Aug 11, 2020

Adult Ed, July 30th -- Catholic Commentary on the Apocalypse, Session 9, The Final Battle, The Thousand Years, The New Heavens and New Earth, Chapters 18-22 (part 9 of 9)

Outline of Session 9:  Commentary on Revelation chapters 18-22. The Final Battle and the victory of Christ. The Thousand Year Reign as occurring now during the life of the Church.  The First Resurrections as the conversion of the soul and forgiveness of sins through baptism. The Second Resurrection as the resurrection on the Last Day. The First Death as physical death, the Second as spiritual death. The New Heavens and the New Earth as the transformation and glorification of this world.




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Catholic Commentary on the Apocalypse

Studying the most perplexing book of the Bible with the great Catholic Scholars

Session 9 – The Final Battle, the Thousand Years, the New Heavens and New Earth, Revelation 18-22

 

Outline of Session 9:  Commentary on Revelation chapters 18-22. The Final Battle and the victory of Christ. The Thousand Year Reign as occurring now during the life of the Church.  The First Resurrections as the conversion of the soul and forgiveness of sins through baptism. The Second Resurrection as the resurrection on the Last Day. The First Death as physical death, the Second as spiritual death. The New Heavens and the New Earth as the transformation and glorification of this world.

 

 

I. Review of last week: The Seven Plagues, The Whore of Babylon

The Seven Plagues seem to be modelled in many ways on the Ten Plagues of Egypt and the Exodus.  The whore of Babylon represents the Pagan Roman Emperor and worldly power, and the city with seven hills represents the City of Rome – however, this does not mean that St John is condemning the Church. Further, Babylon is not merely 1st Century Pagan Rome but also all worldly powers that persecute the Church.

 

II. The Fall of Babylon

18:2 “Babylon the great is fallen, is fallen” – note that the book of Revelation does not follow a straight chronology, but is often cyclical. Although the City is declared to have fallen, yet there is much war yet to occur.

The Fall of Babylon represents the fall of all worldly power and allurements which make war on the children of God.

 

18:4 “Go out from her, my people; that you be not partakers of her sins, and that you receive not her plagues.”  -- Indeed, some of the Christians of Rome received mystical warnings and fled the City before the sacking by Alaric in 410. Including Pope Innocent I who is said to have been warned ahead of time, and to have left just before the City was taken.  Additionally, those who remained in the City were spared if they escaped to the Basilicas of Sts Peter and Paul which had been designated by Alaric as safe havens.

 

As the destruction of the City is proclaimed, much mention is made of merchants and the great wealth of the City which enriched also the other nations.  This symbolizes that way that Pagan Nations and worldly people enrich each other, but how all that wealth is vanity which will be swept away.

Babylon then represents all the wicked in general even until the end of time – it also has a particular preterist application to the City of Rome, but not Christian Rome but only Pagan Rome.

 

 

III. He that rides upon the white horse

19:10 “And I fell down before his feet to adore him. And he saith to me: See thou do it not: I am thy fellow servant, and of they brethren, who have the testimony of Jesus. Adore God.”  --  While St Gregory the Great believes only that St John was offering excessive veneration of the angel and that this was not appropriate because we are raised to be equal to angels in glory, St Augustine believes that St John truly mistook the angel to be God and was corrected.

 

19:11 “And I saw heaven opened, and behold a white horse; and he that sat upon him was called faithful and true” … 19:13 “And he was clothed with a garment sprinkled with blood; and his name is called, THE WORD OF GOD.”  --  Clearly, this is the Messiah, the Lord Jesus, the Son of God and the Eternal Word.  This also reminds us of the opening of St John’s Gospel, In the beginning was the Word.  Likewise, this perhaps reminds us of the first of the four horsemen of the Apocalypse.

The image of the blood reminds us of Isaiah 43. We see Christ in triumph, having vanquished his enemies. This is a very violent image.

 

We have a military battle image used: Christ and his army are opposed to Satan, the beast, and the Antichrist and the army of the wicked. 

19:20 “These two were cast alive into the pool of fire, burning with brimstone.” – We see that the punishment of hell is not to cease to exist, but to exist forever in pain and torment. Satan is spiritually dead, but is “alive” in the sense of continuing to exist and be punished forever.

 

 

IV. The Thousand Years

20:2 “And bound him for a thousand years.” – Satan has been bound ever since the Lord’s death and Resurrection. By the establishment of the Church and the preaching of the Gospel and the gift of the Sacraments, Satan’s influence in the world is greatly bound.

 

“For a thousand years” – “Thousand” means “many” and is not to be interpreted literally. Even as 144,000 is 12x12x1000, referring to the vast multitude saved through the covenant of God with Israel and extended in the New Testament to all Nations, the “thousand” years simply means “many” years.

 

 

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Excerpt from course on St Augustine’s City of God

On the resurrection of living and the dead: Those whose souls are alive by grace their bodies will be raised to eternal life, but those whose souls are dead in sin their bodies will be raised to eternal death.   We speak of the “first resurrection” of the soul – meaning, the life of grace in the soul in this life.

 

The question of the 1,000 years of peace: “And I saw an angel come down from heaven… Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection: on such the second death hath no power; but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with him a thousand years.” (Revelation 20:1,6)   [take a moment to read Revelation 20, which discusses the 1,000 years, the first and second resurrection, Gog and Magog, the loosing of Satan, etc]

To all the speculation of the Millenialists, St Augustine emphasizes that we cannot discern the day or the hour of the judgment. Further, to God, 1,000 years are as a day and a day as 1,000 years.  Better yet, the time should be interpreted spiritually – the 1,000 years signifies the fullness of all ages from the Ascension to the day of judgment, and the peace of soul which the saints gain from God’s grace.

 

The discussion of “the image of the beast” or “the inscription on the forehead or hand” are those who belong to the City of Men, the Earthly City – who put their hope in the world and take delight in worldly pleasures.

 

Gog and Magog: “These nations which he names Gog and Magog are not to be understood of some barbarous nations in some part of the world” but rather to all the nations and peoples who belong to the Earthly City and where the devil has found his home in the hearts of men.

 

 

What do Catholics believe about the Rapture?  There are two judgments, the particular and the universal. Each of us faces the particular judgment at the moment of death – the universal judgment is given to all at the end of time. Thus, the rapture is false, because the universal judgement will happen once and for all. No one will be “left behind”.

 

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V. The New Heavens and the New Earth

21:1 “And I saw a new heaven and a new earth. For the first heaven and the first earth was god, and the sea is now no more.”  --  Discussion of the new heavens and earth, and the glorification of all things. What will heaven be like after the resurrection on the last day?

22:10 “For the time is at hand” – In relation to eternity, the end is near. But to God a thousand years are as a day and a day as a thousand years. 

22:12 “To render to every man according to his works.” – Not faith alone!

22:18-19 – Clear indication that St John knew this book would be part of Scripture and also that this would close the whole of the Bible.