Hey guys.
Its Tuesday. Coffee at the Outlet Mall day. For those of you who are new, the guys who have the ability try to get together to have coffee together in the weeks we don’t have our men’s group at the church. So the pattern is:
- Men’s Group 1st and 3rd Wed each month at 7pm in KC room.
- Coffee 2nd and 4th Tuesdays each month at 10am – Outlet Mall Food Court.
Its not a coffee meeting to discuss any scripture. Its more to bullshit and bond outside of church.
I like to take a little time to try and review what we talked about previously and then remind everyone about the next meeting date (April 1 at KC room 7pm). If you have any feedback or thoughts feel free to bring them to the meeting or email me your thoughts if prefer. I love hearing everyone’s thoughts on these things.
This week we talked about a couple pretty different verses. The first one was something I kinda stumbled across randomly the other day.
– Matthew 27:52-53
This for me is one of those that you might have read before or heard now and then but never really focused on, so it seems like its new. Or at least it seems that your attention to it is late to the party. I am finding those gems here and there. Such as when Jesus says to the Apostles “Whose sins you forgive are forgiven them, and whose sins you retain are retained.” John 20:21 I always kind of ignored that second part until recently and it struck me funny one day. What does that actually mean? Does it suggest that a priest might have a day where he decides not to forgive your sins in confession? Obviously that’s ridiculous, but it does actually mean what it says at the end of the day. Jesus didn’t tend to say things that didn’t matter. So if he said it, it means something. Not in such a callous way, but a priest does have the discretion to assess if you are demonstrating actual repentance and sincerity for your sins, and may decide that you need to go work on it more before granting absolution. I think a Hollywood example might be if a Mafia boss goes to confession and confesses murder, then next time confesses the same thing, and then again, finally the priest may tell him that God isn’t satisfied with the sincerity of his confession and repentance. That might end up in another murder in a Hollywood movie of course, but its a decent example. A publicly Pro-Choice politician may be a more real world example of this sometimes.
Some of you asked me to touch base with Fr. Mathew for guidance on those verses from Matthew, and I did. He sent me a bunch of follow up findings that ill copy to the end of this email so you can see it.
We also looked at the following verses about forgiveness and living honestly within God’s Will:
- Romans 6:22-23
- Romans chapters 7-9 in totality
- 1 Corinthians 15:45-49 (this is where the Bible refers to Jesus as the new Adam)
Dr. Google says: The Church refers to Jesus as the “New Adam” (or Last/Second Adam) because he reverses the disobedience of the first Adam, replacing sin and death with grace and eternal life. As the new federal head of humanity, Christ’s obedience restores the broken relationship between God and humanity caused by Adam’s fall
Paul Phillips mentioned looking at Pascal’s Gambit – logic table. I have not yet gotten to that but wanted to make sure anyone who does want to check it out remembers that he offered it as a tool to assess what we were talking about.
We talked about Intentional sin vs Unintentional sin. This comes from a statement or pamphlet Ian B looked at while at a funeral mass at an Eastern Rite church. Andy H was able to look it up while we were discussing it and this is what he found:
In biblical terms, intentional sins (or “high-handed” sins) are willful acts of defiance against God’s commands, often carrying severe penalties, whereas unintentional sins are committed in ignorance, weakness, or accident, allowing for atonement and forgiveness. While all sin breaks covenant, the distinction hinges on the motive and posture of the heart toward God.
Russ talked about being open to the messages you are getting from the Holy Spirit and used his example of being told over and over on a drive to Edmonton from Grand Prairie to look at Mark 8:22. He was unable to do that while he was driving until he reached Edmonton and on the side of the grain elevators was that exact verse. God keeps knocking until you finally listen.
I would like to reiterate that we should try to keep a crucifix in our homes or somewhere that we can look upon it to refocus and center ourselves with discipline when we are struggling with sin or conflict. Look upon the cross.
Thanks guys. See you on Wednesday next week (April 1).
Chris
Here is the info from Fr. Mathew:
All the answers can find in the commentary below. There are some YouTube video commentary also available about that passage.
The Resurrection of the Saints at Christ’s Death
Matthew 27:52-53 describes one of the extraordinary signs accompanying Jesus’ death on the cross: the opening of tombs and the raising of “many bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep,” who later entered Jerusalem and appeared to many. This event underscores the cosmic power of Christ’s Passion, bridging the realms of earth, death, and heaven, and prefiguring the general resurrection.
Biblical Text and Immediate Context
The passage reads: “The tombs also were opened, and many bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep were raised. After his resurrection they came out of the tombs and entered the holy city and appeared to many.” This follows immediately after the rending of the temple veil, the earthquake, and the splitting of rocks (Mt 27:51), forming part of a sequence of miracles at the moment of Christ’s death that testify to its salvific power.
These signs are grouped into effects on the temple (veil torn), the elements (earthquake, rocks rent), and humanity (graves opened). The graves’ opening symbolizes Christ bursting the bonds of death: “O death, I will be your death; O hell, I will be your bite” (Hos 13:14). Spiritually, it signifies hearts moved from hardness to compassion and sinners rising from spiritual death: “Rise you who sleep, and arise from the dead” (Eph 5:14).
Chronology: Timing Relative to Christ’s Resurrection
A key detail is the timing: tombs opened at Christ’s death, but the saints emerged after his resurrection. Thomas Aquinas notes this as anticipation in Matthew’s narrative: “although this was said in the description of Christ’s death, yet one should understand that it was said by way of anticipation, because it was done after the resurrection; for Christ is the first begotten of the dead” (Rev 1:5). This ensures Christ’s primacy: the saints did not rise before him, as “the graves were opened, they did not rise again before the Lord rose, that He might be the first-born of the resurrection from the dead.”
Church Fathers affirm this order, resolving apparent discrepancies with other Gospels (e.g., Luke’s sequence). The earthquake at the Crucifixion and Resurrection alike moves worldly hearts to penitence through faith in his Passion.
Identity of the Saints and Their Fate
These were “many bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep”—righteous dead from the Old Testament era, raised in glorified bodies to manifest Christ’s resurrection. Unlike Lazarus, who died again, consensus holds they did not die a second time: “it is certain that Christ rising again from the dead, dies now no more” (Rom 6:9). To die again would be injury, not kindness; thus, “they rose to enter into heaven with Christ.”
Remigius echoes: “We must believe that they rose again to be witnesses of the Lord’s resurrection… We ought therefore to believe without hesitation that they who rose from the dead at the Lord’s resurrection, ascended also into heaven together with Him.” Jerome adds they appeared selectively “to such as were worthy to see it,” not universally.
The “holy city” is Jerusalem (once holy due to the Temple, Isa 1:21) or the heavenly Jerusalem, as they went “with Christ into glory.” Their appearance to many served as proof: greater than raising Lazarus, showing “a proof of the resurrection to come.”
Theological Significance
Power of the Passion: The earth quakes before such majesty (Ps 104:32), rocks (hard hearts) split (Jer 23:29), and death’s bonds break (1 Cor 15:54).
Effect of Salvation: Prefigures universal resurrection and judgment: “the hour comes, in which all who are in the graves will hear the voice of the Son of God” (Jn 5:28). Daily, these works continue spiritually—the veil rent reveals mysteries, earthquakes stir flesh to new life, graves (sinful bodies) open to sanctity.
Witness to Divinity: Even amid mockery (Mt 27:44), these signs convert observers, like the centurion proclaiming “Truly this was the Son of God” (Mt 27:54).
In summary, Matthew 27:52-53 reveals Christ’s victory over death, affirming his role as firstborn from the dead. The saints’ rising witnesses to this, entering eternal life and inviting believers to the same hope.
