Episode Transcript
Speaker 0 00:00 Christ is risen, the name of the father and the son, the Holy ghost. Amen. Right this morning we're going to spend some time seeing just exactly why Easter is such a great face, and we'll start by giving it some context. Holy week starts with Palm Sunday on Palm Sunday, our Lord came up to Jerusalem from Bethany. Bethany means the house of ripe figs. It's a home of Martha, Martha, Mary Magdalen, and Lazarus. And it's also where during all of Holy week, our Lord will return to spend the night until of course, Holy Thursday when he's captured. So our Lord comes up to Jerusalem from Bethany, the house of right figs, and on the way he travels through Beth phage. Now, Beth phage is means the house of unripe green figs. So what we'll keep in mind that God never acts without a purpose, has every action is pregnant with meaning.
Speaker 0 00:58 So what is all this me? If we turn back the clock a ways before Holy week, we'll see that earlier in his public ministry, our Lord had warned the multitudes, unless you repent, you will all perish. And immediately after that warning, he told them a parable. I quote, a man had a fake tree planted in his vineyard and he came seeking fruit on it and found none. And he said to the vine dresser low, these three years I've come seeking fruit on this fig tree and I find none. Cut it down. Why should it use up the ground in the vine dresser? Answer to him. Let it alone, sir. This year also, until I dig about it and put on manure. And if it bears fruit next year, well and good, but if not, you can cut it down. Close quote, the inspired, inerrant word of God.
Speaker 0 01:59 Now the multitude certainly knew exactly what our Lord was speaking about. In this parable. He's warning them to bring forth fruits of repentance. And the parable, the man who owns the vineyard symbolizes God. The father, the vine dresser symbolizes Christ our Lord. The fig tree symbolized the Jewish people, which of course our Lord spent some three and a half years trying to get them to bring forth good fruits. So with all that as background and keeping in mind that our Lord never acts without a purpose. That is every action predator without meaning. It's easy to see what the Lord is symbolically telling the people by his path into Jerusalem during Holy week. It's easy to understand the meaning there. So what's the meaning of his path into Jerusalem? Our Lord's coming out from Bethany, the house of ripe figs, a town where he has fond fruits of and such people as Mary Magdalen and Martha and Lazarus. And then he's passing through Beth fade the house of unripe green figs on his way into the Holy city. It's a symbolic warning.
Speaker 0 03:15 It's a symbolic warning. And the day after Palm Sunday as he comes up to Jerusalem again through Beth phage, he stops and searches for fruit on that fig tree. It's not the season for vagues. He certainly knows that he knows everything. Why would he stop and search for figs on a fig tree then if he knows it's not the season, his every action is pregnant with meaning. So when he searches the fig tree for fruit and finds none, he curses it. And then it weathers and it dies. It's a symbolic and a very frightening ending to that parable. He sought fruit on the fig tree and found none. Just as for three and a half years, he's been seeking good fruit from his people and he hasn't found what he's been looking for that out of give each one of us pause.
Speaker 1 04:29 Yeah,
Speaker 0 04:30 Because as Catholics, as members of the one true church, our Lord has been seen as the same sort of message for each of us as he did for the multitudes of the Jews. He's been coming to look for fruits to repentance in our lives during this past Holy season of lent. These warranties each of us time and time again. Unless you repent, you will surely perish. Just as our Lord used his path in a Jerusalem and a fig tree to warn the Jewish people of his collective judgment of them, so also has given us Catholics very clear indications of his collective judgment of us. We'll just consider to first at the aid station of the cross, our Lord says, the weeping women don't weep for me. Weep for your children. For the uncommon time when they would say blessed are the bear, the wombs that never bore, and the breasts that never nursed. In other words, he's telling the women they should weep for the people that live in that time, the time when our road will again come looking for fruit, fruit of the womb babies. But instead of finding those fruits, you'll find people who blessed are the bear. You'll find people that think it's actually better to not have children to be sterilized
Speaker 0 06:09 To contracept or even to Bartos fruits. He's telling those women to wait for the people who are not bringing forth the fruits. He expects to weep for the people in that time, and I don't think you need me to tell you that we live in that time.
Speaker 1 06:38 Second
Speaker 0 06:39 Oh Lord is also giving Catholics a very clear indication of his collective judgment on us by the state of his church at st John Utes explains quote, the most evident Mark of God's anger. The most terrible castigation he can inflict upon the world are manifested when he permits his people to fall into the hands of clergy who are praised more in name than indeed when God permits such things. It is a very positive proof that he is thoroughly angry with his people and visiting his most dreadful anger upon them. Close quote, God's warning us collectively as a Catholic people, he's thoroughly angry with us. He's thoroughly angry with us. That's the bad news, man. It is bad news. That's really bad news and if it simply ended there, it would be cause for great despair because it is bad news, that's for sure. But there's good news.
Speaker 0 07:58 That's what the word gospel means is the good news and the gospel teaches us that no matter how bad it gets, no matter what situation we find ourselves in, if we bring forth fruits of repentance, if we bring forth good fruits will become Holy, we'll become pleasing to God if we bring forth good fruits, words aren't enough. We saw that during Holy week as our Lord enter Jerusalem on Palm Sunday, the crowds are crying out. Hosanna to the son of David. They're literally literally singing his praises in here. Only five days later, they're clamoring for his crucifixion and crying out that they have no King but Caesar. Those were his, those were the members of the one true church. So words are not enough. We have to repent from the heart. We have to embrace everything he teaches, all of it. We have to be willing to suffer whatever it takes to get to heaven. Words are not enough. We need to commit ourselves to holiness. It has to come from the heart.
Speaker 0 09:25 We need to do it. Each one of us individually don't have any illusions. Our leadership and the church in the state is pretty much the same condition as it was in those days, which means for the most part, they're not necessarily going to be a lot of help. And to top it off, we're in the midst of a full on cultural assault right now. Every year before Easter, we see exactly the same thing every year without exception before Easter and Christmas too, for that matter, the mainstream media just use one example. Always try to stop these stories attacking our Lord in his church. I intended to give a few examples. They aren't hard to find, but every one of them this year was so blasphemous. I can't even mention from the pulpit and there's gobs of them. Every one of the tax bar one that I saw this week were directed against Christ church, the Catholic church.
Speaker 0 10:25 We all know this. It's nothing new. Happens every year. Not as anyone here actually think this is accidental, that every year during these two Holy seasons, right before the great feasts, these sort of stories come out in the media that attack our Lord and his church. Of course, it's not accident, so why do we see this every year before the great feasts? What's going on here that's worth prob really pondering on? We can bring it into focus if we consider something had happened years ago. The response to the release of Mel Gibson, Mel Gibson's movie, the passion of the Christ, as some of you may have recall, some really priceless responses that film came from Abraham Foxman, not the time he was the director of the Anti-Defamation league. The ADL, Abraham Foxman quote, the film from our perspective on ambiguously from beginning to end, blames the death of Jesus on the bloodthirsty vengeful Jews and absolves the peaceful, loving, kind, warm, sensitive, ponchos pilot.
Speaker 0 11:41 And the Romans close quote, well, no, let's get real there. It's impossible for a sane human being to watch that film like the scene of the scourging, for example, and think that the Romans are portrayed as quote, peaceful, loving, kind, warm, and sensitive close quote. I mean, seriously, that is hard to watch or consider. This chin, Abraham Foxman quote, the showing of the passion throughout the ages was a precursor for Paul grumps and persecution. And this film would, in several months project the passion and its middle ages mill you to more people than what obscene or was this the passion play for almost 2000 years. It will feel hatred, bigotry, and antisemitism. Close quotes. Now years, literally years of common gone and that time millions upon millions of people have seen the passion of the Christ. Can someone give me a count on how many pogroms the persecutions have arisen in response to this film? On good Friday. I searched the ADL site in regards to the film, there's 12 minutes, 600 results. Not one of them sites, a single pole grimmer persecution that's risen in response to this film. But weren't we supposed to believe that just by watching this movie, some sort of blood, Beth would break out some terrible persecution of the Jews was eminent.
Speaker 0 13:16 Now Abraham Foxman is a very intelligent man. He wouldn't have been in that position otherwise. So what's really going on with statements like that? That's not a dumb question. What's really at stake here? Was he really worried about a persecution breaking out response to the passion? Does that make any sense at all? Just think about that. Now before we leave Mr. Fox and behind, please keep him in your prayers as he tells us in his autobiography, and I quote, I learned how to pray with the rosary and kneel at the altar, the church close quote at Ram Foxman, his baptismal name is Henrik Stanislaus. He needs your prayers.
Speaker 1 14:01 He needs them.
Speaker 0 14:04 Okay, so what's really going on here? Let's bring the actual issues at stake and the focus. If I can sit in article at a roots Shava that's Israel national news. It's March 1st, 2004 the Orthodox Jewish union has prepared a response to the controversial antisemitic and violence saturated film. The passion Rabie Docker city Hersh Weinreb stated quote. What I'm concerned about is that Jews who see this film will identify deeply with Jesus. The movie is heroic. Good guy and will disidentify with their own God given identity to Jewish people. Close quote
Speaker 2 14:55 <inaudible>.
Speaker 0 14:57 There you have it.
Speaker 2 14:59 Okay.
Speaker 0 15:00 The rabbi is being honest on like a Fox. He's being honest. He's worried about the present passion precisely because of the possibility who promote conversions. It would bring people's attention to Christ our Lord. That's what's really going on here with these attacks. Once we see that, we realize that all these attacks during Holy week or Christmas are really concerned. One thing and one thing only keeping people away from Christ and his church. Nothing has changed. These kinds of attacks by the devil and his minions by the mortal enemies of Christ are nothing new. It's been the same old story right from the beginning. We can see it in the scriptures. The gospel for the fourth week of lent tells a story of after Lazarus had laid dead in the tomb for four days. Our Lord raised him from the dead and a response to this miracle in John chapter 11 and verse 45 the gospel tells us, quote, many therefore the Jews who had seen the things that Jesus did, believed in him.
Speaker 0 16:14 Close quote, inspired, inerrant word of God, many that choose there for hood. Seeing the things that Jesus did believed in him. It's not surprising they believed in him. Our Lord had spent three years teaching the people making statements like I am a father or one before Abraham was I am you believe in God, believe also in me. My doctrine is not mine, but him that sent me all things whatsoever. The father half are mine. Our Lord is very clearly claimed to be God. And then he's backed up those clients with miracles, astounding miracles like raising Lazarus from the dead and so that people have come to believe in him. But what was the response of the Jewish leadership to this incredible miracle of raising a man from a dead? Because this Dani miracle that was done only a few miles from Jerusalem, we have the answer record in John chapter 11 and verse 47 quote the chief priest therefore, and the Pharisees gathered the council and said, what do we do for this man?
Speaker 0 17:19 Death. Many miracles close. Cool. No. Well, what they say, the chief priests and the Pharisees say that this man, many miracles, they know he did miracles. This wasn't a surprise to them. The leaders had known our Lord was a miracle worker right from the very beginning, right from the very beginning, they had known right at the beginning of his public ministry just after our Lord had turned water into wine because one of the rulers of the Jews, the prominent first he named Nicodemus told our Lord quo rabbi, we know that thou art come a teacher from God for no man can do these signs of Sao does and lets God be with him. Close quote, we know that dark come a teacher from God. This is in the very beginning of his public ministry. Bleeders knew he was sent from God. The leaders knew this, but they weren't looking for Messiah like this.
Speaker 0 18:20 No, thank you very much. They expected a rule and rule. Absolutely, but that wasn't his message. Here he was eating with sinners, talking to Samaritans, even helping swine, the GUI like the pagan Canaanite woman and the Roman soldier. All this stood in stark contrast to this tyrannical calf structure they had imposed on society, and to make matters even worse, he didn't hesitate to perform miracles or heal people on the Sabbath in direct contradiction to their oppressive rules and teaching. They were not looking for a Messiah like this. His behavior absolutely enraged them. They couldn't deny his miracles the best they could come up with and their hatred and the rage and their envy was to claim that he got his powers from the devil. They went to far to accuse him of being possessed. He cast out devils by Beelzebub the Prince of the devils.
Speaker 0 19:20 Do we not say, well, that dog is Samaritan past a devil. But in the face of his personality, teaching miracles, these blasphemies didn't stick. The people still kept falling, and now just outside Jerusalem, he had raised Lazarus from the dead. So leaders call the cops on ass quote, what do we do for this man? Death. Many miracles if we let them alone. So all will believe in him and the Romans will come and take away our place. The nation, one of the named Caiaphas being the high priest that year prophesied that Jesus should die for the sins of the nation and not only for the nation, but to gather together into one the children of God that were dispersed from that day. Therefore, they devised to put him to death and the chief priest thought to kill Lazarus also because many of the Jews by reason of him believed in Jesus close quotes.
Speaker 0 20:17 So they're losing their following. They've tried to destroy our Lord's reputation, but that didn't work. So now they've settled on the final solution, destroy our Lord himself, kill him, and then kill Lazarus. Destroy the evidence. Now stop and consider how insane the Jewish leadership has gotten by this point. Obviously, if our Lord raised Lazarus from the dead, once, he can do it again. He's shown his has power over death. They're dealing with someone who has power over death, even though they have a pretty clear idea of just who he is, even though they have a pretty clear idea of just what he can do. Their minds have been so darkened by hatred, rage, and envy. They want to kill him. We don't want a Messiah like you. We don't want a God like you. We don't want a King like you. We have no King but Caesar.
Speaker 0 21:13 And then suddenly and unexpectedly he falls into their hands and they pour out their hatred and fury on him and managed to successfully manipulate the Romans into crucifying. And even after he died on the cross, the Romans with their typical military efficiency had made absolutely sure he was dead by Pearson. His heart with the trust of a Lance. So I learned was dead. There's no possible doubt about that. And the Jewish leaders had seen as the dead body laid in the tomb of Joseph, of Aaron Mathenia. But think about this. Even though the leaders had clearly seen our Lord dead and laid in the tomb, they were still so worried about him that they had taken incredible pot precaution of having a temple seal and posted a guard around it. The Jewish leaders had a military guard posted at a grave site just to make sure the dead man inside that grave didn't escape guards to make sure a dead man doesn't break out of his tomb.
Speaker 0 22:24 But that Easter Sunday, the tomb was empty and the Jewish leaders knew what had happened. They knew exactly what had happened. In fact, the empty tomb left them scrambling to find an explanation to deny the obvious and the very best they could come up with. The very best was to bribe the guards to testify that while they were sleepy, the disciples came and stole the body. The Saint Augusta Nass. How is this? You can't witnesses that are asleep. How can you witness something when you're asleep? And so the best thing that the Jewish leaders could do was to ask everybody to believe that sleeping man had watched a crime being committed. That's ridiculous enough, but think about this. Why didn't they then order an investigation to find out which of the disciples were guilty of grave robbery? They were so concerned about the situation. They actually posted a guard and a tomb, a tomb that had been sealed, and now the tomb is empty. Why don't they order an investigation to find the body
Speaker 1 23:26 <inaudible>?
Speaker 0 23:29 Because they knew what had happened. They knew what had happened, and the very best response they could give was this pathetic lie that falls apart in face of even the slightest scrutiny, and then they simply ignored the empty tomb, but they knew what had happened. Everyone around there knew what had happened. The great Jewish historian Flavius Josephus himself was a Pharisee from a distinguished family of Jewish priests. He's born in 37 a D only three years after four years after these events says, quote, Jesus was a doer of incredible things and the teacher of such as gladly accepted the truth he does to try to do himself. Many Jews in many of the Gentiles. He was the Christ on the accusation of the leading men of our people. Pilot condemned him to death on the cross. Nevertheless, those who had previously loved him still remained faithful to him.
Speaker 0 24:25 For on the third day, he appeared to them alive again, just as the divine prophets had foretold. And at the present day, the tribe of those who call themselves Christians after him has not ceased. Close quote Flavius Josephus quadratus 12 wait, as everybody knows, and everyone around there knew on Easter Sunday, our Lord wasn't the only one who Rose from the dead. And chapter 27 verse 52 of his gospel, st Matthew points out, quote many bodies that saints that had slept, arose and coming out of the tombs after his resurrection came into the Holy seed city and appeared to many close, quote inspired word of God. So you had many others that resurrected on Easter Sunday too. At the earthquake. Their terms were opened and on Eastern sun on good Friday and then Easter Sunday resurrected from the dead quadratus. He's one of the earliest fathers as a church and a work that was presented, an emperor Hadrian in the early seven second century wrote about these men.
Speaker 0 25:29 I quote those who are cured by our savior and those he raised from the dead. We're seeing not only while being cured while being raised, they were ever present. No, we went to our savior dwelt among us, but also for a considerable time after he departed. In fact, some of them has survived to our own time, close quo. Some had survived through our own time living visible proof. Men who had first met our lore in the Lambo of the fathers and been resurrected by him and with him on that first Easter. We're still walking around in the middle East, decades after the Ascension into heaven and everyone around there knew this. The Jewish leaders knew what had happened. Everyone around there knew what had happened. So why do they want to ignore the empty tomb even though they know what had happened? For the same reason, they want to ignore his other miracles, but the same reason they ignored his two tunes, but same reason they wanted to blame his works on the devil for the same reason they wanted to kill him because the implications were so painful and so costly to consider.
Speaker 0 26:47 We've grown used to the idea maybe, but stop and think about this incredible event that we're celebrating to a dead man by a zone will buy his own power, raised himself up from the dead, lifted himself up from the grave in a new and glorified body, a dead man by his zone power raised himself up by Paul by performing this miracle on himself by his own power. Jesus has proven his claim to be the Messiah and the true son of God, and that is exactly why the implications are so painful and so costly for the Jewish leaders to consider. The resurrection proves his claims to be the God the son, by raising himself from the dead by his own power. Jesus proves that he's the Messiah and the true son of God, and that means that it's God cannot deceive us. Everything. Absolutely. Every single thing that our Lord taught must be true. All of it.
Speaker 0 27:51 That's the significance of Easter and accepting a course. Our lady, since we're all wakened sinful men, the reality that everything our Lord says is absolutely true, can be painful because the gospel makes demands and they're real demands. Our Lord doesn't say to us, Hey, let's make a deal. You can do whatever you want as long as you're basically a nice person. Our Lord doesn't say, let's make a deal, or it says, this is the deal. This is the deal. If you love me, keep my commandments, deny yourself, pick up your cross and come follow me so it's black and why our Lord has divided the world into two and there's only two camps, lovers of the cross of Christ and the enemies of the cross of Christ. That's it. It's cut and dry on judgment day. We're each going to have our own Easter. Each one of us is going to rise from the dead. Each one of us is going to be called up from the tomb. Each one of us better ask himself on that day, where will I find myself
Speaker 3 29:16 With the shape,
Speaker 0 29:19 With the goals? Which camp am I in? Am I keeping the commandments? Am I in a state of grace? Where will I find myself? On that day, the tomb was empty.
Speaker 4 29:40 Wow.
Speaker 0 29:40 Christ has risen from the dead
Speaker 3 29:44 And Sunday sell away.
