folks didn’t roll out the welcome mat to strangers.

Further Reading:
Leviticus 18:19–30; Deuteronomy 23:17; Judges 19:14–29; 1 Kings 14:24; 15:12; 22:46; 2 Kings 23:7; Matthew 19:4–5; 1 Corinthians 6:9–10; 1 Timothy 1:9–10; 2 Peter 2:7–10; Jude 1:7
CCC
, 1950–1958, 1975–1976, 2331–2379

CHAPTER 11

Why Do Catholics Worship on Sunday and not on the Sabbath?

Christians have worshiped on Sunday instead of on the Sabbath since the days of the Apostles. But the practice of observing the Lord’s Day (that is, Sunday) instead of the Sabbath seems to some to be contrary to the Ten Commandments.

Groups such as the Seventh-Day Adventists object to Sunday worship as being a violation of God’s commands. They criticize the Catholic Church for “changing” one of God’s eternal decrees. Let’s examine the scriptural evidence to see what conclusions we should draw.

First, note in Exodus 20:8–10 that the Lord God said to Moses, “Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days you shall labor, and do all your work; but the seventh day is a sabbath to the L
ord
your God; in it you shall not do any work.” This commandment was a “perpetual covenant” that God wanted his people to observe through the ages (Exodus 31:16–18; Deuteronomy 5:12). Henceforth, the Jews have observed the Sabbath on Saturday, resting from all work and emulating God’s own rest on the seventh day of creation (Genesis 2:1–3).

The Catholic Church did not abandon this commandment, as some erroneously claim. Rather, observance of the third commandment to “keep holy the Sabbath” was
transferred
to Sunday, also known as “The Lord’s Day” (Acts 20:7; 1 Corinthians 16:2), because it is through his resurrection that we become a “new creation” (2 Corinthians 5:17; Galatians 6:15).

Around the year
ad
100, the
Didache
instructed Christians to “gather together on the Lord’s Day.” In
ad
155 Saint Justin Martyr wrote a letter to the Roman emperor mentioning that the early Church celebrated the eucharistic liturgy on Sundays instead of Saturday. This practice was already universal.

The early Church transferred the observance of the third commandment from Saturday to Sunday for two primary reasons: First, Sunday is the day Christ rose from the dead (Matthew 28:1; John 20:1), and as Saint Paul said, if Christ did
not
rise from the dead, we are the most pitiable of people because our faith is in vain.

Second, the early Christians sought to differentiate themselves from Judaism. This included their abandonment of Judaism’s system of ritual animal sacrifices. Christ is the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world (John 1:29, 36), and his perfect sacrifice replaced the old covenant Passover lamb, which was ritually slain and consumed as mere symbol of sacrifice for sin. Similarly, Christians relinquished other Jewish ceremonial rituals and precepts, such as the kosher food laws and dietary restrictions imposed by the law of Moses (Deuteronomy 12:15–28; 14:3–21) and the observance of the Passover and other Jewish feast days (Colossians 2:16–23).

The early Christians wanted to show forth the true meaning of the Sabbath, which achieved its full purpose in the new covenant of Christ, in whom we find our perfect, ultimate rest. “Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest” (Matthew 11:28).

 The old covenant Sabbath, temple ceremonies and animal sacrifices prefigured in an imperfect way Christ’s perfect fulfillment in and through the new covenant. The Old Covenant observances were but “a copy and shadow of the heavenly sanctuary” (Hebrews 8:5; see 10:1). Once the perfect had come, the imperfect passed away. Just as baptism replaced the old covenant ordinance of circumcision, the Church came to observe the third commandment in a new way.

As Saint Paul wrote, “Therefore let no one pass judgment on you in questions of food and drink or with regard to a festival or a new moon or a sabbath. These are only a shadow of what is to come; but the substance belongs to Christ” (Colossians 2:16–17). And in Galatians 4:9–11 he scolds Christians who still clung to the old covenant restrictions and ceremonies. The ritual observance of the Sabbath was part of the old covenant. But in Christ, we are no longer bound by the old covenant. So the demands and obligations of the old covenant, including the ritual observance of the Sabbath, have passed away, having been replaced by the spiritual observance of the Sabbath in the new covenant.

Interestingly, in Matthew 19:16–22, when the rich young man asked what one must do to be saved, Christ enumerated several of the Ten Commandments. He did not mention the third commandment: keeping holy the Sabbath.

Seventh-Day Adventists argue that the Catholic Church had no authority to change the third commandment. But the fact is that Christ established the Catholic Church and granted it the authority to “bind and loose” (Matthew 18:18) and to teach with his own authority (Luke 10:16, Matthew 28:18–20). Now, since Christ revealed that he is the Lord even of the Sabbath Day (Matthew 12:8; Mark 2:28; Luke 6:5) and that the Sabbath was “made for man, not man for the Sabbath” (Mark 2:27), it follows that his Church also has a share in that authority (Matthew 10:40).

As Christ said to Simon Peter, “I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and
whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven
” (Matthew 16:19, emphasis added; see 18:18–20).

Notice also that the Seventh-Day Adventists themselves do not observe the “eternal commandment” of circumcision given by God to Abraham in Genesis 17. This commandment predated by hundreds of years the Ten Commandments given to Moses, and holds no less weight. And yet, as even Seventh-Day Adventists are forced to admit (since they do not practice ritual circumcision), the Bible does not show that Jesus Christ expressly taught that God’s commandment regarding circumcision was to be changed to the sacrament of baptism. The Church had the authority—
Christ’s
authority—to enact that change. In so doing, it did not abandon God’s eternal commandment regarding circumcision, but instead observed that commandment in a new and perfected form, that of the sacrament of baptism (Galatians 3:27–29; Colossians 2:11–12).

This is a helpful parallel with the Church’s authority to transfer the observance of the Sabbath from Saturday to Sunday. It was not an abandonment of God’s law but rather a fulfillment and a perfecting of that law. As Christ explained, “Think not that I have come to abolish the law and the prophets; I have come not to abolish them but to fulfil them. For truly, I say to you, till heaven and earth pass away, not an iota, not a dot, will pass from the law until all is accomplished” (Matthew 5:17–18).

Further Reading:
Luke 10:16; Acts 15; 20:7; 2 Corinthians 5:1–5; Galatians 5:2; Colossians 2:16–17

CCC
, 128–130, 2175, 2168–2195

CHAPTER 12

Profanity, Blasphemy and Purity of Speech

In the summer of 1975, Frankie Valli’s hit single “Swearin’ to God” came out and climbed the charts. As you’d expect, millions of radio listeners sang along. The problem is that this song was a clear if seemingly benign example of taking the Lord’s name in vain—something God commanded us not to do: “You shall not take the name of the
Lord
your God in vain; for the
Lord
will not hold him guiltless who takes his name in vain” (Exodus 20:7; see Deuteronomy 5:11).

But beyond sappy song lyrics lies the larger problem of what in former days was known as “impure speech”—the use of profanity and blasphemy. And it’s a widespread failing. Many people imagine that the way they speak is of no lasting importance in God’s eyes, but they are sadly mistaken.

We can divide the problem of impure speech into two categories: profanity, which is the use of crude swear words, and blasphemy, which is the use of swear words in combination with God’s name.

The
Catechism
explains that blasphemy offends against the second commandment by expressing, in thoughts or words, any form of contempt or mockery toward God, the Blessed Virgin Mary, the saints, the Church, the sacraments, sacred images, or other sacred things. Because the Lord is all holy, any intentional insult to him or his name is a mortal sin (see
CCC
, 2148, 2150). Scripture condemns those who blaspheme the name of Jesus by which we are called to the Father (James 2:7).

In the Old Testament, blaspheming God, even just by using his name in vain in casual conversation, was punishable by death (Leviticus 24:15–16).

The Bible is clear that it is not acceptable for Christians (indeed, for anyone) to use profanity. We should strive to be pure in thought, word and deed, both because profanity and blasphemy offend God and can be a mortal sin, and because such speech is the sure sign of a spiritually (not to mention socially) immature person. True spiritual maturity leaves no room for crude and blasphemous language.

Saint Paul taught us that “whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is gracious, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things” (Philippians 4:8). And Christ pointed to our need for pure speech when he exhorted us to “be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect” (Matthew 5:48).

Consider these other scriptural warnings on this theme:

Mark 7:20–23
  “What comes out of a man is what defiles a man. For from within, out of the heart of man, come evil thoughts, fornication, theft, murder, adultery, coveting, wickedness, deceit, licentiousness, envy, slander, pride, foolishness. All these evil things come from within, and they defile a man.”

Isaiah 6:5–7
 “And I said: ‘Woe is me! For I am lost; for I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips; for my eyes have seen the King, the L
ord
of hosts!’

Then flew one of the seraphim to me, having in his hand a burning coal which he had taken with tongs from the altar. And he touched my mouth, and said: ‘Behold, this has touched your lips; your guilt is taken away, and your sin forgiven.’”

Sirach 27:11–14
  “The talk of the godly man is always wise, / but the fool changes like the moon. / Among stupid people watch for a chance to leave, / but among thoughtful people stay on. / The talk of fools is offensive, / and their laughter is wantonly sinful. / The talk of men given to swearing makes one’s hair stand on end, / and their quarrels make a man stop his ears.”

James 3:6–12
  “And the tongue is a fire. The tongue is an unrighteous world among our members, staining the whole body, setting on fire the cycle of nature, and set on fire by hell. For every kind of beast and bird, of reptile and sea creature, can be tamed and has been tamed by humankind, but no human being can tame the tongue—a restless evil, full of deadly poison. With it we bless the Lord and Father, and with it we curse men, who are made in the likeness of God. From the same mouth come blessing and cursing. My brethren, this ought not to be so.”

Colossians 4:6
  “Let your speech always be gracious, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how you ought to answer every one.”

If you have a problem with profanity or blasphemy (or both), repent to the Lord with sincere contrition, go to sacramental confession, and firmly commit to rely on God’s loving grace to help you avoid this sin in the future. It may not be easy at first, but in time and with God’s help you can unlearn that bad habit. And just think, besides being a more enjoyable person to be around, the payoff for you will be eternal. Remember what Christ said: “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God” (Matthew 5:8). The converse is also true: Those who are not pure in heart shall not see God.

Which group will you be in?

Further Reading:
Psalm 59; 109:17–18; Hosea 4:1–3; Matthew 15:19–20; Mark 7:21–23; 1 Corinthians 6:12–20; 1 Thessalonians 4:1–10; 1 Timothy 4:11; Titus 2:8; Revelation 21:27