BONUS 17 - The Law isn’t Law

Bonus Conversation — Following Season 2, Episode 7

We revisit A Confrontation at Antioch, A Vision in Caesarea, and A Council in Jerusalem—the moment the early Church learned to welcome the nations without losing its soul. We trace Peter’s encounter with Cornelius, the shock of the Spirit falling on Gentiles, and the pressure that led Peter to withdraw from shared tables. Then comes Paul’s bold stand—confronting Peter face-to-face to defend the Gospel from becoming a system of second-class believers.

From there, we unpack the Council of Jerusalem and its lasting impact on Christian life. Together we distinguish enduring moral law—rooted in the Ten Commandments—from time-bound ritual laws that once marked Israel’s identity. Rather than erasing Israel’s story, we follow its fulfillment in Christ, where the signs of the new covenant take center stage. A practical example—like Lenten dispensations on St. Patrick’s Day—shows how pastoral law serves charity without bending moral absolutes.

Along the way, we reflect on the gift of the Law, the inclusion of the Gentiles, and the beauty of “the Way,” where early believers found life in Jesus as the way, the truth, and the life. Listeners who love Scripture, church history, and the ongoing balance between tradition and mission will find clarity in themes that still echo today: continuity versus replacement, unity without uniformity, and holiness that breaks down walls rather than builds them higher.

If this conversation deepened your understanding, share it with a friend, subscribe for more thoughtful episodes, and leave a review to help others find the show.

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Jordan Whiteko, Father Andrew Hamilton, Father Christopher Pujol, Vincent Reilly, Cliff Gorski, John Zylka, Sarah Hartner

Episode Transcript

SPEAKER_00 (00:01):
You're listening to the Catholic Act of the podcast.
We discussed the act that Jesusperformed that stunned his
disciples.
Great to be back, Jordan.
You don't know it's by now,you're never gonna know.
I'm Jordan Waco here with FatherHamilton and Father Poojal.
So, you know, in my notes here,we there's mention of the
Council of Jerusalem.

(00:22):
What happened at that council?
What role did St.
Paul play in this event?

SPEAKER_01 (00:28):
Can we go a little bit before the Council of
Jerusalem before we get there?
Don't jump ahead, Jordan.
We should talk about at Antioch,which precedes a little bit,
that like in the history, it'shelpful for us.
The the great two apostles,right?
Of spreading like the message ofGod, really Peter and Paul.
Peter, after that encounter withthe men from Cornelius and
seeing Cornelius in the spiritfalling upon the Gentiles and

(00:51):
them speaking in tongues,there's baptisms of the
Gentiles.
And there becomes arguments,especially from Jewish people,
that they have to becircumcised.
Okay, not just baptized, butthey need to take on the sign of
the old covenant, which iscircumcision as well as baptism.

SPEAKER_02 (01:07):
And the the realities of that they would be
bound to the Jewish laws on topof following Christian
commandments.

SPEAKER_01 (01:14):
In in Peter, he starts to vacillate a little
bit.
He was given that vision, hemeets Cornelius and the
Gentiles, he starts to believethat the Mosaic Law has passed
away and given way to the new,not all of the parts of the
Mosaic Law, right?
As we said, that the TenCommandments, the absolute laws
are still there, but some ofthese other ritualistic laws
don't have enforcement anymore.

(01:35):
And so what is happening isPeter is starting to get there,
but then a lot of the other onesthat are called Judaizers or
those that think that you haveto follow the still the Mosaic
prescriptions, they start toreally pressure Peter.
And so he starts to recede fromhis position and he stops
actually like even eating withGentiles or treating them as
equal in the covenant to thosethat were Judah.

(01:56):
But rather like a lower level ofJewish Christians.
And this is where Paul andBarnabas have a lot of problems
with that, specifically Paul.
And he actually goes to Peter'sface and he calls him out on it
and says, You're beinghypocritical.
Like you've been given thesethings, you know this, and
you're not right about what'sgoing on here.
It should be that the new law isthe one has that it has been
given way to.

(02:17):
And so Paul calls him out, andthat's what precedes then the
great debate of the apostlescoming together in Jerusalem to
figure out what do we believe asthe church to properly orient
ourselves for the future.
And certain laws are given foran amount of time and have a
context to them.
So one of the best explanationsthat I've seen from scripture
scholars about the old Mosaiclaws is why were there all these

(02:40):
restrictions, especially aroundlike odd things of what you can
eat, what you can't, ritualpurities, and so on.
It really had a lot to do withsingling out the identity of the
Israelites.
Because if we remember in theOld Testament, what was the
constant thing that they weredoing?
Falling away from the covenantof worshiping the one true God
and going to all the nationsaround them, becoming like the

(03:01):
other nations, intermarrying,intermingling, and then they
lose their identity as God's.
Rather than being holy, which isto be set apart, set aside.
And so a lot of those laws hadrelevance then, but the question
became were they only relevantfor that time, or are they
eternal laws?
Right?
Because we can look back intothe Old Testament and see the
Ten Commandments as moral laws.
Those are what we call absolutelaws.

(03:22):
They're not relative to a timeor a period.
It's always wrong and everywhereto steal from somebody.
It's always wrong and everywhereto kill somebody or to murder
somebody willingly, right?
And in that way, then those holdforever.
So whenever you talk about thelaw of Christ of love, well,
love has to keep in mind thosemoral absolutes that are already

(03:43):
laid down.
You can't break three of thecommandments and then say, well,
I'm actually loving this person,even though I'm breaking these
commandments, right?
Committing adultery, but saying,like, why I love this person.
Actually, no, you're harmingthem and you're breaking the law
that God has laid out as thefoundation for the greater law.

SPEAKER_02 (04:00):
And as Catholics, one of the easy ways for us to
think about this is think aboutour Lenten penances, right?
So if you're in an Irishcommunity and St.
Patrick's Day falls on a Friday,oftentimes the bishop will
release the faithful fromobserving the abstinence and

(04:21):
fast for meat on that Friday.
And so the law should not beguiding us, but the law is no
the law is is um the law is it'sa guide guiding.

SPEAKER_01 (04:35):
Yeah.
The law is in law.
But in a very privileged way,the Jewish people were
privileged that they already hada law that helped them to
understand who the Messiah wasto be and to accept Christ.
Whereas Gentiles didn't havethat same tradition or that same
understanding.

SPEAKER_02 (04:54):
And Christ did come to the Jewish people first.
You know, he was born to aJewish mother, uh, a Jewish
stepfather, guardian.
So he did come and God revealedhimself first to his promised
people, just as he said hewould.
And then as that carried out, wesee that God is embracing
everyone and gathering all theends of the earth to himself.

(05:17):
And so a lot of it, as Fatherwas talking about um replacement
of the old with the new, a lotof people call it the
substitution theory, thesubstitution idea that now what
was old has been substituted forthat which is new.
And it doesn't mean that whatwas in the past was bad, but
rather that it's completed andfulfilled.

SPEAKER_01 (05:36):
And it's a continuity, it's not to be seen
as a replacement theology,right?
That basically the Jewish peopleare basically completely
replaced by that, but ratherthat they should be brought into
the one who is the way, thetruth, and the world.
It's an intersecting line thatcontinues, is what you're
saying.
Like kind of like that.
Yeah.
And through the acceptance ofthe Messiah, right?
Because that's what the Jewishpeople are waiting for, and the

(05:58):
Messiah comes, and the Messiahneeds to be accepted.
And this is why Jesus veryexplicitly says, like, if you're
to know the Father, you have toknow me.
It's only through me that youcome to the Father.
I am the way, the truth, and thelife.
This is why the early Christiansin the church call themselves
the way.

SPEAKER_02 (06:16):
And really, the if you watch some of those
interviews with some of theJewish converts to Catholicism,
they'll tell you that when theyread the New Testament and
thought about the prophets, theystarted seeing the completion of
the prophecies.
And that's what led them to thenchoose Christ uh as their savior
and recognize him as who he is.

(06:36):
Thanks for listening to theCatholic Accent Podcast.
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