PAUL’S THIRD MISSIONARY

HEART OF JOURNEY- PART II CATECHESIS OUR CATHOLIC CHURCH--THE MYSTICAL BODY OF LESSON 14

ACTIONS SPEAK LOUDER THAN WORDS!

Agabus used the symbolic action of binding his hands and his feet to prophesy Paul’s fate. Many prophets of the Old Testament used symbolic actions as well:

Jeremiah saddled himself like an ox and walked through the streets to warn of the upcoming Babylonian Captivity. (Jeremiah 27-28) He wrote down all the bad things that would happen to Babylon on a scroll and had a stone tied to it and had it thrown in the Euphrates river-”thus shall Babylon sink. Never shall she rise.” (Jeremiah 51:59-64)

Isaiah walked around naked “DO NOT BE ALARMED; FOR HIS LIFE IS STILL IN HIM.” to show how the Egyptians :10 would be humiliated when the Assyrians captured PARENTS’ & CATECHISTS’ READING them. (Isaiah 20:3-4) REFLECTION & PRAYER used a symbolic action when he cursed the Sacred Scripture fig tree. (Matthew 21:18-19) What did the tree represent? Acts 20:1-21:16 Luke 7:11-17

(Sourced from “Saint Paul Apostle of Nations by Daniel Rops, Nelson’s Complete Concord- Catechism of the Catholic Church ance of the NAB, The New American , and Bibleteaching.com) #388-390, 397-398 #988-1001, 1005-1009 Page 2 PAUL’S THIRD MISSIONARY JOURNEY- PART II

STUDENTS’ READING REFLECTION & PRAYER

Sacred Scripture Grades K-1 The Illustrated pp. 42-43 Grades 2-4 Bible for Young Catholics pp. 296-297

Grades 5-12 Acts 20:1-21:16 Luke 7:11-17

Catechism Grades K-2 First Communion Catechism pp. 18-22 Grades 3-6 Baltimore Catechism #1 pp. 26-29, 68-71 Grades 7-12 Catechism of the Catholic Church #388-390, 397-398 #988-1001, 1005-1009

TEACHING STRATEGY & OBJECTIVES

THEMES: PAUL WAS A GOOD SHEPHERD WHO LOVED AND WAS LOVED BY HIS FLOCK.

EVEN WHEN WE FORESEE THAT SUFFERING LIES AHEAD FOR US, IF WE KNOW IT IS GOD’S WILL, WE MUST BE WILLING TO GO FORWARD AND EMBRACE THE CROSS.

ONLY GOD IS THE LORD OF LIFE. ALL ARE ALIVE IN, THROUGH, AND FOR HIM.

AT CERTAIN TIMES GOD ALLOWS MERE MEN TO EXERCISE POWER OVER DEATH IN ORDER TO CONFIRM THE MESSAGE.

OPENING PRAYER NICENE CREED

TERMS IN THIS LESSON

THIRD COMMANDMENT HOLY SACRIFICE OF THE MASS

HEAVEN PURGATORY HELL

ORIGINAL SIN CONCUPISCENCE MIND

WILL MAN Page 3 PAUL’S THIRD MISSIONARY JOURNEY- PART II READINGS FROM SACRED SCRIPTURE: PAUL’S THIRD MISSIONARY JOURNEY—PART II ACTS 20:1-21:16

CATECHISTS…THIS WEEK WE’LL COMPLETE PAUL’S THIRD MISSIONARY JOURNEY. WE ARE READING THROUGH ABOUT A CHAPTER AND A HALF…MUCH OF IT WE CAN’T USE IN CLASS [LONG LISTS OF STOPS AND PORTS [LIKE 20:13—15 & 21:1—7].

WE’LL FOCUS ON THE STORY OF EUTYCHUS [20:7—12]… PAUL’S FAREWELL TO THE PRIESTS AND BISHOPS OF EPHESUS [20:17—37]… AND FOREBODINGS AND PROPHECIES OF PAUL’S IMPENDING ARREST AND IMPRISONMENT [21:1—16].

PERHAPS HIGHLIGHTING CERTAIN VERSES YOURSELVES THAT YOU WOULD LIKE TO COVER WOULD BE A GOOD WAY TO PROCEED.

WHERE IS PAUL AT THE BEGINNING OF THIS SECTION AND WHAT EVENT HAS JUST TAKEN PLACE?

At the beginning of Chapter 20, St. Luke writes, “When the disturbance was over…” He is writing about the riot of the silversmiths in Ephesus that we discussed last week. Paul is leaving for Macedonia [Greece].

CATECHISTS… IF YOU OR YOUR STUDENTS ARE INTERESTED, YOU MAY WANT TO TRACE PAUL’S PROGRESS USING THE MAP ON PAGE 8.

WHAT ARE PAUL AND HIS COMPANIONS DOING WHEN WE SEE THEM IN TROAS/TROY? They are traveling back across Greece to escape yet another plot to kill Paul.

Verse 7 says, “On the first day of the week we gathered for the breaking of the bread.” There are several things worth noting about this one verse.

First, it is our earliest indication that the Christian day of worship has shifted from the Sabbath [Saturday] to Sunday—the day of the Resurrection [and !]. Recall the THIRD COMMANDMENT: YOU SHALL KEEP THE LORD’S DAY HOLY. In the Old Testament the Lord’s Day was observed on Saturday… “God blessed the seventh day and made it holy because on it He rested from all the work of creation” [GEN 2:3].

Remember how many people in Jesus’ time—especially the Scribes and the —used to obsess over what was work, and what was not… what could be done, and what could not be done on the Sabbath. It got so that people were afraid to go outside and walk down the street [too many steps; that might be work!]. But Jesus made it clear that the Sabbath was not meant to be a burden. We should not be worrying about whether or not we might be violating the Law by picking up a stone [or a pallet!].

God meant for us to enjoy a day of rest, and to take time to worship Him. For the Jews, that meant praying in the synagogue. For Catholics, this means going to Mass… or, as Luke refers to it, “the breaking of the bread.” And judging from Luke’s use of the word “we” in this sentence, it appears that after being away from Paul for a while, he was back in the company of his friend and spiritual Father. In “the breaking of the bread,” or

THE HOLY SACRIFICE OF THE MASS: JESUS CHRIST’S DEATH AND RESURRECTION ARE MADE PRESENT FOR THOSE WHO ARE GATHERED, AND WE RECEIVE HIM IN THE HOLY EUCHARIST.

WHAT HAPPENS TO EUTYCHUS WHEN PAUL’S HOMILY GOES ON FOR A LONG TIME?

We’ve all had the experience of “suffering” through a long homily at Mass. Luke politely tells us that during that particular celebration of the sacred Mysteries that… “Paul talked with them… and he prolonged his speech until midnight… Paul talked still longer… he conversed with them a long while” [vs. 7—11]. Young Eutychus, [You- ti-cus] who was sitting on a window ledge listening, drifted off to sleep… and fell out of the window and three stories to the street below and was killed. This is probably where the expression, “He was bored to death,” came from. Since MAN is A UNION OF BODY AND SOUL IN GOD’S IMAGE AND LIKENESS, we can presume from this reading that Eutychus’ soul had left his body…he was no longer alive. Visual Bible Alive OUR CATHOLIC CHURCH--THE MYSTICAL BODY OF CHRIST Page 4

WHAT MIRACLE DOES PAUL WORK?

Paul went down to Eutychus, bent over him, and embraced him. Then he says to those who are gathered about, “Do not be alarmed, for his life is still in him.” Luke tells us that after this Paul returned to the upper room and finished Mass, ate… “and conversed with them a long while” and when he left at daybreak, the lad was alive.

WHERE ELSE HAVE WE SEEN THE MIRACLE OF BRINGING SOMEONE BACK FROM THE DEAD?

Two times in the Old Testament we see holy men bring someone back from the dead; Elijah [1 KGS 17:21—23] and Elisha [2 KGS 4:34—36]. Both had used motions very similar to Paul’s when they worked their miracles. Visual Bible Alive Of course Jesus brought no less than three people back from the dead; The little girl, Jarius’ Daughter [when He said “TALITHA KUM!” (MK 5:35—43)]; Lazarus [When Jesus said, “LAZARUS COME FORTH!” (JN 11:1—43)] and the Son of the Widow of Nain—a miracle we will consider later in this same lesson.

WHERE DOES PAUL GO AFTER HE DEPARTS FROM TROAS?

He makes a number of stops before coming to Miletus, which is not far from Ephesus.

WHY DOES HE STAY IN MILETUS INSTEAD OF GOING INTO EPHESUS WHERE THE COMMUNITY KNOWS AND LOVES HIM?

Paul is in a hurry to get to Jerusalem before the Feast of Pentecost, and he knows that if he stops at Ephesus the people will want him to stay with them for a while. So Paul sets up camp at Miletus and sends a message to Ephesus summoning to him the people he wishes to see.

TO WHOM DOES PAUL SPEAK IN MILETUS?

Paul asks the presbyters [priests] and the guardians [bishops] to come to Miletus so that he can speak to them.

WHAT DOES PAUL SAY TO THE PRIESTS AND SPIRITUAL LEADERS OF EPHESUS? This is the third of Paul’s Great Discourses in Acts. His first was given in the synagogue at Pisidian Antioch during his First Missionary Journey [13:16—43]; and his second lengthy [and very unsuccessful] address was to the Athenians at the Areopagus [17:16—34].

This address is perhaps the most beautiful of the three and tells us the a great deal about Paul himself. He is a man driven passionately by his love of Jesus Christ to preach the Gospel to the nations,“I put no value on my life if only I can finish my race and complete the service to which I have been assigned by the Lord Jesus.” [v.24];

Opposed and challenged at every turn, yet pushing on, “I served the Lord in humility through the sorrows that came my way through the plottings of certain Jews.” [v.19].

He is concerned about the flock he leaves behind, knowing that false teachers—wolves—will attack them after he has moved on, “I know that when I am gone, savage wolves will come from among you who will not spare the flock…men will present themselves distorting the truth and leading astray any who follow them.” [29—30].

And he tells them that he moves on, “compelled by the Spirit and not knowing what will happen to me there— except that the Holy Spirit has been warning me from city to city that chains and hardships await me.” [v. 22— 23].

As we read through this deeply moving speech, we cannot help but remember the words Jesus spoke about Saul to Ananias many years earlier…

THIS MAN IS THE INSTRUMENT I HAVE CHOSEN TO BRING MY NAME TO THE GENTILES AND THEIR KINGS AND TO THE PEOPLE OF ISRAEL.

I MYSELF SHALL INDICATE TO HIM HOW MUCH HE WILL HAVE TO SUFFER FOR MY NAME [9:15—16]. OUR CATHOLIC CHURCH--THE MYSTICAL BODY OF CHRIST Page 5

HOW DO THEY SAY GOODBYE, AND WHAT DOES IT TELL US ABOUT PAUL’S RELATIONSHIP TO HIS FLOCK?

When we read of Paul kneeling down with them and praying, and are told by Luke that they were weeping without constraint “throwing their arms about him and kissing him,” we realize that as tough as he may have been…and as difficult as he could be at times, Paul was a teacher, a shepherd, and a much-loved Spiritual Father in the fullest sense of the word!

AFTER PAUL SETS SAIL FROM MILETUS, WHERE DOES HE GO?

Again, after several stops, Paul ends up in Caesarea on the western coast of Palestine, about 35 miles away from Jerusalem.

WHO DOES PAUL STAY WITH IN CAESAREA?

Paul stays in the home of … who we remember as Philip the Deacon from Acts chapters 6 & 8… who evangelized the regions about Samaria and who baptized the Ethiopian court official.

WHAT HAPPENS WHILE PAUL IS STAYING WITH PHILIP, AND WHAT DOES IT MEAN?

They are visited by the prophet . In , Agabus predicted a worldwide famine that prompted the disciples to take up a collection for the relief of those who were needy in Judea.

When he appears before Paul and his band on their visit to Philip, Agabus takes Paul’s cincture [a rope belt] and ties his own hands and feet with it, saying, “This is how the Jews of Jerusalem will bind the owner of this belt and hand him over to the Gentiles.” Prophets frequently accompanied their verbal prophecies with memorable gestures or symbolic actions to drive their prophecies home. Agabus is foretelling the fate that awaits Paul later, when he will be chained and imprisoned.

WHERE DOES PAUL TRAVEL AFTER HE LEAVES CAESAREA?

As Jesus did before him…Paul goes up to Jerusalem.

Paul’s Farewell to the Ephesian Leaders Julius Schnorr Von Carolsfeld 1851 Engraving Page 6 PAUL’S THIRD MISSIONARY JOURNEY- PART II “DO THIS IN MEMORY OF ME” MOMENTS FROM THE LIFE OF JESUS CHRIST LUKE 7:11—17

JESUS RESTORES LIFE TO THE SON OF THE WIDOW OF NAIM

CATECHISTS…THIS RATHER SHORT AND SIMPLE ACCOUNT OF CHRIST GIVING LIFE TO ONE WHO HAS DIED GIVES US AN OPPORTUNITY TO CONSIDER SOME OF OUR BASIC TERMS.

THIS ACCOUNT APPEARS ONLY IN THE GOSPEL OF LUKE, AND THE EVENT PROBABLY TOOK PLACE DURING THE “MID-GALILEAN PHASE” OF JESUS’ PUBLIC LIFE—IN LATE SUMMER OR EARLY FALL OF THE YEAR 28 AD.

CATECHISTS…PLEASE READ THROUGH THE 7 VERSES OF THIS STORY WITH YOUR CLASS, AND EXPLAIN AS NEEDED.

WHO, ASIDE FROM JESUS, WAS ABLE TO BRING PEOPLE BACK FROM DEATH TO LIFE?

As we discussed earlier in this lesson, Peter, Paul, Elijah, and Elisha.

WHEN THESE PEOPLE WERE BROUGHT BACK FROM THE DEAD, WERE THEY RESURRECTED LIKE JESUS?

No! When , Eutychus, and the widows’ sons were brought back to life, they were not Resurrected…

RESURRECTION JESUS CHRIST WAS “CRUCIFIED UNDER , HE SUFFERED DEATH AND WAS BURIED, Visual Bible Alive AND ROSE AGAIN ON THE THIRD DAY,” HIS BODY AND SOUL UNITED FOREVER IN A GLORIFIED STATE

When Eutychus and the others were brought back from the dead, their bodies and souls were reunited—but not in a glorified state. When Jesus rose from the dead, His Human Body and soul were perfectly united… and were never again subject to separation and death.

Dorcas, Eutycus, and the widows’ sons all returned to life, and lived as we live. But they eventually died, as one day we shall die.

WAS IT BY THEIR OWN POWER THAT THESE MEN RAISED THE DEAD TO LIFE?

Of course not! Only God is the Lord of Life. Human agents can only give life back to those who have died by the Power of God.

WHAT IS HUMAN LIFE?

In the Beginning God made Man in His Image and likeness… to live and to love in accordance with God’s Plan. The Book of Genesis tells us…

God created Man in His Image, in the Divine Image He created him, Male and Female He created them [GEN 1:27] ……..and

The Lord God formed man out of the clay of the ground and blew into his nostrils the breath of life, and so man became a living being [GEN 2:7]. Page 7 PAUL’S THIRD MISSIONARY JOURNEY- PART II

WHAT IS DEATH?

For a human person death comes about when the body and soul are separated. After this, there is merely a body [sometimes called a corpse] and the soul continues in existence as a “dis-embodied spirit.”

The body of the person who has died is usually buried in the ground. Thus the ancient prophetic words, “Remember man that you are dust, and unto dust you shall return,” [see Genesis 3:19]… offered by Church during the Ash Wednesday Liturgy are fulfilled. Our bodies return to the earth from which their material elements were taken.

Our souls stand before God at our Particular Judgment, and are either consigned to Hell, sentenced to Purgatory, or drawn forever to Heaven. Our understanding of each of these “places” is expressed in the following terms:

HEAVEN EVERLASTING LIFE IN GOD’S PRESENCE

PURGATORY A STATE OF EXISTENCE IN WHICH WE ARE PURGED OR PURIFIED FROM THE DAMAGE WE HAVE DONE TO OUR SOULS BY SIN

HELL A STATE OF ETERNAL SEPARATION FROM GOD; WE REJECT AND HATE HIM FOREVER

One important place in Sacred Scripture where we learn about the Reality of HEAVEN and HELL is MATTHEW 25. This citation should be remembered for future reference.

WHY DOES GOD LET US DIE?

Death for Man was not God’s Plan. In the Beginning, God made Man free to choose his own destiny. He gave our first parents, Adam and Eve [the Father and Mother of the Human Race] a choice between Good and Evil. They disobeyed God and chose to do Evil… this is called…

ORIGINAL SIN IN THE BEGINNING MAN DISOBEYED GOD AND BROUGHT SIN, SUFFERING AND DEATH INTO THE WORLD

When parents make bad choices they often hurt their own children. Adam and Eve were the Parents of all the Human Race. By their terrible and tragic mistake they brought death and suffering into the human experience. Also, as a result of Original Sin the union of our body and soul is weakened and our integrity is disrupted. Two important powers of the Human Person are affected…

MIND THE POWER TO KNOW AND BELIEVE THE TRUE

WILL THE POWER TO LOVE AND CHOOSE THE GOOD

As a result of Original Sin, our Minds are darkened and our Wills are weakened. In addition to these defects, our bodily and spiritual appetites become disorderly, and we are greatly attracted to evil and to things that harm us. This is called Concupiscence…

CONCUPISCENCE A STRONG TENDENCY TOWARDS SIN AND EVIL WHICH RESULTS FROM ORIGINAL SIN

Without God’s Grace we are helpless and lost forever. With God’s Grace, we can be saved. When St. Paul wrote about these sad and sorrowful realities, he recognized his weakness, but ended his discourse with Hope…

What a wretched man I am! Who can free me from this body under the power of death? All praise to God, through Jesus Christ our Lord! [ROM 7:24—25b]

Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden Wenzel Peter 18th Century, Rome

MAP OF PAUL’S THIRD MISSIONARY JOURNEY (Designed using Bible Mapper 4.3 Software)