ARK Living Discipleship 2 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Jesus's Sermon on the Mount contains the Beatitudes, which begin with:
- Happy are those who seek justice
- Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven (Correct answer)
- Love the Lord your God with all your heart
- Blessed are those who follow the commandments
Correct answer: Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven
The first Beatitude in Matthew 5:3 is 'Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven,' opening Jesus's programmatic teaching on kingdom life.
The Beatitudes (Matthew 5:3-12; Luke 6:20-22) describe the character and reward of kingdom citizens. 'Poor in spirit' is interpreted as humble dependence on God (Matthew's version) — not material poverty but spiritual humility. Luke's version ('blessed are the poor') may emphasize literal poverty. The Beatitudes invert worldly values: the mourning, meek, persecuted, and pure in heart are the blessed ones in God's kingdom.
Question 2: In Catholic discipleship, the 'Works of Mercy' are divided into corporal and spiritual works. Which of the following is a SPIRITUAL work of mercy?
- Feeding the hungry
- Clothing the naked
- Instructing the ignorant (Correct answer)
- Visiting the sick
Correct answer: Instructing the ignorant
The spiritual works of mercy address the soul's needs: instructing the ignorant, counseling the doubtful, admonishing sinners, bearing wrongs patiently, forgiving offenses, comforting the afflicted, and praying for the living and dead.
The seven corporal works of mercy (feeding hungry, giving drink to thirsty, clothing naked, sheltering homeless, visiting sick, visiting imprisoned, burying dead) are drawn from Matthew 25:31-46 and Tobit. The seven spiritual works (instructing ignorant, counseling doubtful, admonishing sinners, bearing wrongs patiently, forgiving offenses, comforting afflicted, praying for living and dead) address spiritual needs. Both sets are part of Catholic teaching on charity.
Question 3: The Great Commission given by Jesus in Matthew 28:19-20 instructs disciples to:
- Love one another as he has loved them
- Go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them (Correct answer)
- Sell all possessions and give to the poor
- Take up the cross daily and follow him
Correct answer: Go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them
The Great Commission commands baptizing converts and teaching them to observe everything Jesus commanded, grounding the Church's missionary mandate.
Matthew 28:19-20: 'Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you.' This passage grounds the Trinitarian formula of baptism and the Church's universal mission. The Great Commission appears in various forms in all four Gospels and Acts 1:8, underscoring its importance for Christian discipleship and mission.
Question 4: The parable of the Prodigal Son in Luke 15 primarily illustrates:
- The rewards of faithful stewardship
- God's unconditional mercy and the joy of repentance and reconciliation (Correct answer)
- The dangers of wealth and inheritance
- The superiority of those who remain faithful
Correct answer: God's unconditional mercy and the joy of repentance and reconciliation
The Prodigal Son parable reveals a father who runs to meet his repentant son, depicting God's unconditional, joyful love and mercy toward sinners who return to him.
Luke 15 contains three parables of lostness (lost sheep, lost coin, lost son). The Prodigal Son (or, as Kenneth Bailey argued, the parable of the Loving Father) shows the father's shameless, costly love: running to meet the son (undignified in Middle Eastern culture), restoring full sonship, and throwing a feast. The elder son's resentment mirrors the Pharisees' response to Jesus eating with sinners. It is perhaps the most beloved parable in Christian tradition.
Question 5: In discipleship formation, the term 'metanoia' refers to:
- Sacramental confession
- Deep conversion and transformation of mind and heart (Correct answer)
- Spiritual direction
- Baptism
Correct answer: Deep conversion and transformation of mind and heart
Metanoia (Greek: 'change of mind/heart') refers to the deep conversion and ongoing transformation that discipleship requires — turning away from sin toward God.
Metanoia (from meta, 'after/beyond' + nous, 'mind') literally means 'change of mind' but encompasses complete turning of the whole person — mind, will, heart, and way of life — toward God. John the Baptist and Jesus both began their preaching with 'Repent (metanoeite)' (Matt 3:2; 4:17). It exceeds mere regret (metameleia) — it is transformative reorientation. In Christian discipleship it is understood as both initial conversion and ongoing deepening.
Question 6: Which document from Vatican II specifically addressed the role of lay people in the Church's mission?
- Lumen Gentium only
- Apostolicam Actuositatem (Correct answer)
- Gaudium et Spes
- Dei Verbum
Correct answer: Apostolicam Actuositatem
Apostolicam Actuositatem ('Apostolate of the Laity,' 1965) was Vatican II's dedicated decree on the mission and apostolate of lay Catholics in the world.
Apostolicam Actuositatem (1965) affirmed that laypeople share in Christ's priestly, prophetic, and kingly mission and are called to transform the temporal order from within. It distinguished the lay apostolate (transforming secular structures) from the hierarchy's pastoral mission. Lumen Gentium (Dogmatic Constitution on the Church) also addressed laity's universal call to holiness. Together they ended a purely clerical model of the Church.
ARK Living Discipleship 2
Jesus's Sermon on the Mount contains the Beatitudes, which begin with: