Episode 104: Year B – 33rd Sunday of Ordinary Time

In this episode, we focus on four apologetical details in the readings for the 33rd Sunday of Ordinary Time, Year B. The first detail comes from the first reading, taken from Daniel 12:1-3. The apologetical topic is the reality of hell. The second detail is found in the second reading, taken from Hebrews 10:11-14, 18, and the relevant topic is the “once saved, always saved” doctrine that some Christians profess. Finally, the last two details that we will focus on come from the Gospel reading, taken from Mark 13:24-32, and the relevant topic is the accuracy and scope of Jesus’ human knowledge.

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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 four apologetical details in the readings for this upcoming 33rd Sunday of Ordinary Time, Year B. The first detail comes from the first reading, taken from Daniel 12:1-3. The apologetical topic is the reality of hell. The second detail is found in the second reading, taken from Hebrews 10:11-14, 18, and the relevant topic is the “once saved, always saved” doctrine that some Christians profess. Finally, the last two details that we will focus on come from the Gospel reading, taken from Mark 13:24-32, and the relevant topic is the accuracy and scope of Jesus’ human knowledge.

 

Let’s start with the first reading from Daniel 12:1-3. We read,

 

In those days, I Daniel,

heard this word of the Lord:

“At that time there shall arise

Michael, the great prince,

guardian of your people;

it shall be a time unsurpassed in distress

since nations began until that time.

At that time your people shall escape,

everyone who is found written in the book.

“Many of those who sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake;

some shall live forever,

others shall be an everlasting horror and disgrace.

“But the wise shall shine brightly

like the splendor of the firmament,

and those who lead the many to justice

shall be like the stars forever.”

 

Daniel prophesies here of the end times when both the righteous and the unrighteous will rise from the dead. This is the doctrine of the bodily resurrection. Jesus makes this Danielic prophecy his own in John 5:28, where he states, “Do not marvel at this; for the hour is coming when all who are in the tombs will hear his voice and come forth, those who have done good, to the resurrection of life, and those who have done evil, to the resurrection of judgment.”

 

The relevant apologetical topic here, so I argue, is the reality of hell. And not just the possibility of hell, but the factual damnation of some.

 

First, the reality of hell. What clues us in on Daniel and Jesus referring to hell? Well, Daniel says some will rise to “an everlasting horror and disgrace.” Jesus says some will rise to “the resurrection of judgment.”

 

At first glance, this seems to be hell. But someone might counter and say it’s not necessarily hell, since the word “everlasting” in Greek can simply mean “from age to age” in the sense of a very long time.

 

The problem is that this counter blocks the opposite state of existence as being a reference to heaven. If Daniel’s “everlasting horror and disgrace” and Jesus’ “resurrection to judgment” merely refer to a temporary punishment, then Daniel’s “live forever” and Jesus’ “resurrection of life” must refer to temporary blissfulness. But all Christians agree that this state of existence refers to heaven, which is not temporary. Therefore, Daniel and Jesus aren’t referring to a temporary state of punishment. It’s j…