tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-67300834836610001202024-03-13T17:03:40.391-07:00Answering Catholic ClaimsThis blog was not created out of anger or hatred toward Catholics, but out of love. It is to show some of the errors of the Catholic Church, especially those concerning salvation. We want to emphasize the simplicity of salvation, which is not by trusting in your works, but by trusting in the work and suffering of Jesus Christ on the cross, and BY THAT ALONE.Russellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17823479491839694646noreply@blogger.comBlogger157125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6730083483661000120.post-47678318949791485062024-03-01T18:42:00.000-08:002024-03-01T18:42:21.785-08:00THE INQUISITION (Part 1)<p><span style="font-size: 20pt;">Someone
recently made a comment about wishing that the “Holy Inquisition” was still
around.</span><span style="font-size: 20pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 20pt;">I found that to be a very
strange and twisted desire and I think it speaks volumes about that person’s
mental state.</span><span style="font-size: 20pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 20pt;">But what about the
Inquisition?</span><span style="font-size: 20pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 20pt;">When we think about it, we
conjure up images of people being tortured, body parts being cut off, people
being stretched on “the rack” until their joints were dislocated, people being
fed to wild animals and all sorts of heinous treatment.</span><span style="font-size: 20pt;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">And these
things did indeed happen.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>These
unfortunate people were usually first tried in court, yet many times the
victims were not even able to confront their accusers, since the state kept
their identity a secret.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But who caused
this and why were these people treated in such a horrible manner?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What did they do to deserve this?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Well, the
Inquisition happened because the Catholic Church considered these “offenders”
heretics who went against the teachings of the Church.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The Catholic Church claims that they were
simply trying to remove heresy, and if that involved threatening “heretics” with
using such severe tactics, causing obedience to the Catholic Church, then so
much the better. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">According to
the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">New Advent Catholic Encyclopedia </i>(online),
there were actually three different periods of “Inquisition” in history.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">The first
one, in southern France in the early 1200’s A.D., was known as the Medieval
Inquisition.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A little later began the Spanish
Inquisition (probably the most infamous one) at about 1478 A.D.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And finally came the Roman Inquisition at
about 1542 A.D.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>See here:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://www.newadvent.org/cathen/08026a.htm"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">https://www.newadvent.org/cathen/08026a.htm</span></a><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">But was the
Inquisition really that barbaric, that horrific?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Maybe so, maybe not.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Some tell of extreme horror stories, of
atrocities done against Protestants (and other groups) by the Catholic Church.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Others downplay the stories, asserting that
these punishments were “necessary” to keep heresy at bay.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">I would not
doubt that some of those claims are most likely exaggerated. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But on the other hand, I would think that many
of them are indeed true. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Admissions<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">One article
on the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Catholic Straight Answers</i>
website concerning the purpose of the Inquisition claims:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">“Not only
was a heretic’s soul in jeopardy, but also his false teaching jeopardized the
souls of others.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The [Catholic] Church,
as the guardian of souls, had to ‘root out’ any such heresy.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">This is
actually an admission<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"> </i>of the Catholic
Church’s involvement in the Inquisition(s).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>We need to remember this admission when they tell us that the Church had
nothing to do with it, and that they simply turned over the “violators” to the state authorities to be punished.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">This article
also admits that the Church and the state often “worked together in this
endeavor,” since “the Roman Catholic Church was the only Church in western
Europe until Martin Luther started the Protestant movement in 1517.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">I make this
point because Catholics often try to push off the blame onto the s<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">tate</i> for such cruel abuse.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But when the Catholic Church turned someone
over to the authority of the state to be punished, they knew exactly what to
expect, so they can’t plead ignorance or innocence in this matter.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In fact, the Catholic Church brags that her
authority is <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">higher </i>than the state’s
authority.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Pope Nicholas I (858 A.D. – 867 A.D.) was
quoted as saying:</span><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-style: italic; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“Fear,
then, our wrath and the thunders of our vengeance, for Jesus Christ has
appointed us with his own mouth absolute judges of all men, and kings themselves are submitted to our authority..."</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-style: italic; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">See here:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-style: italic; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><a href="https://popenicholas.weebly.com/quotes.html?c=mkt_w_chnl:aff_geo:all_prtnr:sas_subprtnr:1538097_camp:brand_adtype:txtlnk_ag:weebly_lptype:hp_var:358504&sscid=31k8_u2hf&utm_source=ShareASale">https://popenicholas.weebly.com/quotes.html?c=mkt_w_chnl:aff_geo:all_prtnr:sas_subprtnr:1538097_camp:brand_adtype:txtlnk_ag:weebly_lptype:hp_var:358504&sscid=31k8_u2hf&utm_source=ShareASale</a><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-style: italic; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Also, according
to Catholic priest, theologian, and church historian Johann Joseph Ignaz von
Dollinger:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-style: italic; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“It is the
office of the Papacy to tread under foot kings and emperors.” (<i>The Pope and
the Council</i>, London 1869, p. 339)<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">It is a
well-known fact that kings/emperors/monarchs feared the pope because they knew
that he could excommunicate them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This
gave the pope great leverage, since they feared for their souls and they
believed that the Catholic Church could actually keep them out of Heaven. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Here is a
list of examples of kings/emperors/monarchs who were excommunicated from the Catholic
Church:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_people_excommunicated_by_the_Catholic_Church">https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_people_excommunicated_by_the_Catholic_Church</a><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">And here are
examples of kings who were deposed (removed from office) by popes.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Papal_deposing_power">https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Papal_deposing_power</a><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">So, there is
certainly blood on the Church’s hands and they can’t blame the Inquisition on
the state.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%;">A Catholic Event<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">The article by
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Catholic Straight Answers</i> also states
that after the Inquisition climaxed, it began a decline, which continued
throughout most of Europe and was finally suppressed in 1834.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Ok,
interesting thought here.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If the
Inquisition was the right thing to do, if it was rooting out heresy (like the
beginning of this article said it was), then why did it fade out?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Why did the Catholic Church allow the
Inquisition to decline and be suppressed?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Didn’t they consider it God’s will to extinguish heresy and wouldn’t
they try to continue with a new Inquisition?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Was there no one left in all Christendom at this time who was involved
in heresy?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I believe that it stopped
because the Church was losing its grip on its reign of terror and the people
were seeing the truth of what was happening.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">At the end
of the article, it claims that the Inquisition was not a “Catholic event.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But that contradicts what they said earlier
about the Church being the “guardian of souls” and their responsibility to
“root out heresy.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But it is interesting
that now they want to <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">distance</i>
themselves from it?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Why?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Again, because they know it was wrong.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Torture<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">The article
also admits that the Inquisition sometimes used torture to gain a confession of
heresy, but not everyone thought that this was a moral thing to do:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">“Bernardo
Gui, one of the most famous inquisitors, commented that torture was deceiving
and inefficacious because it <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">forced</i>
the confession.” (Emphasis added)<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">I absolutely
agree.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Furthermore,
there is much quibbling today about the accuracy of the actual numbers of those
killed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But even if there was only ONE
person wrongly killed, tortured or punished by the Inquisition, it was <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">still</i> too many!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Instead of arguing about numbers, how about
showing some legitimate <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">regret</i> for
those poor souls who suffered under the boot of the Church?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Indeed, the Catholic Church will have to
answer for that.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">See the
article by <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Catholic Straight Answers</i>
here:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://catholicstraightanswers.com/what-are-the-facts-about-the-inquisition/#:~:text=The%20Inquisition%20climaxed%20in%20the,being%20finally%20suppressed%20in%201834"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">https://catholicstraightanswers.com/what-are-the-facts-about-the-inquisition/#:~:text=The%20Inquisition%20climaxed%20in%20the,being%20finally%20suppressed%20in%201834</span></a><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%;">What Would Jesus Do?<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">The highly
influential and very popular<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"> Catholic
Answers</i> website also weighed in on this topic of the Inquisition.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>See their article here:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://www.catholic.com/tract/the-inquisition"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">https://www.catholic.com/tract/the-inquisition</span></a><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">In their
article, it states that the purpose of the Spanish Inquisition was:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">“To identify
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">conversos</i> – Jews and Muslims who
pretended to convert to Christianity for political or social advantage and
secretly practiced their former religion.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>More importantly, its job was also to clear the good names of many
people who were falsely accused of being heretics.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">But what
would Jesus Christ say about this?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>How
did He go about trying to “root out heresy” when He was here on earth?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Did He advocate the burning at the stake of
those who didn’t obey what He taught?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>No,
He set no such example, nor did He encourage it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But rather, He left that judgment for the
afterlife.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He just preached the
gospel.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Those who refused His message He
neither chased nor punished.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They made
their decision and they would have to live with it.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Also, <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">2
Peter 2:1-22</i></b> has some harsh things to say about the promoters of
heresy, but suggests nothing about civil penalties or punishment in man’s court.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We could also mention <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">1 Corinthians 11:19</i></b>, <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Galatians
5:20</i></b>, and <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Titus 3:10</i></b>, which all mention heresy, but say nothing about <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">civil</i> penalties for it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I hope the reader can see a pattern here.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Heresy is wrong, but we don’t kill people for
that today (in the New Testament).<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Whitewashing the Inquisition<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">That
Catholic Answers article goes on to mention two “Fundamentalist” authors who
wrote about the Inquisition, claiming that they harbored fierce animosity
toward the Catholic Church “that had little to do with the Inquisition
itself.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In other words, Inquisition or
no Inquisition, they had an agenda against Holy Mother Church.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Well, maybe they had some hostility toward
the Church, but remember again, this is the same Church who claims that her job
was to “root out heresy,” thus, starting this whole reign of terror.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This doesn’t sound like a Church that had “little
to do” with the Inquisition.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In my
opinion the Catholic Church is indeed the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">cause</i>
of it all.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Right after
that, the article states that some Catholics (knowing that something is amiss) have
glossed over the admittedly <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">incontrovertible
facts</i> and tried to whitewash the Inquisition, fearing that the facts about
the Inquisition might prove the illegitimacy of the Catholic Church. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But the author goes on to assure Catholics
that “no account of foolishness, misguided zeal, or cruelty by Catholics can
undo the divine foundation of the Church.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Well, I’m
sorry, dear Catholics, but it is far too late for that.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The “divine foundation” of the Catholic
Church is, and always was, a fallacy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This
whole blog (and many other sources) is a testament to that.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The events of the Inquisition are only <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">one</i> of the many things that points to
the illegitimacy of the Catholic Church.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>But more devastating than that, it is the God-breathed Scriptures <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(2
Timothy 3:16-17)</i></b> that clearly demonstrate the corruption, heresy and
false teachings of this Church.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The
Inquisition was only <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">one </i>symptom of
the real problems.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Ok, I’ll
stop for now and continue with Part 2 next time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>To be continued…<o:p></o:p></span></p>Russellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17823479491839694646noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6730083483661000120.post-82699764720942335712024-02-01T19:57:00.000-08:002024-02-01T19:57:45.681-08:00CAN THE POPE BE TRUSTED?<p><span style="font-size: 20pt;">Let’s rewind
back to March 2021.</span><span style="font-size: 20pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 20pt;">The </span><i style="font-size: 20pt;">Associated Press</i><span style="font-size: 20pt;"> published an article
saying that the Vatican, under the authority of Pope Francis, issued a formal
response to the question of whether the Catholic Church could bless gay unions.</span><span style="font-size: 20pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 20pt;">And the answer, according to the Vatican’s
Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith in a two page explanation published
in seven different languages, was that the Catholic Church COULD NOT bless the
unions of two men or two women because “God cannot bless sin.”</span><span style="font-size: 20pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 20pt;">See here:</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://apnews.com/article/vatican-decree-same-sex-unions-cannot-bless-sin-077944750c975313ad253328e4cf7443"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">https://apnews.com/article/vatican-decree-same-sex-unions-cannot-bless-sin-077944750c975313ad253328e4cf7443</span></a><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Of course,
those pushing the LGBT agenda were disappointed, while many staunch Catholics
were pleased.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But this has been the
official long-standing teaching of the Catholic Church since the beginning.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Ok, fast
forward to December 18, 2023, when this same pope did a complete turnabout and
made <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">another</i> formal declaration
allowing Catholic priests to now bless same-sex unions!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">
Associated Press</i> calls it a “radical change in Vatican policy,” and so it
is.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The article said that the pope’s
reasoning was that people seeking God’s love and mercy should not be subject to
“exhaustive moral analysis.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Well, that
may be true, but the real analysis should be focused, in this case, on the pope
and his complete reversal of his previous formal declaration.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In two short years, Pope Francis’ view
changed from “God cannot bless sin” to “God does <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">indeed</i> bless sin.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">So, can one
formal Catholic declaration nullify another formal Catholic declaration only two
years later?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It certainly seems so.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">But in an
attempt to do damage control, the pope said that this ritual of blessing such
couples was not to be confused with the sacrament of marriage.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>See here:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/nbc-out/out-news/pope-says-priests-can-bless-sex-couples-radical-change-vatican-policy-rcna130236"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">https://www.nbcnews.com/nbc-out/out-news/pope-says-priests-can-bless-sex-couples-radical-change-vatican-policy-rcna130236</span></a><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">It appears
that this new document offers an “extensive definition” of the term “blessing”
in Scripture.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Yes, as is often the case,
the Catholic Church is playing fast and loose with certain biblical terms.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Apparently,
it is now ok to bless perverted and unbiblical lifestyles.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But is the Church also willing to bless
murderers, whoremongers and slave traders <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(1 Timothy 1:9-10)</i></b> in their chosen
lifestyle?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>How about blessing the lives
of idolaters, thieves, drunkards and swindlers <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(1 Corinthians 6:9-10)</i></b>? <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If not, then why not?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Aren’t these offenders listed together in the
Bible with homosexuals?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Yes, indeed
(read the two Scripture passages I just quoted above).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So, if one of these lifestyles is wrong, they
are <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">all</i> wrong!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Let’s be biblically consistent.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">But it seems
that being consistent with Scripture is not high on the list of the pope’s
agenda.</span><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%;">What <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">is</i> His Agenda?<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">So how does
this work?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>From the Catholic Church’s
standpoint, does this mean that the priest can now encourage and even bless the
union of a gay couple, but it is not ok to bless them in marriage?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But why bless a homosexual “union” at all, if
you are not willing to go all the way?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>It’s either right in the eyes of God… or it’s not.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The pope needs to choose one and stick with
that choice.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">But blessing
these unions in any way is an approval, an acceptance, of their ungodly
behavior.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The pope, because he knows it
is very controversial, is not fully accepting homosexual marriages <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">at this time</i>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Francis should show the world what he <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">really</i> believes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The question is, will he side with the God of
the Bible or will he refuse to because of some global agenda?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">This is just
an incremental game he’s playing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is
pretty obvious to me that the pope will indeed cave in somewhere down the line
and eventually allow such “marriages.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>It’s just a matter of time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When
the winds of change are strong enough, and he convinces enough people, I
believe the pope will reject the Scriptures and justify homosexual
marriages.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But I am certainly glad that
many Catholics are standing against the pope on this issue.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">He wants to
embrace the idea so that he can appease one group, and yet he is distancing
himself from it to appease another group.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>He is trying to please both sides.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>As they say, he wants to have his cake and eat it, too.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But either way, this “cake” will cause his
downfall, either in the eyes of God, or in the eyes of the LGBT crowd.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">A few months
ago, I posted an article addressing the pope’s views on homosexuality and dealt
with it in more detail.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>See here:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://answeringcatholicclaims.blogspot.com/2023/09/the-pope-on-homosexuality.html"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">https://answeringcatholicclaims.blogspot.com/2023/09/the-pope-on-homosexuality.html</span></a><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%;">How to Actually Handle This Sin<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">In another <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">NBC News</i> article on this topic, the pope
is quoted to have said, “We cannot be judges who only deny, reject, and
exclude.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>See here:</span><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/pope-francis-signals-open-blessing-same-sex-unions-catholic-priests-rcna118525"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Pope Francis signals he's open to
blessings for same-sex unions by Catholic priests (nbcnews.com)</span></a><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">If you’ll
notice, people who are constantly trying to justify their sins will often say
things like what the pope said just above.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>They will quote <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Matthew 7:1</i></b> – <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">“Judge not, that ye be not judged,”
</i></b>and say, “See!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Jesus, Himself,
says you can’t judge me!”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">But while it
is true that Christians should not just alienate and exclude people for selfish
reasons, it is right to exclude them for <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">biblical
</i>reasons.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is also true that Jesus <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">commanded</i> us to judge people, i.e., to
be fruit inspectors.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Yes, judging <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">rightly</i> <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(John 7:24)</i></b> is indeed a
biblical mandate.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Furthermore,
Jesus commanded us to treat those in the church WHO REFUSE TO REPENT OF THEIR
SIN as outcasts <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(Matthew 18:15-17)</i></b>,<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"> </i></b>including the sin of homosexuality.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But this alienation is only exercised by the
church <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">after first trying to reconcile
them to God</i>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They must first point
out the offender’s sin.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And if he
refuses to confess his sin, they should approach him with witnesses, and if he
still refuses to listen, he must be brought before the church (the local
assembly).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And if he’s still
unrepentant, he should be excommunicated for his refusal to turn from his sin,
and the whole local assembly is obligated to treat this person as an outsider
(unless and until he repents).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If the
Catholic Church (or <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">any</i> church) wants
to be biblical about this, they would confront homosexuals about their open
sinful lifestyle in the manner prescribed by Jesus in <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Matthew 18</i></b>.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Just Being Respectful?<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Trying to
excuse the pope’s action, some say that Francis, up to now, held back on his
present view out of respect to honor his predecessor (Benedict XVI), who was
more conservative.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But since Benedict
XVI is now dead, the new pope can move in the direction he sees fit. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">See here:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://slate.com/human-interest/2023/12/pope-francis-same-sex-relationships-blessing-backstory.html"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">https://slate.com/human-interest/2023/12/pope-francis-same-sex-relationships-blessing-backstory.html</span></a><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Whether
that’s true or not is pretty much irrelevant.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>If Francis is really concerned about honoring his more conservative
predecessor, he would maintain the previous pope’s ideals.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But because he hasn’t, I think that this is
just an excuse and that he really doesn’t care what Pope Benedict XVI believed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Remember, he has an agenda to follow.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Repent While There is Time<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">At the
beginning of this article, Francis was quoted as saying, “People seeking God’s
love and mercy should not be subject to ‘exhaustive moral analysis.’”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Two things I
want to address here.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>First, the pope is
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">assuming</i> that those in a gay union
are seeking God’s love and mercy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But
the simple truth is that if someone really wants to seek God, he will humbly
recognize his sin (from the Scriptures) and turn away from it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If he <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">really</i>
wants God’s love and mercy, he will <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">abandon</i>
his sinful lifestyle.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But if he refuses
to do this, then this just proves that he is really not concerned about seeking
God at all.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He just wants God’s love and
blessings, but refuses to get it on <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">God’s</i>
terms.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">He, like the
pope, wants to have his cake and eat it, too.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>He wants to do whatever his sinful heart desires, but also have God’s
approval in doing it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But the truth is the
acceptance that gays so desperately desire will never be found apart from God’s
way of doing things.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Secondly, it
is true that no one can prevail in an “exhaustive moral analysis.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We are <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">all</i>
sinners (whether homosexual or heterosexual) and we <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">all</i> deserve Hell.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We all
fail the test when analyzed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And yes, as
humans, we should not analyze someone simply to throw his sin in his face, or
to be “holier than thou.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">The reason
we point out someone’s sin should be out of compassion <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(Jude 1:20-23)</i></b> and to
make him aware of the danger – so that he can <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">repent</i> and ultimately avoid the Lake of Fire.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Pointing out sin (in the right spirit) is
actually an act of love.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I understand
that it is never pleasant when someone points out a person’s sin and it may be
easy to get offended.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But it is better
to be offended now and end up in Heaven than to pacify your feelings now, and later
suffer an eternity apart from God <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(Revelation 20:11-15)</i></b>.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Conclusion<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">To all those
who are in the LGBT camp, this pope is not doing you any favors by promoting
this lifestyle.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There are so many supporters
of gay rights out there who are more concerned with your present <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">feelings</i> than with your eternity.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If I didn’t care, I’d remain silent and never
talk about it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But this lifestyle of
unrepentant homosexuality is indeed spiritually dangerous and will draw you
away from God… just like the unrepentant <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">heterosexual</i>
can be drawn away by his own lusts, as well.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Both end up in Hell. <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(1 Corinthians 6:9)</i></b> <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">So, can Pope
Francis be trusted?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Is it ok for a man
of such power and influence to <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">formally</i>
make two absolutely contradictory Church declarations? Does this “Vicar of
Christ” really care for your soul?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I
will leave you to ponder these questions. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>Russellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17823479491839694646noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6730083483661000120.post-78338497906934416042024-01-05T18:46:00.000-08:002024-01-05T18:46:36.717-08:00“IF YOU CAN’T FIND JESUS, LOOK FOR HIS MOTHER”<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background-color: white; color: #001320; font-size: 20pt;">I had
seen bumper stickers of the title above and had also heard similar comments
from certain Catholics.</span><span style="color: #001320; font-size: 20pt;"> </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #001320; font-size: 20pt;">I know that
sometimes it may seem that God doesn’t hear our prayers, yet it is one of the
most basic needs of a believer to have his prayers answered.</span><span style="color: #001320; font-size: 20pt;"> </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #001320; font-size: 20pt;">We all want to know that </span><i style="color: #001320; font-size: 20pt;">somebody’s</i><span style="background-color: white; color: #001320; font-size: 20pt;"> listening.</span><span style="color: #001320; font-size: 20pt;"> </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #001320; font-size: 20pt;">I
understand that, and I understand the seeming desperation that most of us have experienced
at some point in our lives.</span><span style="color: #001320; font-size: 20pt;"> </span><span style="color: #001320; font-size: 20pt;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">But
this title reminds me of the story of a man who fell off the edge of a cliff at
night and managed to grab onto a small shrub on the way down, hanging on for
dear life between Heaven and earth.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In
the dark, he was unaware that safe and solid ground was only a couple of feet
beneath him.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The desperate man calls out
several times for help and no one answers.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Finally, he hears a loud voice from Heaven that says, “If you trust Me,
let go!”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The desperate man pauses and thinks
for a minute and then yells, “Is there <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">anyone
else</i> out there?!!”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Although
the story is intended to be funny, there is a disturbing truth within it that
causes some to want a “back-up” when praying.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>What if God doesn’t answer your plea for help?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Is your need so strong that you are willing
to compromise your spiritual walk with God?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Perhaps you, like King Saul, are desperate enough to go to a psychic or a
fortune teller if God doesn’t answer? <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(1 Samuel 28:7-19)</i></b><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Hopefully,
you would never do such a thing, since this would have dire spiritual </span><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-shading-themecolor: background1;">consequences </span><b><i><span style="background: white; color: black; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-shading-themecolor: background1;">(Leviticus 19:26,
31; 20:6, 27; 2 Kings 21:6; Isaiah 8:19-22)</span></i></b><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-shading-themecolor: background1;">.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">You may never
even consider such a thing… yet, you may feel like God is “uninterested” or
“too busy,” therefore it’s ok, as a Catholic, to call on some other “positive”
spiritual entity to help you, like Mary (Jesus’ mother).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Surely,
if Mary appeals to Jesus for you, He couldn’t turn <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">her</i> down, right?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>After all,
she is His mother, and as a kid, we know that if you wanted something, but you
were afraid to ask your father, Mom would often step in to increase your chances
of finding favor.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Therefore, it only
seems fitting to call on Mary to do the same for you, right?<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Several
Assumptions<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">This
slogan, “If you can’t find Jesus, look for His mother” assumes several
things.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>First, it assumes that one can have
the ability to communicate with Mary to start with.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It also assumes that one has God’s
permission, that <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">it’s ok,</i> to appeal
to Mary and ask for her help.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And if it
is ok, it assumes that she can actually <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">hear</i>
us.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">if </i>she hears us, it also assumes that she is <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">able</i> to help us in some way. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Furthermore,
this slogan is assuming that sometimes we (perhaps “less spiritual”) believers just
can’t “find” Jesus like we should.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But
why would anyone who has any biblical understanding think <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">that</i>? <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(Matthew 7:7-8; 11:28; 1 Peter 5:6-7)</i></b><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">The
slogan is also assuming that Jesus may not be touched by, or concerned with,
our needs.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>After all, He’s busy running
the universe!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What makes us think that
we are significant enough to even be on His “radar”?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But seriously, are Catholics really not aware
that He is indeed conscious of our needs? <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Hard to Find?<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“Seeing
then that we have a great high priest, that is passed into the heavens, Jesus
the Son of God, let us hold fast <span style="mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">our</span> profession.
For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our
infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as <span style="mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">we are, yet</span> without sin. Let us therefore come boldly
unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in
time of need.” (Hebrews 4:14-16)</span></i></b><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Jesus,
Himself, as a human, had needs and was tempted to sin, so He knows what it’s
like to be human and He knows our weaknesses.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Either, this passage is a lie or it is the truth.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Its message is very simple, nothing vague
about it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is telling us that we can,
indeed <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">should</i>, call on Him in time of
need.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Trusting in <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Him</i> is how we hold fast to our profession.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">But appealing
in prayer to someone else (even someone in Heaven, like Mary) is not <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">“holding
fast to our profession.”</i></b><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In
fact, doing so would <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">deviate</i> from our
profession.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>How so?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This passage is magnifying the person and
role of our New Testament High Priest, Jesus Christ.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is pointing to Him alone.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">In the
case of those who say, “If you can’t find Jesus, look for His mother,” their
interpretation of <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Hebrews 4:14-16</i></b> would have to be: “Hey everyone, let’s give
honor to Jesus, the Son of God, who has entered Heaven on our behalf and to
whom we can directly and boldly come, without hesitation to help us in time of
need (whether for salvation or anything else)… BUT, we will go to <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Mary</i> first!”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’m sorry, but that’s not giving Jesus the
honor He deserves <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(Revelation 17:14, 19:16) </i></b>and that’s not putting Him first and
foremost.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">But is
Jesus ever really “hard to find”?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>His
offer to <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">“come boldly unto the throne of grace”</i></b> does not permit the idea
of <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">praying to</i> <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">someone else</i> in order to get to Him.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It does not leave room for an appeal to another
person in Heaven.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He doesn’t say, “Come
boldly unto the throne of grace and if I have time, I’ll try to get to
you.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Or, “Come boldly unto the throne
of grace by going through other ‘mediators’ first who can then get My attention.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Or, “Come through My mother, who always puts
in a good word for you and convinces Me to help you.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Otherwise, I might not be interested.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">No,
there is no guessing what <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Hebrews 4:14-16</i></b> is saying.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If you turn your heart toward Him and seek
Him, you will find Him.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He will make
Himself known to you without having to go through other “heavenly intercessors.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That’s a promise.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>To say that there are others to which one
should pray is simply eisegesis (reading something into the text that is not
there).<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">On Whom are You
Really Depending?<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Now, Catholics
will say, “But we, just like you Protestants, also rely on people here on earth
when we ask them to pray for us.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So why
can’t we appeal to Mary or the saints in Heaven, who are far more spiritual
than anyone on earth?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Their prayers are
stronger than anyone else’s.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">But requesting
prayer from others here on earth is perfectly fine.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That is totally biblical, while requesting
prayer from others who are supposedly in Heaven is <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">not</i>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Catholics just don’t
seem to get the concept that there are absolutely <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">no examples</i> in the whole Bible of anyone praying to Mary or the
saints, and there is nothing to suggest that we should.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That idea is utterly absent from the pages of
Scripture.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Yet, that doesn’t stop Catholics
from doing it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This is because they are
simply being a faithful son or daughter of “Holy Mother Church.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You are doing what the Catholic Church tells
you to do.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">This
whole concept of depending on Mary’s intercession appears to be saying that
somehow, we can better depend on <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">her</i>
than we can on Jesus.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So, I would have
to ask, when addressing Mary in prayer, on whom are you really depending?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%;">A Purely Human Concept<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Recently, </span><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">a devout
Catholic and I were having a nice discussion and the conversation led to Mary
and the subject of praying to her.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>At
this point, the Catholic gave that familiar comment and said something along
these lines: “If, for some reason, you find it hard to pray to Jesus, pray to
His mother, instead.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She will surely
hear you and appeal to her Son to help you.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Well,
that <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">sounds</i> good, but t</span><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">his is purely a human (and <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">unbiblical</i>) mindset.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Yes, on earth, moms generally intercede for
their kids when speaking to their fathers.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>And that’s because many fathers may be harsh and unloving – nothing like
the High Priest in Heaven to which we have access today.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But He is a gracious Savior who knows what
you need before you even ask <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(Matthew 6:7-8)</i></b>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He just wants you to admit your need and come
humbly, yet confidently, to Him.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He
wants you to come directly to the Savior, not to a <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">relative</i> of the Savior.</span><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Pointing to
Jesus<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Catholics
are quick to say that Mary always points to Christ.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>For example, they love to use this particular
verse: <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“His
mother saith unto the servants, Whatsoever he saith unto you, do <span style="mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">it”</span> (John 2:5)</span></i></b><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">And
then they say, “See!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Approaching Mary is
a good thing, since she always points to her Son.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">every</i>
true Christian does that.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>How does that
separate Mary from other believers?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It
doesn’t.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">And
while we are on that topic, “pointing to Jesus” was exactly what John the
baptist was doing when he said:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“He </span></i></b><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[Jesus]<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"> must
increase, but I must decrease”</i></b> <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(John 3:30)</i></b>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">THAT<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"> </i>is pointing to Jesus and honoring Him,
and John did this while denying himself and lowering his own importance.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But, it’s funny, I have never seen a Catholic
ever use this verse to apply to <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Mary </i>decreasing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Why do you think that is?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’ll tell you why.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I believe that they will never accept any
lowering of Mary’s status, never admitting that Mary must also decrease,
because the Catholic Church will not let them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Interestingly,
there are far, far more Catholic shrines that were built to honor her than
there are to Jesus, and I’ve never seen a pope or any other Catholic official
object to this.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The Catholic Church will
turn its head the other way when there are large numbers of people who are
giving Mary “excessive devotion” (using the Catholic Church’s own term).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>No one seems to object to that.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But
don’t you dare suggest that Mary diminish her own status!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The Church will simply not let that happen. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">A Bit Much!<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">For
instance, look at this prayer from a doctor and “saint” of the Catholic Church
named Liguori:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-background-themecolor: background1;"><span style="background: #F6F6F6; color: black; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">"Most Holy and Immaculate Virgin! O my Mother! Thou who art the
Mother of my Lord, the Queen of the world, the Advocate, Hope, and Refuge of
sinners! I, the most wretched among them, now come to thee. <b><u>I worship
thee, great Queen</u></b>, and give thee thanks for the many favors thou hast
bestowed on me in the past; <b><u>most of all do I thank thee for having saved
me from hell</u></b>, which I had so often deserved.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I love thee, Lady most worthy of love, and, by
the love which I bear thee, I promise ever in the future to serve thee, and to
do what in me lies to win others to thy love.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span><b><u>In thee I put all my trust, all my hope of salvation</u></b>…” (emphasis
added)<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-background-themecolor: background1;"><span style="background: #F6F6F6; color: black; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">See here:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="http://laudatedominum.net/marian.php#sal"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">http://laudatedominum.net/marian.php#sal</span></a><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">If this
doesn’t offend you as a believer, there is something wrong with you.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>These are things said of Mary that the true
and biblical Mary would never accept or attribute to herself.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Actually,
the above prayer is from Liguori’s very popular book, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The Glories of Mary</i>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You can
find the book online here: <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><a href="http://www.themostholyrosary.com/the-glories-of-mary.pdf">http://www.themostholyrosary.com/the-glories-of-mary.pdf</a><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">It’s
funny that some will object that Liguori’s “worship” doesn’t really mean
worship, yet the extravagant language they use exposes them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As the old saying goes, “If it looks like a
duck, swims like a duck and quacks like a duck, then it is probably a duck!” <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The activity around Mary is, by definition, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">worship</i>, regardless of what the
non-biblical detractors <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">want</i> it to
mean.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: #F6F6F6; color: black; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">And this is only one of a multitude of blasphemous
comments and prayers in his book.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">See
also this article addressing Liguori’s book here:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://answeringcatholicclaims.blogspot.com/2019/04/liguoris-idolatry-and-catholic-churchs.html"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">https://answeringcatholicclaims.blogspot.com/2019/04/liguoris-idolatry-and-catholic-churchs.html</span></a><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Furthermore,
I think that another reason for not allowing Mary’s status to diminish is that
the Catholic Church plans to use this unbiblical version of her as a tool in
the global ecumenical arena to form a one-world religion as the Bible predicts <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(Revelation
13:8)</i></b>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As one source describes
it, she is:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; color: #1e1e1e; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“…
rapidly becoming the ‘queen of ecumenism,’ someone whom diverse religions can
honor, rally around, and even worship without offending their respective
theologies.” </span><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Very
well said!<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">See
here:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://www.thebereancall.org/content/mary-who?sapurl=Lys5MjZkL2xiL2xpLyt3dm44dWs4P2JyYW5kaW5nPXRydWUmZW1iZWQ9dHJ1ZSZyZWNlbnRSb3V0ZT1hcHAud2ViLWFwcC5saWJyYXJ5Lmxpc3QmcmVjZW50Um91dGVTbHVnPSUyQnd2bjh1azg"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">https://www.thebereancall.org/content/mary-who?sapurl=Lys5MjZkL2xiL2xpLyt3dm44dWs4P2JyYW5kaW5nPXRydWUmZW1iZWQ9dHJ1ZSZyZWNlbnRSb3V0ZT1hcHAud2ViLWFwcC5saWJyYXJ5Lmxpc3QmcmVjZW50Um91dGVTbHVnPSUyQnd2bjh1azg</span></a><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">=<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Conclusion<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">It is
critical to remember that there must be a clear distinction between mankind and
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">the Savior of mankind</i>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The problem with the Catholic Church’s magnifying
of Mary is that it causes this distinction to be blurred by such exalted
language.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">All
this boils down to the fact that the Catholic Church wants Mary to remain
exalted, even at the expense of Jesus losing status and staying in the
background.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Of course they won’t <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">say</i> this out loud, but this is the
logical consequence of a “continually increasing” Mary.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">It is
also interesting that many pictures we see of Mary often have her holding the
“baby Jesus.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Folks, let’s not forget
that <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">He grew up</i> and that He performed
His ministry and death on the cross (<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">the most
important part of His life</i>) as an adult, not while on His mom’s lap.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s as though there is a force in the
Catholic Church that wants Mary to appear to be the one in control, to be the
main figure, while Jesus is depicted as a toddler in need of guidance.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Now,
I’m certainly not saying that Mary shouldn’t have honor, since the Bible says
to give honor to whom honor is due <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(Romans 13:7)</i></b>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But praying to someone other than God is not
“honor” – it is <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">worship</i>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>All Christians will be exalted in due time,
but never as the object of prayer. <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(Acts 10:25-26; Revelation 22:8-9)<o:p></o:p></i></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Again,
Mary was a wonderful, humble and godly handmaid, whom I believe is in Heaven
today, but I’m sure that never did she expect to have such attention, devotion,
veneration and idolization directed toward her. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But if God would allow her, from Heaven, to
see all this attention directed toward her, I would bet that the humble Mary of
the Bible would be utterly grieved and weep over it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And I believe that she would say, “If you
can’t find Jesus, humble yourself and <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">continue
seeking Him</i>, since He is always nearby!” <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(Matthew 11:28; Acts 17:27)</i></b><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><br /></i></b></span></p>Russellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17823479491839694646noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6730083483661000120.post-34164812357317908042023-12-03T21:51:00.000-08:002023-12-03T21:51:31.452-08:00SOLA SCRIPTURA AND JESUS<p> </p><p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Then the devil taketh
Him up into the holy city, and set Him on a pinnacle of the temple, and saith
unto Him, “If Thou be the Son of God, cast Thyself down: for it is written, ‘He
shall give His angels charge concerning Thee, and in their hands they shall
bear Thee up, lest at any time Thou dash Thy foot against a stone.’”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Jesus said unto him, “It is written again,
‘thou shalt not tempt the Lord, thy God.’” (Matthew 4:5-7)<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">This is the
second of the devil’s temptations of Jesus recorded in Matthew’s gospel.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I find this particular temptation very
interesting in the way that Jesus responds to Satan.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The devil actually quotes <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Psalm
91:11-12</i></b> to Jesus in order to trick Him into doing something foolish. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But think of the irony – the arch-enemy of
Jesus Christ is quoting the Word of God (Scripture) to the very Word of God,
Himself, in the flesh (Jesus Christ).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I
think that it is safe to say that Jesus was familiar enough with the written
Word of God to answer the devil correctly.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Nevertheless,
I want to point out what is actually happening here in Matthew, from a <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">doctrinal</i> standpoint.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Jesus is reinforcing a well established
concept – “Scripture interprets Scripture.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>That is, we can take the simpler and clearer passages that we all agree
on and we can use those to establish principles to help us understand the less
understood passages. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Notice that
Jesus overcame the devil all three times with the phrase “It is written,” that
is, with Scripture <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(Matthew 4:1-10)</i></b>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>On
this particular occasion, He tells the devil, <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">“It is written <u>again</u></i></b>…”!
<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He doesn’t try to invoke tradition, or
the authority of some kind of Jewish “magisterium” like the Sanhedrin, or some
past Hebrew council to thwart the enemy of our soul.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>No, He goes <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">even farther</i> into the Word of God, because Scripture interprets
Scripture.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">When someone
misuses Scripture in a debate with you, you don’t have to divert to some other
source – you go <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">deeper </i>into Scripture
to clear the air.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You tell them, “But it
is <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">also</i> written…”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You counter with <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">the whole counsel of God in Scripture</i>, always using it in context.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">This is the
concept of Sola Scriptura, which is basically defined in this way:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Scripture is
the ultimate rule of faith for the church today because it is the only
infallible one.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Other tools and sources
can be used to help us in our Christian walk, but they are not infallible.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>No other source is on the same level as
Scripture.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We would do well to trust the
church’s <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">ultimate</i> rule of faith. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">For a deeper
understanding of the topic, the reader can type “Sola Scriptura” in the search
bar in the upper left-hand corner of this page to view many articles on this
topic.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%;">A Much-Ignored Chapter<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">The apostle
Paul reinforced this same concept in <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">2 Timothy 3</i></b>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This chapter is not in the Bible just to take
up space.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is an antidote to false
teaching.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Second Timothy is the final
epistle of the apostle Paul’s writings and there is certainly a sense of
urgency in his message.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He knows that he
will soon be martyred and he is leaving some very important “last words” for the
church. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He warns that in the last days
perilous times will come, doctrinally and otherwise <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(v. 1)</i></b>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In the next few verses <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(v.2-9)</i></b>, he prophesies in
graphic detail the circumstances with which the church will have to deal.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But many don’t realize that Paul was telling
us that the threat would come <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">from</i> <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">within</i> <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">the church</i>!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We all know that
the unbelieving world behaves in the way Paul describes, but Paul is talking
about some who would be <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">“having a form of godliness” (v. 5)</i></b>,
coming to the <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">“knowledge of the truth” (v. 7)</i></b>, and <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">“reprobate concerning the faith”
(v. 8)</i></b>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So again, he is
referring to some in the church whose doctrine and lives are perverted.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This is an apostasy, a falling from the
faith, a spiritual cancer in the church and it must certainly be dealt
with.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We can undeniably see much of this
happening even today.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Paul
continues and now switches his focus to the faithful:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“<u><span style="background: white; color: #001320;">But thou</span></u><span style="background: white; color: #001320;"> hast fully known my doctrine, manner of life, purpose, faith,
longsuffering, charity, patience, persecutions, afflictions…” <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>(v. 10-12)</span></span></i></b><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Notice the first thing listed here is <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">doctrine</i>. He goes on: <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“But
evil men and seducers shall wax worse and worse, deceiving, and being deceived”
(v. 13).</span></i></b><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">He is about
to give Timothy a remedy for the great deception that is coming.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“But
continue thou in the things which thou hast learned and hast been assured of,
knowing of whom thou hast learned <span style="mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">them</span>”
(v. 14).<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">The apostle assures the faithful that
his doctrine is the truth and that he is trustworthy.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">But Catholics will insist that <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">“the
things thou hast learned”</i></b> and <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">“hast been assured of”</i></b> refers to
“Sacred Tradition.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is no doubt true
that the precise words of Scripture were not the only words that Paul shared
with them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Obviously, he had also shared
other things that were not <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">specifically</i>
written down in the Word.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So, Catholics
will say that Paul <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">had to be</i>
referring to tradition.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But the fact
that tradition is not specifically mentioned here (while Scripture <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">will</i> be), and what Paul goes on to tell
them, clarifies his point.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">The Solution<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Now, the apostle will mention the cure
for surviving these latter day trials and doctrinal problems:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“And
that from a child thou hast known the holy scriptures, which are able to make
thee wise unto salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus” (v. 15).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></i></b><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Ok, so he <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">specifically</i> lists Scripture as the
answer to problems in doctrine and behavior.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Now, many Catholics will say that this passage only refers to the Old
Testament Scriptures, and therefore, this (supposedly) refutes the “Bible only”
doctrine, since it would actually mean “Old Testament only.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But this idea is refuted in the next verse:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“All
scripture <span style="mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">is</span> given by
inspiration of God, and <span style="mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">is</span> profitable
for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness”
(v. 16).</span></i></b><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">This verse
(along with <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">v. 17</i></b>) is savagely attacked by many non-believers in Sola
Scriptura, especially Catholics, and I believe it is because these two verses
are so clear, and they don’t like what the text is saying.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Like I said above, most of the attacks are
coming from those who claim to be Christians today, and the attack on this
passage is a case in point.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But this
passage’s detractors don’t <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">want</i> it to
be true and will fight tooth and nail in attempting to destroy its clear and
simple meaning.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%;">“Only” Scripture?<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Many will
claim that the text doesn’t say “ONLY Scripture is given by inspiration of
God,” etc., etc., but <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">all</i> Scripture,
therefore Sola Scriptura cannot be right.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>While the word “only” is not used, a simple assessment of the context
will show that <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">the concept</i> is indeed
there, as we will soon see.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Just because
specific phrases or words are absent, does not negate the idea of a given
concept.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Context will determine the
intended idea.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So, let’s not be so quick
to rule out the concept of “only Scripture” as the ultimate rule of faith.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Keep reading. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">The term <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">“by
inspiration of God”</i></b> is rendered “God-breathed” in the Greek.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This would of course denote infallibility in
that source.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Note that there is no other
rule of faith mentioned in all of Scripture that is given the title “God-breathed.”
<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">This fact
alone leans heavily toward the concept of Scripture alone.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But there’s more…<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%;">“Merely” Profitable?<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">But many
Catholics try to say that Scripture is <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">only</i>
profitable, since it doesn’t use the term “sufficient.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But why do Catholics focus on the supposed
“weakness” of the word <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">“profitable</i></b>,<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">”</i></b> yet ignore the power
and sufficiency of terms like <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">“inspired”</i></b> and <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">“thoroughly furnished”</i></b> <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(fully
equipped)</i></b> in the same context?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>It seems as though there is a double standard here.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">But the term
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">“inspired”</i></b>
(or <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">“God-breathed”</i></b>)
in this same passage does not allow for such a low view of the term “profitable.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s like saying that God is “merely good” to
us and nothing more.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But no one who is
serious about serving God would say this.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">As I
mentioned above, they will say that all of Scripture was not yet written at the
time of Paul’s epistle, so it couldn’t be referring to the New Testament, could
it?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But, using that same line of reasoning,
does anyone think that Paul really meant “All Scripture <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><u>written up to this time,</u></i><u> <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">but not the rest of it</i></u>” is profitable for doctrine, reproof,
correction and instruction in righteousness?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Absolutely not.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">That would
be like a Catholic saying, “All infallible/ex-cathedra statements of the
Catholic Church are true.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And we could
then ask, “Does that mean that ONLY the ones proclaimed UP TO THIS POINT are
true and that future ones may be <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">false</i>?”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>No, he would argue that “all” means all.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Remember, Paul was not <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">just</i> addressing the needs of the early church, but also those of
the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">future</i> church <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(v.
1)</i></b>, as well.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So, this argument
doesn’t hold.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">When Paul
said “All Scripture,” he was looking ahead and including everything that God
ever intended to be Scripture.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Otherwise, you’d have to say that not all of the New Testament was
God-breathed!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%;">The Complete and Sufficient “Toolbox”<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">And finally:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“That
the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works” (v.
17).<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">So we see here that Scripture is able
to make one perfect (i.e., mature and complete) and <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">throughly </i></b>[thoroughly]<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">
furnished for</i></b> <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">“all good works.”</i></b><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Now, remember, starting from <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">v. 10</i></b>,
Paul is focusing heavily on doctrine, and Scripture is the remedy for this
great deception.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So, doctrinally
speaking, if this book we call the Bible is 1) infallible, 2) able to keep us
from deception, and 3) able to equip us for every/all good works, then we need
no other infallible source. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">To use an analogy, if you were an auto
mechanic and your boss gave you a toolbox that equipped you for every auto
mechanic’s job that you could possibly run into, wouldn’t that toolbox be
sufficient?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Yes, it would.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Do you need another toolbox for foreign cars
or pick-up trucks?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>No, not if the one he
gave you equips you for <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">every mechanic’s
job</i>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Again, this mechanic’s toolbox
would suffice.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">In the same way, Scripture is our rule
of faith, our “toolbox” of doctrine which equips us for <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">every good work</i>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Since this
is true, there is no other source needed today TO FUNCTION AS AN INFALLIBLE
RULE OF FAITH.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">By definition</i>, Scripture is all that is needed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So t</span><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">he Bible necessarily and effectively eclipses and replaces
any other source that claims to be an infallible rule of faith.</span><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"> <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">No tradition is on the same level as
Scripture, unless that tradition is both 1) already part of the Bible and 2) in
line with its principles.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>For example,
Jesus’ mention of the tradition of the Pharisees <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(Mark 15:1-13)</i></b> is
certainly referred to in the Bible, but it is excluded as an authoritative
source because it doesn’t line up with the rest of Scripture.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And any other tradition whose concepts are
not in line with the Bible’s are also rejected.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Not to mention the fact that the
Catholic Church has never been able to clearly and exactly say what the
contents of its tradition are in any meaningful way.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They will give us extremely vague definitions
of tradition, or distract people by giving some <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">examples </i>of Sacred Tradition, but they can’t identify the whole of
Catholic Tradition with certainty, and the Catholic Church’s weak attempts at
doing so are an absolute joke.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>See these
articles:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://answeringcatholicclaims.blogspot.com/2022/07/the-lonely-pilgrim-and-sacred-tradition.html"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">https://answeringcatholicclaims.blogspot.com/2022/07/the-lonely-pilgrim-and-sacred-tradition.html</span></a><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://answeringcatholicclaims.blogspot.com/2010/05/what-about-tradition.html"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">https://answeringcatholicclaims.blogspot.com/2010/05/what-about-tradition.html</span></a><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Conclusion<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">There are
many who would want to add other “authorities” to the Bible, and even claim
they are <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">equal </i>to it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But it always happens that when something
other than Scripture is introduced as an “equal supplement” (like tradition,
councils or “magisteriums”), Scripture always gets put on the back burner, and
truth takes a serious hit.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">We see here in
this article only a tiny portion of the writings of one of the greatest apostles
who ever lived – a man whom God infallibly used to write one third of the New
Testament.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Under the inspiration of the
Holy Spirit, this man was used to reveal (and unpack the details of) a most
critical doctrine just before he was martyred by an evil and ungodly generation
of men.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The apostle Paul gives us the
clearest understanding of the concept of Sola Scriptura (Scripture Alone as the
ultimate and only infallible rule of faith for the church today).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Will the church in this modern day embrace
and take advantage of this teaching?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Regretfully, the truth is that many will not, thus hastening the
apostasy of which Paul spoke <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(2 Timothy 3:1-5).</i></b><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Today, more
than ever, we need to recognize the power of Scripture as our ultimate source
for doctrine and guidance, and to guard against the inevitable deception and
false teaching we’re seeing in the modern (and last days) church.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That is the purpose of Sola Scriptura.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>Russellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17823479491839694646noreply@blogger.com24tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6730083483661000120.post-58683753145588505092023-11-03T18:25:00.000-07:002023-11-03T18:25:35.263-07:00VENIAL AND MORTAL SIN<p> </p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 20.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">In Catholic
theology, there are two categories of sin: “venial” and “mortal.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>According to the Catechism of the Catholic
Church:<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background: white; color: black; font-size: 20.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-style: italic; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“Mortal sin</span><span style="background: white; color: black; font-size: 20.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"> destroys
charity in the heart of man by a grave violation of God's law; it turns man
away from God, who is his ultimate end and his beatitude, by preferring an
inferior good to him.</span><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 20.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">” (CCC
#1855)<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; color: black; font-size: 20.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">“For a <i>sin</i> to
be <i>mortal,</i> three conditions must together be met: ‘Mortal sin
is sin whose object is grave matter and which is also committed with full
knowledge and deliberate consent.’" (CCC #1857 – emphasis in original)<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background: white; color: black; font-size: 20.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">On the other
hand, they believe that venial sin is not as serious:</span><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 20.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p style="background: white; line-height: 25.6pt;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 20pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">“One commits <i>venial
sin</i> when, in a less serious matter, he does not observe the standard
prescribed by the moral law, or when he disobeys the moral law in a grave
matter, but without full knowledge or without complete consent.” (CCC #1862 –
emphasis in original)<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p style="background: white; line-height: 25.6pt;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 20pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">“Venial sin weakens
charity; it manifests a disordered affection for created goods; it impedes the
soul's progress in the exercise of the virtues and the practice of the moral
good; it merits temporal punishment. Deliberate and unrepented venial sin
disposes us little by little to commit mortal sin. However venial sin does not
break the covenant with God. With God's grace it is humanly reparable. ‘Venial
sin does not deprive the sinner of sanctifying grace, friendship with God,
charity, and consequently eternal happiness.’” (CCC #1863)<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 20.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Notice the term
“humanly reparable.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’ll come back to
that later.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 22.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Is All Sin the Same?<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 20.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Since</span><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">
Protestants don’t generally believe in the categories of “mortal” and “venial”
sins, many Catholics will therefore say that Protestants believe “all sin is
the same.” <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">But to clear the air, let me assure you that <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">all sin is not equal</i>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>God is just and His punishment for stealing a
candy bar is not the same as it is for randomly killing someone.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Yet, the person stealing the candy bar (if
unrepentant) will be in the same Lake of Fire as the person who murders (if unrepentant).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>God sends them both to Hell.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They’ll just be eternally suffering on <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">different levels</i>. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">All sin is indeed equal in terms of your <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">final destination</i>, but not in terms of
intensity of punishment.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So, your “little”
(venial) sins are still incredibly serious and must be dealt with.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>People are often taught that a “little white
lie” is no big deal, but again, we should treat all sin with the same sense of
urgency. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">The “seven deadly sins” that the Bible speaks
of <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(Proverbs
6:16-19) </i></b>are not the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">only</i>
ones that are deadly!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>All sin, if not
repented of, is mortal.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">From
Whence Cometh This Doctrine?<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 20.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">So, where does
the Catholic Church get this idea of two categories of sin?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Well, there is a footnote in CCC #1854 that
points to a Scripture passage that seems to be the pivotal reason that they
believe in venial and mortal sin:<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 20.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">If any man see his brother sin a
sin <span style="mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">which is</span> not unto
death, he shall ask, and he shall give him life for them that sin not unto
death. There is a sin unto death: I do not say that he shall pray for it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>All unrighteousness is sin: and there is a
sin not unto death. (</span></i></b><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">1 John 5:16-17)<span style="background: white; color: #001320;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></i></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Catholics claim that the apostle John is
saying here that some sins are <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">not</i>
deadly.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But Scripture is clear that ALL
sin kills – EVERY sin makes you eligible for Hell:<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="background: white; color: #001320;"><o:p></o:p></span></i></b></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 20.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">For whosoever shall keep the whole
law, and yet offend in one <span style="mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">point</span>,
he is guilty of all.</span></i></b><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"> (James 2:10)<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 20.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">For as many as are of the works of
the law are under the curse: for it is written, Cursed <span style="mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">is</span> every one that continueth not
in <u>all things</u> which are written in the book of the law to do them.
(Galatians 3:10 – </span></i></b><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 20.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Emphasis
added<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">)</i></b></span><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></i></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">These two verses just above are saying that
the law is a package deal.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If you break <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">only one</i> of His commandments, you are
guilty of breaking God’s law <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">as a whole</i>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If you are in court for breaking a law, the
judge will not let you go simply because you got <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">most of them</i> right.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You are
still guilty of breaking the law of the land.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>We must realize that God’s law is not just a random assortment of loose
principles and ideas, it should be taken very seriously because it is the
essence of His character and desire.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">I believe that <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">1 John 5:16-17</i></b> above is
actually talking about the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">unpardonable</i>
sin that Jesus spoke of in <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Matthew 12:31-32</i></b>. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The unpardonable sin is not just one
particular sin – it is the end result of a continual hardening process of a
person’s unrepentant heart over time. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Every</i> individual sin can be forgiven,
but Jesus is alluding to the fact that a person’s heart has reached a certain level
of coldness and hostility where there is no turning back.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He is sinning against the Holy Spirit, the
member of the Trinity whose work it is to convict us of sin and to lead us to
repentance <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(John 16:8; Romans 2:4)</i></b> – and this sin is a complete rejection,
a despising of that work of the Spirit.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Concerning blasphemy of the Holy Spirit, if someone
fears that he has crossed the line and is worried that he may have committed
this sin, the chances are very good that he <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">hasn’t</i>,
because the person who is guilty of this sin is not concerned about it and will
not want anything to do with God.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He is
beyond help.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is the point of no return,
where grace is no longer available.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That
is a terrifying place to be!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I think
that <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">this</i> is the point in <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">1
John 5:16-17</i></b>, it is not describing “mortal” versus “venial” sins.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>All sins are mortal (deadly) – until you
repent of them!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>None are mortal if they
are confessed and forgiven.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Error
in the Catechism<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">I want to point out a couple of things from
the Catechism quote that that I mentioned at the beginning of this article (CCC
#1863).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>First, it says:</span><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">“<span style="color: black;">Deliberate and
unrepented venial sin disposes us little by little to commit mortal sin…”</span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">I pretty much agree with this statement in the
sense that your “little” sins, if unconfessed and the person remains
unrepentant, can lead to a hardening of the heart, and ultimately destroy you. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So, this just proves our point that “venial”
sins are <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">also</i> dangerous and can lead
to eternal damnation.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So, there is no
separate category.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Every</i> sin is a “grave matter.”<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">The second point of the Catechism quote that I
want to address is this: <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">“<span style="color: black;">With God's grace it
[venial sin] is humanly reparable.”</span><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="https://www.catholic.com/audio/sp/are-some-sins-worse-than-others"></a><strong><span style="font-size: 20pt; font-weight: normal;">This suggests some sort of “restitution”
that the sinner is able to pay. In the
Catholic scheme of things, forgiveness can be applied to the sinner only after
some sort of work is done (penance). But
</span></strong><strong><span style="font-size: 20pt; font-weight: normal;">t</span></strong><span style="color: black; font-size: 20.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">here is absolutely no sin that is reparable by any mere human in
Christianity.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The only “repairing”
needed has already been done by Jesus Christ on His cross.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This is the absolute cure for the effects of
sin.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>John the baptist so eloquently said
about Jesus, “Behold the Lamb of God who TAKES AWAY the sin of the world” <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(John
1:29)</i></b>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Jesus didn’t just <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">cover</i> our sins, as was done in the Old
Testament. He takes them away, past, present and even future sins (<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">if</i> we repent and confess them). </span><span style="font-size: 20.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black; font-size: 20.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">To gain salvation, all we can do
is <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">surrender </i>to Him and <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">believe/trust</i> in His suffering and work
on that cruel cross.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That is the gospel
– that is the good news.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We don’t have
to constantly worry if we have done enough.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>There are no rituals or works of charity that can <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">repair, improve, </i>or<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"> restore </i>our
broken relationship with God.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Only the
cross and only through Jesus. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p style="background: white; margin-top: 0in;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Martin
Luther<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p style="background: white; margin-top: 0in;"><span style="font-size: 20pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">There is a story about Martin
Luther, the Protestant Reformer and former Catholic priest. As a Catholic, he became extremely aware of
his sin and was so tormented by it that as soon as he finished his confession
and came out of the Catholic confessional, he would remember another sin and immediately
rush back into the confessional to confess it.
Sometimes he would spend <i>hours </i>in
the confessional. This was torture for
both Luther <i>and</i> the priest! The priest, wearied by Luther’s obsession,
reportedly told him that if he wanted to confess a sin, go out and commit
something worthy of confession.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p style="background: white; margin-top: 0in;"><span style="font-size: 20pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">The Catholic Church had Luther
(and all its members) thinking that he must merit his salvation through works
of some kind or another. But this was sheer
torture for him. He seemed to never be
able to do enough. He rightly understood
God’s hatred of sin (while most people don’t), but he was utterly
helpless. His sins terrorized him daily,
but in the Catholic system there was no relief.
<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">But one day he finally came to fully
understand the phrase, <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">“… the just shall live by faith”</i></b> <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(Romans
1:17)</i></b>, whereupon he finally achieved <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">the peace of God</i> – and it revolutionized the history of the
medieval church.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">We have to commend Luther for his zeal and his
fear of God.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This is good.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But there is a balance – we also need God’s
peace to be able to live the Christian life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>The problem is that he was desperately trying to rid himself of sin
through a works-based salvation.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Luther
misunderstood the power of God’s grace and the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">sufficiency</i> of the work that Jesus did on the cross.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We must remember Jesus’ last words, <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">“It
is finished!”</i></b> <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(John 19:30)</i></b>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">See these articles on Luther and his battle
with sin:<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="https://www.placefortruth.org/blog/justification-and-martin-luther"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">https://www.placefortruth.org/blog/justification-and-martin-luther</span></a><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="https://www.pbs.org/empires/martinluther/monk_penance.html#:~:text=Priests%20took%20confession%20from%20their,in%20to%20repent%20further%20sins"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">https://www.pbs.org/empires/martinluther/monk_penance.html#:~:text=Priests%20took%20confession%20from%20their,in%20to%20repent%20further%20sins</span></a><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="https://worldlysaints.wordpress.com/2017/01/04/martin-luther-his-confessions-and-battle-against-sin/"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">https://worldlysaints.wordpress.com/2017/01/04/martin-luther-his-confessions-and-battle-against-sin/</span></a><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Also, the practice of confession to a priest
is not a biblical one.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>See these
articles:<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="https://answeringcatholicclaims.blogspot.com/2023/01/the-sacraments-of-catholic-church-part.html"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">https://answeringcatholicclaims.blogspot.com/2023/01/the-sacraments-of-catholic-church-part.html</span></a><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="https://answeringcatholicclaims.blogspot.com/2011/08/hi-jacking-of-john-2023.html"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">https://answeringcatholicclaims.blogspot.com/2011/08/hi-jacking-of-john-2023.html</span></a><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p style="background: white; margin-top: 0in;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Conclusion<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">The question to ask is, “WHY is the sin in 1
John 5 a “sin not unto death,” and the other a “sin unto death”?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The answer is simply because the first one is
FORGIVEN/FORGIVABLE and the second is NOT!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>This erroneous Catholic concept of venial and mortal sins goes against
clear biblical teaching elsewhere that says, <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">“The wages of sin is death”
(Romans 6:23)</i></b>, or <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">“The soul that sins, it shall die” (Ezekiel 18:4)</i></b>,
or <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">“He
which converteth the sinner… shall save a soul from death” (James 5:20)</i></b>,
or <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">“And
you… who were dead in trespasses and sin…” (Ephesians 2:1)</i></b>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Therefore, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">any</i> <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">and all sin</i> (apart
from a repentant heart) brings spiritual death.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-background-themecolor: background1;"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Now,
this doesn’t mean that a Christian <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">loses</i>
and <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">gains</i> his salvation every time he
sins and repents, over and over.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>No, as
long as he maintains his trust in Christ and his attitude is one of continual
repentance, his sin is washed away.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This
applies to even those secret sins of which he may be <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">unaware</i> <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(Psalm 90:8)</i></b>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Biblical confession is not a ritualistic or
robotic procedure in which every single personal thought has to be remembered and
painstakingly processed into a system where we can infallibly identify every
single sin in our lives – and then “formally” confess them to a priest.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>No, remember the thief on the cross?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He simply said from the heart, <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">“…Lord,
remember me when Thou comest into Thy kingdom”</i></b> <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(Luke 23:42)</i></b>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Jesus knew his heart and immediately forgave
him.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p style="background: white; margin-top: 0in;"><span style="font-size: 20pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">We must be careful when attempting
to categorize sins as venial or mortal, as people might tend to view some of
their sins as “minor” and be casual about them. These two distinctions have certainly caused
confusion in the body of Christ.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p style="background: white; margin-top: 0in;"><span style="font-size: 20pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">So let us take care to be biblical
with our view of sin. In the end, we
must have balance – a healthy fear of God, yet a firm peace in our hearts,
knowing the sufficiency of Jesus’ work. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p style="background: white; margin-top: 0in;"><span style="font-size: 20pt;"><o:p><span style="font-family: inherit;"> </span></o:p></span></p>Russellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17823479491839694646noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6730083483661000120.post-72421358092564225422023-10-03T12:25:00.001-07:002023-10-03T12:49:19.283-07:00WORSHIP AND PRAYER<p> <span style="font-size: 20pt;">Catholics
believe that it is ok, and even beneficial, to pray to “saints,” i.e., those
who have lived exemplary and honorable lives on earth, but are now in Heaven (</span><i style="font-size: 20pt;">Catechism of the Catholic Church, #2683</i><span style="font-size: 20pt;">).</span><span style="font-size: 20pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 20pt;">Likewise, they believe that it is very
profitable to pray to Mary, the mother of Jesus Christ (</span><i style="font-size: 20pt;">CCC #2769</i><span style="font-size: 20pt;">).</span><span style="font-size: 20pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 20pt;">They also
believe that it is ok to pray to angels (</span><i style="font-size: 20pt;">New
Catholic Encyclopedia, 1967, Vol.11, p. 673</i><span style="font-size: 20pt;">).</span><span style="font-size: 20pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 20pt;">However, Protestants seem to have a problem
with all this.</span><span style="font-size: 20pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 20pt;">But Catholics may wonder
why.</span><span style="font-size: 20pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 20pt;">After all, we need all the help we
can get when it comes to prayer, right?</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%;">Well, the
problem is our understanding of the similarities and differences between
worship and prayer in Scripture.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We
Protestants contend that 1) prayer is actually <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">a form of worship</i> and 2) therefore, only God should receive
prayer.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We believe that prayer to anyone
or anything else is idolatry and we should have nothing to do with this sin:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“Wherefore,
my dearly beloved, flee from idolatry.”</span></i></b><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">
</span></i></b><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%;">(1 Corinthians 10:14)</span></i></b><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%;"> <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%;">Unfortunately,
Catholics have a different understanding of worship and prayer than that which
is in the Bible. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22pt; line-height: 115%;">Inseparable<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%;">There are many
different words for “worship” in the Bible.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>But there is nothing in the context of any of these passages where the
idea of prayer is expected to be divorced or detached from any form of
worship.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Worship is not only an external
action you do, but it is also an <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">attitude</i>.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%;">Obviously,
God can be worshipped in many ways – in your relationships, your job, your
praise and singing, your finances, your good works, in all aspects of your
life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But an attitude of prayer is <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">always</i> connected to proper forms of
worship.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Prayer should never be reduced
to mean mere “conversation,” or the act of simply “asking” for something, as
many Catholics argue.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But to divorce
worship from prayer is to destroy the very essence of both terms!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">There
is certainly an “overlap” between the two.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%;">Invariably,
the term “pray” or “prayer” in Scripture is automatically assumed by its
authors to be an act of worship.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Proper
prayer is <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">only</i> and <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">always</i> directed toward God.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Please let this sink in.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There are NO examples in Holy Writ of
acceptable prayer to ANYONE other than God:</span><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“<span style="background: white; color: #001320;">Whom have I in heaven <span style="mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">but thee</span>? and <span style="mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">there
is</span> none upon earth <span style="mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">that</span> I
desire beside thee.”</span> (Psalm 73:25)</span></i></b><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%;">Now, please
understand that prayer and worship are not the same things, but are vitally <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">dependent</i> on each other.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>On the one hand, true prayer depends on
worship, since your prayer to God is useless apart from an attitude of worship <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(Matthew
15:8)</i></b>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As I said just above, if
there is no worship involved, praying would be just “conversation” or “asking.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>On the other hand, true worship depends on a
prayerful attitude.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>After all, who can
say that they are exercising true worship apart from communing with God?<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%;">Thus, prayer
and worship are distinct, but <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">inseparable</i>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22pt; line-height: 115%;">“I Pray Thee…”?<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%;">There are
multiple arguments from Catholics for praying to Mary and the saints.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>One such argument is by Catholic apologist
Tim Staples, who wrote an article attempting to justify this type of
prayer.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%;">See his
article here:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://www.catholic.com/magazine/online-edition/is-prayer-synonymous-with-worship"><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%;">https://www.catholic.com/magazine/online-edition/is-prayer-synonymous-with-worship</span></a><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%;">In this
article, Staples strives to demonstrate that prayer to saints is not <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">adoration</i> (worship), and he uses the
extremely weak argument that the term “I pray thee” is actually a <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">prayer</i> <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(entreaty)</i> <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">to the person
addressed</i>, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">even if it is another
human!</i> <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></i>He then refers to<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"> <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">1 Kings 2:20 </b></i>as an
example, where Bathsheba addresses her son, King Solomon, and asks a request of
him, which begins with the words: <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%;">“I pray thee, say me
not nay…”</span></i></b><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%;">And she goes
on to make her request of him.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%;">But again, Staples
considers this to be authentic prayer and says: <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%;">“There was
never a question here of whether the King James Bible was presenting Bathsheba
as adoring her son as God, or <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">praying</i>
to him in a way that was forbidden.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It
was not.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Nor are Catholics when we <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">pray</i> to saints.” (Emphasis in original)<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%;">Of course no
one with the slightest bit of biblical understanding would say that Bathsheba
was “adoring” her son in the same way she would adore God.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And her entreaty was not in the least a
prayer in any <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">biblical</i> sense.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Staples is using a Catholic “straw man” argument
here and it crashes and burns.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%;">Notice he
says above: <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%;">“… or
praying to him in a way that was forbidden.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%;">What?!! <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The only thing that should be “forbidden”<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"> </i>here is Staples trying to inject the
idea of <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">prayer</i> in the context of <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">1
Kings 2:20</i></b>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He is trying to
imply that there is a <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">correct</i> way to
pray to a person, but the multitude of prayer examples in Scripture will not permit
him to suggest praying to anyone but God! <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He either doesn’t see it or he <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">refuses</i> to see it. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I suspect it is the latter.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%;">Tim Staples
goes on to say that “The Catholic Church has gone to great lengths to define
the essential difference between prayer to God and prayer to saints.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Yes, they have, but we can successfully sum
it up much quicker: Prayer to God is <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">biblical</i>
and prayer to saints is not.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22pt; line-height: 115%;">Assumptions and Scripture Twisting<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%;">I think the
whole point is that Catholics start out <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">assuming</i>
that it is ok to pray to the dead because the Church encourages such prayer. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%;">Tim Staples qualifies
the practice of praying to saints and says: <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%;">“We
certainly <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">honor</i> them when we pray to
them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In other words, we do not talk to
them like we talk to the boys at the local bar and grill.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We show great respect and reverence for them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But we do not adore them as we adore God
alone.” (Emphasis in original)<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%;">There is
nothing wrong with giving honor to whom honor is due <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(Romans 13:7)</i></b>, but <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">praying </i>to someone is far more than
showing mere respect or simple human reverence.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%;">Furthermore,
he says: <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%;">“And we also
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">petition</i> them for their prayers
because Scripture makes very clear that we <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">need</i>
each other as members of the body of Christ.” (Emphasis in original)<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%;">For this, he
appeals to <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">1 Corinthians 12:12-27</i></b>, which is about the diversity and
necessity of everyone participating in the local body.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But the members of the body that the apostle
Paul is referring to are the ones that are <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">living</i>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Paul <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">never</i>
implies that we need the help of those saints who have gone on before us.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There is <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">no</i>
passage in all of Scripture to suggest this.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22pt; line-height: 115%;">Building a Case?<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%;">I’ve seen
Catholics suggest that there is a cumulative, or collective, argument for
prayer to Mary and the saints.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In other
words, there is this long string of evidence for praying to these saints and it
goes something like this:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="text-align: left; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">1) </span></span><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%;">Christians can help one another
through their prayers.<o:p></o:p></span></p></blockquote>
<blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="text-align: left; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">2)<span style="font: 7pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%;">We are one body of believers (both
dead and alive).<o:p></o:p></span></p></blockquote>
<blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="text-align: left; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">3) </span></span><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%;">Some people’s prayers are stronger
than others.<o:p></o:p></span></p></blockquote>
<blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="text-align: left; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">4) </span></span><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%;">The saints are <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">more alive</i> now than they ever were (because they are in Heaven).<o:p></o:p></span></p></blockquote>
<blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="text-align: left; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">5) </span></span><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%;">We have a “cloud of witnesses” in
Heaven <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(Hebrews 12:1)</i></b>, and they pray for us.<o:p></o:p></span></p></blockquote>
<blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="text-align: left; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">6) </span></span><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%;">In <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Revelation 6:9-10</i></b>, there
is intercession by those in Heaven for those on earth.<o:p></o:p></span></p></blockquote>
<blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="text-align: left; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">7) </span></span><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%;">Mary had the closest relationship
with Jesus, more than anyone.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So, her
prayers must be the strongest.<o:p></o:p></span></p></blockquote>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%;">Ok, so this
is supposed to be a cumulative argument, but it just takes <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">one</i> weak link to collapse this whole line of thinking.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22pt; line-height: 115%;">Weak Links in the Chain<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%;">So let’s
break this down.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="text-align: left; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">1)<span style="font: 7pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%;">Their first point is that Christians
can help one another through their prayers.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Absolutely.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This is
scriptural.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We have no problem with this
idea.<o:p></o:p></span></p></blockquote>
<blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="text-align: left; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">2)<span style="font: 7pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%;">Second, the assertion is that both
living and dead Christians are part of the one body.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>True, but we (the living) now have no more
dealings with those who have gone on before us.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>We will be re-united with them at our death (or the Rapture), but until
then, there is no indication in the Bible that we can communicate with them or
pray to them.<o:p></o:p></span></p></blockquote>
<blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="text-align: left; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">3)<span style="font: 7pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%;">Third, yes, the prayers of some are
more effective than those of others <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(James 5:16)</i></b>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But there is nothing here at all about the
prayers of the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">dead</i>.<o:p></o:p></span></p></blockquote>
<blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="text-align: left; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">4)<span style="font: 7pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%;">Those who have gone on before us (to
Heaven) are more alive than they ever were before.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In a sense, that is true, but they are still
in the category of “the dead” <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(</i></b></span><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Isaiah
26:19; Luke 20:37; Acts 23:6; 1 Thessalonians 4:16)</span></i></b><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">.</span><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Just because they are
“more alive than ever” doesn’t mean that we can pray to them or that they can
communicate with us.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This gets
dangerously close to necromancy <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(Deuteronomy 18:10-13)</i></b>.<o:p></o:p></span></p></blockquote>
<blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="text-align: left; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">5)<span style="font: 7pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%;">The “cloud of witnesses” passage <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(Hebrews
12:1)</i></b> is all about the Old Testament believers’ EXAMPLE OF FAITH to us.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This statement is a <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">continuation</i> of the context of<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"> Hebrews chapter 11</i></b>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The author’s point is NOT that they are now <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">spectators</i>, and that they are all
watching what is happening to us on earth (although it is <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">possible</i> that God can allow them to).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But the whole point of the passage is that
they are witnesses of the same message of faith and hope and that we should <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">follow their lead</i> </span><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">(…<span style="background: white;">let us </span></span></i></b><span style="background: white; font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[also]<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"> run with patience the race that
is set before us – 12:1b)</i></b></span><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%;">; they encourage us as role models of the faith.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This is in no way a “proof” that those in
Heaven are watching us.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And if they <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">are</i> watching us, so what?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We are never told in Scripture that they can
pray for us.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is another Catholic <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">assumption</i>.<o:p></o:p></span></p></blockquote>
<blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="text-align: left; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">6)<span style="font: 7pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%;">Concerning the souls who cry out for
vengeance on their enemies in <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Revelation 6</i></b>, this is another weak
attempt to “prove” that those in Heaven are watching us.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Maybe they are or maybe they aren’t, but it still
doesn’t mean they should be prayed to.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This
passage just means that they were waiting for retribution on their enemies.<o:p></o:p></span></p></blockquote>
<blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="text-align: left; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">7)<span style="font: 7pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%;">Ok, Mary certainly had a close
relationship with her Son, Jesus.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That’s
obvious.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But it is an illogical leap to
go from that idea to her being able to pray for us after her death, when there
is absolutely no biblical evidence for that.<o:p></o:p></span></p></blockquote>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%;">So this
“cumulative argument,” this “long string of evidence for praying to saints” has
several weak links within and therefore, collapses upon itself.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This does not prove that we can pray to Mary
or the saints or that they are able to help us, or intercede for us.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But we do know living saints, here on earth
can pray for each other <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(Colossians 4:3; 1 Thessalonians 5:25;
Hebrews 13:18)</i></b> and that Jesus, Himself, intercedes for us <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(Romans
8:34)</i></b> and so does the Holy Spirit <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(Romans 8:26).</i></b><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22pt; line-height: 115%;">Prayer – the Highest Form of Worship<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%;">Some pastors,
like John MacArthur, believe that prayer is the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">highest </i>form of worship.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I
don’t agree with <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">everything</i> he says
(e.g., his Calvinism), but I do agree with his view of prayer and worship:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%;">“Godly
prayer is worship, acknowledging His sovereign will and our utter dependence…”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%;">“If prayer
is anything, it is the highest form of worship that an individual can
participate in, because prayer is saying, ‘God, Your name, Your kingdom, Your
will be elevated, not my will, not my kingdom, not my name.’”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%;">“True prayer
is the distilled essence of worship…”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%;">I certainly
agree.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%;">See his
article here:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://www.gty.org/library/sermons-library/90-447/prayer-the-highest-form-of-worship"><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%;">https://www.gty.org/library/sermons-library/90-447/prayer-the-highest-form-of-worship</span></a><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22pt; line-height: 115%;">Conclusion<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%;">The Catholic
Church claims that there are three “levels” of prayer: Dulia (toward the
“saints”), Hyperdulia (toward Mary) and Latria (toward God).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This is certainly not a biblical concept and
it seems a little complicated.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>For
example, how do you know when you have crossed the line from dulia into
hyperdulia?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Or from hyperdulia into
latria?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It seems pretty subjective <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">and dangerous</i> to me.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Catholics may claim that they can “discern”
the differences, yet they can’t see the utter absence of this type of prayer in
the multitude of examples of acceptable prayer in Scripture.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In this way, they are much like the religious
Pharisees in Jesus’ day, who would filter out a gnat, yet swallow a camel <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(Matthew
23:24)</i></b>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>How could they miss
something so obvious?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">If there were indeed examples of
prayer to saints in Scripture, you can bet that the Catholic Church would be pointing
to them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This is very telling indeed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The “elephant in the room” has always been
the fact that there are NO EXAMPLES in the Bible of anyone (rightly) praying to
anyone but God.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Catholic apologists tell us
Protestants that we shouldn’t confuse worship and prayer.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But according to the Bible, it is obvious
that the confusion is on <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">their</i>
part.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Prayer is not just “asking” for
something, or “conversing” with a lesser being.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Prayer is a form (possibly the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">highest</i>
form) of worship.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Both worship and
prayer belong to God <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">alone</i>.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>Russellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17823479491839694646noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6730083483661000120.post-19423878564311566782023-09-01T19:14:00.000-07:002023-09-03T12:28:45.795-07:00THE POPE ON HOMOSEXUALITY<p> </p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Jorge Mario
Bergoglio, also known as Pope Francis, is from Argentina and is recognized as
the first Jesuit pope the Catholic Church has ever had.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He has been in office now for about ten and a
half years and his reign has been a highly controversial one.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>For one thing, his views on homosexuality
have been in dispute.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">In an
interview with the Associated Press on January 25, 2023, concerning gays, he
stated:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">“We are all
children of God, and God loves us as we are and for the strength that each of
us fights for our dignity.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Being
homosexual is not a crime.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is not a
crime.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">The pope
does acknowledge that homosexuality is a sin, but He added:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">“It’s also a
sin to lack charity with one another.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>See this link:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://www.usccb.org/news/2023/pope-clarifies-remarks-about-homosexuality-and-sin"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">https://www.usccb.org/news/2023/pope-clarifies-remarks-about-homosexuality-and-sin</span></a><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">But let’s
unpack his comments to see what the pope is really saying.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Child of God or Child of the Devil?<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">First of
all: <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">He says that
“we are all children of God.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But that’s
just false.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We are indeed all part of
His creation, but so is the devil.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So,
by that same reasoning, shouldn’t God be obligated to love the devil and call
him His child, as well?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Of course not.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">It is also true
that humans are made in the image of God <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(Genesis 1:26-27)</i></b>, and we have to
recognize and respect that truth, but simply being made in the image of God
doesn’t stop the majority of humans from missing Heaven <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(Matthew 7:13-14)</i></b>.</span><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">So, no, we
are not all children of God.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The apostle
John tells us:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">“But as many as
received Him, to them gave He power to become the sons of God, even to them
that believe on His name.” (John 1:12)<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Just because
you were born into the human race doesn’t mean you are a child of God.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Those who have NOT received Him nor believed
on Him are NOT His children.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%;">No Need to Change?<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">The second
point:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Pope Francis
says that “God loves us as we are.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Yes, He
loves us all in the general sense; that’s why He came to die for the sins of
mankind: <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">“For God so loved the
world that He gave His only begotten Son…” (John 3:16)</span></i></b><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">But you are
not an object of His affection (in the sense of being His child) if you <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">insist on staying in your sins</i>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He is longsuffering and loves you enough to
chastise you for your sin and to give you time to seek Him.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But Jesus also tells us that we are to <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">repent</i> of (turn away from) our sins <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(Luke
13:1-5)</i></b>, not look for an excuse to stay in them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Yet, the pope seems to be “helping”
homosexuals to do exactly that – to find an excuse to continue in that
lifestyle.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Yes, God
loved us <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">“while we were yet sinners, and died for us” (Romans 5:8)</i></b>, but
that love can, and will, turn to <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">judgment</i>
if we ignore or trivialize God’s commandments.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Twisted Honor<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Third point:
<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">The pope
said that God loves us “for the strength that each of us fights for our
dignity.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">The word
“dignity” means “the state or quality of being worthy of honor or respect”
(Oxford dictionary, online):<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://www.google.com/search?client=avast-a-1&q=dignity+definition&oq=dignity&aqs=avast.1.69i57j0l7.506323276j0j15&ie=UTF-8"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">https://www.google.com/search?client=avast-a-1&q=dignity+definition&oq=dignity&aqs=avast.1.69i57j0l7.506323276j0j15&ie=UTF-8</span></a><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">But there is
nothing “honorable” or “respectable” about unrepentant sin, whether it is
homosexuality or any other sin. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What the
pope is saying <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">sounds</i> good, but it is
deceptive and, due to his worldwide influence, will certainly cause many to end
up in Hell.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%;">So You’re Not a Criminal…<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Fourth
point: <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">He says that
“being homosexual is not a crime.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>That’s true (in America, at least), but you can’t always defend
something simply on the basis of it being “legal.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Because of
the pope’s statements, many people will no doubt reason in their hearts that if
it’s not a crime, then it’s ok to do.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>But that line of reasoning fails when considering the sin of
abortion.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Abortion (until just recently)
had not been considered a crime since 1973 when it became legal in the U.S.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Ever since then, the Catholic Church rightly
seems to have been officially against it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Actually, most Catholics would have been up in arms if someone had said
that abortion was ok since it was “not a crime.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Consider
also Adolf Hitler’s reign of terror in Germany.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>He “legally” established the Holocaust, and it was the law of the land
to turn Jews (and others, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">including
homosexuals</i>) over to the authorities to be exterminated.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But the great majority of people today see
that as greatly sinful, even if it <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">was</i>
“legal” in Germany.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">So, you can’t
soften the impact that homosexuality has on society simply by saying it’s “not
a crime.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In fact, it is indeed a
sin/crime <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">in God’s eyes</i>, just like
every other sin.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%;">True Love Corrects</span></b><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">And the fifth
and final point: <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Pope Francis
said, “It’s also a sin to lack charity with one another.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Here, the
pope is basically saying “You are a Christian and you are supposed to be showing
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">love</i> to gays instead of condemning them!”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This is usually the type of response that
people use when their sin is exposed and then they demand, “Don’t you judge
me!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Even Jesus said not to judge!”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But we don’t want to see people in error, and
see them pay the consequences.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The fact
is, if we really love them, we will try to correct them.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Ok, so why
does the sin of homosexuality seem to demand more “charity” from Christians than
other sins?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It seems that you don’t see
nearly as many adulterers, drunkards, or thieves go out of their way to demand
that you show <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">them</i> charity, doesn’t
it?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I think that this is because they <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">know</i> what’s expected of them and they <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">know</i> that what they’re doing is wrong –
that’s why they try to <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">hide</i> it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But it seems that many in the homosexual
community just don’t want to admit the “wrongness” of their lifestyle.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They no longer hide it, and continue in their
sin openly, even cheering others on who do the same:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">“Who knowing the
judgment of God, that they which commit such things are worthy of death, not
only do the same, but have pleasure in them that do them.”</span></i></b><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;"> <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(Romans 1:32)<o:p></o:p></i></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Yes, Christians
are indeed supposed to show mercy and love (charity) to those who are caught up
in this sin (or any sin), lest we ourselves fail to live up to God’s standards <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(1
Corinthians 10:12)</i></b>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But if there
is no repentance involved, there is no obligation for the church to coddle them
in their sins.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Again, Jesus gave us a
model to follow in dealing with unrepentant people in the church <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(Matthew
18:15-17)</i></b>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And we should use
this model for <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">all</i> types of sin,
homosexuality included.<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><o:p></o:p></i></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Many people
still don’t believe that the LGBT lifestyle is actually a sin.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So right now I will turn to the Scriptures to
demonstrate the sinfulness of homosexuality, lesbianism, bi-sexuality, the transvestite
lifestyle, etc, etc.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I know that there
are other designated letters/numbers to add to the LGBT title, but I am simply
using “LGBT” to cover all the bases.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Homosexuality is Indeed a Sin<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">At the risk
of sounding cliché, I want to be clear that we should love the sinner, but hate
the sin, as the Bible tells us.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I,
personally, have a number of friends who are gay/lesbian.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Most of them are basically “good” people
(according to worldly standards), some of whom would help you any time you
asked.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They are generally nice, friendly
and giving. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>To their credit, the ones
that I am friends with do not try to shove their sinful lifestyle down anyone’s
throats.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They mind their own business
and mostly remain friendly.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I have had
discussions with them concerning their lifestyle.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Some are less open than others, and it
grieves me that they don’t always want to listen to the gospel.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But I pray that every single person in that
lifestyle who reads this, does so prayerfully and with an open mind, to remove
any doubt as to whether God sees homosexuality as sin or not.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Genesis 18:20</span></i></b><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;"> – The angels who visited Abraham
tell him that the sin of Sodom and Gomorrah (homosexuality) is great, and they
go to visit the city of Sodom.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Genesis 19:1-10</span></i></b><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;"> – We all know the story of how God
destroys the two cities of Sodom and Gomorrah (and their neighboring cities – <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Jude 7</i></b>).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is obvious what the sin is: the men of the
city want to have relations with the two newcomers in town (angels mistaken for
men), and they threaten Lot if he doesn’t turn the two over to them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The city is then completely destroyed and only
righteous Lot and his two daughters escape safely.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Some people
argue that the sin of Sodom was not homosexuality, but a refusal to be <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">hospitable</i> to the angels.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They’ll say that the people were only guilty
of wanting to FORCE themselves onto their targets. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They tell us that it would have been ok if it
would have been CONSENSUAL homosexual sex.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>But Scripture, taken together <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">as a
whole</i>, tells us otherwise.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Leviticus 18:22</span></i></b><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;"> – Male to male sex is an <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">abomination</i> to God.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Leviticus 20:13</span></i></b><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;"> – Same as above, but adds the death
penalty for both of them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Note that no
one is advocating the legal killing of homosexuals <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">today </i>(at least they <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">shouldn’t</i>
be).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>These civil laws were specifically
given for the Jews, and for that specific period in history (the Old Testament).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It does not mean that they must be punished
civilly today in the same way as they were back then.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Thank God for grace!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">However, not
only was this sin condemned in the Old Testament, but the recognition of its depravity
is also carried over into the New Testament.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Yes, God still considers this sin an abomination, just as He did then.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">First of
all, Jesus was very clear concerning God’s intention for mankind and sexuality
from the beginning:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Matthew 19:3-6<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">v. 3 - “The Pharisees
also came unto Him, tempting Him, and saying unto Him, ‘Is it lawful for a man
to put away his wife for every cause?’<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">v. 4 - “And He answered
and said unto them, ‘Have ye not read, that He which made them at the beginning
made them male and female,<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">v. 5 - “And said, For
this cause shall a man leave father and mother, and shall cleave to his wife:
and they twain shall be one flesh?<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">v. 6 - “Wherefore they
are no more twain, but one flesh.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What
therefore God has joined together, let no man put asunder.”<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Again, Jesus
makes it clear that God’s intention from the very start was for one husband
(male) to have one wife (female).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">These two</i> would be “one flesh,” joined
together by God.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Two males (or two
females) will never be considered “one flesh” in the eyes of God, nor can they
produce children.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This sin is totally
unnatural and would eventually cause society to unravel and crumble, as it has
already done in other cultures.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Romans 1:26-27</span></i></b><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;"> – Clearly talks about forbidden sexual
relations between men with men, and women with women – calling it <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">unnatural</i> /<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">indecent/shameful acts</i> and <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">dishonorable/degrading/vile
passions</i>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It doesn’t get much
clearer than this.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">1 Corinthians 6:9-10</span></i></b><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;"> – This passage lists homosexuality
with many other sins (fornication, sodomy, idolatry, adultery, theft,
drunkenness, reviling, covetousness and extortion).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They are <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">deceived</i>
and <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">unrighteous</i> and THEY WILL NOT
INHERIT THE KINGDOM OF GOD. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Their
destiny is very clear.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">1 Timothy 1:9-10</span></i></b><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;"> – Again, homosexuals are listed with
the lawless, rebellious, ungodly, sinners, unholy, worldly, murderers (even of
parents), sexually immoral, slave traders, liars, perjurers, and whatever is
contrary to sound doctrine.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Note that
the sin of homosexuality (considered “mild” today) is in the same camp as <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">murder</i>!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>You cannot say it is not sinful!<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Jude 7</span></i></b><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;"> – It says that Sodom and Gomorrah
indulged in sexual immorality/perversion/fornication/unnatural vice and they
went after “strange flesh.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They (the
people who engage in this sin) are headed for eternal fire.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Note that <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Jude 4-14</i></b> is speaking of
the condemnation of those who rebel against <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">God’s
stated design and purpose</i>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This is
exactly what homosexuality is about.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">There may be
more verses on this issue, but these pretty much sum up God’s attitude on this
topic.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%;">The Church is a Hospital for Sinners<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">It would be
different if a person is <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">struggling</i>
with the sin of homosexuality, and trying to <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">get out of</i> that lifestyle.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Then we (the church) should have mercy on him and do what we can to help
him.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Just like any other sin, a person
may occasionally have a lapse and fall into that sin, but if he is indeed a
Christian, he will definitely have an inner conflict and be earnestly fighting
to overcome that sin.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">But if he <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">loves</i> the sin and doesn’t really care
what God thinks about it, willing to stay in it and even do it openly, then
that’s a problem.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The rest of the church
should approach him and treat him as an outsider (if he remains unrepentant),
as Jesus instructed <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(Matthew 18:15-17)</i></b>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">But if he is
indeed repentant, the rest of the church should lovingly help and encourage
him, to get him back on the right path <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(Galatians 6:1; James 5:19-20).</i></b><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Conclusion<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">According to
one source, the pope wants gays to feel welcome in the (Catholic) Church.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Furthermore, the pope has even told one gay
man, “God made you like this.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">See here:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2018/may/20/pope-juan-carlos-cruz"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">https://www.theguardian.com/world/2018/may/20/pope-juan-carlos-cruz</span></a><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">We just saw
the list of sins of which homosexuals are a part.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Would the pope also say to the murderer, “God
made you like this”?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Or to the liar, idolater,
or drunkard?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>God does not make a person
gay, just as he doesn’t make him with any other sinful characteristics.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Sin is something each of us <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">chooses</i> to do.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You can’t blame God for your sinful condition.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If God “made them that way” then why should
they feel the need to repent?<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">It looks as
though the pope is trying hard to protect unrepentant homosexuals and let them
feel ok about their sin.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There is plenty
homosexuality within his own Church and he knows it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">knows</i>
that this is a sin, but it seems to bother him that the Church has always
(officially, at least) been against homosexuality.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Again, what
the pope is saying is deceptive, and he will have to answer for that.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And so will many others who live in and promote
this sin.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>Russellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17823479491839694646noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6730083483661000120.post-86628175990711762023-08-02T12:17:00.000-07:002023-08-02T12:17:00.093-07:00GREGORIAN CHANT: SACRED OR SINISTER?<p><span style="font-size: 20pt;">Most of us
have heard it before.</span><span style="font-size: 20pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 20pt;">That weird,
ominous chanting in the Catholic Church, sometimes even found in movie scenes.</span><span style="font-size: 20pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 20pt;">What kind of music is that?</span><span style="font-size: 20pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 20pt;">Why does it sound so haunting?</span><span style="font-size: 20pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 20pt;">Does the Catholic Church really use this
chanting in its services?</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Not only do
they <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">use</i> this chanting during Mass,
but according to the official Vatican document, the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy, Sacrosanctum Concilium, Solemnly
promulgated by His Holiness Paul VI on December 4, 1963</i>: <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">“The Church
acknowledges Gregorian chant as <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">specially
suited</i> to the Roman liturgy.” (Chapter VI, paragraph 116 – Emphasis added)<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">See here:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><a href="https://www.vatican.va/archive/hist_councils/ii_vatican_council/documents/vat-ii_const_19631204_sacrosanctum-concilium_en.html">https://www.vatican.va/archive/hist_councils/ii_vatican_council/documents/vat-ii_const_19631204_sacrosanctum-concilium_en.html</a><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">So, it is
not only used in its services, it is the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">official</i>
music of the Roman Catholic liturgy.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%;">An Interesting Story<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Roman Catholic priest Pellegrino
Ernetti (1925-1994) was a popular musician/musicologist and physicist in the
Church.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He was also the most famous
exorcist in Venice in his time.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">It is reported that Ernetti went to
the Electroacoustics Laboratory of the Catholic University in Milan with fellow
priest Agostino Gemelli in 1952 to make a tape recording of Gregorian chants.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They were attempting to filter harmonics from
these chants, but the tape recorder microphone kept malfunctioning.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In frustration, Gemelli looked skyward and
asked help from his deceased father.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A
voice from <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">within the tape recorder</i>
answered, “Of course, I shall help you.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I’m always with you.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">It was heard by both of the priests
and Gemelli was shocked when he recognized his father’s voice.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He just knew it was his father speaking to
him, since the voice used Gemelli’s childhood nickname (which no one else
around there could have known).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The two
priests then went directly to the pope at that time (Pius XII) to report what
happened, and the pope answered him that the recording was “scientific fact,”
and that this discovery could be “a cornerstone for building scientific studies
which will strengthen people’s faith in the hereafter.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">See these links for different accounts
of the story:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://teakrulos.com/tag/chronovisor/"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">https://teakrulos.com/tag/chronovisor/</span></a><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://newearth.media/time-traveling-catholic-priest-used-music-talk-dead/"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">This Time Traveling Catholic Priest used Music
to Talk to the Dead - NewEarth Media</span></a><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="http://www.itmightbepossible.com/2019/10/17/this-time-travel-device-may-have-been-confiscated-by-the-vatican/"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">http://www.itmightbepossible.com/2019/10/17/this-time-travel-device-may-have-been-confiscated-by-the-vatican/</span></a><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://allaboutheaven.org/observations/father-pellegrino-maria-ernetti-and-father-agostino-gemelli-inadvertently-use-epv-023139/221"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">https://allaboutheaven.org/observations/father-pellegrino-maria-ernetti-and-father-agostino-gemelli-inadvertently-use-epv-023139/221</span></a><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Troubling Theology<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">The pope’s encouragement appeared to
have been the impetus for Ernetti to take this “scientific fact” and, with the
help of other scientists, (allegedly) invent a sort of “time machine,” or “time
viewer” – the Chronovisor.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">You can read the accounts for
yourself, but the purpose of this article is not to determine the authenticity
or the falsity of this invention.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My
intention is to point out that these men were highly trained Catholic priests
and they were dabbling in something sinister in the course of their studies of
this Gregorian chant.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In this process, they
began hearing (and communicating with) the dead by requesting and accepting the
priest’s dead father’s “help.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>These
priests <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">and the pope</i> should have
known better, since Scripture is clear concerning the sin of necromancy and
similar sins <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(Leviticus 19:26, 31; 20:6, 27; 2 Kings 21:6; Isaiah 8:19-22)</i></b>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">For the record, Scripture is also
clear about “the hereafter” <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(Revelation chapters 19-21)</i></b>, and the
pope should encourage Catholics to search the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Scriptures</i> if they want to strengthen their faith in life after
death, rather than encourage them to flirt with disaster through necromancy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But maybe that’s expecting too much from a
pope who is obligated to promote Catholic concepts.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Equally troubling is Ernetti’s role in
this, being a popular exorcist who was allegedly trained to combat spiritual
darkness.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Did this “religious expert”
not recognize the danger in what the pope said?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>But then again, the Catholic Church is fine with the idea of its members
communicating with, and praying to, the dead.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>But this is certainly not something to flirt with.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Concerning Ernetti’s Chronovisor, Professor
of Theology and priest Francois Brune was one of the few people that Ernetti
had spoken to about his secret invention.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>And Brune was convinced that this invention tied into something called Electronic
Voice Phenomena (EVP), declaring EVP to be “one of the most significant
religious events of the century.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Apparently,
he was another priest who was oblivious to the Bible’s warnings.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Yet, Brune went on to write three books about
this topic.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Interestingly, Electronic Voice
Phenomena is linked to parapsychology, which is the study of alleged psychic
and other paranormal claims. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And this chain of events all
started with Gregorian chant.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">See this video:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uUaGZ90AVog"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uUaGZ90AVog</span></a><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Again, this is not something that true
followers of Christ should be associated with.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Ties That Bind<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Someone could say, “But this is just
hearsay.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This whole Chronovisor story
could all be based on a lie.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Ok, so
let’s assume that this was all fabricated and there never was any “time viewer.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But that’s not the point.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Regardless, this whole Gregorian chant study
still ties into the realm of necromancy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>It seems that Gregorian chant was the doorway to all this confusion and
spiritual danger from the start.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">It is also interesting that this music
is often used by Hollywood and the film industry, especially in <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">horror </i>movies!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Now, it is true that Hollywood has certainly
been known to abuse their cinematic liberty at times, but their choice of
Gregorian chant in some of these creepy, haunting films is no coincidence.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Hollywood knows scary music when they hear
it!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In the movies, music is almost
always used to “set the mood,” and choosing Gregorian chant for this is not an
accident.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This music is often a setting
for some dark themes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>According to one
source:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">“Some chants
have become standard melodies for films, in particular, the ‘Dies irae’ from
the Roman Catholic Mass for the Dead. The ‘Dies irae’ is, in fact, one of the
most frequently heard chants in film, used in television theme songs,
commercials, and even a Christmas film (It’s a Wonderful Life). Death, danger
or the supernatural are invariably part of the story or visual situation where
it is used.” (</span><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Plainchant in Motion Pictures: The "Dies
irae" in Film Scores, </span></i><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">by<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"> </i>Linda Schubert<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">, </i></span><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">p. 207)</span><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">“Perhaps
more importantly, the meanings that have been coded into the ‘Dies irae’ over
the last two centuries are, as we shall see, not tranquil but dramatic,
disturbing, and threatening.” (<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">ibid.</i>,
p. 208)<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">“However
sinister its associations in popular usage, the ‘Dies irae’ retains this
‘simple’ quality as well—which may make it all the more disturbing. Simplicity
is often associated with innocence and lack of care. The ‘Dies irae's’
associations with death make it anything but carefree, and its connection with
demons and the supernatural do not permit innocence. Yet an eerie impression of
simplicity remains. One can argue that an audience does not need to know
anything about chant to be affected by a score and to appreciate a film. On the
other hand, film composers <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">are</i> aware
of the associations attached to the pre-existent music they use.” (<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">ibid.</i>, p. 208 – Emphasis in original)<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">See this link:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://www.utpjournals.press/doi/abs/10.3138/flor.15.011"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">https://www.utpjournals.press/doi/abs/10.3138/flor.15.011</span></a><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%;">So, to
recap, this source is telling us that Gregorian chant, especially the tune from
</span><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">‘Dies irae,’ is indeed
used in many of Hollywood’s movies.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Topics like death and danger are “invariably” a part of the story, and
rather than being <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">tranquil</i>, its
message is dramatic, disturbing, threatening, and even sinister.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And furthermore, it often appears to have a
“connection” with demons and the dark supernatural world.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Hollywood is indeed very aware of Gregorian
chant’s influence.</span><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Relaxing and Peaceful?<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Some claim
that Gregorian chant is supposed to be peaceful and it relieves stress and
relaxes those who hear it, but I think it is a false peace.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Personally, </span><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">something
in me <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">cringes</i> when I hear this type
of “music.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>To me, it’s </span><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">haunting, sinister and downright
creepy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Nothing “cheery” or relaxing about
it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Furthermore,
</span><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">there are many websites that
incorporate Gregorian chant in their occult and/or eastern mysticism themes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Apparently, they see something in Gregorian
chant that links to their dark views.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This
connection is interesting and should not be ignored.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Excuses<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Someone could say, “But that’s exactly
what the “Dies irae” is all about in the Catholic Church… death!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is a tune that specifically relates to the
Mass <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">for the dead</i>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Of
course</i> it is going to be eerie!”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">But isn’t a Catholic funeral about
celebrating hope? <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Isn’t the Catholic who
dies almost always referred to as now being in Heaven, or at least Purgatory
(which promises Heaven)?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If he was a
faithful Catholic, why would you want this disturbing and ominous-sounding
music to accompany his passage into eternity?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Shouldn’t it be more upbeat and encouraging?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Why use chanting which has a connection with
the demonic if it is supposed to suggest one’s glorious journey into Heaven?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>No, the general feeling doesn’t seem to be
about the Christian’s <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">victory</i> in death,
but rather an ominous, foreboding presence. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The music seems to be more about <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">despair</i> than eternal life in Heaven.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">The Catholic might respond, “But the
‘Dies irae’ is not the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">only</i> chant
used in the Catholic Church.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There are
plenty others that are uplifting.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Yeah, and there are plenty other of
these Gregorian chants that are often used in creepy and disturbing websites,
as well.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It just seems to have too many
ties with eastern mysticism and possibly the occult and other strange things,
so I wouldn’t be bragging about it, much less make it “official” church music.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Conclusion<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Music does indeed have a “power”
behind it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>David would play the harp for
King Saul, soothing him and chasing the demonic forces from him <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(1
Samuel 16:23)</i></b>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>On the other
hand, we know that some forms of music can <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">invite</i>
demonic forces.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Jesus said, <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">“By their fruits ye shall know
them” (Matthew 7:16-20)</i></b>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So, how
music affects a person, how it makes him behave, is a very good indicator of
the source of any music.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">For many, Gregorian chant encourages them
to stay in the Catholic Church.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That
alone makes me seriously question the “goodness” of that type of music.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If the Catholic Church only played such music
every once in a blue moon, that would be different.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But Gregorian chant is the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">official</i> music in the Catholic liturgy. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That causes me great concern, since the very
existence of this blog is to warn of the false teachings of this Church.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If something <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">keeps</i> you in the Catholic Church, then I would have to seriously
question its validity and it would be a good reason to reject that something. <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><o:p></o:p></i></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">The Bible does not contain a list of all
songs that are godly, nor a list of all those that are ungodly.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>God expects us to use discernment in such
endeavors.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Maybe one’s view of music is
somewhat subjective, but biblical discernment goes a long way <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(Hebrews
5:12-14)</i></b>. Just because Gregorian chant may have some spiritual
words and phrases in it does not make it godly.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">I would certainly encourage Catholics
to immerse themselves in Scripture and learn to exercise discernment.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I think they would find that Gregorian chant
is not the “sacred” music they think it is.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></p>Russellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17823479491839694646noreply@blogger.com13tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6730083483661000120.post-65059365686296143922023-07-01T08:22:00.002-07:002023-07-01T08:22:47.277-07:00THE SACRAMENT OF THE EUCHARIST<p> </p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Well folks,
this is the last of the seven Catholic sacraments, and today we’re talking
about what Catholics call the sacrament of “Holy Communion,” or the “Holy
Eucharist.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">This is the
solemn ceremony where the Catholic priest blesses the bread and wine and it supposedly
becomes the actual body and blood of Jesus Christ.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The priest then offers it to the members of
the congregation for their spiritual nourishment.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">I have
addressed my objections to this topic before in great detail elsewhere on this
blog.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>See these links for detailed
discussions and the ramifications involved:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://answeringcatholicclaims.blogspot.com/2009/10/eucharist-part-1.html"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">https://answeringcatholicclaims.blogspot.com/2009/10/eucharist-part-1.html</span></a><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://answeringcatholicclaims.blogspot.com/2009/11/eucharist-part-2.html"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">https://answeringcatholicclaims.blogspot.com/2009/11/eucharist-part-2.html</span></a><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://answeringcatholicclaims.blogspot.com/2016/01/access-denied.html"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">https://answeringcatholicclaims.blogspot.com/2016/01/access-denied.html</span></a><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://answeringcatholicclaims.blogspot.com/2021/02/eucharistic-wonders-miracles-or.html"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">https://answeringcatholicclaims.blogspot.com/2021/02/eucharistic-wonders-miracles-or.html</span></a><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://answeringcatholicclaims.blogspot.com/2018/04/the-catholic-time-machine.html"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">https://answeringcatholicclaims.blogspot.com/2018/04/the-catholic-time-machine.html</span></a><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Source and Summit<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">How
important is the Eucharist to Catholics?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>The </span><span style="background: #FBFAF8; color: #202020; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Catechism
of the Catholic Church says:</span><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: #FBFAF8; color: #202020; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“The
Eucharist is ‘<u>the source and summit of the Christian life</u>.’<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The other sacraments, and indeed all
ecclesiastical ministries and works of the apostolate, are bound up with the
Eucharist and are oriented toward it. For in the blessed Eucharist is contained
the whole spiritual good of the Church, namely Christ himself, our Pasch."
(CCC #1324 – Emphasis added)<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: #FBFAF8; color: #202020; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Notice
that all the other sacraments and “all ecclesiastical ministries and works”
within the Catholic Church tie in with, and point to, the Eucharist. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: #FBFAF8; color: #202020; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">As we
can see, the Catholic Eucharist is extremely important in the Church.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In fact, it is EVERYTHING to them because it
is the ultimate Catholic sacrament.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This
is because:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: #FBFAF8; color: #202020; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“The
mode of Christ's presence under the Eucharistic species is unique. It raises
the Eucharist above all the sacraments as ‘the perfection of the spiritual life
and the end to which all the sacraments tend.’ In the most blessed
sacrament of the Eucharist ‘the body and blood, together with the soul and
divinity, of our Lord Jesus Christ and, therefore, <i>the whole Christ is
truly, really, and substantially contained’</i>”…<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>(CCC #1374 – Emphasis in original).<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: #FBFAF8; color: #202020; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Did
you get that?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The wafer that the
Catholic priest consecrates and gives to the members of the Church to eat is
considered the actual BODY, BLOOD, SOUL and DIVINITY of Jesus Christ!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Yep, you’re eating His body and you’re eating
His <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">soul</i>!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Literally!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Not sure how that works, but if you don’t believe that, this is what
happens:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; color: black; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“If any
one denieth, that, in the sacrament of the most holy Eucharist, are contained
truly, really, and substantially, the body and blood together with the soul and
divinity of our Lord Jesus Christ, and consequently the whole Christ; but saith
that He is only therein as in a sign, or in figure, or virtue; let him be
anathema.” (Council of Trent, Session XIII, Canon I)<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; color: black; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">That’s
right.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If you don’t believe their
teaching on the Eucharist, you are under the Catholic Church’s <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">anathema</i>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Anathema means that you will experience the
severest and gravest form of excommunication, where you are eternally condemned
to Hell, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">unless and until you do the
required penance, to the Catholic Church’s satisfaction</i>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You can find this definition in the New
Advent Catholic Encyclopedia, under “Anathema.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">This is one
reason why, in my first article on the Eucharist years ago on this blog, I said
that this sacrament is either a very good thing, or a very bad thing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If it is what the Church <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">says</i> it is, then it is the most wonderful sacrament of all and we
(Protestants included) should all line up to enthusiastically “receive Jesus”
by eating Him in the form of the Eucharist.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>But if it is <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">not</i> what they say
it is, if what they’re eating is not actually Jesus, and what they are
worshipping is a mere piece of bread, they are guilty of outright <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">idolatry</i>, a severe sin throughout the
Old and New Testament <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(</i></b>e.g.,<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"> 1 Kings 21:25-26; Jeremiah
7:16-19; 1 Corinthians 6:9; 10:14)</i></b>.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">So, if you believe
this bread and wine is the ACTUAL, LITERAL, PHYSICAL Jesus, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">you’d better be absolutely sure that it is
what they claim it is</i>, and not just take someone’s word for it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You’d better be <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">certain</i> as to whether it is a biblical concept or not!<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Absent Does Not Mean Present<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Again, the
claim is that the bread and wine are literally Jesus.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It says that His physical presence is with us
today.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In fact, they call it the “Real
Presence” of Christ in the Eucharist (CCC # 1378).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But note that the Bible is clear that Jesus’ <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">physical</i> presence here on earth is no
longer the case:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Jesus therefore said, “Let
her alone, in order that she may keep it for the day of My burial.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>For the poor you always have with you, <u>but
you do not always have Me</u>.” </span></i></b><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">(<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">John 12:7-8 – </i></b>Emphasis added)<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><o:p></o:p></i></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-background-themecolor: background1;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 20.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">So tell me, what did Jesus
mean when He said this?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In what sense do
we NOT have Jesus today?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Does this
passage mean that He is not here <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">spiritually</i>?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>No, I think everyone would agree that we always
have Him in a spiritual sense, right?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>For
example:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-background-themecolor: background1;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 20.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-background-themecolor: background1;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 20.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">… and lo, I am with you
always, even to the end of the world (Matthew 28:20).</span></i></b><span style="color: black; font-size: 20.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-background-themecolor: background1;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 20.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p> </o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-background-themecolor: background1;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 20.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">So, <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">John 12:7-8 </b></span></i><span style="color: black; font-size: 20.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">above<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"> </i>is not talking about His presence in a spiritual sense.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So, again, if it is not in the spiritual
sense, then in what way is He NOT present with us?<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-background-themecolor: background1;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 20.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-background-themecolor: background1;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 20.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Now, Catholics will claim
that He is present in a “sacramental” sense, but there is absolutely nothing in
Scripture to suggest this concept.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The
word “sacramental” (as an adjective) seems to be a conveniently flexible term
in Catholicism, in fact, too flexible to have any real meaning.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The truth is, the whole idea of sacraments
and “sacramental presence” is foreign to Scripture.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>See here:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-background-themecolor: background1;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 20.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><a href="https://answeringcatholicclaims.blogspot.com/2011/01/sacraments-gods-grace-for-sale.html"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">https://answeringcatholicclaims.blogspot.com/2011/01/sacraments-gods-grace-for-sale.html</span></a><span style="color: black; font-size: 20.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-background-themecolor: background1;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 20.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-background-themecolor: background1;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 20.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">So that leaves a <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">physical</i> vacancy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Jesus is no longer here physically.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And if that’s true, the Catholic Church is
wrong about the “Real Presence.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-background-themecolor: background1;"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 24.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Again, in <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">John
16:10</i></b>, Jesus says:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">And concerning
righteousness, because I go to the Father, and you no longer behold Me.<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">How do we
“no longer behold Jesus”?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Physically, of
course.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He ascends to the Father and we
don’t see Him anymore (at least, not until He returns).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s very simple.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Although Catholics will say that we see Jesus
in the Eucharist, the Bible says that we <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">don’t</i>
see Him in the Eucharist, i.e., we no longer behold Him.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Furthermore,
in <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">John
17:11</i></b>, Jesus, when praying to the Father and about to leave, says:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">And I am no more in the
world; and yet they themselves are in the world, and I come to Thee…<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">If He is no
longer in the world (after His ascension), then, by definition, He is not
physically here, so He can’t physically be in the Eucharist.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%;">You Can’t Handle His Presence!<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Ok, another
point I want to make is that the Catholic Church makes extreme claims, and then
later has to backtrack or play word games when called out on it.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">One very
unsustainable claim they make is that according to the Catechism of the
Catholic Church, “</span><span style="background: #FBFAF8; color: #202020; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-style: italic; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">the whole Christ is truly,
really, and substantially contained” in the Eucharist.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><span style="background: #FBFAF8; color: #202020; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">And furthermore, “because it is presence in
the fullest sense: that is to say, it is a substantial presence by which
Christ, God and man, makes himself wholly and entirely present.” (CCC
#1374)<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">By the way,
it seems that some Catholics are hesitant to claim that Jesus is <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">physically</i> present in the Eucharist.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But terms like “the whole Christ,” “entirely
present” and the “fullest sense” would appear to indicate otherwise.</span><span style="background: #FBFAF8; color: #202020; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">But think
about this.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What would happen to us if
we were truly exposed to “the whole Christ” in all His glory?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The truth is, if we were ushered into His
presence in the “fullest sense,” we would not be able to endure it, UNLESS we
were in our heavenly bodies.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Again, that
level of exposure to Jesus Christ could only safely happen when we are in our
glorified bodies.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Only then could we be
able to endure His absolute fullness and glory.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Some saw Jesus in His new body right after His resurrection, but that
was not the same thing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Why do I say
this?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In the book of Revelation, the
apostle John said:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">And I turned to see the
voice that spoke with me…<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">And when I saw Him, I
fell at His feet as dead… (Revelation 1:12, 17)<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Folks, THIS is what happens when a
mere human sees “the whole Christ” in the “fullest sense.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Even John, probably the closest friend of
Jesus on earth, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">fell as a dead man</i> in
His “fullest” presence.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>John was utterly
stunned and unable to even look at Jesus.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>He was overwhelmed, virtually paralyzed, by the majesty of the Son of
God.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If the Eucharist was all that
Catholics say it is, no man would be able to stand before it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Therefore, they are promoting a false
teaching.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%;">So What is the Purpose of Communion?<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Catholics
will always point to John chapter 6 when discussing the Eucharist.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They’ll say that when Jesus said to “eat My
flesh” and “drink My blood” <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(John 6:50-58)</i></b>, He was talking about
the Communion service (Eucharist).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But
when Jesus said this, He was simply speaking of “coming to Him” and “believing
in Him,” as is plain in a previous verse in the same chapter <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">(<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">John
6:35)</i></b>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This is obviously
symbolic language and it was setting the stage for the rest of the passage.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">The truth
is, Communion is simply a holy memorial:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="background: white; color: black; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">And he
took bread, and gave thanks, and brake it, and gave unto them, saying, This is
my body which is given for you: <u>this do in remembrance of me</u>.</span></i></b><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"> (</span></i></b><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Luke 22:19 – </span></i></b><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Emphasis added<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">)</i></b></span><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-background-themecolor: background1;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 20.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">The
Catholic Church does rightly believe that there is a “memorial” aspect in celebrating
Communion, but they also falsely believe that the priest’s consecrating of the
bread and wine “actualizes” the event of Calvary (CCC #1104).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-background-themecolor: background1;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 20.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-background-themecolor: background1;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 20.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">The
word “actualize” means “to make actual” or “to make something a reality.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They also claim that the Eucharistic ritual
“re-presents” (makes present) the event of Calvary.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That’s why they claim that the victim of the Mass
(Jesus) and the victim of Calvary (2000 years ago) is “one and the same” (CCC
#1367; Council of Trent, Session 22, Chapter 2).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The Eucharistic sacrifice (supposedly) brings
the event of Calvary to the here and now.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>The Catholic Church reads way too much into the biblical text, instead
of letting it speak for itself.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But of
course, this is all a “paschal mystery,” something that we non-Catholics just
can’t seem to grasp.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Very often, when it
comes to things that Catholics can’t verify biblically, it appears that another
“mystery” is born in Catholic theology.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Convenient, huh?<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-background-themecolor: background1;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 20.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-background-themecolor: background1;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 20.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">But
getting the benefits of Calvary is not “eating and drinking Jesus’ body and
blood.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Nor do these benefits include
time-travel, where God makes the events of Calvary present (CCC # 1104, 1362,
1364, 1366), as though a past event is literally transferred into the present.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-background-themecolor: background1;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 20.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-background-themecolor: background1;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 20.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">No,
the benefits of Calvary are eternal salvation and a sanctified life, and these
are simply received <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">by faith</i>, not by
a ritual done by a priest of any kind.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-background-themecolor: background1;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 20.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-background-themecolor: background1;"><b><span style="color: black; font-size: 22.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">One Sacrifice Offered, One
Time, By One Person<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-background-themecolor: background1;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 20.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-background-themecolor: background1;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 20.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Here’s
another instance where the Catholic Church plays word games.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Catholics are sometimes accused of
sacrificing Jesus over and over when the Eucharist is celebrated.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Of course, they deny this and claim that they
are instead <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">re-presenting</i> that same one-time,
once-for-all sacrifice at Calvary.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-background-themecolor: background1;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 20.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-background-themecolor: background1;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 20.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Even
though that may sound good, it cannot be the case.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If the Catholic priest is indeed offering a
sacrifice (as they claim), it is not a <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">legitimate</i>
one.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Why?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Because only Jesus Christ, Himself, was able to
make this one-time offering/sacrifice of Calvary, and He will never, ever, do
it again, much less offer it <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">daily <b>(Hebrews
10:11-12 – </b></i>See CCC #1389<b><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">)</i></b>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That, by definition, is what a one-time
offering means.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was offered <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">once</i> and it was only offered BY JESUS.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>No man can rightly claim that he is offering,
re-offering or re-presenting the sacrifice of Jesus Christ.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It cannot and will not be done.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This Catholic “Eucharistic sacrifice” is not
Jesus.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is a REPLACEMENT of Him, a
false offering <b><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(Hebrews 7:27; 9:12; 10:2,
10)</i></b>.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-background-themecolor: background1;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 20.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-background-themecolor: background1;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 20.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Using
fancy verbs like “re-presenting” doesn’t help the Catholic case.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Actually, the verbs “sacrifice,” “offer,” and
“present” are all <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">synonyms</i> in the
Bible in the context of sacrifices.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They
all mean basically the same thing and they are used interchangeably.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So you can’t say, “I’m not <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">sacrificing</i> Him again in the Eucharistic
ritual, I’m only ‘re-presenting’ Him.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>But that ends up being the same thing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Again, the words are interchangeable.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>To “re-present” is to “re-offer” is to “re-sacrifice.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There is no difference.</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 20.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-background-themecolor: background1;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 20.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-background-themecolor: background1;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 20.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">If
a person successfully offered payment for an item, there would be no other
offer.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The payment has been given and
the debt is already paid for.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The
transaction is completed.</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 20.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-background-themecolor: background1;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 20.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-background-themecolor: background1;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 20.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Likewise,
the event of Calvary is a successful payment/offering by Jesus to pay for the
sin-debt of mankind.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Why would there
ever be another offering of the same thing, since it is a completed transaction?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If something is paid for, there is no need
for anyone else to present, RE-present or RE-offer that same payment.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-background-themecolor: background1;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 20.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-background-themecolor: background1;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 20.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Stop
and think, though: If the priest’s RE-offering or RE-presenting of payment is actually
valid, that would mean that the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">original</i>
payment was illegitimate!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Would the
Catholic Church ever admit that Jesus’ payment at the cross was invalid or
illegitimate?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Because if the Eucharistic
sacrifice is valid, then Jesus’ payment is indeed null and void.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The implications of this are blasphemous and
totally unacceptable!<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-background-themecolor: background1;"><b><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 20.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p> </o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-background-themecolor: background1;"><b><span style="color: black; font-size: 22.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Conclusion</span></b><b><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 20.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-background-themecolor: background1;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 20.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-background-themecolor: background1;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 20.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">The
purpose of the true biblical Communion service is not to point to the elements
of the bread and wine.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That would be
missing the whole point. It is not to physically “eat Jesus.” <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The purpose of Communion is to use these signs/elements
to <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">remember </i>the event of Calvary with
heart-felt thankfulness to God for what Jesus did.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is to point to the One who gave Himself
willingly on the cross, who lovingly paid the penalty for mankind’s sins.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And that sacrifice is <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">finished</i>! <b><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(John 19:30)<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></i></b>The whole Communion service is about <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">God’s offering to us</i>, not about the
church’s offering to God.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-background-themecolor: background1;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 20.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-background-themecolor: background1;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 20.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Well,
folks, that’s the end of this brief address of this series on the seven
Catholic sacraments.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Much more could be
said and I know that many Catholics will disagree with me on at least some of
my thoughts.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But I have endeavored to
keep things biblically and logically sound, and I hope that this has been food
for thought.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-background-themecolor: background1;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 24.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-background-themecolor: background1;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 24.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>Russellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17823479491839694646noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6730083483661000120.post-77573277158317609922023-06-02T19:01:00.001-07:002023-06-02T19:01:51.125-07:00THE SACRAMENT OF BAPTISM<p><span style="font-size: 20pt;">Ok, so we’ve
gone through five of the seven Catholic sacraments so far.</span><span style="font-size: 20pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 20pt;">These last two that I will be addressing would
be considered “heavyweights” in the world of Catholic sacraments.</span><span style="font-size: 20pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 20pt;">Today, I will deal with the sacrament of baptism
and next time, the Eucharist.</span><span style="font-size: 20pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 20pt;">Catholics
would probably consider these two to be the most important of all the
sacraments.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Anyway, I
have dealt with the topic of baptism before, so you can go to these links to first get a good foundation:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://answeringcatholicclaims.blogspot.com/2015/05/on-baptism-part-1-few-basics.html"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">https://answeringcatholicclaims.blogspot.com/2015/05/on-baptism-part-1-few-basics.html</span></a><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://answeringcatholicclaims.blogspot.com/2015/06/on-baptism-part-2-bible-verses.html"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">https://answeringcatholicclaims.blogspot.com/2015/06/on-baptism-part-2-bible-verses.html</span></a><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://answeringcatholicclaims.blogspot.com/2015/07/on-baptism-part-3-more-verses.html"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">https://answeringcatholicclaims.blogspot.com/2015/07/on-baptism-part-3-more-verses.html</span></a><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Differing Views<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Of course,
we (Protestants, Catholics and others) all recognize baptism as a very
important and meaningful ritual.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-top: 12.0pt;"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Most Protestants see baptism as a profound profession of
faith.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is an ordinance (not a
sacrament) within the church, a <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">symbol</i>
of what happens to a person when he first believed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In the ceremony of baptism, he is
immersed/buried in a “watery grave” in which he “dies to self.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The “old man” (old self) is put to death, and
coming up out of the water, the “new man” is resurrected to a new life: <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-top: 12.0pt;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Therefore we are buried with him by baptism
into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the
Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life</span></i></b><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"> (Romans 6:4)</span></i></b><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-top: 12.0pt;"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">With (most) Protestants, the idea is that a person is first
saved and given a new heart from God… then, and ONLY then, should he be
baptized, this being a symbolic gesture to declare to the world that he has voluntarily
chosen to identify with the Lord Jesus Christ and thereafter, to live for Him.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Catholics,
on the other hand, also see the ritual of baptism as a profession of faith to
identify with Christ, but also as a sacrament in which a person is “meriting
grace” from God.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>To them, it is a
sacrament of <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">regeneration</i>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is not only symbolic to them, but it also
“accomplishes what it signifies” (CCC #1155; 1215; 1234).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is supposedly a “visible sign of a hidden
reality.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When the Catholic is baptized,
he is literally having his original sins washed away.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>According to the Catechism of the Catholic
Church:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: #FBFAF8; color: #202020; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“Holy
Baptism is the basis of the whole Christian life, the gateway to life in the
Spirit… and the door which gives access to the other sacraments. Through
Baptism we are <u>freed from sin</u> and <u>reborn as sons of God</u>; we <u>become
members of Christ</u>, are <u>incorporated into the Church</u> and made sharers
in her mission: ‘Baptism is the sacrament of regeneration through water in the
word.’” (CCC #1213 – Emphasis added)<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Notice the underlined portions of the
quote above.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The Catholic Church is
specifically saying that <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">this</i> event
(baptism) is what saves them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>According
to them, it is water baptism that makes them eligible to enter Heaven.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">What About Infant Baptism?<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Most people know that the Catholic
Church baptizes babies, more so than adults.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>But is this practice scriptural?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Can a mere infant make a profession of faith and identify with
Christ.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>No, he can’t.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">You won’t find any specific biblical
examples where little children are baptized.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>But some will argue that this concept is implied in the text of certain
passages, for example <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Acts 16:33</i></b>, where the Philippian
jailer <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">and his whole household </i>were
baptized. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But that is simply
speculation.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We just don’t know if there
were infants in this family or not.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">But Catholics (and even some
Protestants) claim that baptism is valid for infants because it is based on the
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">parents’</i> faith.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They will point to passages like <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">1
Corinthians 7:14</i></b>, which says that the faith of the believer sanctifies
(sets apart) the children and shows that you intend to raise your children in
the Lord, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">but this doesn’t ultimately save
them</i>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The child still has to become mature
enough to understand what is going on.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>An infant certainly can’t do that. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Until that time, he is <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">innocent</i>.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">But even if it were true that they did
baptize babies and little children (those who were not accountable due to their
age/state/understanding), we would still have to deal with the concept of <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">biblical</i> salvation – where one is saved
by faith, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">apart from works</i>.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">One might argue that baptism is not a
work, and that the infant being baptized is doing nothing at all, since he is
incapable.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But this does nothing to help
the Catholic case.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Since the child is
incapable, neither can he make a decision to follow Christ, a decision which is
absolutely necessary for salvation.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As I
just said, very young children are simply innocent (and safe) in the eyes of
God, at least until the child can make such decisions in his life.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">The concept of infant baptism leans heavily
toward the idea that baptism saves a person.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>And I believe that’s why the Catholic Church teaches this.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But whether this notion is promoted by Catholic,
Protestant, or anyone else, this denies the biblical teaching of faith (<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">apart from the merits of work</i>) for
salvation <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(Romans 3:28; 4:4-5; 11:6)</i></b>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>It denies that Christ’s work on the cross was sufficient.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In fact, any sacrament, ritual or celebration
that claims to “merit grace” contradicts and denies the finished and perfect work
of Jesus Christ.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">An Oxymoron<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">So, once again, the question is, does
baptism save a person?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You know, any unsaved person can potentially get
baptized, but it does nothing to change his heart.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>His heart has to be changed <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">before</i> he ever decides to get baptized. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Being a believer is synonymous with
being saved.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There are no saved
unbelievers, nor unsaved believers.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That
would be an oxymoron.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If you are
unsaved, then (by definition) you are not a believer, and if you are saved, you
already <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">are</i> a believer.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">So, if it is true that baptism saves
you, then aren’t you (by definition) an unbeliever until the point that you are
baptized?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Yes, you would be.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But the truth is, baptism is for believers
only <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(Mark
16:16)</i></b>, and there are absolutely no unbelievers in Scripture who were
baptized.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The point is, you must be born
again BEFORE you are baptized, therefore baptism doesn’t save anyone.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Conclusion<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Another oxymoron in the Catholic
Church is, as I mentioned before, the concept of “meriting” grace.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>This is supposedly what sacraments do, but not only is this unbiblical,
it is also illogical.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>No one can “merit”
grace, since, by definition, grace is the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">unmerited</i>
favor of God <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(Romans 11:6)</i></b>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Even
Catholics agree with this definition (CCC #1996).<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">In the Catholic Church, baptism is one
of the seven sacraments, and they certainly claim special power in these
sacraments.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But I am sorry to tell my
Catholic readers that sacraments do not “make present” the “graces” necessary
to be saved, as the Catholic Church teaches (CCC #1131).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This is totally unscriptural.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">To be sure, baptism is an important
and significant ritual to all of us, rich in meaning for all who claim to
follow Christ.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But again, Catholic
sacraments do not and <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">cannot</i> do what Catholics claim they can do.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>Russellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17823479491839694646noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6730083483661000120.post-88936392863828766072023-05-02T13:04:00.000-07:002023-05-02T13:04:46.498-07:00THE SACRAMENT OF ANOINTING OF THE SICK<p> </p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Today, we
will continue our series on the Catholic sacraments.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This is the fifth one that I’ll be addressing
and it is called Anointing of the Sick, sometimes referred to as “Extreme
Unction” (CCC #1512). <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">As you can
tell by the name, it deals with anointing a sick person with oil in order for
him to be healed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Now, Protestants don’t
normally have an issue with this concept, since it is a biblical one:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Is any
sick among you? let him call for the elders of the church; and let them pray
over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord: And the prayer
of faith shall save the sick, and the Lord shall raise him up; and if he have
committed sins, they shall be forgiven him. </span></i></b><span class="reftext"><b><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="background: white; color: #aa4400; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"> </span></i></b></span><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Confess <span style="mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">your</span> faults one to another, and pray one for another, that
ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth
much. </span></i></b><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(James 5:14-16)</i></b></span><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 17.8pt;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 20.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">And Catholics claim to
base this sacrament mainly on this particular passage.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But according to the Catechism of the
Catholic Church, they claim a special power in this sacrament, the effects being:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: 35.55pt; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in; text-indent: -.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="color: black; font-family: Symbol; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-size: 20.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="color: black; font-size: 20.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">The Anointing of the Sick unites the sick person to the passion of
Christ, for his own good and that of the whole Church;<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: 35.55pt; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in; text-indent: -.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="color: black; font-family: Symbol; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-size: 20.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="color: black; font-size: 20.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">gives the person the strength, peace, and courage to endure in a
Christian manner the sufferings of illness or old age;<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: 35.55pt; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in; text-indent: -.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="color: black; font-family: Symbol; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-size: 20.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="color: black; font-size: 20.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">imparts the forgiveness of sins, if the sick person was not able
to obtain it through the sacrament of Penance;<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: 35.55pt; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in; text-indent: -.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="color: black; font-family: Symbol; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-size: 20.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="color: black; font-size: 20.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">provides for the restoration of health, if it is conducive to the
salvation of his soul;<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: 35.55pt; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in; text-indent: -.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="color: black; font-family: Symbol; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-size: 20.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="color: black; font-size: 20.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">helps the sick person in the preparation for passing over to
eternal life. (CCC #1532)<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Preparing for the Final Journey?<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">In the
Catholic Church, the Anointing of the Sick is also associated with a practice
called the “Last Rites,” which is actually a collection of prayers and
sacraments given to a person who may be in grave danger of dying.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The sacraments involved in the Last Rites are
the Anointing of the Sick, Confession and the reception of the Eucharist (Holy
Communion).<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">CCC #1523
talks of preparing for the final journey.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span></span><span style="background: #FBFAF8; color: #202020; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">CCC #1525 says:<b> <o:p></o:p></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: #FBFAF8; color: #202020; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“</span></b><span style="background: #FBFAF8; color: #202020; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Thus, just as the sacraments of Baptism, Confirmation, and
the Eucharist form a unity called ‘the sacraments of Christian initiation,’ so
too it can be said that Penance, the Anointing of the Sick and the Eucharist as
viaticum constitute at the end of Christian life ‘the sacraments that prepare
for our heavenly homeland’ or the sacraments that complete the earthly
pilgrimage.”</span><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">But this is
deceptive in the sense that it teaches that there are rituals that must be done
to enter Heaven.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We don’t <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">get saved</i> by works, sacraments, or
rituals and we don’t <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">maintain our
salvation</i> by works, sacraments, or rituals.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>We get there, and stay there, by <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">faith</i>,
that is, faith in the work and suffering of Jesus Christ on the cross of
Calvary <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(Galatians 3:1-5)</i></b>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Trusting in that alone will save us in our “final journey.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Priests or Elders?<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">In CCC
#1519, the Catechism specifically mentions the “priests of the Church” as one
of the principal elements in this sacrament (Anointing of the Sick), and it
footnotes <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">James 5:14</i></b>, which tells us to call for the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">elders of the church</i>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">I’ve covered
this several times on this blog, and I want to emphasize it again: the word for
“elders” in <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">James 5:14</i></b> is the Greek “presbuteros.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is NOT the same biblical term used for
“priests.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The biblical term for
“priest” in the New Testament is the Greek “hiereus.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“Hiereus” is the same Greek word used for Old
Testament priests, as well (e.g., <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Matthew 12:4-5; Luke 17:14; John 1:19; Acts
4:1</i></b>and <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">6:7; Hebrews 8:4</i></b>).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Furthermore,
“hiereus” is also used of the universal priesthood of all believers </span><em><b><span style="background: #F6F6F6; color: black; font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">(Revelation 1:6; 5:10; 20:6)</span></b></em><em><span style="background: #F6F6F6; color: black; font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></em><em><span style="background: #F6F6F6; color: black; font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 20.0pt; font-style: normal; line-height: 115%; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-style: italic; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Even in the Old Testament, “elders” and priests were two different
groups.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></em><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">So, according to the God-breathed
Scriptures, an elder is not the same thing as a priest.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This is a constant diversion used by
Catholics.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><span style="background: rgb(246, 246, 246); color: black; font-family: Calibri, "sans-serif"; font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%;">See these
links:</span><em><span style="background: #F6F6F6; color: black; font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 20.0pt; font-style: normal; line-height: 115%; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-style: italic; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></em></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://answeringcatholicclaims.blogspot.com/2010/03/priesthood.html"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">https://answeringcatholicclaims.blogspot.com/2010/03/priesthood.html</span></a><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://answeringcatholicclaims.blogspot.com/2018/07/where-are-all-priests-in-new-testament.html"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">https://answeringcatholicclaims.blogspot.com/2018/07/where-are-all-priests-in-new-testament.html</span></a><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Authority to Forgive?<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">When the
elders in the local church pray for someone according to <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">James 5:14-16</i></b>, the person
can have a reasonable expectation to be healed, and even forgiven <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(v.
15)</i></b>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I actually like the way the
Catechism puts it: <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: #FBFAF8; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“… the liturgy has
never failed to beg the Lord that the sick person may recover his health <u>if
it would be conducive to his salvation</u>.” (CCC #1512 – Emphasis added)</span><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">There is
nothing wrong with praying for someone’s health, and it is certainly not wrong
to pray for his forgiveness.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But the
forgiveness does not come from the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">elders</i>,
nor does it come from any ritual that they perform.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They don’t have special power to grant
forgiveness.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That is a Catholic
misunderstanding of Scripture.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We can
indeed forgive one another for <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">personal
sins committed against each other</i>, but absolution (a “clean slate” or total
forgiveness of sins) is something that God alone can do.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Furthermore, any Christian can biblically <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">recognize</i> and declare that someone is
forgiven (absolved), but only based on the person’s positive response to the
gospel of Jesus Christ, not on any special authority of a man. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Conclusion<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">As I said
earlier, Protestants don’t (generally) have an issue with the concept of
anointing of the sick (which is biblical), but Extreme Unction is a different
and non-biblical issue.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Extreme Unction
is a very dangerous concept that many people (even some non-Catholics) believe.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is dangerous because they are trusting that
this last-minute Catholic ritual can save the soul of the dying person! <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But once again, this is not so.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Priestly rituals are works, and no works can
save an individual.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But the Catholic
Church wants its priests involved in all areas of the lives of its members. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Please remember that the Catholic Church
intends to impose itself upon all Catholics through <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">dependence on the Church (priesthood) from cradle to grave</i>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In this system, it is the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">priests</i> (not Jesus) who are the
mediators between man and God (<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">1 Timothy 2:5)</i></b>. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">But Extreme
Unction is a false hope.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It would be far
more advantageous (and biblical) for someone to share the simple gospel with
the person on his death bed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They say
that the last thing to go before death (concerning our five senses) is our
hearing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I believe that this is so the
gospel can be shared with them, even if they seem unresponsive.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If one can hear the gospel, he can respond
(at least internally) and be saved.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The
Bible promises that whosoever will call upon the name of the Lord <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">shall be saved</i> <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(Romans 10:13)</i></b>.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">The repentant
thief on the cross next to Jesus <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(Luke 23:39-43)</i></b> was a good example
of this simple salvation.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He could do no
good works – he could not come down from his cross and get baptized, give to
the poor, or help anyone cross the street.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>All he could do was call on Jesus… and he did!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He is now memorialized in the sacred
Scriptures as an eternal witness and example to all – obtaining salvation is
free to all who come to Jesus.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is
simply a matter of a changed heart when you surrender to God and trust in His
Son, Jesus Christ. <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(Ezekiel 36:26; John 3:16; 11:25; James 4:7)<o:p></o:p></i></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">This sacrament,
this Catholic version of Anointing of the Sick is ultimately an unbiblical
false hope and a twisting of the Scriptures.<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><o:p></o:p></i></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>Russellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17823479491839694646noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6730083483661000120.post-6338740894158675612023-04-03T18:03:00.000-07:002023-04-03T18:03:03.684-07:00THE SACRAMENT OF HOLY ORDERS<p> </p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-background-themecolor: background1;"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">As I stated in previous articles, the
Catholic Church has seven sacraments, and today’s topic will be the Sacrament
of Holy Orders, also called the Rite of Ordination.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As most people know, the Catholic Church has
a hierarchy, the lower ranks consisting of deacon, priest and bishop – in that
order. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>One must be a deacon before he
becomes a priest and one must be a priest before he becomes a bishop.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-background-themecolor: background1;"><span style="background: white; color: #333333; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Supposedly,
through the leadership of these three ranks, they help continue Jesus’ presence
on earth in the tradition of the apostles.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>At least, that’s what the Church claims (CCC #1549, 1575).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-background-themecolor: background1;"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">They also claim that when a man goes
through the rite of ordination, he <span style="background: white; color: #333333;">receives
a permanent spiritual mark, called a <em><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">character</span></em>, which
helps him represent Jesus in the Church (CCC #1558, 1563).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It goes without saying that the seven sacraments
are extremely important to the Catholic Church, and they claim that </span></span><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">the other six sacraments could not even exist</span><span style="background: white; color: #333333; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">without this particular sacrament (Holy
Orders). <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-background-themecolor: background1;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">The
Magnitude of the Priest’s Office<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-background-themecolor: background1;"><span style="background: white; color: #333333; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">So, how
important are the priests in this Church?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>The priests are responsible for conducting the Mass, or celebration of
the Eucharist, which is the heart of the Catholic service.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Priests are exalted in the eyes of the
people, sometimes astoundingly so.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>For
example, in the very popular book, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The
Faith of Millions: the Credentials of the Catholic Religion, </i>by Catholic
priest John Obrien, he says:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-background-themecolor: background1; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“When the priest announces the tremendous words of consecration,
he reaches up into the heavens, brings Christ down from His throne and places
Him upon our altar to be offered up again as the Victim for the sins of man…
not once but a thousand times! The priest speaks and
lo! Christ, the eternal and omnipotent God, bows His head in humble
obedience to the priest’s command.” <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>See the
online book here (<i>Page 270</i>):<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-background-themecolor: background1; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><a href="https://ia903106.us.archive.org/1/items/FaithOfMillions/Faith%20of%20Millions.pdf">https://ia903106.us.archive.org/1/items/FaithOfMillions/Faith%20of%20Millions.pdf</a><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-background-themecolor: background1; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">I don’t know about you, but this deeply offends me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The glorified Jesus Christ does not humble
himself in order to “obey” any human being.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>He is the Second Person of the Trinity and no one can <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">command</i> Him to do anything.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This is utter blasphemy!<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-background-themecolor: background1; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">By the way, if someone says that this is only one man’s
(O’brien’s) opinion, notice that this is a Catholic book by a Catholic priest
with the Catholic seals of approval, i.e., the Church officially declaring that
this book is <span style="background: #F6F6F6;">“free of <i>doctrinal and
moral error</i>.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>O’brien’s book is</span></span><span style="background: #F6F6F6; color: black; font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 23.5pt; line-height: 115%;"> </span><span style="background: #F6F6F6; color: black; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">a Catholic best seller and it was reprinted in
27 editions and translated into 10 languages.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>If they didn’t approve of it, they had plenty opportunity to get rid of
it or put it on the Forbidden Index of books.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Instead, they openly promote it, so this blasphemy appears to be fully
accepted by the Church.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-background-themecolor: background1; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Furthermore, according to the Catechism of Trent, the priest is
“justly” called a god:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-background-themecolor: background1; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">“… it is evident that no nobler function than theirs
can be imagined. Justly, therefore, are they called not only Angels, but even
gods, because of the fact that they exercise in our midst the power and prerogatives
of the immortal God.”(Under “Dignity of this Sacrament,” page 194-195,
online).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>See here:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-background-themecolor: background1; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><a href="https://www.catholicsociety.com/documents/Catechism_of_the_Council%20of_Trent.pdf">https://www.catholicsociety.com/documents/Catechism_of_the_Council%20of_Trent.pdf</a><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-background-themecolor: background1;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Which Priesthood is for Today?</span></b><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-background-themecolor: background1;"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">The priest is not a god.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Not only is he <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">not</i> a god, and not only can he <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">not
</i>call Jesus down from His throne, but the fact is, according to Scripture, the
Catholic priest’s office does not even exist in the New Testament!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-background-themecolor: background1;"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">The Catholic Church claims that in the Old
Testament there were three types of priesthoods: a high priesthood, a
ministerial priesthood and a universal priesthood of all believers.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And they say that the New Testament reflects all
three of the same offices/positions.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-background-themecolor: background1;"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">But I would heartily disagree and point out
that there are only two priesthoods in both the Old and the New Testament.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We would agree with Catholics that there was
a high priesthood and a ministerial priesthood in the Old Testament, but not a
universal priesthood of all believers.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Catholics will say, “But what about <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Exodus 19:6</i></b>?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Ok, let’s take a look at this verse: <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-background-themecolor: background1;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">And ye shall be
unto me a kingdom of priests, and an holy nation. These <span style="mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">are</span> the words which thou shalt
speak unto the children of Israel.</span></i></b><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-background-themecolor: background1;"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Ok, sounds like the Catholic might have a
point, right?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>No, not if you observe the
CONTEXT.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Let’s look at the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">previous</i> verse:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-background-themecolor: background1;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Now therefore,
if ye will obey my voice indeed, and keep my covenant, then ye shall be a
peculiar treasure unto me above all people: for all the earth <span style="mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">is</span> mine: (Exodus 19:5)</span></i></b><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-background-themecolor: background1;"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Well, that changes things, doesn’t it?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="background: white; color: black; mso-shading-themecolor: background1;">Yes, God promised Israel that they would be
a “kingdom of priests” and a “holy nation.” But, this is a yet UNFULFILLED
promise to the Jews. Notice that God’s promise to Israel was CONDITIONAL; that
this would happen IF (and ONLY if) they would obey God’s voice and keep His
covenant <strong><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-style: italic; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">(Exodus 19:5)</span></strong>. But they
didn’t. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Over and over, Israel had broken
God’s covenant and disobeyed His commands (e.g., <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Jeremiah chapter 11, 13, 22, 34</i></b>,
etc.). This continued even until the very end of the Old Testament period,
where even the ministerial priests had profaned the covenant <em><b><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">(Malachi 2:7-10)</span></b></em>.
Even to this day, Israel (as a nation) is disobedient and blinded to the
truth <em><b><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">(2
Corinthians 3:12-14; Romans 11:25, 31)</span></b></em>.</span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-background-themecolor: background1;"><span style="background: white; color: black; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-shading-themecolor: background1;">So, there was no universal priesthood back then.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><span style="background: #F6F6F6; color: black; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Funny how <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">verse
5</i> never seems to be mentioned when Catholics quote <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Exodus 19:6</i></b>!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That’s because it doesn’t support their view.</span><span style="background: white; color: black; font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-shading-themecolor: background1;"><br />
</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br />
</span><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="background: #F6F6F6; color: black; font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">No Veil, No Priesthood</span></b><span style="background: #F6F6F6; color: black; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-background-themecolor: background1;"><span style="background: #F6F6F6; color: black; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Moving to the
New Testament, we certainly see Jesus as the High Priest <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(Hebrews 4:14-16)</i></b>, and we
see all Christians designated as the universal priesthood of all believers (<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">1
Peter 2:5, 9; Revelation 1:6</i></b>), but what is obviously missing from the
New Testament is “ministerial priests” – those specifically ordained to stand
and mediate between man and God, as they did in the Old Testament.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But God has shown us that the veil in the
temple is torn down <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(Matthew 27:51)</i></b>, signifying that we now have direct access to
God.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This doesn’t mean we don’t need
leaders in the church, it just means we have no need of mediating priests.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That particular priesthood of the Old
Testament has been replaced today by the universal priesthood of all believers.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So, as I said earlier, there are only two
priesthoods in the Old Testament (high and ministerial) and only two in the New
(high and universal).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Catholics will
claim there is a ministerial priesthood in the church today (CCC #1547, #1551,
#1592)…<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Scripture doesn’t.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-background-themecolor: background1;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="background: #F6F6F6; color: black; font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Twisting Scripture<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-background-themecolor: background1;"><span style="background: #F6F6F6; color: black; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">In the
Catechism of the Catholic Church (CCC #1590), they try to use certain Scripture
verses to prove the Catholic concept of Holy Orders, using passages like <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">1
Timothy 3:1, 2 Timothy 1:6 </i></b>and <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Titus 1:5</i></b>, but NONE of these
passages refer to an office of “priest.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>If the office of priest is so critical today, why does Scripture not
even mention it?<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-background-themecolor: background1;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="background: #F6F6F6; color: black; font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Conclusion<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-background-themecolor: background1;"><span style="background: #F6F6F6; color: black; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">While I believe
that the office of deacon <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(Acts 6:1-6)</i></b> and the office of bishop
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(1Timothy
3:1)</i></b> are indeed biblical, again, there is no scriptural evidence for
the office of “priest” in the New Testament, and no one in the Bible was ever
ordained as such.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Therefore, the “Holy
Orders” of the Catholic priesthood are null and void – not only the priesthood
of the Catholic Church, but also any priesthood in Protestant denominations and
the Orthodox Church, as well.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-background-themecolor: background1;"><span style="background: #F6F6F6; color: black; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">See these
links:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-background-themecolor: background1;"><a href="https://answeringcatholicclaims.blogspot.com/2016/05/does-exodus-196-support-catholic.html"><span style="background: #F6F6F6; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">https://answeringcatholicclaims.blogspot.com/2016/05/does-exodus-196-support-catholic.html</span></a><span style="background: #F6F6F6; color: black; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-background-themecolor: background1;"><a href="https://answeringcatholicclaims.blogspot.com/2010/03/priesthood.html"><span style="background: #F6F6F6; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">https://answeringcatholicclaims.blogspot.com/2010/03/priesthood.html</span></a><span style="background: #F6F6F6; color: black; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-background-themecolor: background1;"><a href="https://answeringcatholicclaims.blogspot.com/2018/07/where-are-all-priests-in-new-testament.html"><span style="background: #F6F6F6; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">https://answeringcatholicclaims.blogspot.com/2018/07/where-are-all-priests-in-new-testament.html</span></a><span style="background: #F6F6F6; color: black; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-background-themecolor: background1;"><span style="background: #F6F6F6; color: black; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>Russellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17823479491839694646noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6730083483661000120.post-7915729678766948072023-03-02T00:01:00.000-08:002023-03-02T00:01:57.370-08:00THE SACRAMENT OF MATRIMONY<p> </p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Marriage (or
matrimony) is a wonderful thing and I think that most cultures around the world
would agree.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>After all, it’s been around
since the beginning of mankind, specifically ordained by God in the Garden of
Eden <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(Genesis
2:21-25)</i></b>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Marriage is one of the
main foundations of a healthy society.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">The Catholic
Church considers Holy Matrimony as one of its seven sacraments, and they
acknowledge that marriage was given to us by God – a holy institution where one
man is bound together with one woman for life and in many (if not most) cases they
produce children.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The Catholic Church
also rightly recognizes that Holy Matrimony is a symbol of the bond between
Christ and His people (CCC # 1661).<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Qualified?<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">First of
all, I agree with most of the things the Catholic Church teaches about
marriage.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But I do have to wonder
though, is anyone in the Catholic hierarchy qualified to give quality <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">personal</i> marriage advice when the great
majority of them (at least in the “Latin rite”) are unmarried?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What private intimate advice can a celibate
priest/bishop/cardinal offer, having no first-hand experience in actual married
life?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Wouldn’t he just be sort of an
“armchair quarterback,” either critiquing or trying to help marriages when he
has no <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">practical </i>understanding in
this field?<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Vows<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Be that as
it may, we must understand that marriage is a special and holy <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">covenant</i>, not just a human
contract.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In the wedding ceremony, the man
and woman stand before God Almighty and pledge/vow/promise to love each other
unconditionally, live with each other and be faithful (sexually) to each other,
and respect, honor and cherish each other.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>These vows also include protection and provision in good times and in
bad.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">The vows may
not always be exactly the same in each wedding, but the above summary is
generally what is agreed upon, and these vows are reflected in Scripture.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Furthermore, there are multiple human
witnesses in each wedding, as well, so your marriage vows are not to be taken
lightly on any level.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Of course, there
will be good times in your new life together, but there will also be
disagreements and trying times, as well.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%;">What About Divorce?<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Marriage is
a beautiful institution, but since there are sometimes problems in marriage,
the topic of divorce will come up from time to time.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">While I
commend the Catholic Church for their strong stance against “easy divorce” and
divorce, in general, I would like for them (and every other church –
Protestant, Orthodox, etc.) to take a closer look at the biblical evidence for
marriage and divorce.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">From the
very beginning, God’s intent for marriage was to have one man and one woman
come together in Christian love and the two would become one <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(Genesis
2:24)</i></b>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He intended for them to
be ever faithful and loving toward each other, and live under His Word and His authority,
each with their own role <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(Ephesians 5:22-33)</i></b> in a wonderful
lifelong relationship.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They would never
part until death.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That was the plan. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That was God’s perfect intention.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">But sin
entered the picture through Adam and Eve.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>This did not catch God by surprise, of course, but in His foreknowledge
He allowed for divorce, even though it was never intended to be the norm.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In the gospel of Matthew, the hard-hearted Pharisees
approached Jesus to ask Him about divorce, trying to trap Him.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In His day, the Jews were all familiar with a
sort of “no-fault” divorce which they called “divorce for any reason” <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(Matthew
19:3)</i></b>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And for some, divorce was
indeed allowed for almost any “violation.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>But Jesus goes back to the very beginning and told them: <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“Have ye not read,
that he which made <span style="mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">them</span> at
the beginning made them male and female, And said, For this cause shall a man
leave father and mother, and shall cleave to his wife: and they twain shall be
one flesh?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Wherefore they are no more
twain, but one flesh. What therefore God hath joined together, let not man put
asunder.” (Matthew 19:4-6)</span></i></b><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">The
Pharisees, thinking they had cornered Jesus with a hard question, asked:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“Why did Moses then
command to give a writing of divorcement, and to put her away?”</span></i></b><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"> (Matthew 19:7)<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Jesus then humiliated them with His
response:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“Moses
because of the hardness of your hearts suffered you to put away your wives: but
from the beginning it was not so.”</span></i></b><span class="red"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>(Matthew 19:8) </span></i></b></span><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Then Jesus
seems to give what many believe to be the only exception for allowing divorce:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“And I
say unto you, Whosoever shall put away his wife, <u>except <span style="mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">it be</span> for fornication</u>, and
shall marry another, committeth adultery: and whoso marrieth her which is put
away doth commit adultery.” (Matthew 19:9 - </span></i></b><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">emphasis added<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">)</i></b></span><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Ok, so Jesus
says that “fornication” (sexual sin/adultery) is the exception.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Does that mean that absolutely no other
reason can be allowed for divorce? <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Whose Favor?<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">So,
what exactly did Jesus mean when He said, <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">“Because of the hardness of your hearts”
(Matthew 19:8)</i></b>?</span><u><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></u></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">First
of all, divorce was <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">tolerated</i> and not
God’s perfect will.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The Jews of Jesus’
day certainly seemed to enjoy this concession, since a man could simply “trade
in” a wife for frivolous reasons (for example, bad breath, burning his supper, or
not liking her friends).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But ask
yourself, would God <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">reward</i> these
hard-hearted Jews for putting away their wives for such trivial
“offences”?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Wouldn’t it make more sense
that the concession (divorce) was to give relief to wives who were trying hard
to be faithful, but who were abused by these intolerant men?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">So, divorce was certainly not given as a favor to the
hard-hearted Jews/Pharisees, but as a favor to the WIVES, so they would not
have been trapped in a marriage by husbands acting like ruthless dictators!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was an act of mercy from God in an
imperfect world of sinful humans.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Apologist,
church historian, and Professor of Bible and Theology William Luck seems to
agree with this sentiment in an article in the link below:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p style="background: white; margin-bottom: 21.35pt; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 20.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“The phrase ‘because of your hardness
of heart’ is [sometimes wrongly] interpreted as saying something like: ‘Well,
God knows that divorce will take place, so He made a concession to you,
allowing you to do what you wanted.’<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p style="background: white; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 20.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“…What then? For whom is the concession? For the wives whom these
hard-hearted men have been divorcing since before the days of Moses… Knowing
that they will be treacherous and turn their backs on their covenant partner,
God has provided a law that will minimize the abuse. He will wink temporarily
at hard hearted husbands putting away innocent wives so that these wives will
be saved from their husbands, who would perhaps physically abuse them if forced
to keep them. So the permission to divorce has nothing to do with condescending
to wicked men, but everything to do with preserving innocent women.<span style="border: none windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: none windowtext 0in; padding: 0in;">”<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p style="background: white; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="border: none windowtext 1.0pt; font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 20.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-border-alt: none windowtext 0in; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin; padding: 0in;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p style="background: white; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background: white; font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 20.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">William F. Luck, <em><span style="border: none windowtext 1.0pt; font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-border-alt: none windowtext 0in; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin; padding: 0in;">Divorce and Re-Marriage:
Recovering the Biblical View</span></em>, 2<sup><span style="border: none windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: none windowtext 0in; padding: 0in;">nd</span></sup> ed.
(Richardson, TX: Biblical Studies Press, 2008), 157.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p style="background: white; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background: white; font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 20.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p style="background: white; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background: white; font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 20.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">See here:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p style="background: white; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background: white; color: #2b2b2b; font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 20.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://dwightgingrich.com/why-hardness-heart-cause-god-allow-divorce-jdr-9/"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">https://dwightgingrich.com/why-hardness-heart-cause-god-allow-divorce-jdr-9/</span></a><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #2b2b2b; font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Biblical
Principles<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #2b2b2b; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Many Christians are not aware that God has given some general principles
concerning divorce back in the Old Testament, principles that we can apply
today, for example, <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Exodus 21:9-11</i></b>. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In this
passage, God (through Moses) points out that certain necessities for the wife
(food, clothing and love, or marital rights) <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">must</i> be provided, or she is free to leave.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The husband is not to neglect or abuse her.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is true that this is in the context of
slavery and polygamy, but the point remains that even a lowly slave-wife had
minimum standards of provision that must be met. </span><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><span style="color: #2b2b2b; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">The
apostle Paul reinforces that same principle in <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">1 Timothy 5:8</i></b>:</span><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">But if
any provide not for his own, and specially for those of his own house, he hath
denied the faith, and is worse than an infidel. (1 Timothy 5:8)<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">A close
Christian brother and I were recently speaking about divorce.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We both realize that divorce is out of hand
in America and that it should not be taken lightly.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But he said that if a woman is habitually and
physically abused by her husband she should separate, rather than divorce.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The brother pointed out that while separated,
the man (if unrepentant) will <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">almost
always</i> feel justified to seek an adulterous affair, trapping himself.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Then, and only then, would the wife have a
biblical reason to divorce.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">I mostly
agree with my Christian brother.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This
seems like sound advice.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But suppose
that this husband (who has been beating her) would <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">never</i> cheat on his wife?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And
suppose that he warns her that separation would deprive him of his conjugal
rights (i.e., the right to marital sex – <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">1 Corinthians</i></b> <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">7:3)</i></b>, and that she would
therefore be breaking her marriage vows if she separated?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What then?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Would she be <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">obligated</i> to come
back to him and sustain even more physical abuse toward her and their children
simply because he has conjugal rights?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">But what
about <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">his own</i> obvious breaking of his
marriage vows when he abuses her?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The
marriage covenant is not just about sexual fidelity.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Just because a spouse hasn’t committed
adultery does not give him permission to break the marriage covenant in <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">other </i>ways.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Not to mention the husband’s God-given duty
to provide safety and protection for his wife.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Periodically beating your wife is <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">not</i>
honoring the marriage vows that you proclaimed before God and men.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">The apostle
Paul says:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Husbands,
love your wives, even as Christ also loved the church, and gave himself for
it. (Ephesians 5:25)</span></i></b><span class="reftext"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></i></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">So
ought men to love their wives as their own bodies. He that loveth his wife
loveth himself. For no man ever yet hated his own flesh; but nourisheth
and cherisheth it, even as the Lord the church. (Ephesians 5:28-29)</span></i></b><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Again,
beating your wife is far from <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">“loving her as Christ loves the church.”</i></b><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Would this abusive husband also be willing to
present his own body to be beaten?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Not
likely.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That’s because he loves his own
flesh and nourishes it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So, why does he
not love and cherish his wife’s flesh like he does his own, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">as Paul commanded</i>?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Remember, marriage is a God-given covenant where both sides
(whether saved or not) have responsibilities and benefits.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This is not a one-way street.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%;">For Better, For Worse?<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Again, physically
abusing your spouse is breaking the marriage covenant and so is
abandonment.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>According to the apostle
Paul, if an unbelieving spouse wants to leave, the believing spouse should not
force the unbelieving spouse to stay.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Divorce
is acceptable in this case.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The
unbeliever is free to leave if he does not want to stay <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(1 Corinthians 7:12-15).<o:p></o:p></i></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Someone may
say, “Hey, you got married ‘for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer,’ so
you need to hang in there and tough it out (even if your husband is beating
you)!”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Well, that’s
easy for someone who is NOT suffering from abuse to say, but t</span><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">he husband
providing security for his own family (especially his wife and children) is <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">mandated</i>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So how about rebuking the perpetrator, rather
than the victim!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Again, physical abuse
is a breach of the marriage covenant.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Security
and safety are two of the things that men have always rightly provided for
their wives throughout the centuries.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There
is no question that protection for the wife is God’s will.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">I just can’t
imagine God forcing a physically abused spouse to remain in a marriage where
the other spouse continually breaks the covenant, taking advantage of the one
who desires to be faithful.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">So
perhaps divorce can be a biblical answer for <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">some</i> marriage circumstances for a violation <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">other</i> than adultery (like abuse and abandonment/neglect).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The evidence of Scripture seems to indeed
indicate that.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">God’s purpose in allowing divorce is to
protect victims (vulnerable spouses).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>By
the way, it’s not just <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">women</i> who can
be abused in marriage.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is possible
for the reverse to happen.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%;">The Unpardonable Sin?</span></b><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">In light of
all this, I’m still <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">not</i> going to be
dogmatic about it, but I would strongly encourage everyone to take a long,
prayerful look at the biblical evidence for divorce, both Old Testament and New
Testament.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Don’t ignore what Jesus said,
but also don’t ignore the principles found in the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">rest of the Scriptures</i>, either.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Ultimately,
this is between the offended spouse and God.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>So, I’m not going to be the one to tell a woman to divorce her husband…
but I will also not be the one to tell an often-abused/severely
neglected/cheated-on/abandoned wife – who fears for her own life and the lives
of her children – to stay with such a man.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Only she can determine what to ultimately do, and she will have to live
with the consequences.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Remember, divorce
can certainly be a sin, but it is NOT the unpardonable sin!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The message of Scripture is that divorce is
allowed in just a few limited cases, but whenever possible, it should be
avoided.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>By the way, divorce is not <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">mandatory</i>, even in the case of
adultery.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Divorce should be done only as
a last resort and should only be considered after much prayer and Bible study,
and after great effort is made to reconcile the marriage.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Agreement and Disagreement<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Getting back
to the issue of the Catholic Church, they agree that the Law of God </span><span style="background: #FBFAF8; color: #202020; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“aims at
protecting the wife from arbitrary domination by the husband” (CCC #1610).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They also agree that physical separation can
be part of the answer to an unsafe marriage (CCC #1649).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Kudos to them for recognizing these things.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But one issue I have with them is their idea
that marriage is always “indissoluble” (CCC #1614).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>According to Webster’s Dictionary, this
means:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: #FBFAF8; color: #202020; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“Not
dissoluble; incapable of being annulled, undone, or broken; permanent.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">I would say, yes,
that indissolubility was indeed God’s original intent for marriage.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But the truth is marriage can still be
“broken.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We can all agree that Jesus,
Himself, allowed divorce for adultery.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>In this case, the marriage union is officially broken and the (innocent)
spouse can remarry.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Furthermore, if it
is true that marriage is absolutely indissoluble, then <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">not even death</i> can “break” it and the remaining spouse would not be
free to remarry.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But Scripture says
differently <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(Romans 7:2-3)</i></b>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So,
their argument is with <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">God</i> on that
topic, not me.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Annulments <o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Ok, so what
about annulments? <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>An annulment is when a
Catholic tribunal (church court) decides whether a couple who wants to split up
has met the legal conditions to do so.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Well, this
sounds like divorce, doesn’t it?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But the
Catholic Church says no, that this is simply a process to determine whether a
marriage <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">actually existed in the first
place</i>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If the Church investigates
and finds that the couple meets any one of the criteria, they can formally
annul the marriage and the couple can go their separate ways and even remarry.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They don’t consider this to be a divorce, but
just a marriage that was never valid from the beginning. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Just to be
clear, annulments are not just a Catholic thing – it is not just the Catholic
Church who performs annulments – Other religious groups and secular lawyers do
so, as well.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">So, what are
the criteria for having an annulment?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>You can find many reasons in the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Catechism
of the Catholic Church (Code of Canon Law, Chapter IV, Canon 1095 through Canon
1123).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>See here:<o:p></o:p></i></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><a href="https://www.vatican.va/archive/cod-iuris-canonici/eng/documents/cic_lib4-cann998-1165_en.html"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">https://www.vatican.va/archive/cod-iuris-canonici/eng/documents/cic_lib4-cann998-1165_en.html</span></a><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">But this
article from Catholic Answers breaks it down into three main categories:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">1 – Lack of Capacity,
2 – Lack of Consent, and 3 – Lack of Form <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">See the
article here:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://www.catholic.com/magazine/print-edition/what-are-grounds-for-annulment"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">https://www.catholic.com/magazine/print-edition/what-are-grounds-for-annulment</span></a><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Examples of
reasons to get an annulment include things that were <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">wrong</i> that existed at the time of the wedding/marriage – like
mental incompetence, being underage without parental consent, coercion (e.g., “shotgun
wedding”), fraud, incest, one spouse still being legally married, intent to be
unfaithful in the future, etc.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There are
many more.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">But the
Catholic Church pushing annulments is just like the Pharisees getting divorces
– it is simply a <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">loophole</i> to “legally”
get out of a marriage.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The bottom line
is that this is indeed a divorce – it just has another name.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The result is the same, except that
annulments in the Catholic Church almost always offer the possibility of
remarriage, while divorce doesn’t always offer it.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">An annulment
from the Catholic Church is an admission that the Church has failed to fully
explain to the couple what marriage is all about <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">before the wedding</i>!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The
Church can’t claim that the resources to do so are not available, since the
Catholic Church offers marriage preparation courses, counceling, marriage
workshops, conferences, retreats, etc., etc.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">If all the
right questions are asked up front, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">before</i>
the wedding, and if all the necessary information is given to the couple, and
if they have had enough time to process all the information, there should never
be any reason for an annulment.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This is
simply a convenient way to give the unsatisfied couple what they want without
the stigma of divorce. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">And why do
these problems always seem to come out so late in life (even after many years
of marriage)?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Funny how these issues
only seem to be “discovered” <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">when the
couple wants out</i> of the marriage!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Only then do they realize that there was fraud, mental issues, intent to
be unfaithful, etc.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>How convenient!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And interestingly, it only takes <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">one</i> of these criterion to dissolve the
marriage.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">But notice
the Webster’s dictionary definition above, that the word </span><span style="background: #FBFAF8; color: #202020; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">indissoluble
means “incapable of being annulled.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Can
anyone see the problem here?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>“Indissoluble” is <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">the Catholic
Church’s</i> choice of words.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It
literally means that a marriage cannot be annulled!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But loopholes are very convenient to have
around, aren’t they?<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: #FBFAF8; color: #202020; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">As I
said before, there are other religious systems and legal groups who use
annulments, and my condemnation of promoting annulments extends to them, as
well.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Gay Marriage <o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Another
troubling issue concerning marriage in the Catholic Church is “same-sex-union,”
or gay marriage.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It seems that
controversial Pope Francis is leaning toward this unbiblical trend.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Having this in mind, is the Catholic Church
losing sight of the origin and intent of marriage?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This is certainly not what the Catholic
Church has traditionally supported.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But
the pope seems to be taking the Church in that direction.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">See here:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://www.newyorker.com/news/daily-comment/pope-francis-supports-same-sex-civil-unions-but-the-church-must-do-more"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">https://www.newyorker.com/news/daily-comment/pope-francis-supports-same-sex-civil-unions-but-the-church-must-do-more</span></a><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Conclusion<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Again,
I agree with a lot of things that the Catholic Church teaches about marriage,
but there are certainly some exceptions, also.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">And one
last thing: Marriage/matrimony is not a “sacrament.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It does not “merit” grace.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We dealt with this in our last two articles
on the sacraments of the Catholic Church.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></p>Russellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17823479491839694646noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6730083483661000120.post-896829354375953702023-02-01T12:59:00.000-08:002023-02-01T12:59:52.796-08:00THE SACRAMENT OF CONFIRMATION<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Today, we
will be dealing with the second in our series on the seven sacraments of the Catholic Church, again in no particular
order. In this one, I am addressing the
sacrament of Confirmation, sometimes called the “Sacrament of Christian Maturity.” This is certainly not the most talked-about
sacrament, and even many Catholics are prone to misunderstand it.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">So, what <i>is </i>Catholic Confirmation, actually? The Catechism of the Catholic Church states
that Confirmation is one of three “sacraments of initiation,” baptism and Holy
Communion being the other two. It also
claims that Confirmation is necessary for the “completion of baptismal grace.”
(CCC #1285)<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Confirmation
is a ritual of the Church that claims that: <o:p></o:p></span></p><p>
</p><p class="MsoListParagraph" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;">-<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="background: white; font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%;">It roots us more deeply in the divine filiation which makes
us cry, “Abba! Father!" </span><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="text-align: left; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--></p>
<p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">-<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="background: white; color: black; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">It unites us more firmly to Christ;</span><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">-<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="background: white; color: black; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">It increases the gifts of the Holy Spirit in us;</span><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">-<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="background: white; color: black; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">It renders our bond with the Church more perfect</span><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">-<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="background: white; color: black; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">It gives us a special strength of the Holy Spirit to spread
and defend the faith by word and action as true witnesses of Christ, to confess
the name of Christ boldly, and never to be ashamed of the Cross. (CCC #1303)</span><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Not only that, but the Catechism
claims that “… <span style="background: #FBFAF8; color: #202020;">the effect of the
sacrament of Confirmation <u>IS</u> the special outpouring of the Holy Spirit
as once granted to the apostles on the day of Pentecost</span>.” (CCC #1302 – Emphasis
added)</span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">The Catholic Catechism also states
that Confirmation causes the seal of the Holy Spirit to be given to the
Catholic. (CCC #1293 and CCC #1295)<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Is it important for the Catholic to
believe in Confirmation?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Very much
so.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The Council of Trent states that if
a person says that Confirmation is not instituted by Christ, that person is
considered <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">“anathema.”</i> <span style="background: #F6F6F6; color: black;">(Session VII, Canon I, “On the
Sacraments in General”)<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">By the way, an anathema is t<span style="background: #F6F6F6; color: black;">he severest form of excommunication in
the Catholic Church, where one is eternally condemned to Hell unless and until
he does penance to the Church’s satisfaction.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Well, at least these things are what
the Catholic Church <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">claims</i> about
Confirmation.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="background: #F6F6F6; color: black;">Ok, so that’s a pretty weighty teaching, being mandatory
and all for every Catholic to believe.</span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>But does Catholic Confirmation actually do all those things listed
above?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And if it does, how? <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And, most importantly, is it indeed
established by Jesus Christ?<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">So what <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">does</i> Jesus say about this Confirmation event?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If you look in the pages of the New
Testament, you will not find any such ritual.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>You will find that there is no single specific event that does all these
things mentioned above.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Every
Christian’s journey starts with salvation, that is, when justification is
imputed to him by faith and his heart is changed by God.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>After this happens, sanctification is the
process where we are, over time, “rooted more deeply” and “united more firmly”
to Christ, as we strive to please Him.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>If a person is truly saved, the process of sanctification will indeed
happen, whether there is a particular ceremony or not.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">As far as the gifts of the Holy Spirit
being increased in someone, Scripture tells us that these gifts are given <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">as God wills</i> <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(1 Corinthians 12:11)</i></b> – He,
alone, does the choosing of the gift(s), and He alone decides at what point in
life to give them to you.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There is nothing
in Scripture about them coming from a formal church ritual.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Catholic
statements about Confirmation are indeed tall claims, and since the Catholic
Church claims that there is a special outpouring of the Holy Spirit in the
Confirmation event, akin to the event on the Day of Pentecost, it must
necessarily be a <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">miracle</i>, right?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If this is true, is there any real evidence
that the person confirmed is any closer to Christ, or that His gifts have, on
that day, increased in that person’s life?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Have all the recipients of Confirmation spoken in other languages as
they did on the Day of Pentecost?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Has it
caused them to do miracles like those in the early church? <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You see, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">real</i>
miracles, like those found in the Bible, always had clear evidence to back them
up, and were not just empty claims. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">To have a
group go through a formal ritual like Confirmation and tell them that a special miracle had to have
happened (without proof) is deceptive. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Reality<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">In reality, the bottom line is this:
the Catholic Church has, in the ceremony of Confirmation, a powerless person in
an unbiblical role, performing an empty ritual, conferring fake gifts to a
(more often than not) clueless recipient.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">That may sound unkind, but let me
explain.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The powerless person is the
Catholic priest or bishop and he is powerless because there is no biblical
backing for this “sacrament.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Furthermore,
his is indeed an unbiblical role, since there is no ministerial priesthood in
the New Testament.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The ritual is empty
because there is no such thing as a ritual, ceremony or ordinance that provides
grace for a person.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Rituals are works,
and grace does not come through works <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(1 Peter 5:5-6)</i></b>, therefore, this
ceremony’s “gifts” are fake.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Concerning
the recipient being clueless, most of the time, these are young, pre-teen
children, who can hardly be considered “mature” when receiving this sacrament,
even though it is often called the sacrament of maturity.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The Catholic may say that Confirmation is
just the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">beginning</i> of his walk of
maturity.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Well, perhaps so, but there is
no biblical evidence that Catholic Confirmation is the starting point.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Now, I’m not
saying that the ritual of Confirmation has never had any meaning for the
“confirmand” (the person being confirmed), but that it simply <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">does not provide grace</i>, as it claims. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’m also <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">not</i>
saying that the Holy Spirit could never work in the heart of any recipient
during this ceremony.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">possible</i>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I am not limiting the Holy Spirit’s ability
to work in someone whose heart is right, but the Holy Spirit does not give
grace to a person because he goes through a particular ceremony, especially an
unbiblical one.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Again, grace
is not obtained through rituals <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(Proverbs 3:34; James 4:6)</i></b> and therefore,
sacraments cannot be a means of grace <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(Romans 11:6)</i></b>.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Conclusion<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Catholics
will claim that their Confirmation is biblical, since its ceremony uses the
laying on of hands and anointing oil.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>But that doesn’t prove anything.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Any unbiblical group can do the same.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">The apostle
Paul does mention that Jesus Christ will “confirm” the believer until the
end.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But this is an <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">ongoing thing</i>, not a one-time ritual.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Paul is simply saying that the Christian
needs to be “confirmed” in the sense that he is <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">strengthened, established, kept </i>and<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"> sustained </i>in the faith <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(1 Corinthians 1:6-8</i>)</b>. <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></b>THAT
is biblical confirmation.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">The Catholic
Church has a system of many rituals that its members depend on from cradle to
grave.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This system supposedly doles out
God’s grace through sacraments, piece by piece, in periodic installments.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And they claim that it is only through the
Church that one can get these saving sacraments, thus shackling its members to “Mother
Church.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Catholic Confirmation is only
one of those sacraments.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">But
remember, real and biblical salvation doesn’t come in installments or rituals.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It simply comes by FAITH in the Person and
work of Jesus Christ on the cross of Calvary <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(John 3:16; Romans 4:4-5; Ephesians
2:8-9)</i></b>.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">See also
this link concerning sacraments:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><a href="https://answeringcatholicclaims.blogspot.com/2011/01/sacraments-gods-grace-for-sale.html">https://answeringcatholicclaims.blogspot.com/2011/01/sacraments-gods-grace-for-sale.html</a><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">And this
link on the priesthood:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><a href="http://answeringcatholicclaims.blogspot.com/2010/03/priesthood.html">http://answeringcatholicclaims.blogspot.com/2010/03/priesthood.html</a><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>Russellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17823479491839694646noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6730083483661000120.post-9252912580304936852023-01-01T23:21:00.000-08:002023-01-01T23:21:11.554-08:00THE SACRAMENTS OF THE CATHOLIC CHURCH - (PART 1) CONFESSION<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">This article
is the first in a series on the seven Catholic sacraments, which will not be
covered in any particular order. This
particular one will be on the sacrament of Confession (also known as Penance or
Reconciliation).<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">So, first of
all, what exactly are sacraments? </span><span style="background: white; color: #212529; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Webster’s
dictionary describes a sacrament as:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; color: #212529; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“a
Christian rite (such as baptism or the Eucharist) that is believed to have been
ordained by Christ and that is held to be a means of divine grace or to be a
sign or symbol of a spiritual reality.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%;">According to the Catechism of the
Catholic Church:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%;">“The sacraments are efficacious
signs of grace, instituted by Christ and entrusted to the Church, by which
divine life is dispensed to us. The visible rites by which the sacraments are
celebrated signify and make present the graces proper to each sacrament. They
bear fruit in those who receive them with the required dispositions.”<i> </i>(</span><span style="background: white; color: #212529; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">CCC #1131)<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">So, what
they are saying is that a sacrament is a ritual that one goes through to merit
grace from God. But that is an oxymoron. No one can <i>merit</i> <i>grace</i>. It is like saying that I will work for
something so that it can be given to me as a free gift! But it is either a gift or something you
worked for – it is one or the other. It
can’t be both:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><i><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">But
if it is by
grace, it is no
longer on the basis of works, since otherwise grace
is no longer grace. (Romans 11:6 – </span></i></b><b><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">NASB<i>)</i></span></b><b><i><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">See this link on the sacraments:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://answeringcatholicclaims.blogspot.com/2011/01/sacraments-gods-grace-for-sale.html"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">https://answeringcatholicclaims.blogspot.com/2011/01/sacraments-gods-grace-for-sale.html</span></a><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">A Little History<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Over the centuries, simple biblical
confession has <i>evolved </i>in the
Catholic Church into an intricate system involving “penance” (which has all but
<i>replaced</i> biblical repentance) by
“meriting” grace from God by prayer, suffering, personal works, and even
indulgences. According to the following
source, <span style="background: white;">Catholics see Penance as “man’s effort
to satisfy God for personal sin through one’s own works.” </span>See this link:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://christiantruth.com/articles/penancehistory/"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">https://christiantruth.com/articles/penancehistory/</span></a><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">The Catholic Church teaches that
private confession to a priest has been the norm from the beginning (<i>Council of Trent, Fourteenth Session, Canon
VI</i>). But this same link above points
out the fact that “auricular confession” [private confession to a priest] and
“judicial absolution” [official forgiveness granted by a priest] was NOT the
practice of the church from the very beginning “since there was no <span style="background: white;">general agreement in the Church about the nature and
necessity of such an important issue to as late a period as the 13th century. It was a matter of debate among Scholastic
theologians, most of whom demonstrate that there were conflicting opinions even
among the Church Fathers.”</span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%;">It Must Be to the Priest<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Protestants
seem to have some serious reservations about Catholic Confession. So, what’s wrong with confessing your
sins? Don’t Protestants believe in that? Of course, any biblically-based Protestant
believes in confessing his sins. That’s
not the issue. But the first problem is
that Catholics are <i>required</i> to
confess any “mortal” sins <i>to a priest</i>. T</span><span style="background: rgb(246, 246, 246); font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%;">he Catechism of
the Catholic Church repeatedly tells us that confessing to a priest is
“essential” or a “must.” For example:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: #FBFAF8; color: #202020; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“It
is called the <i>sacrament of confession</i>, since the disclosure or
confession of sins to a priest is an essential element of this sacrament…” (CCC
#1424)<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: rgb(246, 246, 246); font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%;">“</span><span style="background: #FBFAF8; color: #202020; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Confession to
a priest is an essential part of the sacrament of Penance…” (CCC #1456)</span><span style="background: rgb(246, 246, 246); font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: rgb(246, 246, 246); font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%;">“</span><span style="background: #FBFAF8; color: #202020; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">One who desires to obtain reconciliation with God and with
the Church, must confess to a priest all the unconfessed grave sins he
remembers after having carefully examined his conscience. The confession of
venial faults, without being necessary in itself, is nevertheless strongly
recommended by the Church.” (CCC #1493)<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: #FBFAF8; color: #202020; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">(See
also CCC</span><span style="background: rgb(246, 246, 246); font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%;"> </span><span style="background: rgb(246, 246, 246); font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%;">#1448
and CCC #1449)<b><i> </i></b></span><span style="background: rgb(246, 246, 246); font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%;"> <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: rgb(246, 246, 246); font-size: 22pt; line-height: 115%;">Misreading
James<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Ok, so
what’s wrong with confessing to a priest?
Doesn’t the Bible tell us to confess our sins to the elders/priests in <b><i>James
5:14-16</i></b>:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><i><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Is any
sick among you? let him call for the elders of the church; and let them pray
over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord: And the prayer
of faith shall save the sick, and the Lord shall raise him up; and if he have
committed sins, they shall be forgiven him. Confess your faults one to another, and
pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a
righteous man availeth much.<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">First
of all, the New Testament does not recognize ministerial priests, as the Old
Testament does. See this link:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="http://answeringcatholicclaims.blogspot.com/2010/03/priesthood.html"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">http://answeringcatholicclaims.blogspot.com/2010/03/priesthood.html</span></a><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Second,
the New Testament Greek word for priest is “hiereus.” </span><span style="background: rgb(246, 246, 246); font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%;">This Greek word nowhere appears in the New
Testament to describe a ministerial priest.
The word for elders in the passage above is </span><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“presbuteros,”
a totally different term. And in this
context,</span><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"> it is not specifically talking about
confessing your sins to get God’s forgiveness, to get a clean slate, as is done
in Catholic Confession. It is talking
about “confessing your sins one to another,” that is, the local body of
believers admitting their sins and wrongdoing toward each other, <i>forgiving one another</i>. <b><i>James 5:14-16</i></b> is about praying for
the sick and about <i>personal </i>offenses
toward other members of the local body. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Third, the elders are not there to
have members confess directly to them, as it is with priests in the Catholic
Church. The Bible never says to confess
to a designated person, whether a priest, pastor, bishop, etc. These can’t see the heart. Only God can.
So, a man cannot conclusively tell another person that he (that person)
is forgiven, since the man doesn’t know his heart; but he <i>can</i> tell him (according to the authority of Scripture) that he is
forgiven IF, and only if, he repents and trusts in the gospel of Jesus
Christ. This is the New Testament
requirement for salvation <b><i>(Romans 1:16)</i></b>. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Again, a man cannot give absolution to
another, only God can, since He, <i>and only
He</i>, knows all hearts. Confessing to
a priest, even one you trust, may make you feel good and may be comforting, but
it is certainly not biblical. See this
link:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://answeringcatholicclaims.blogspot.com/2011/08/hi-jacking-of-john-2023.html"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">https://answeringcatholicclaims.blogspot.com/2011/08/hi-jacking-of-john-2023.html</span></a><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Problems with the Box<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Not only is private confession to a
priest not scriptural, it has caused some serious problems within the Catholic
Church. There is an old (non-fiction)
book titled <i>The Woman, the Priest, and
the Confessional</i>, and it was written in 1875 by a former priest. It outlines horror stories of women being
betrayed, seduced and basically destroyed by perverted priests who coaxed them
in the secrecy of the confessional (under penalty of eternal damnation, of
course) to reveal their deepest, darkest secrets and their most sinful
desires. Some priests took full
advantage of the opportunities afforded by that private confessional box. The people trusted the priests going in, but
were betrayed. Not only did these
encounters destroy many women, but many priests, as well. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">My Catholic friends, your sins and
weaknesses just may be better kept <i>unknown</i>
to most people… even your beloved priest!
With a repentant and contrite heart, confess them to God. He will never betray you.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">The book mentioned above is quite old,
yet it reads like many of today’s headlines.
I firmly believe the author was telling the truth, but the scandalous
and perverted sexual encounters of his day were only to get worse in time…<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">The Perversion is Far from Gone<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">A much more recent book, <i>The Dark Box: A Secret History of Confession</i>,
by John Cornwell, is another eye-opener.
In a <i>National Catholic Reporter</i>
review of his book, Cornwell is painted as possibly “<span style="background: white;">our most gifted and persistent chronicler of Catholicism in
the context of the modern world.”
Remember, this is an article by a <i>Catholic
</i>news source, not Protestant, and it is worth noting that Cornwell, himself,
is a Catholic.</span></span><b><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">The author of the review stated: <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“<span style="background: white;">Confession
may be good for the soul -- at least sometimes -- but it has also been used to
evil effect by those who would use the secrecy of the sacrament and the power
of the priesthood to exploit the vulnerable.”<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“In its best passages, <em><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">The Dark Box</span></em> connects
the sexual obsessions of the earliest priestly celibates with the abuse of
confession and the suffering of untold millions of everyday Catholics. For centuries,
priests functioned as ‘forensic’ interrogators, coercing or merely persuading
men, women and children to reveal the secrets for which they should feel most
ashamed. The institutional obsession with sexual sin tells us that clergy were
themselves tortured by guilt.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%;">See the
link here:</span><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://www.ncronline.org/books/2022/06/history-confession-tale-sexual-obsession-exploitation"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">https://www.ncronline.org/books/2022/06/history-confession-tale-sexual-obsession-exploitation</span></a><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Conclusion<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Confessing your sins is absolutely
critical if you want to make it to Heaven.
If you want <i>real</i> forgiveness,
confess them directly to God. No need
for a human mediator. God understands better
than anyone else and He knows all your sins before you even open your mouth,
even your most secret sins! Then why
tell Him? Because God wants you to be
honest and to humble yourself and admit your sins and your rebellion against
Him:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><i><span style="background: white; font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%;">God
opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble. (James 4:6)<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">I’m not saying that a Catholic cannot
ever be forgiven in the confessional, but he could still be forgiven IN SPITE
OF this unbiblical ritual!<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%;">Mandatory
confession to a priest tends to cause one</span><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">
to trust in a <i>system</i>, rather than in
Jesus and His work on the cross.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%;">But I
have a question… </span><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">If you confess to a priest, then what
happens <i>between</i> confessions? What if you commit a sin after Confession
(and you will), and then die <i>before</i>
your next confession? A Catholic may say
that God is always fair and He will give you an opportunity to be saved. Ok, so if that’s true, then what’s the purpose,
what’s the need, for confessing to a priest in the first place?<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">We have a wonderful example in
Scripture of the end of the mediation of the priesthood. The moment that Jesus Christ died on the
cross, the great veil in the temple that separated the Holy Place and the Holy
of Holies was torn in half… exposing the Ark of the Covenant! I can’t imagine the horror that was in the
faces of the priests who were working in the temple at the time, conducting the
evening sacrifice. No doubt, they
thought they were going to die on the spot, since the place of God’s very
presence was exposed!<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">But no, God was making an incredible
statement that would ring through time and eternity… WE CAN NOW APPROACH THE
LIVING GOD OURSELVES, EVEN CONFIDENTLY, and know that He will hear us. No more need for a ministerial priesthood to
mediate for us: <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><i><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Let us
therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and
find grace to help in time of need.</span></i></b><b><i><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">
(Hebrews 4:16)</span></i></b><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Confession directly to God is part of
the new and better covenant. <b><i>(Hebrews 8:6)<o:p></o:p></i></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"> </span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 20pt;"> </span> </p>Russellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17823479491839694646noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6730083483661000120.post-71046468363343217542022-12-03T19:04:00.000-08:002022-12-03T19:04:45.252-08:00THE POINT OF NO RETURN<p> </p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Imagine
yourself in a canoe, peacefully floating around on a large lake.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s a beautiful day and you haven’t a care
in the world.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>After a while, you begin
to hear a sound, a continuous sound that is slowly getting louder and
louder.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In horror, you finally realize
the sound is a very large waterfall – and you’re headed straight toward
it!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You franticly paddle, trying to move
back to safety, but no, you realize that you are at the point of no return and
you are sucked into the giant waterfall and perish on the rocks below.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If only someone had warned you.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Life is full
of dangerous circumstances, some more serious than others.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You get it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Those situations where you are in deep trouble (physically, financially,
with relationships, etc.) and you are just unable to get out.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There is no turning back.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This point of no return is cold and ruthless.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It doesn’t care about your feelings.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It doesn’t care about your excuses or your
careless attitude toward common sense rules, nor does it care about your poor
decisions.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You messed up and you’re now
paying the price.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">The “point
of no return” concept is bad enough in the physical realm.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But it is even more terrifying in the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">spiritual </i>realm.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There, it is eternal.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Death may bring relief for some who have
suffered greatly, but for all those who have not surrendered to the Savior
(Jesus Christ), for those who have rejected Him and His doctrine, there is no
relief and there is no turning back.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>They will fall paralyzed and speechless <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(Revelation 1:17) </i></b>before
Him on that day in utter horror <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(Revelation 6:16)</i></b>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Once again, it will be too late.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But in this case, it will be the ULTIMATE<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"> </i>point of no return!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You won’t have the time nor the chance to change
your mind.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You will have made your
choice.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Do We Really Love the Truth?<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">But what
brings people to this point in their lives?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Here is a passage telling us exactly how we end up in this situation…<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">2 Thessalonians 2:8-12:<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">8 - And then shall
that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his
mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming: <o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span class="reftext"><b><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">9 - </span></i></b></span><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Even him</span></i></b><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">, whose coming is after the working of Satan with all power and signs
and lying wonders, <o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span class="reftext"><b><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">10 - </span></i></b></span><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">And with all deceivableness
of unrighteousness in them that perish; because they received not the love of
the truth, that they might be saved. <o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span class="reftext"><b><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">11 - </span></i></b></span><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">And for this cause God shall
send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie: <o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span class="reftext"><b><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">12 - </span></i></b></span><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">That they all might be damned
who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness.</span></i></b><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">The context
here is the last days when the antichrist comes on the scene.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>At this time (and even now), the world will
be so conditioned to believe false teachings that they will easily believe the
antichrist’s lies.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They will be fully
convinced through his lying signs and wonders.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>These people will have had opportunity after opportunity to cling to the
truth of the gospel, but they willfully continue to reject it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They have loved and embraced false teachings
so long that God is basically saying, “Ok, I won’t <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">force</i> you to come to Me, but if the life you’re living is what you
really want, then stay there and live with your decision!”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Notice that in the passage above, they simply
didn’t have a love for the truth, but favored a life of selfish pleasure and
perverted doctrine, rather than godliness.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Especially for Catholics<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Alright,
many readers of this blog know that this blog is dedicated to articles about
Catholicism.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>One might ask what all this
has to do with the Catholic Church.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Well, a lot, actually.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I strongly
believe, and have firmly held to, the idea that the Catholic Church has always
had a false gospel, one that has deceived millions and millions of its followers.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Furthermore, the Catholic Church not only has
a false gospel, but it has <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">multiple</i>
false doctrines.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">If all that
I am saying is true, what will be the fate of these Catholics?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I believe that after being presented the
truth of Scripture, if they continue to embrace unbiblical Catholic doctrines,
their “canoe” will perish in the “waterfall,” metaphorically speaking.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>To put it bluntly, they will perish in the
Lake of Fire… eternally.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And they, too,
will be saying, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">“If only someone had
warned me!”</i><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Well, I am just one of
the many voices warning you now.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Common Ground<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">But one
might ask, “But what if what the Catholic Church teaches is <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">true</i>?”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Well, if they really are teaching truth, then they don’t have anything
to worry about.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But a little study will
show that it is very obvious that they contradict many of the Scriptures, and
they even contradict some of <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">their own</i>
traditions! <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>See here:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><a href="https://www.equip.org/articles/what-are-some-arguments-against-apostolic-tradition/"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">https://www.equip.org/articles/what-are-some-arguments-against-apostolic-tradition/</span></a><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">The question
is, for Protestants and Catholics, who (if either of them) is right?</span><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></b><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Catholics and Protestants have been
debating for centuries, and of course both sides believe they are right.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Obviously, they can’t both be right, since both
sides contradict each other in many areas.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>The one thing both sides have in common is the fact that the Bible is
God’s Word.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So I think we can use this
common ground to get to the truth.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Jesus
tells us that <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">God’s Word</i> is truth <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(John
17:17)</i></b>.</span><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Conclusion<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">But the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">key</i> issue is the gospel, which is the power
of God for salvation <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(Romans 1:16)</i></b>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And I believe that the Catholic Church has
rejected that gospel.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">But how many
times can you reject the gospel before God says “That’s enough!”?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Where is the point of no return, spiritually
speaking?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I know that saying that the
Catholic Church does not have the gospel of Jesus Christ may sound cruel and
intolerant, but I’ve pointed out time after time on this blog that the Catholic
Church has a different gospel <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(2 Corinthians 11:4)</i></b> which has a <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">works-based</i> salvation, and that is an
anti-biblical teaching <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(Romans 3:27-28; 4:4-5; Ephesians 2:8-10; Titus
3:5)</i></b>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">This blog is
full of warnings about many of the teachings of the Catholic Church.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There is something here on almost every major/significant
Catholic doctrine.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And there are tons
more in many other places on the internet by authors who are very knowledgeable
in Catholic teachings and/or who were once Catholic themselves.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">A Catholic
may say, “But there are also many former Protestants who became Catholic, so
this doesn’t prove anything!”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>True, but
those Protestants who have heard the gospel, but who now embrace the Catholic
Church will have no excuse. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Again, we
must look at the source of truth, i.e., Scripture, and we must take an honest
look at the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">whole</i> of Scripture, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">in its context</i>!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I believe that if someone does this and is
truly seeking after God, he will be saved.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>For that person, the point of no return (i.e., eternity) is something to
look forward to, and not a terror.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>Russellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17823479491839694646noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6730083483661000120.post-42886672869057189262022-11-05T22:42:00.000-07:002022-11-05T22:42:58.861-07:00CATHOLICISM PORTRAYS GOD AS A FORMALIST<p> </p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 24.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoListParagraph" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;"></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%;"> <u>Formalism</u></span><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><strong><span style="background: white; border: none windowtext 1.0pt; color: #303336; font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; letter-spacing: .2pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-border-alt: none windowtext 0in; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin; padding: 0in;"> </span></strong><span style="background: white; color: #303336; letter-spacing: .2pt;">the practice or the doctrine of strict
adherence to prescribed or external </span></span><a href="https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/forms"><span style="background: white; border: 1pt none windowtext; color: #265667; font-size: 20pt; letter-spacing: 0.2pt; line-height: 115%; padding: 0in;">forms</span></a><span style="background: white; color: #303336; font-size: 20.0pt; letter-spacing: .2pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"> (as in religion or art)<o:p></o:p></span></li></ul><!--[if !supportLists]--><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">In 1990,
Matthew Hood was baptized in the Catholic Church as an infant.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Thirty years later, in August of 2020, while Hood
was an ordained Catholic priest in the Archdiocese of Detroit, he decided to go
back and watch his childhood baptism on video.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>But something bothered him when he saw that video.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He realized that <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">the wrong formula</i> had been used in his baptism, therefore,
according to the Church, he was not actually baptized! <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">So, exactly,
what were the implications of that?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Would he have to be re-baptized?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Would this affect his ordination as a priest?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Or is it no big deal?<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">It turns out
that, to the Catholic Church, it is indeed a big deal.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This caused quite a stir in the Catholic
world.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>According to one <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Catholic Answers</i> article, this story </span><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“<span style="background: white; color: black;">unleashed
a torrent of anxieties and questions around </span><span style="background: white;">the sacraments</span>.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>See here:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://www.catholic.com/audio/caf/why-the-fuss-about-sacraments"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Why the Fuss About Sacraments? |
Catholic Answers</span></a><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%;">So What’s the Problem?<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">The person
who performed Hood’s baptism was Mark Springer, a deacon in the Catholic Church
at that time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But according to his
archdiocese, the deacon is now retired “and no longer in active ministry.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The problem is not the fact that he was a
deacon, but that the wording in the ritual was unacceptable.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">So, what was
this great deviation from the Catholic faith, this great error, in the
prescribed formula in Matthew Hood’s infant baptism?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What exactly was it that was done wrong?<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Well,
according to the Church, Springer used the phrase, “<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">We baptize you</i> in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the
Holy Spirit,” rather than, “<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">I baptize you</i>
in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.” <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>No kidding.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>The Vatican said that using “we” is not acceptable, since it is not the
congregation, nor the community that baptizes, but rather, Jesus, Himself, working
through the person baptizing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“I” is
signifying that a baptism is done through the singular person of Jesus Christ.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Otherwise, the baptism is invalid, according
to the Catholic Church.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Domino Effect</span></b><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">It is a
Catholic rule that a man who wishes to become a priest must have been properly
baptized.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Since Matthew Hood was not
correctly baptized, that meant that his own ordination to the priesthood was
null and void.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Furthermore, this brought
into question the marriages of each and every couple that he had performed, and
that all the confessions that he presided over were void (meaning that those
confessing were not forgiven after all), all the masses that he celebrated were
invalid, and no one was rightly “confirmed” under him.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>All because of a faulty wording in his
baptism ritual!<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Questions</span></b><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Worse yet,
where was Hood’s <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">soul</i> in the
meantime?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>By the Catholic Church’s own
standards, he <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">was not even saved</i> (CCC
# 1257), much less was he an actual priest.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>So, hypothetically, what about those individuals who went to (Catholic)
Confession under Hood, but may have died shortly after, being supposedly
absolved (forgiven of their sins)?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Apparently, they would not be forgiven after all, would they?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Do they end up in Hell because of a
mis-wording in Hood’s childhood baptism?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>What about those who were “married” under Hood and died since?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Were these living in sin (living together unmarried)
and raising illegitimate children, only to be in Hell now?<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Are these poor,
unaware Catholics guilty due to the mistakes of their leaders?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Is God a <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">formalist</i>?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Is He so nitpicky and so hairsplitting in the
Catholic Church’s eyes that He would (just because of a technicality) consign a
person to Hell whose heart may have actually been right when he confessed his
sins? <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><br />
Would God really eternally condemn those who are “illegally” married through no
fault of their own?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>All over a slight
mis-wording of a sacrament ritual? <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Didn’t Jesus say that God looks at the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">heart</i> rather than a person’s performance
of rituals<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"> (Mark 7:1-8; Luke 11:37-42; 18:9-14)</i></b>?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Indeed He did.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Not God’s Nature<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">All this confusion
is actually an <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">insult</i> to God.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It goes against His graceful, loving and
merciful nature to intervene in mankind’s affairs when we are powerless to do
anything (even when our hearts are right) - for example, like in the case of
the thief on the cross <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(Luke 23:39-43)</i></b>.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">But this
puts Catholics in an awkward position.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>On the one hand, it is an absolute <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">necessity</i>
(for Catholics) to have the proper wording for sacraments.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But on the other hand, they’ll admit that
this can’t limit God, since He is omnipotent.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>So, to avoid the Catholic Church’s obvious contradiction toward God’s
nature, Catholics will try to backpedal and say, “Well, God would do the right
thing in the case of an invalid marriage or confession,” or they’ll say, “The
person would still obtain SOME grace… although not the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">fullness</i> of grace which sacraments normally provide.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">But it is
not in God’s nature to allow such a petty restriction to keep someone out of
Heaven.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Catholics may claim that the
people in these circumstances would go to Purgatory, and not Hell.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But this argument doesn’t fly, since <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">there is no Purgatory</i>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is not a biblical concept.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>See here:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="http://answeringcatholicclaims.blogspot.com/2015/02/the-false-doctrine-of-purgatory-part-1.html"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">http://answeringcatholicclaims.blogspot.com/2015/02/the-false-doctrine-of-purgatory-part-1.html</span></a><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://answeringcatholicclaims.blogspot.com/2015/03/the-false-doctrine-of-purgatory-part-2.html"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">https://answeringcatholicclaims.blogspot.com/2015/03/the-false-doctrine-of-purgatory-part-2.html</span></a><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Furthermore,
there is no need for perfectly performed/worded sacraments in God’s eyes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Good Intentions, Bad Theology<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">One Catholic
article stated:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; color: #212121; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“Yet in
this case, Springer almost literally destroyed the village in order to save
it.”</span><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">See here:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://cruxnow.com/news-analysis/2020/08/priest-baptism-story-offers-memo-for-reformers-look-before-you-leap"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Priest baptism story offers memo for
reformers: Look before you leap | Crux (cruxnow.com)</span></a><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">What the quote
means is that Springer attempted to save everyone by baptizing them, but ended
up endangering them through a not-so-carefully worded ritual.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">This is the
mentality of the Catholic world.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But
this is all a misunderstanding of biblical principles.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">The truth
is, baptism does not <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">save</i> anyone when
done correctly, nor does it <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">destroy</i>
anyone when done incorrectly!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>See these
relevant articles:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><a href="https://answeringcatholicclaims.blogspot.com/2015/05/on-baptism-part-1-few-basics.html">https://answeringcatholicclaims.blogspot.com/2015/05/on-baptism-part-1-few-basics.html</a><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><a href="https://answeringcatholicclaims.blogspot.com/2015/06/on-baptism-part-2-bible-verses.html">https://answeringcatholicclaims.blogspot.com/2015/06/on-baptism-part-2-bible-verses.html</a><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://answeringcatholicclaims.blogspot.com/2015/07/on-baptism-part-3-more-verses.html"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">https://answeringcatholicclaims.blogspot.com/2015/07/on-baptism-part-3-more-verses.html</span></a><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%;">What About Sacraments? <o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">To start
with, the concept of sacraments is an <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">unbiblical</i>
one.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Sacraments don’t save <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">anyone</i>, and grace doesn’t even come from
sacraments <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(Proverbs 3:34; James 4:6)!</i></b><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>In fact, the performance of sacraments is actually trying to <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">buy</i> the grace of God, which is
impossible <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(Romans 11:6)</i></b>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">I have an
article written specifically on that topic which I hope can be of help.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>See here:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://answeringcatholicclaims.blogspot.com/search?q=sacraments"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">https://answeringcatholicclaims.blogspot.com/search?q=sacraments</span></a><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Apparently,
if a sacramental ritual is not <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">precise</i>,
it won’t “work.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It almost appears that
the Catholic Church sees the ritual of sacraments as akin to using a spell or
incantation, where the wording has to be precise, rather than seeing baptism
simply as a Christian ordinance (as intended by God).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">But <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">there is no specific formula for baptism</i>
in Scripture, other than it being done in the name of the Father, and of the
Son, and of the Holy Spirit <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(Matthew 28:19)</i></b>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Furthermore, we see no babies being baptized
in the Bible.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>All the examples of baptism
in Scripture show that it was only done for those who were of age, repentant,
and who knew what they were doing (for example, <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Matthew 3:13-16; Acts 2:40-41;
8:12-13; 8:36-38; 9:17-18; 10:44-48; 16:29-33; 18:7-8; 19:3-5</i></b>).<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">And by the
way, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">nothing</i> in Scripture says that <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Jesus</i> is the one doing the baptism
through the baptizer.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So the “I/we”
distinction is irrelevant.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Baptism is simply
a picture of what happened to you at salvation… you die to self, i.e., to the “old
you” and are buried, putting to death the old man; and then you are raised to
new life in Jesus Christ. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Repercussions <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Research by
the Catholic Church showed that there were a total of 782 presumed invalid
baptisms due to Hood’s ministry of 13 years, and the Church was still trying to
remedy this.</span><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: #FEFEFE; color: #262626; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">See
here:</span><span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://www.cnn.com/2022/02/24/us/michigan-invalid-baptisms/index.html#:~:text=CNN%20Store-,Catholic%20church%20in%20Michigan%20still%20trying%20to%20remedy%20hundreds,baptisms%20performed%20over%2013%20years&text=Father%20Matthew%20Hood%2C%20a%20priest,the%20problem%20with%20the%20language"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">https://www.cnn.com/2022/02/24/us/michigan-invalid-baptisms/index.html#:~:text=CNN%20Store-,Catholic%20church%20in%20Michigan%20still%20trying%20to%20remedy%20hundreds,baptisms%20performed%20over%2013%20years&text=Father%20Matthew%20Hood%2C%20a%20priest,the%20problem%20with%20the%20language</span></a><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">By the way, this was not an isolated
case.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A similar incident happened in
Arizona (and Oklahoma, as well):<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://www.fox10phoenix.com/news/arizona-catholic-priest-resigns-over-wrongly-used-word-during-baptism-what-you-should-know-about-the-mix-up"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">https://www.fox10phoenix.com/news/arizona-catholic-priest-resigns-over-wrongly-used-word-during-baptism-what-you-should-know-about-the-mix-up</span></a><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Conclusion<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">One article I saw had a meme, a
depiction of a priest about to give the last rites to a Catholic lying in
bed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The caption reads: “Father, before
you hear my confession and give me last rites, I’d like to see video proof of
your valid baptism.” <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Of course this is silly, but it does
address a valid point.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When one is about
to die, he desperately needs to <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">know</i>
that his soul is safe and he is going to Heaven.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If something as trivial as a slight
mis-wording of a ritual can prevent him from getting into Heaven, he should not
be in a church that teaches such and should call for someone who can share the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">true gospel</i> (of salvation by faith alone)
with him.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Catholics are consumed with the idea
of grace coming through sacraments and rituals, but once you open <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">that</i> can of worms, it opens the door to
all sorts of problems.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Remember, it is <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Catholics</i> who are the formalists, not God.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We should be thankful that <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">He</i> looks at the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">heart</i>.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>Russellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17823479491839694646noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6730083483661000120.post-13151670552680514092022-10-08T21:13:00.000-07:002022-10-08T21:13:03.661-07:00THE “QUEENSHIP” OF MARY<p><span style="font-size: 20pt;">There are
lots of Catholic-inspired articles out there on the idea that Mary (the mother
of Jesus Christ) is some sort of queen, even the “Queen of the Universe,” or
the “Queen of Heaven.”</span><span style="font-size: 20pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 20pt;">But one would
think that such a concept, if true, would have an abundance of solid</span><u style="font-size: 20pt;"> </u><span style="font-size: 20pt;">evidence
for it, since it is such an extraordinary claim and so heavily pushed by the
Catholic Church.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">So, where
does this idea of Mary being a queen come from?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>One Catholic source for this idea can be found in the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Catechism of the Catholic Church</i>, which
calls Mary the “Queen over All Things” (CCC #966). <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-background-themecolor: background1;"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Also, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Lumen
Gentium</i>, a Dogmatic Constitution of the (Catholic) Church by Pope Paul VI,
says that Mary is the “Queen of the Universe,” and she was “taken up body and
soul into heavenly glory.” (Chapter VIII, paragraph 59)<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Another
source is a papal encyclical written by Pope Pius XII called <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Ad Caeli Reginam</i> (Latin for “to the
queen of heavens”).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In this encyclical,
the pope not only refers to her as a queen, but he also speaks of her as the “Queen
of the human race” (par. 17), “Queen of creation” (par. 50), and “Queen and
Mother of Christendom” (par. 52).<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; color: black; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">According
to paragraph 6 in this document, Pius XII said:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; color: black; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“In this
matter We do not wish to propose a new truth to be believed by Christians,
since the title and the arguments on which Mary's queenly dignity is based have
already been clearly set forth, and are to be found in ancient documents of the
Church and in the books of the sacred liturgy.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-style: italic; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Furthermore, another
document to consider by Pope Pius XII is <i>Munificentissimus Deus</i>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This
Apostolic Constitution is about the dogma of the bodily Assumption of Mary,
supposedly like Jesus’ assumption into Heaven <b><i>(Mark 16:19)</i></b>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It states that Mary is </span><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-style: italic; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“</span><span style="background: white; color: black; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">the Queen entering triumphantly into the royal halls of
heaven and sitting at the right hand of the divine Redeemer</span><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-style: italic; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">” and she </span><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-style: italic; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">is “</span><span style="background: white; color: black; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">that heavenly
Queen and heavenly Spouse who has been lifted up to the courts of heaven with
the divine Bridegroom” (par. 26). </span><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-style: italic; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">But Is It Biblical?<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-style: italic; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Ok, first, I want
to make a few comments about statements in these sources:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">When one
calls Mary “Queen over All Things,” what exactly does such a label entitle her
to?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Does she now <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">own</i> the earth and everything in it?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Or maybe she owns the whole universe and all existing matter?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I could see someone saying this about <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Jesus</i>, since He is the Creator and
carries the title Kings of kings and Lord of lords <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(1 Timothy 6:15)</i></b>… <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">but</i> <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">not
anyone else</i>.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">The same
idea goes for the title “Queen of the Universe” and “Queen of Heaven.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Concerning
Pius XII’s statement about the “truth” about Mary found in the ancient
documents of the Church and the sacred liturgy:</span><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">
I’m not exactly sure what all the “books of the sacred liturgy” includes, nor to
which of the “ancient documents” he’s referring, but one thing is sure – if
their claims don’t line up with Scripture, they are <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">merely claims</i>, that’s all.</span><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="background: white; mso-bidi-font-style: italic; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">It
doesn’t matter what the church fathers thought about Mary if they contradict
the principles of the Bible.</span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-background-themecolor: background1;"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">There are a few biblical references in the
above encyclical (<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Ad Caeli Reginam</i>),
but absolutely none of these Scriptures refer to Mary being a queen.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Amazing!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>It seems that an official document about the “queenship” of Mary,
written by a pope, would have in it some kind of scriptural backing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But no.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-style: italic; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Ok, so let’s look
now to some of the “biblical evidence” given by Catholics for Mary being a
queen.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="background: white; color: black; font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Bathsheba<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; color: black; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Many
Catholics will point to <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">1 Kings Chapter 2 </i></b>and Bathsheba as
evidence of Mary’s queenship:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="background: white; color: black; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">1 Kings
2:19-20</span></i></b><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-style: italic; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="reg" style="background: white; text-align: justify;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="color: #001320; font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 20.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">19) So Bathsheba
went to King Solomon to speak to him for Adonijah. The king stood up to greet
her, bowed to her, and sat down on his throne. Then the king had a throne
brought for his mother, who sat down at his right hand.<a name="21"></a><o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="reg" style="background: white; text-align: justify;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="color: #001320; font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 20.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">20) “I have just one
small request of you,” she said. “Do not deny me.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“Make your request, my mother,” the king
replied, “for I will not deny you.”<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; color: black; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">According
to one article, Catholics will say that Bathsheba is the one who most clearly
illustrates the queen mother’s “royal prerogatives.” <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; color: black; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">This
author also says, concerning the Scripture passage above:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; color: black; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“Nowhere
else in Scripture does the King honor someone as much as Solomon honors the
queen mother in this scene.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; color: black; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">See here:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://edwardsri.com/2014/12/27/is-marys-queenship-biblical/#:~:text=One%20Biblical%20woman%20who%20illustrates%20the%20queen%20mother%E2%80%99s,mother%20after%20her%20son%20Solomon%20assumes%20the%20throne."><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Is Mary’s Queenship Biblical? |
Edward Sri</span></a><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; color: black; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">These two
quotes seem to be the consensus amongst Catholics everywhere.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">So, with these two quotes in mind, let’s dig farther.</span><span style="background: white; color: black; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">It seems
that Catholics tie in the queen’s intercession in the Old Testament directly
with a <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">guarantee</i> of her being granted
a request.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Furthermore,
Catholics see Solomon as an Old Testament type of Jesus and Bathsheba as a type
of Mary (who will never be refused a request from Jesus).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">And since
Solomon is about to grant Bathsheba’s petition in the passage above, we can be
assured that Jesus will grant any petition of Mary’s… right?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Not so fast.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">There are many
Catholic articles about Mary’s queenship, but the great majority of Catholics
who mention this passage in <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">1 Kings</i></b> <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">2</i></b> don’t go all the way
down to the part where the request is ACTUALLY DENIED.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They will take you as far as Solomon saying,
“I will not deny you,” and no further, and they’ll say, “See!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Just as King Solomon will grant the requests
of Bathsheba, King Jesus will grant the requests of Queen Mary.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">But here is
the rest of the passage:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">1 Kings 2:21-25:<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="reg" style="background: white; text-align: justify;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="color: #001320; font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 20.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">21-So Bathsheba
said, “Let Abishag the Shunammite be given to your brother Adonijah as his
wife.”<a name="23"></a><o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="reg" style="background: white; text-align: justify;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="color: #001320; font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 20.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">22-King Solomon
answered his mother, “Why do you request Abishag the Shunammite for Adonijah?
Since he is my older brother, you might as well request the kingdom for him and
for Abiathar the priest and for Joab son of Zeruiah!”<a name="24"></a><o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="reg" style="background: white; text-align: justify;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="color: #001320; font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 20.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">23-Then King Solomon
swore by the LORD: “May God punish me, and ever so severely, if Adonijah has
not made this request at the expense of his life. <a name="25"></a><o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="reg" style="background: white; text-align: justify;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="color: #001320; font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 20.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">24-And now, as
surely as the LORD lives—the One who established me, who set me on the throne
of my father David, and who founded for me a dynasty as He promised—surely
Adonijah shall be put to death today!”<a name="26"></a><o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="reg" style="background: white; text-align: justify;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="color: #001320; font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 20.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">25-So King Solomon
sent the order to Benaiah son of Jehoiada, who struck down Adonijah, and he
died.<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">From the
Catholic perspective, it should seem strange that the only request that we can
find in Scripture from the queen mother toward King Solomon is one that was <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">denied</i>!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>And Catholics want to use <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">this
passage</i> as a model of Mary’s queenship?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Isn’t she supposed to be granted all her requests?<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">It seems
that Queen Bathsheba’s </span><span style="background: white; color: black; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“royal prerogatives” didn’t include such a guarantee after
all!</span><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Those few Catholic
writers who do actually point out the denial of the king will say, “But this
does not negate her position as queen!”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">But this is just
begging the question.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The whole reason
for Catholics pointing out that Bathsheba would supposedly gain the king’s
favor in the first place was an attempt to <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">prove</i>
Mary’s queenship!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So, they are <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">assuming</i> her queenship before proving
it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This logic backfires on them, since
this in no way proves that MARY is a queen!<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Typology<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Question:
So, if Catholics would ask Mary for something they shouldn’t, or for the wrong
reason, i.e., asking amiss <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(James 4:3)</i></b>, is Jesus <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">obligated </i>to grant her request just
because she is His mother?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The obvious
answer is no.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So why is Mary needed in
this equation <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">at all</i>?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She is not.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>There is no biblical evidence whatsoever that she is a queen, or that
she intercedes for us.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">But even if
Solomon would have granted Bathsheba’s petition, this is still a strained
attempt at typology.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We must certainly give
honor to whom honor is due <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(Romans 13:7)</i></b>, but Catholics take
great liberties with typology, especially when it comes to Mary.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The Bible depicts Mary simply as a humble and
faithful peasant girl who had the great honor of giving birth to the Jewish
Messiah.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But once more, Scripture never
implies that she would be a queen.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">But the
bottom line is that a king is not <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">obligated</i>
to grant <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">anyone’s </i>specific request.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But the king must consider, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">is it God’s will?</i><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And it is obvious that in the case of
Bathsheba’s request, it was not.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Perhaps
Catholics will say that Mary would never ask for something apart from God’s
will… but again, that is just begging the question.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s an assertion that needs to be proven.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Conclusion<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Ok, so
what’s the big deal?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What if Mary <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">would be </i>a queen?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What does it hurt?<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">My answer is
that I wouldn’t have an issue with it if it were a true biblical concept.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But it isn’t.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>And if it isn’t, Catholics are making claims that put her in a fake
category.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-background-themecolor: background1;"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">And the big deal is this:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If she isn’t all they say she is, there is the
danger of <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">idolatry</i>, and idolatry has
always been a big deal in God’s eyes! <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If
Catholics are <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">praying to</i> Mary and <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">trusting in</i> her to do spiritual things
for them that only God can do, it is idolatry!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-background-themecolor: background1;"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Just as the rebellious, devil-inspired Israelites
in the Old Testament lusted after the Asherim (female deities) and served them,
there seems to be in Catholicism a similar desperate, devil-inspired need for a
female deity.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Could this be why they are
so anxious to make her a queen?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-background-themecolor: background1;"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Catholics may say, “But we don’t think that
Mary is a deity!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The Catholic Church
does not teach that.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-background-themecolor: background1;"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Well, you can SAY that she’s not a deity, but
it’s your <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">actions</i> that count.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Praying to someone and giving them that much
“devotion” and attention puts that someone on a level with God.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-background-themecolor: background1;"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Concerning idols, I don’t know of anyone who
believes that their money is actually a deity, nor do I know anyone who prays
to their money, but there certainly are those for whom <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">money is</i> <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">their god</i> <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(Matthew
6:24)</i></b>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Even though they don’t <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">consider</i> their money as a deity, their
devotion and attention given to riches reveal that they are idolaters at heart.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-background-themecolor: background1;"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">There are also other Catholic reasons for
seeing Mary as a queen, but let me just mention one more.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Revelation 12</i></b>, we see a “woman”
clothed with the sun and Catholics insist that this is Mary.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But a closer look will reveal that this is a
picture of <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Israel</i>, not Mary.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>See here:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://answeringcatholicclaims.blogspot.com/2015/09/is-mary-woman-clothed-with-sun.html"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">https://answeringcatholicclaims.blogspot.com/2015/09/is-mary-woman-clothed-with-sun.html</span></a><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>Russellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17823479491839694646noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6730083483661000120.post-62210835160090532272022-08-31T23:37:00.000-07:002022-08-31T23:37:37.039-07:00DEVELOPMENT OF DOCTRINE?<p> </p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Imagine with
me this scenario:<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Once upon a
time in a far away land, there was this wonderful and mystical church.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And God was very pleased with it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This church remained faithful to the Word of
God, even in spite of persecution.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Then,
one day the emperor of the land made it illegal to persecute the church any
more.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Also, the emperor’s new laws
allowed the teachings of the pagans to blend with the teachings of the
church.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This immediately caused problems
for the church, and as time went on, this church got farther and farther away
from the Scriptures.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Over time, the
leaders in the church grew more and more corrupt, and embraced many false doctrines
that were unique to that church.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Then, one
day a group of resisters arose and challenged the corruption and false teachings
of this church.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The resisters
demonstrated that this church’s teachings were no longer according to the
Bible.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It soon became clear that the
church’s arguments did not hold up to the reasoning of the resisters.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So, the church found a man who presented a
new concept, proposing that the church’s teachings had <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">developed</i> over time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And
they told everyone, “That’s how come our teachings didn’t seem to line up with
Scripture – they were there all along, but were simply in ‘seed form!’”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So, this “development” idea seemed to save
the day for the church – but not everyone lived happily ever after…<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Of course,
anyone (Protestant or Catholic) can easily determine who the characters are in
this story:<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">The church
is the Church of Rome (later to become the Roman Catholic Church).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The emperor is Constantine.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The leaders are (mainly) the popes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The resisters are the Protestants of the
Reformation.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And the man who proposed
the “development” theory is Cardinal John Henry Newman in the 1800’s.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Of course,
some Catholics will say that this story/scenario is indeed a fairy tale.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But, in spite of its simplicity, I believe
that this story is <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">exactly</i> what
happened. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">To Grow or Not to Grow<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Many great
minds (both Catholic and Protestant) have debated the topic of “development of
doctrine” for a long time, so I don’t pretend to have all the answers.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I just want to present a simple case.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Catholics say that the development of
doctrine does not mean that doctrine <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">changes</i>,
but that it “grows” and its essence or substance remains over time (even if it <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">looks</i> different later on).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">They claim
that all these uniquely Catholic teachings were there in Scripture the whole
time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They just needed to be drawn out
by “development.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You know, like an
acorn becomes an oak tree.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It has the
same DNA, i.e., the same <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">essence</i>,
just a different <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">appearance</i>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So, they would say that this is what happened
to doctrines like Purgatory, papal primacy, the Marian doctrines, etc.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">But a doctrine is either true or false
from the beginning and it remains that way unless someone changes it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It doesn’t grow or morph by itself into
something more complex.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is constant.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I don’t believe that a doctrine develops;
only <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">our understanding</i> of it does!</span><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">But it is a <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">corruption</i>
(not growth) when one’s doctrine ends up contradicting Scripture.</span><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">What If?<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Now who’s to
say that Catholic doctrines will not undergo even <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">further</i> “development” later on?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>For example, what if they “discover” one day that Mary’s <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">mom</i> was actually also immaculately conceived
(like Mary was)?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Seems like a logical
development, right?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Jesus was conceived
without sin, therefore (they say) Mary had to be conceived without sin first.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If that’s the case, then why didn’t this also
happen to Mary’s mother, and Mary’s grandmother, on and on, all the way back to
Eve?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Given enough time, couldn’t this
development of doctrine theory justify <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">almost</i>
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">any</i> form of “development” [read change]?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Yes, my friends, this theory is a <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">slippery slope</i>!<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="background: white; color: #202122; font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">The Pagan
Connection<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; color: #202122; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">I
mentioned paganism in the beginning of this article.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is very interesting that Newman, himself,
admits that the Catholic Church has blended with paganism.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In his very famous book, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">An Essay on the Development of Christian Doctrine</i>, he writes:<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><span style="background: white; color: black; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“We are
told in various ways by Eusebius, that Constantine, in order to recommend the
new religion [Christianity] to the heathen, transferred into it the outward
ornaments to which they had been accustomed in their own… The use of temples,
and these dedicated to particular saints, and ornamented on occasions with
branches of trees; incense, lamps, and candles; votive offerings on recovery
from illness; holy water; asylums; holydays and seasons, use of calendars,
processions, blessings on the fields; sacerdotal vestments, the tonsure, the
ring in marriage, turning to the East, images at a later date, perhaps the
ecclesiastical chant, and the Kyrie Eleison, <u>are all of pagan origin, and
sanctified by their adoption into the Church</u>.” (</span><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Chap. 8, Section 2, Paragraph 6 – emphasis
added<span style="background: white; color: black;">)<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; color: black; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">See the online
version here:<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><a href="https://www.newmanreader.org/works/development/chapter8.html"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">https://www.newmanreader.org/works/development/chapter8.html</span></a><span style="background: white; color: black; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><span style="background: white; color: black; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">So,
again, Newman admits that many additions Rome made to Christianity were of
pagan origin, i.e., they were pagan practices</span><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">
and rituals<span style="background: white; color: black;"> - some acceptable, some
not so good.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Several of these are
closely related to <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">idolatry</i> <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(1
Corinthians 10:14)</i></b>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>At the very
least, they could be a stumbling block for others <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(1 Corinthians 8:9-13; 2
Corinthians 6:3)</i></b>.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; color: black; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Notice
that Newman says they were “sanctified” by their adoption into the Church.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But author/theologian/philosopher, Norman
Geisler in his article, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">“An Evaluation of
John Henry Newman’s Essay on the Development of Christian Doctrine”</i> states:<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">“</span><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">The Gospel does not <b>“change”</b> a
false doctrine into a true one, nor take pagan practices and <b>“make them
right.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></b></span><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">(Emphasis in original) </span><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 9.8pt;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">He also
said:</span><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">“Newman’s
theory of ‘development’ is a beautiful theory, but it is ruined by a brutal
gang of facts about the </span><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Paganism
that was adopted by Catholicism. It is clearly a corruption of biblical
truth, not a true development of it.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>See Geisler’s article here:<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><a href="https://normangeisler.com/evaluation-jhnewman-dev-christian-doctrine/"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">https://normangeisler.com/evaluation-jhnewman-dev-christian-doctrine/</span></a><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p style="background: white; line-height: 30.2pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><span style="border: 1pt none windowtext; font-size: 20pt; padding: 0in;">The late Christian</span><span style="font-size: 20pt;"> researcher Dave Hunt sounded
this warning:<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p style="background: #FCFCFC; line-height: 30.2pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-size: 20pt;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">“In all pagan/nature religions there is a presumed
cause-and-effect relationship between the ritual or ceremony performed and the
obtaining of the power or healing or other blessing sought. The whole idea of
pagan ceremonies — the rites of the shaman or witch, the burning of candles,
the making of potions, the use of fetishes, etc. — is that they will (if done
correctly) elicit a response from the gods or spirits.<span style="border: none windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: none windowtext 0in; padding: 0in;">”<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></p>
<p style="background: #FCFCFC; line-height: 30.2pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="border: 1pt none windowtext; font-size: 20pt; padding: 0in;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">See here:<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p style="background: #FCFCFC; line-height: 30.2pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><a href="https://answersingenesis.org/world-religions/paganism/"><span style="border: 1pt none windowtext; font-size: 20pt; padding: 0in;">https://answersingenesis.org/world-religions/paganism/</span></a><span style="border: 1pt none windowtext; font-size: 20pt; padding: 0in;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p style="background: #FCFCFC; line-height: 30.2pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="border: 1pt none windowtext; font-size: 20pt; padding: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"> </span></o:p></span></p>
<p style="background: #FCFCFC; line-height: 30.2pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; vertical-align: baseline;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="border: 1pt none windowtext; font-size: 22pt; padding: 0in;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">How
to Become Catholic<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p style="background: #FCFCFC; line-height: 30.2pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20pt;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">According to the <i>National Catholic Register </i>:<i><o:p></o:p></i></span></span></p>
<p style="background: #FCFCFC; line-height: 30.2pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20pt;"><o:p><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"> </span></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">“Blessed John Henry
Newman's intensive study of the development of doctrine eventually led him to
the Catholic Church.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>See here:<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><a href="https://www.ncregister.com/blog/development-of-catholic-doctrine-a-primer"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">https://www.ncregister.com/blog/development-of-catholic-doctrine-a-primer</span></a><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Yes, a false method like the “development
of doctrine” can indeed lead people to Catholicism.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Another false method that has led many to the
Catholic Church is an <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">over-emphasis</i>
on the church fathers and/or church history, essentially putting them above
Scripture.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Another is the unbiblical <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">personal</i> <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">experiences</i> that some have had with the Eucharist.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And yet another is trusting in the flimsy arguments
that certain people have used against the Protestant doctrines of Sola
Scriptura (“Bible Alone”) or Sola Fide (“Faith Alone”).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">So, yes, wrong teaching and wrong
perspectives can lead one to the Catholic Church.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Conclusion<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Catholics will claim that the
development of doctrine helps us to better articulate the doctrines we have
today.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But clear articulation does not
make a false doctrine true.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Which begs
the question – where does one find truth?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Catholics will answer, “The truth is whatever
the Catholic Church teaches!”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But that’s
just begging the question.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is this “development
of doctrine” that is on trial here in the first place.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But the correct answer to the question of
finding truth is that we must look to Scripture <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(John 17:17)</i></b>.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Catholics also love to point out that
Newman was a former <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Protestant </i>(Anglican).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Maybe so, but in my opinion, there is not a
great amount of distance between Catholicism and the Anglican/Episcopalian
religions.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There are a number of those
from this camp who have ended up joining the Catholic Church.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Sadly, they had much in common to start with.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Calling it “development” is no justification
for teaching and promoting false doctrine. This theory of the “development of
doctrine” is simply an excuse for Catholics to continue to embrace certain
unbiblical, paganistic, and idol-infected teachings.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">The bottom line is that, in these
strictly Catholic “developed” doctrines, there is always a contradiction
involved when tested against the Bible <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(1 Thessalonians 5:21)</i></b>.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">See also this link on the
“development” of the papacy:<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://answeringcatholicclaims.blogspot.com/2017/10/the-papacy-foundation-of-sand.html"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">https://answeringcatholicclaims.blogspot.com/2017/10/the-papacy-foundation-of-sand.html</span></span></a></p>Russellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17823479491839694646noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6730083483661000120.post-38399995480593590522022-08-02T17:27:00.000-07:002022-08-02T17:27:32.133-07:00“WHAT’S LOVE GOT TO DO WITH IT?”<p> </p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Many readers
will no doubt be familiar with the above title.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>They might recognize it as the name of a song by singer/actress Tina
Turner.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But this phrase is also the
title of Catholic apologist John Martignoni’s Newsletter #353. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This newsletter is actually Part 2 of his theme,
“Problems with Protestantism,” and it can be found here:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://www.biblechristiansociety.com/newsletter/470-apologetics-for-the-masses-353-problems-with-protestantism-2"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">https://www.biblechristiansociety.com/newsletter/470-apologetics-for-the-masses-353-problems-with-protestantism-2</span></a><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">In this
particular newsletter, John attempts to deal with the doctrine of Sola Fide (salvation
by “Faith Alone”).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>John’s whole theme in
this newsletter is the question of the role of love in salvation.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">John says:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“In Protestant
theology, one of the two main dogmas is Sola Fide - salvation by faith <strong><u><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">ALONE</span></u></strong>!
That is the belief that all I have to do is believe that Jesus is God incarnate
and that He died on the Cross for my sins and - <strong><u><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">BOOM!</span></u></strong> -
I'm saved. I don't have to do any works. I don't have to be
baptized. I don't have to worry about sacraments or growing in holiness or
anything else. All I have to do...the only thing I have to do...the only
thing I can do that counts for anything...is to have faith. I am
saved by my faith, and by my faith alone, period!”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; font-size: 18.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Ok, </span><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">I must say that John Martignoni goes out of his way to
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">mischaracterize </i>this doctrine, as
I’ve seen him do before.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But the truth
is, he <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">knows better</i>!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>No doubt John has spoken to many Protestants
about this topic and he has heard many of the arguments for it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So this is not at all new to him.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But let’s break his comments down a little.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Notice that
he says that a person who believes in Sola Fide does not have to do any works
or be baptized.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He says that the person
doesn’t have to grow in holiness – only have faith.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Yes, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">getting saved/justified</i> is the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">beginning</i> of a person’s spiritual journey.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But John makes it sound like this person can
choose to <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">never, ever</i> do works, get
baptized or grow in holiness!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This is an
utter misrepresentation of Sola Fide and John Martignoni knows this.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Please hear
me on this: Sola Fide means that a person gets saved/justified by faith, through
God <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">changing his heart</i>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Salvation is caused by faith in the work of
Jesus Christ on the cross APART FROM THE MERIT OF OUR OWN WORK.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Protestants don’t hate good works nor do they
try to avoid them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>John knows well that
Protestants will, and gladly do, perform good works.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But these works are done because we are ALREADY
saved/justified at this point, by God giving us a new heart.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is this faith, this trusting Him alone
that saves us, not works, sacraments, or rituals.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%;">How Does Love Fit In? <o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Now, John is
basically asking, “But what about love?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Don’t we find love anywhere in this equation when a person gets saved?”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Again, Sola
Fide is about denying the merit of good works to cause salvation.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It doesn’t say that you won’t afterward do
any works, or mandate that you can’t have any feelings of love, joy, peace,
thankfulness or desire to serve God.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>This is John’s faulty definition, his misrepresentation of “Faith Alone”:
He’s trying to say that in Sola Fide, only faith can exist and absolutely
nothing else!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But this is not Sola
Fide.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">According to
his faulty reasoning, he states:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“<span style="background: white;">If we
are saved by faith, and faith <strong><u><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">alone</span></u></strong>, then <u>love has absolutely
nothing to do with our salvation</u>.” <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Not so, John.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Every true Christian exhibits love.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Love toward God and love toward his fellow
man.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But according to Scripture, it is
his faith, his trust in God that saves him <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(Ephesians 2:8-10)</i></b>.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="background: white; font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">But You Gotta Have Love!<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">John Martignoni goes on, using
Scripture, to tell us the great <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">importance</i>
of love (as though we Protestants didn’t think it was important).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He goes on a ridiculous rant to try to
convince people that we MUST love.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Well,
of course we do, John!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Nobody’s denying
that.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But the Bible tells us very
clearly, over and over, that the medium that God continually used over the
centuries to cause salvation is <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">faith</i>
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(Romans
4:1-3)</i></b>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Of course, we’ll exercise
love toward God and man.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But John is
attempting to say that our love (i.e., through our actions/works) is necessary
to save us.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">But no, it is through faith in GOD’S
love that saves us, not our own.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We
cannot possibly love in the perfect way that God loves, since we are sinful
creatures who so often fall short in our walk with God.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And that is exactly why NONE of our works can
save us.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Sola Fide believers are not
against love or any other fruit of the Spirit.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Our good works are beautiful in the
eyes of God… UNLESS we are trying to use them to accomplish our salvation!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Then, they are loathsome in His eyes <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(Isaiah
64:6; Romans 3:10) </i></b>and they disqualify us from salvation <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(Romans
4:4-5)</i></b>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Sola Fide is an
acknowledgment that our puny works are <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">insufficient
to save</i>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Nothing we do can compare
with <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">His work on the cross</i>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That’s why God basically says, “Let this,
and this alone, save you.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And quit
trying to add your tainted works to the equation” <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(Galatians 3:1-3)</i></b>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Catholics actually believe in <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">faith plus works</i>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But salvation/justification is either all
Jesus’ work, or it is not of Jesus at all.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Misrepresentation<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">John goes on to say:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"> "For God
so loved the world that He gave his only-begotten Son, that whoever believes in
Him should not perish but have eternal life," (John 3:16).
Awesome! God loves me. He loves me so much that I don't have to do
a thing...not one thing...other than believe in Him...and I am saved. He
loves me, but I don't have to love Him, and I am still saved. I can sin
all I want, and as long as I have accepted Jesus into my heart as my personal
Lord and Savior, I'm saved. And who was it that said the road to
salvation is narrow and difficult? Silly rabbit...no it's not...it's
pretty easy actually.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">John continues to
mock this biblical doctrine and suggests that “I can sin all I want” and still
be saved.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This is an utter perversion of
Sola Fide.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>No valid biblical argument is
saying that we can continually sin to our heart’s desire without repentance and
still be saved (<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Hebrews 10:26-29</i></b>).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The
person who is truly saved will not <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">want</i>
to sin, knowing that sin grieves our Lord.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Interestingly, John’s
description of the Sola Fide believer in his newsletter happens in the Catholic
Church, as well!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>For example, in the
confessional, many believe you can flippantly say three ‘Hail Marys’ and you
are absolved of all your sin.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You might
object that any person who <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">flippantly</i>
says the prayers of the sacrament of penance is not a true Catholic. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But that’s exactly my point!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Likewise, no truly saved person will say that
he can purposely sin all he wants without repenting and still be saved.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What John is talking about is a person who
has had a <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">false</i> conversion.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">But <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">both</i> of these scenarios are unbiblical!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The Catholic mindlessly repeating canned
prayers <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(Matthew 6:7-8)</i></b> to get right with God is just as futile as the
Protestant mindlessly quoting some form of “sinner’s prayer,” but intending to
continue living in sin <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(1 Timothy 5:20; 1 John 3:6, 9)</i></b>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">John continues:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“Now, someone might
say, ‘John, you're being ridiculous. That's not what Sola Fide folks
believe.’ First point in response, it is actually what a number of them
believe.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Maybe so, John, but
these are not mainstream.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And even if
they were – even if most people believed it – that still wouldn’t make it
right.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The “sin-as-much-as-you-want”
mentality is obviously wrong and unbiblical.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>But the misuse or misunderstanding of Sola Fide by some people does not
negate its truth.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">You may complain that
Protestants don’t have a “fixed” or “authoritative” definition of the term, and
then dismiss <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">all</i> Sola Fide arguments
based on the one you choose to attack.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>But that’s dishonest.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If you want
to tear down those non-mainstream arguments, then that’s fine, but don’t
pretend that you have disproved the doctrine when you do that. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">John says that his
statements, his reasoning and examples of Sola Fide in this newsletter are the
logical consequence of the doctrine.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>No,
John, neither the Bible nor the doctrine of Sola Fide says that freely and
purposely continuing to sin has no impact on your salvation <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(Hebrews
3:12-13)</i></b>!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Again, you are
misrepresenting Sola Fide.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="background: white; font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">James Settles It</span></b><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"> </span><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="background: white; font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">He goes on:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“One final matter:
Someone might say, "Well, if you don't love the Lord, or do the works of
the Lord, then that means you haven't really accepted Him into your heart as
your personal Lord and Savior." My response: Really?! Where
does the Bible tell me such a thing?”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Concerning us doing
the works of the Lord, yes, saved people certainly will.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Of course, it is not in those exact words,
but <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">James
2:18</i></b> expresses that same concept – a person’s salvation is shown/demonstrated
by his works:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">But
someone may <span style="mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">well</span> say,
“You have faith and I have works; SHOW ME your faith without the works, and I
will SHOW YOU my faith by my works.” </span></i></b><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">(Emphasis added)</span><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">See that, John?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Your works demonstrate the reality of your
faith.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That whole context in James
chapter 2 confirms this fact.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So, your
argument is with James!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Now, James’ point was
not that works are <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">absolute proof</i> of
salvation (because even atheists can do “good” works), but rather his point is,
if you really are saved, you will have some good works to show for it.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">John continues:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“Furthermore, how
many works do I have to do to ‘prove’ that I have truly accepted Jesus into my
heart as my personal Lord and Savior? 10? 20? 5 years worth?
10 years worth? How many works does it take to ‘prove’ that you're saved?”</span><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Of course, there is
no precise number of works that will absolutely “prove” that one is actually
saved.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And of course, there is no <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">totally foolproof </i>test, since only God
knows your neighbor’s heart perfectly.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>But we can have a pretty good idea if he is saved or not, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">by his works, </i>as James said above.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Furthermore, I could
turn the tables on John and ask him, “If good works contribute to one’s
salvation, as the Catholic Church’s teachings insist, how many good works must one
do to be saved?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Exactly where is the
threshold?”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">There really is no
answer to either of our questions, but my question here is based on a <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">scriptural</i> concept (that works cannot
save you).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But John’s question is based
on an <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">unbiblical</i> concept (that works
don’t demonstrate you are saved).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is
indeed important to know if a person is saved, so if <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">works</i> don’t show that you are saved, then by what biblical measure
can you tell if someone is saved or not?<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Actually, the
Catholic Church teaches that (without a revelation) a Catholic can <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">never</i> <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">really know</i> if he will be saved, because that would be the sin of
presumption (CCC #2092). <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So, according
to this, no matter how many good works are done, I guess that no Catholic can
assume that any other Catholic is saved, can he? <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You see, John, your question cuts both ways.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="background: white; font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Conclusion<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Ok, John
knows what Sola Fide is really all about, but he has resorted to nit-picking
the less-than-perfect NAME of the doctrine so that it will appear foolish. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The term “Faith Alone” may not be precise, but
he knows what it really means.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">So maybe the
term “Faith Alone” is not a perfect name, so what?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Here is an excerpt from one of my previous
articles on Sola Fide:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: #F6F6F6; color: black; font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 18.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“First off, we want to say that the
term ‘faith alone’ is not a perfectly accurate term, in the sense that faith is
not the <i>only thing present</i> at the moment of conversion. Along
with faith, there will certainly be joy, thankfulness, sorrow for one’s sins, a
love for God and a willingness to serve Him, etc. A similar (imperfect)
expression would be the <b><i>Catechism of the Catholic Church</i></b> saying
that <i>‘Christ alone’ </i>teaches us <b><i>(CCC #427)</i></b>,
yet the Catholic Church (as well as every other church) also has human
teachers. Another example is the phrase <i>‘salvation comes from God alone’</i> <b><i>(CCC
#169)</i></b>, yet Catholics will argue that the Church certainly has a part in
it. Just as these Catholic phrases are not precise, so it is with the phrase ‘faith
alone.’<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The <i>focus </i>of
the term “faith alone” is on the absence of WORK done in attempting to make
Heaven.” <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">See that article here:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><a href="https://answeringcatholicclaims.blogspot.com/2010/01/faith-alone-part-1.html">https://answeringcatholicclaims.blogspot.com/2010/01/faith-alone-part-1.html</a><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">The word “alone” in “Faith Alone” is
simply meant to deny any saving merit of our <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">works</i> – it is not to suggest the absence of love or any of the
fruit of the Spirit.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In other words,
man’s works are never a cause of salvation, but rather a sign that he has
already been saved.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">It is important to
understand that good works don’t save you at ANY point of your spiritual
journey – beginning, middle or end <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(Galatians 3:1-3)</i></b>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But if you continue in faith till the end,
your works will bring you rewards in Heaven.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Faith is about salvation itself and works are about rewards.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Salvation – what does
love have to do with it?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Love is a vital
ingredient in the life of the Christian.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>It should be embraced and used throughout his spiritual journey.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But the love and works that <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">man</i> expresses is not what saves us <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(Romans
4:4-5; Titus 3:5)</i></b>.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></p>Russellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17823479491839694646noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6730083483661000120.post-47926138200712633462022-07-11T23:51:00.000-07:002022-07-11T23:51:54.658-07:00THE LONELY PILGRIM AND SACRED TRADITION<p> </p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">I have
recently run across an article by a Catholic person whose blog is identified as
the “Lonely Pilgrim.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>On his blog, he
has some thoughtful articles and he seems to be very intelligent and
down-to-earth.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The article I want to
address today is titled, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">“What Sacred
Tradition Is and Is Not: 7 Answers to Common Misconceptions” </i>and you can
find it here:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="http://lonelypilgrim.com/2013/09/07/what-sacred-scripture-is-and-is-not-answers-to-some-common-misunderstandings/"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">http://lonelypilgrim.com/2013/09/07/what-sacred-scripture-is-and-is-not-answers-to-some-common-misunderstandings/</span></a><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Oral Versus Written<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">I would love
to respond to every item in his article, but that would make my response way
too long.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So, I’ll just try to hit some
of the main points.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">He starts
off saying that “Sacred Tradition – including Sacred Scripture – started out as
oral tradition.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Ok, no
problem.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is true that the contents of
the Bible were first received orally (spoken) before they were ever written
down.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Most things do start off that way.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That’s not an issue and it doesn’t prove
anything against the Protestant doctrine of Sola Scriptura, by the way.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Next, the
Lonely Pilgrim points out the fact that <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">not
everything</i> that Jesus and the apostles said or did was written down (i.e.,
in Scripture).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He says</span><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">: </span><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“<span style="background: white;">But
what do you suppose happened to all the stories of the other things Jesus said
and taught and did, all the other things that Paul and the Apostles
taught? …Everything that came from the mouth of Jesus was the Word of God.
Did it cease to be the Word of God, cease to be Divine Revelation, because it
was among those ‘many other signs Jesus did’?”<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Ok, good questions, and
he is, of course, referring to <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">John 20:30-31 </i></b>that says that there
was much, much more information about Jesus than what is contained in John’s
gospel.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Now, no one is saying that what
Jesus said (apart from the Bible)<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"> stopped
being</i> Divine Revelation – but the problem is that no one knows with
certainty exactly <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">what all was said in
the first place</i>!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Catholics are
willing to take the word of certain men (who, by the Lonely Pilgrim’s own
admission, were not speaking infallibly) and put some of what they said on the
same level as Scripture.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Now, of course, many from
the early church <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">claimed</i> to know what
Jesus said.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What they’re telling us He
said may, or may not, be accurate.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Now,
no doubt, they got at least <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">some of</i>
the things right that Jesus and the apostles said.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>After all, some of them lived in the same
time period.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Nevertheless, “closer in
time” does not necessarily mean that everything they claimed that Jesus taught was
true <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(John
21:20-23)</i></b>.</span><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">The Lonely Pilgrim
then states that these sayings of Jesus were remembered and passed down to the
following generations.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So, he is implying
that all these things that were spoken and done by Jesus (while never written)
were indeed known and kept by the early church.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>But since they were not <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">written</i>,
they couldn’t be considered Scripture, so they had to fall under another
“infallible” category, one created by the Catholic Church – Sacred Tradition.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It seems that the Catholic Church saw an
opportunity here, and they latched on to it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>But it is always dangerous to assign infallibility to something so
vague, to such a body of information that they can’t even tell us what it is!<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="background: white; font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Transparency?<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">The Lonely Pilgrim
says:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“Protestant critics
complain that ‘tradition’ is something nebulous and undefined that Catholics
can say is whatever they want it to be.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">And he then boasts:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“I have never seen an
organization [the Catholic Church] go to greater lengths to be open and
transparent as to the content and basis of its doctrines.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">He then goes on to
mention the Catechism of the Catholic Church, Church documents and Church
fathers, and how they can all be easily found online.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He seems to boast of the “availability” of the
Catholic Church’s sources, but this all begs the question… <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="background: white; font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">A Clear Definition?<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Ok, so the big
question is this: What exactly were all those unwritten things Jesus said and
did? <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Can any Catholic tell us every word?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Can <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">anyone</i>
know for sure, or tell us infallibly?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>No, the best they can do with such information (that’s not in the Bible)
is read what the fathers <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">said</i> that
Jesus said.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But that certainly doesn’t
imply any kind of infallibility.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">As far as the content
of Sacred Tradition, some of the Catholic Church’s “definitions” include <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">“the living and growing truth,”</i> or <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">“the common teaching, common life, and
common worship of the whole Church.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></i></span><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">The Second
Vatican Council says that Tradition is <b><i>“</i></b><i><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">all that she herself</span></i> [the Catholic
Church] <i><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">is, all that she believes.”
(Dei Verbum, chapter. 2, paragraph 8).</span></i></span><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">THIS</span></i><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"> is supposed to be meaningful?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Is this as understandable and exact as they
can make it?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If so, is it any wonder why
Protestants complain about Sacred Tradition being nebulous or unclear?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>These “definitions” are not telling us
anything.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Sorry, but that’s not being “open” and “transparent”
about the contents of your Sacred Tradition.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Remember,
we’re talking about teaching that is supposedly inspired and infallible
here.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When he mentions the Catechism (above)
as Tradition, is the Lonely Pilgrim saying that <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">every part</i> of the Catechism is inspired?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I certainly hope not.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If not, then which parts?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I don’t think anyone can tell us, and I know
of no infallible list of those parts.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">But maybe we can find the perfect
definition of Tradition in Pope Pius IX, who was speaking with Cardinal Guidi
of Bologna about popes having infallibility.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>The Cardinal pointed out that the idea of “papal infallibility” did not
agree with Church Tradition.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So the pope
arrogantly roared, “I AM TRADITION!”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Yep, I think this pretty much sums it up.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">In essence</i>,
he was saying, “Who are you to tell me what Tradition says?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Whatever I, the Vicar of Christ, want
Tradition to be is Tradition!”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This
speaks volumes.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Tradition Inspired?<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Not only does the
Catholic Church seem to say that they have all the words of Jesus and the
apostles in Sacred Tradition (which is not true), but also that this “deposit
of faith” is <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">equal to</i> <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Scripture</i>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>After all, </span><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Sacred Tradition is also considered by Catholics as
“the Word of God.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The official Catholic
document, </span><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Dei Verbum</span></i><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">, chapter 2, paragraph 9, says:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“Therefore both
sacred tradition and Sacred Scripture are to be accepted and venerated <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><u>with the same sense of loyalty and
reverence</u></b>.” (Emphasis mine)<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">So that, to me, means
that Dei Verbum is saying the two would <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">have
to be</i> equal.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But interestingly, the
Lonely Pilgrim says that Scripture and Tradition don’t have “equal authority,”
because they have “different characters.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>So, it seems he is free to disagree with a statement that the Catholic
Church considers infallible.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">It is also
interesting that <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">only</i> the Catholic
Church can authentically interpret this Sacred Tradition (CCC #100)!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Hmmm.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Seems to be self-serving, doesn’t it?<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">The Lonely
Pilgrim claims:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“The Church
Fathers <em><span style="border: none windowtext 1.0pt; font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-border-alt: none windowtext 0in; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin; padding: 0in;">are
not</span></em> Sacred Tradition, but they do <em><span style="border: none windowtext 1.0pt; font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-border-alt: none windowtext 0in; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin; padding: 0in;">contain</span></em> Sacred
Tradition. “</span><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Well, he
needs to demonstrate exactly WHICH PARTS of the fathers’ teachings are
infallible.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Can he give us all of them,
so we can know?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Sorry, but just throwing
a bunch quotes into a pile, calling it the “deposit of faith,” and saying that
“Sacred Tradition” is somewhere in there just doesn’t cut it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Concerning
the fathers, the Lonely Pilgrim admits:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“And sometimes they
are plain wrong. Sometimes, many times, the Church Fathers even disagree with
each other! But it is the things they agree upon, the core of apostolic
teachings, that we receive as Sacred Tradition.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Agreeing upon a core
of “apostolic” teachings is fine if they are indeed apostolic.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And if they are, they will be consistent with
Scripture.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The Bible tells us to test
all things <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(1 Thessalonians 5:21)</i></b>, including Tradition.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When determining doctrine, Scripture is not
tested by Tradition, but Tradition is tested by Scripture <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(Mark 7:1-13)</i></b>, thus
showing they are not equal.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Furthermore, when you
read the fathers, how do you know that you have interpreted them correctly,
since they are a long way off from our culture (as Lonely Pilgrim stated
elsewhere in his article about <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Scripture
interpretation</i>)?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If it is hard to
interpret Scripture (as Catholics often claim), why should it be any <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">easier</i> to interpret the fathers, since
they use language quite different from our own?<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Taking Liberties with Scripture<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">As I said above, the key passage from
which all this stems is<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="background: white;"> John
20:30-31:<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .25in;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“Jesus performed many other signs in the presence of His
disciples, which are not written in this book. <span class="reftext"><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"> </span></span>But these are written so that
you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by
believing you may have life in His name.”<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Now folks, let’s take
a deep breath and put aside any preconceived Catholic or Protestant ideas, and
just take this passage at face value.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><o:p></o:p></i></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">What is the intention
of the apostle John here?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He is
revealing the purpose of his book/gospel in this passage so that the reader
might believe in Christ and have eternal life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>That’s it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">He’s not saying that there
are many other signs that Jesus did and the church fathers will have all this external
information.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He’s not saying that the
reader can find these signs in some other (infallible) source.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He’s not saying that we are obligated to hunt
for and collect all these acts to preserve them for the church.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And he’s not saying that we need to gather
them into some new infallible category alongside Scripture. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">No, he’s simply
saying that there were too many deeds, sayings and signs to be included in his
book.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In fact, there are more than could
ever be collected on earth <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(John 21:25)</i></b>, but these (in John’s
gospel) are <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">sufficient </i>to cause one
to believe. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Reading anything else into
the passage is irresponsible Bible interpretation.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="background: white; font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Conclusion<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">If anyone says he has
access to everything Jesus ever said, he is a <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">liar</i>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>No person,
institution, or church has this information.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>The point is, we don’t <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">need</i>
access to everything that Jesus ever said. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But Scripture is sufficient to equip us for <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">every good work</i> when it comes to
doctrine, reproof, correction and training in righteousness <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(2
Timothy 3:16-17)</i></b>.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">In other words,
correct doctrine comes from Scripture, not Tradition.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That doesn’t mean that we can’t learn things
from the fathers, history or Tradition, but these things will not be infallible
like Scripture is.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">I am not saying that
the things He said (outside of Scripture) were unimportant, but that we just
don’t have access to all of them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Each
and every one of these things He said were no doubt very important and infallible
– and none of it returned void, but it accomplished its godly goal <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(Isaiah
55:11)</i></b>.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">But what we see is
Catholics taking liberties with this passage <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(John 20:30-31) </i></b>and
making unfounded assumptions. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They think
that every time Scripture uses, or alludes to, the term “tradition” in a
positive sense, it is talking of Catholic “Sacred Tradition.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But that’s just begging the question.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">We have asked the one
question about Sacred Tradition that they never can seem to answer: What
exactly is Sacred Tradition?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Don’t give
us <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">examples</i> of it, but tell us
exactly what it contains.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>All of it, not
some nebulous, ever-increasing and growing entity that changes year by year
through “development of doctrine.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">That is the
Protestant challenge to Catholics.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">There is so much more
I would have liked to have covered in Lonely Pilgrim’s article, but I will stop
here.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Perhaps, if there is enough
interest from readers to address more of it, I may do a “Part 2.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">See also this article
on Tradition:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://answeringcatholicclaims.blogspot.com/2010/05/what-about-tradition.html"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">https://answeringcatholicclaims.blogspot.com/2010/05/what-about-tradition.html</span></a><span style="background: white; color: #373737; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>Russellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17823479491839694646noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6730083483661000120.post-18319849480421543112022-06-07T09:50:00.000-07:002022-06-07T09:50:06.093-07:00CATHOLIC CONVENTS AND MONASTERIES: SANCTUARIES OR CESSPOOLS?<p></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><span style="font-size: 20pt; text-indent: -0.25in;">“Sanctuary” – A place of refuge or safety.</span></li><li><span style="font-size: 20pt; text-indent: -0.25in;">“Cesspool” – A disgusting or corrupt place.</span></li></ul><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">It is normally admirable to see
someone who is sold out to God, serving Him at all costs, and is willing to do
anything to please our Lord.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This often
appears to be the case with Catholic monks and nuns.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Most of the people within these two groups appear
to have a very sincere dedication to God (or to the Church), since they have chosen
“the consecrated life.” <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Now, understand that there are
different groups of nuns and monks and they don’t all have the same rules.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Some are stricter than others.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But all of them have a measure of asceticism
built into their system.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Asceticism</span></b><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">The <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">online dictionary.com</i> describes asceticism as:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="background: white; margin-left: 39.75pt; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="color: #1a1a1a; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">1)<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span class="one-click-content"><span style="color: #1a1a1a; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">The
manner of life, practices, or principles of an </span></span><a href="https://www.dictionary.com/browse/ascetic"><span style="color: windowtext; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; text-decoration: none; text-underline: none;">ascetic</span></a><span class="one-click-content"><span style="color: #1a1a1a; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">.</span></span><span style="color: #4a4a4a; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="background: white; margin-left: 39.75pt; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="color: #1a1a1a; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">2)<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span class="one-click-content"><span style="color: #1a1a1a; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">The
doctrine that a person can attain a high spiritual and moral state by
practicing self-denial, self-mortification, and the like.</span></span><span style="color: #4a4a4a; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="background: white; margin-left: 39.75pt; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="color: #1a1a1a; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">3)<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span class="one-click-content"><span style="color: #1a1a1a; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Rigorous
self-denial; extreme abstinence; austerity.</span></span><span style="color: #4a4a4a; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">According to the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Oxford Languages dictionary</i>, it means:</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="background: white; color: #202124;">"Severe self-discipline and avoidance of all forms of
indulgence, typically for religious reasons."</span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">So that is why when a would-be monk or
nun enters these groups, they will then be isolated, at least to a certain
extent, for a period of time to live very closely together in a <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">monastery</i> (monks with other monks or
nuns with other nuns).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In extreme cases,
they will be completely isolated from the outside world (cloistered), with
almost no exceptions. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Sometimes, nuns
will live in a convent, where there seems to be a little more freedom.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Furthermore, Catholic nuns and monks generally
will be forced to live a celibate life, meaning that they will not be allowed
to marry and they must abstain from sex, in some cases, for the rest of their
lives.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">If that’s not hard enough, some of
these “religious,” as they are sometimes called, are usually expected to
discipline and punish themselves by eating very small and simple meals (e.g.,
bread and water), sometimes only once a day.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Depending on the type of monastery, they are expected to fast often for
long periods of time, sleep on hard floors or boards, wear extremely uncomfortable
clothing (sometimes made of itchy hair or sharp metal pieces) for long periods,
whip themselves (self-flagellation), wear tight cords around the body, and/or sometimes
taking vows of silence or vows of poverty, etc., etc.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Obviously, this won’t make most people
say, “Hey, sign me up for <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">that</i>!”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>No, this lifestyle is unusually harsh and <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">most</i> Catholics will avoid it.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Motive?</span></b><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Again, it is indeed rare to see such
dedication toward God or Church, but what is the reason for going to this
extreme?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Why choose to live such a harsh
lifestyle?<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Perhaps it is because they are trying
to follow what Jesus said:<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="background: white; color: #001320;">
<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“And he
said to <span style="mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">them</span> all, ‘If
any <span style="mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">man</span> will come
after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me.’”
(Luke 9:23)</span></i></b><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Or maybe they are thinking of what the
apostle Paul said:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“but I buffet my body and make it my slave,
lest possibly, after I have preached to others, I myself should be
disqualified. (1 Corinthians 9:27- NASB)</span></i></b><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Do they intend to emulate the apostle
Paul in his hardships and suffering <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(Galatians 5:24; 2 Corinthians 6:4-10)</i></b>
or are they even trying to <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">outdo</i> the
apostle Paul?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">But what they do in the monastery is
not what Jesus and Paul were talking about.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>There is a balance in your spiritual life and its discipline.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In fact, Paul warned <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">against</i> legalistic asceticism.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Such a life of legalism will only <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">keep
you from serving God properly</i>:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“If you
have died with Christ to the spiritual forces of the world, why, as though you
still belonged to the world, do you submit to its regulations: <a name="22"></a>“Do
not handle, do not taste, do not touch!”? <a name="23"></a>These will all
perish with use, because they are based on human commands and
teachings. Such restrictions indeed have an appearance of wisdom, with
their self-prescribed worship, their false humility, and their harsh treatment
of the body; but they are of no value against the indulgence of the flesh.”</span></i></b><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;"> </span><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">(Colossians
2:20-23 - BSB)</span></i></b><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">It is possible that their motives are
well-intended, but we need to remain <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">biblical
</i>if we really want to please God.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Much of convent/monastic life is unnecessary.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If you really want to please God, try
spending more time at home in prayer, and in the Word of God.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Thinking about a vow of silence?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>How about keeping your mouth shut at the
appropriate times, but use your freedom of speech to spread the true
gospel!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Instead of taking a vow of poverty,
get a job and actually help others financially who live in poverty!<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Instead of trying to live a life of <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">isolation</i> in a monastery (which you
won’t find in the New Testament), do what Jesus said and interact with the lost
by taking the gospel to the world! <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(Matthew 28:18-20)<o:p></o:p></i></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Instead of making yourself miserable,
pray for those who ARE ALREADY miserable!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">This life in the convent or monastery
is closely tied in with a works-based salvation, that is, they believe that they
get more “points” doing this and they have a “better chance” to get into
Heaven.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is an <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">earning</i> system.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Bad Environment</span></b><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Not only is there an issue with
asceticism in convents and monasteries, but there is something that is
recognized by most as a more <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">sinister</i>
problem.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When there are so many celibate
people of the same sex trapped together indefinitely, bad things tend to
happen.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>An environment like this invites
trouble.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We’ve all heard of pedophile and
sexual predator priests in the Catholic Church, but what about nuns and
monks?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Can it be that the same things
happen to them, as well?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Indeed it can.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Back in January 2019, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">CBS News</i> did a video on nuns accused of
sexual misconduct.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>One of the former
nuns that <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">CBS</i> interviewed, Trish
Cahill, was sexually abused by an older nun.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Cahill, when speaking to the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">CBS
News</i> correspondent, used the phrase “pedophile nun.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And the correspondent said that the phrase
“‘Pedophile nun’ is a phrase I think most of our viewers will have never
heard.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The former nun replied, “Really?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Wow!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>That’s really a shame because there’s a lot of them out there.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s the secret not yet told.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">The Catholic Church is very aware that
it breeds such victims.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Cahill also
later said, concerning a financial settlement she received from the Church for
the abuse she suffered, “They had canon lawyers on retainer just for people
like me!”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That is, the Church had
lawyers ever ready to defend against the inevitable… those who would make
accusations of a sexual nature against Catholic leaders.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Again, the Catholic Church knows very well
the monster they have created with these convents and monasteries and their
forced living conditions.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">But thank God, some are finally
realizing what Protestants have been saying about the Catholic Church for a
long time: In this same video, another former nun, Mary Dispenza, said, “The
demands of chastity and celibacy are unrealistic demands for many of us.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Exactly!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They may mean well in the beginning, but it
often ends in disaster.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">See the video here:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=THoy6mLX9r4"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=THoy6mLX9r4</span></a><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Problems in the Church<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Again, sexual abuse by priests (and
others in the hierarchy) is well known and documented.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But there are many reports and stories of
monks and nuns who have abused others, as well. This abuse has fallen under
different categories.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Sometimes it is
psychological, sometimes verbal, very often it is sexual, and many times it is
strictly physical abuse.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">These stories and accusations have been
around for a long, long time - for decades, or most likely, centuries.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Sexual deviancy in the Catholic Church was
especially a problem during the time of the Borgia popes (in the fifteenth and
sixteenth centuries), but the Catholic Church, not surprisingly, not only tries
to downplay these perverted activities, but the Vatican will also hide their
modern predators from the public by not contacting law enforcement, but rather,
shuffling off offenders to other areas of the country where they are unknown,
starting the same cycle all over again.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">The Cat is Out of the Bag<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Interestingly, the popular website <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Catholic Answers</i> wrote an article in
March of 2008, titled “Convent Horror Stories.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>See here:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://www.catholic.com/magazine/print-edition/convent-horror-stories"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">https://www.catholic.com/magazine/print-edition/convent-horror-stories</span></a><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">According to this article, when
Catholics first came to America, Protestants viewed the Catholic Church as the
“sworn enemy of freedom.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The author
tells us of (alleged) liars who came against the Church and spread horrible
stories and “urban legends,” making it sound as though Catholic priests were
perverts.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The author of the article
mocked those Catholic haters who seemed to view the responsibilities of a nun
to be “serving the perverse sexual needs of Catholic priests.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Catholic
Answers</i> mocks these (allegedly) fabricated “convent horror stories,” and
considers them all to be false.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They try
to make it appear as though no such thing has happened among the priesthood.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">But more interesting yet, is the fact
that in August 2018, the <span style="background: #F6F6F6; color: black;">Pennsylvania
Grand Jury Report came out nationwide and it revealed that some of those very
types of things mentioned in the Catholic Answers article were actually true
and still happening today.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The types of
activities they brushed off as nonsense in 2008 were actually confirmed in
2018.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Not only those things that were mentioned
in the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Catholic Answers</i> article, but
far worse, including pedophilia.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>See
here:<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/4757021-Pennsylvania-Grand-Jury-Report-on-Catholic.html"><span style="background: #F6F6F6; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/4757021-Pennsylvania-Grand-Jury-Report-on-Catholic.html</span></a><span style="background: #F6F6F6; color: black; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/acts-of-faith/wp/2018/08/14/pennsylvania-grand-jury-report-on-sex-abuse-in-catholic-church-will-list-hundreds-of-accused-predator-priests/"><span style="background: #F6F6F6; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/acts-of-faith/wp/2018/08/14/pennsylvania-grand-jury-report-on-sex-abuse-in-catholic-church-will-list-hundreds-of-accused-predator-priests/</span></a><span style="background: #F6F6F6; color: black; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://www.cnn.com/2018/08/14/us/pennsylvania-catholic-church-grand-jury/index.html"><span style="background: #F6F6F6; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">https://www.cnn.com/2018/08/14/us/pennsylvania-catholic-church-grand-jury/index.html</span></a><span style="background: #F6F6F6; color: black; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: #F6F6F6; color: black; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Here is
an article with some of my thoughts on this: <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://answeringcatholicclaims.blogspot.com/search?q=pennsylvania"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">https://answeringcatholicclaims.blogspot.com/search?q=pennsylvania</span></a><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">The Pennsylvania Grand Jury Report
also mentioned the involvement of at least one <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">nun</i>, who helped a priest in some of his assaults upon certain
victims, and who also, herself, sexually assaulted a male victim (more than
once).<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">The report also includes an incident
of at least one monk who abused a male victim.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">The focus of the Pennsylvania Grand
Jury Report seems to have been mainly on <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">priests</i>,
but one would be naïve to think that nuns and monks are exempt from such
behavior.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">If you think that nuns abusing others
is something that doesn’t exist, see this link:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://www.snapnetwork.org/nun_abuse"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">https://www.snapnetwork.org/nun_abuse</span></a></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">And these
two by the New York Post:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://nypost.com/2019/02/16/inside-the-horrifying-unspoken-world-of-sexually-abusive-nuns/"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">https://nypost.com/2019/02/16/inside-the-horrifying-unspoken-world-of-sexually-abusive-nuns/</span></a><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://nypost.com/2020/12/22/nuns-were-pimps-for-sick-priests-says-sex-abuse-victim/"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">https://nypost.com/2020/12/22/nuns-were-pimps-for-sick-priests-says-sex-abuse-victim/</span></a><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">If you think that monks abusing others
is something that does not exist, see these links:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://www.snapnetwork.org/man_claims_monk_sexually_abused_him_more_than_100_times_as_a_kid"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">https://www.snapnetwork.org/man_claims_monk_sexually_abused_him_more_than_100_times_as_a_kid</span></a><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://www.snapnetwork.org/west_abused_children_spent_time_philadelphia_aug19"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">https://www.snapnetwork.org/west_abused_children_spent_time_philadelphia_aug19</span></a><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">This is some Jeffrey Epstein type of
behavior!<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">And in case you’re thinking that this
Grand Jury Report is not substantial, or even fake, the Vatican acknowledges the
seriousness of those Pennsylvania findings:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“The Holy See treats with great
seriousness the work of the investigating Grand Jury of Pennsylvania and the
lengthy Interim Report it has produced.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">See here:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://ucatholic.com/news/vatican-breaks-silence-on-pennsylvania-sex-abuse-scandal-criminal-and-morally-reprehensible/"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">https://ucatholic.com/news/vatican-breaks-silence-on-pennsylvania-sex-abuse-scandal-criminal-and-morally-reprehensible/</span></a><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Conclusion<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">So, the conclusion is that convents
and monasteries are indeed not the sanctuaries they claim to be.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Note that I am not saying that there
has never been anything good to come out of those places.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>For example, monks used to make copies of the
Scriptures in monasteries.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But that
doesn’t negate the problems within them.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">There are several things I blame for
the problems therein:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">First, I blame the social structure of
these monasteries and convents to a large extent.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>These living conditions certainly provide an unnecessary
“occasion of sin,” as Catholics call it (<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Baltimore
Catechism #3, Lesson 18, Question 770-775</i>).<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Here, we have a bunch of unmarried men
(or women) who are celibate, with no chance to relieve sexual tension, while
living together in close quarters for long periods of time. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Concerning these living conditions, someone
once so eloquently stated, “That just ain’t right!” <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Secondly, they have a powerful Church
which is willing to cover up their sins of perversion for them by keeping their
crimes from the police, and then removing those offenders to another location
for a fresh start.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Thus, they have an
incentive to continue in this perverse lifestyle.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They know others around them in the same
convent/monastery are doing it, as well, so they all have a dirty little
secret, yet they are quietly protected by the Church.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This, alone, tells us that the leaders in the
Catholic Church (including the pope) don’t care about the innocent lives that
are being destroyed.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Thirdly, to make matters worse, false
doctrine pervades not only monasteries and convents, but the Catholic Church as
a whole.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>No amount of magnificent
architecture, or well-meaning occupants, can make up for false doctrine.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>False doctrine is a curse that will destroy
eternal souls.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If there is any doubt as
to whether there is false doctrine in the Catholic Church, see the multitude of
articles in this blog.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Are these Catholic convents and
monasteries considered sanctuaries – are they bastions of truth with biblical
principles – or are they cesspools of false doctrine and perversion?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The answer is clear for those who have eyes
to see and ears to hear <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(Isaiah 6:10; Jeremiah 5:21; Matthew 13:15)</i></b>.</span><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p> </o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>Russellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17823479491839694646noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6730083483661000120.post-68690835921350374202022-05-01T23:05:00.000-07:002022-05-01T23:05:57.503-07:00JOHN MARTIGNONI’S LOSING BATTLE<p> </p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">I’ve
previously devoted several of my articles to addressing comments made by
Catholic apologist and speaker John Martignoni, who maintains the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Bible Christian Society</i> newsletter.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Today, we will deal with his Newsletter
#410.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You can find it here:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://www.biblechristiansociety.com/newsletter/586-apologetics-for-the-masses-410-private-interpretation-of-the-bible-vs-church-teaching"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">https://www.biblechristiansociety.com/newsletter/586-apologetics-for-the-masses-410-private-interpretation-of-the-bible-vs-church-teaching</span></a><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">John often
speaks about how Protestants (who admit to being fallible) will have a problem
correctly interpreting Scripture, while claiming it is not an issue with
Catholics.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He emphasizes that what the
Protestant believes depends entirely on his private, fallible interpretation of
the Bible, while the Catholic can rest confidently in the authority of the
Catholic Church for correct interpretations.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">In this
particular newsletter, he gets a question from someone named “Cary L.” who
asks: <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">“Why is your
potentially fallible decision to trust the claims of the Roman Catholic Church
for your salvation correct?<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">John
Martignoni states that it is an excellent question, and I agree!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In fact, I don’t think that John (or any
other Catholic) can adequately answer it the way he wants to without violating
Scripture or common sense.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%;">First Things First<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">But John
requests that Cary first deal with a question of his (John’s) own:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“If you are not infallible
in your interpretation of Scripture, then how do you have any sure way of
knowing what is and is not authentic Christian doctrine and practice?”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Ok, so let me try to
adequately answer John Martignoni’s question to Cary L.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s about certainty. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The question is assuming that <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">infallibility</i> is a must to be able to
know basic Christian doctrine.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But this
doesn’t follow.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This is the same old
false dichotomy that some Catholic apologists use over and over: 1) either your
interpretation is infallible (i.e., unable to err), or 2) it has to be
wrong.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is as though there is no third
option.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">every single</i> person is fallible, yet, many times a person gets the
interpretation correct!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Just because an
interpretation could <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">possibly</i> be
wrong doesn’t mean that it will indeed be wrong.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Post-apostolic
Christians don’t have infallibility, but we don’t <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">need</i> it to have enough certainty to come to the knowledge of the
truth, or to be saved.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We only need a <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">sufficient</i> amount of certainty.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Are there some
passages more difficult than others?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Yes, there are <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(2 Peter 3:15-16)</i></b>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Do we get it wrong sometimes?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Yes, we may.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>And you may say, “That’s not very reassuring if it’s possible that we
can be wrong!” <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But that’s what Bible
study is for, and nowhere in that Bible are we told that we need infallibility
to interpret a Bible verse.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In fact,
Scripture points out that the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">common person</i>
can indeed understand it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Jesus expected
exactly that!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>See here:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="http://answeringcatholicclaims.blogspot.com/2013/07/quick-notes-on-sola-scriptura-part-6.html"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">http://answeringcatholicclaims.blogspot.com/2013/07/quick-notes-on-sola-scriptura-part-6.html</span></a><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://answeringcatholicclaims.blogspot.com/search?q=interpretation"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">https://answeringcatholicclaims.blogspot.com/search?q=interpretation</span></a><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">In fact, it was
mostly the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">common</i> people who listened
to and followed Jesus.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Basic
hermeneutical concepts (i.e., Bible interpretation principles) and common sense
go a long way here.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="background: white; font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">What’s the Difference?<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Ok, back to Cary’s
question.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Cary is basically asking: “Isn’t
the reasoning of the Catholic who is trusting in his understanding of Church
teachings just as fallible as the reasoning of the Protestant who is trusting in
his understanding of Scripture?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The
answer is yes, indeed.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">But Martignoni is
saying no, it isn’t.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He says that what
Protestants do “does not at all equate with my accepting the teachings of the
Catholic Church as being authoritative and infallible.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In other words, the Protestant has a problem,
but the Catholic can’t go wrong when trusting in his “infallible” church.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Supposedly,
Protestants can’t read and understand infallible Scripture with certainty, yet
Catholics can confidently read and understand their church’s “infallible”
teaching.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But how is it that the
Catholic is supposed to somehow have more certainty than the Protestant?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He doesn’t.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>There is no difference.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Even if
they end up with an infallible source, they still <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">both</i> have to begin with their fallible reasoning.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Martignoni’s “Infallibility”<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">John
Martignoni goes on to state that he is indeed infallible in his first-hand
knowledge of some things, for example, he “infallibly” knows that he is
married, that he lives in Birmingham, that 2+2=4, etc.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">He further
says that he can know something infallibly about matters of which he has
second-hand knowledge, like the speed of light, the fuel for the sun, the year
of the death of George Washington, etc.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Ok, I get
his point, but these last things he mentioned would have less certainty, since
some scientists, researchers, historians and authorities may have actually got some
of their information wrong.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It happens
from time to time.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">But, of
course, the infallibility that we are concerned with here is not about these
things.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We are speaking of having
infallible certainty in <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">spiritual and
moral matters</i>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>No one but God has
this level of certainty.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But again, He
does give humans <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">sufficient</i> certainty
in spiritual matters <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(1 John 5:13)</i></b>.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">But John’s
whole point, I think, is that the things he mentioned here are told to us by an
“authoritative” source (scientists, researchers, historians, etc.).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So, apparently, according to John, if it’s
based on some authority, it must be true, correct?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And of course, depending on an authoritative
source is exactly what John will claim, concerning the Catholic Church.</span><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">He also makes a big deal over Cary’s admission of
fallibility, and he keeps throwing it back into Cary’s face.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But fallibility is not necessarily a weakness
when it comes to Bible interpretation.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We
all have fallibility and Martignoni needs to stop pretending that Catholics are
somehow immune to it, just because they believe their Church to be infallible.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Double Standard<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">We use our
fallible reasoning daily in <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">everything</i>
we do, and most people use it effectively.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>By the way, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">every </i>type of
communication has to be interpreted.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And
the Catholic, just like the Protestant, is obligated to use his own fallible,
“non-authoritative,” “private” understanding to interpret not only the Bible,
but also to interpret his own church’s teachings.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Again, no one has moral infallibility today, and
it doesn’t take such a gift to have a sufficient amount of certainty.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There is no getting around this fact, in
spite of what John Martignoni says. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There
is a double standard being used here.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">All
Christians should use the Scriptures to evaluate their own church’s teaching.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">1 Thessalonians 5:21</i></b> says to <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">“…
test all things.”</i></b><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But this does
not apply only to the leaders, but to the “laity,” as well.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Checks and balances.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">The problem
is that John has been pushing his version of “fallibility-can’t-produce-certainty”
for a long time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He refuses to give up
his argument, but he is <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">still</i> wrong
on this.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Biblical “Proof” of the Need for an
Infallible Magisterium?<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">He then
demeans the God-breathed Scriptures when he tells Cary:</span><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“The Scriptures
reflect the tradition of the Christian faith, they are not the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">source</i> of the Christian faith, as you
make them out to be.” (Emphasis mine)<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Ok, first of all,
I’ve never seen a Catholic who can actually fully define this Sacred Tradition.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You can’t trust in it if you can’t accurately
tell us what all it contains. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>See here:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://answeringcatholicclaims.blogspot.com/2010/05/what-about-tradition.html"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">https://answeringcatholicclaims.blogspot.com/2010/05/what-about-tradition.html</span></a><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Second, the Christian
faith is indeed encapsulated in Scripture <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(2 Timothy 3:16-17)</i></b>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This is how we know what the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">true</i> Christian faith is, and this is
also how we detect false doctrine.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">John
proceeds to mention a couple of Bible passages to attempt to prove that we need
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">more</i> than just the Bible.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He uses <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Nehemiah 8:1-8 </i></b>to suggest that it
was <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">the leaders</i> in this passage (like
in the Catholic Magisterium) who had to explain what the Book of the Law was saying.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But we have to remember that, in this context,
these Jews had just returned from Babylon (whose language had become ingrained
in their minds for many years while there).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Many of those Jews <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">grew up</i>
with the Babylonian language.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But the
Book of the Law was written in Hebrew, so, many Jews in that seventy-year exile
had to now “brush up” on their native language, while some could probably speak
very little Hebrew!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">That’s</i> why the Jewish leaders had to expound/translate the Law for
the people.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So, this passage does not at
all prove that we need an infallible magisterium to interpret for us. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Again, John
Martignoni also uses <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Acts 8:30-31</i></b> for the same purpose.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In this passage, the Ethiopian eunuch is
reading the book of Isaiah aloud, and Philip asks the eunuch if he understands
what he is reading.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The eunuch responds,
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">“How
can I</i></b></span><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;"> </span></i></b><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">unless someone guides me?”</span></i></b><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;"> (Acts 8:31)</span></i></b><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Catholics will often respond,
“See, there it is!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We need an infallible
Magisterium to interpret Scripture for us.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span></span><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">But, to use
the words of John Martignoni, “Not so fast!”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Philip was NOT an apostle, a pope, or part of an infallible magisterium,
but simply a deacon in the church <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(Acts 6:5)</i></b>!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So why does John use this passage to try to
prove a magisterium?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Is there some intentional
deception going on here?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Furthermore,
these passages that John quoted do not negate the abundance of verses showing
that the common man is <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">expected</i> to
understand Scripture, as revealed in the links above.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Later on,
John points out more passages to demonstrate that the (Catholic) Church has
authority to bind and loose <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(Matthew 16:19)</i></b>, to decide between
disputes <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(Matthew 18:15-19)</i></b>, to teach with authority <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(Luke
10:16)</i></b>, etc., etc., to suggest that the Catholic Church fits all that
criteria.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But most of these points are
addressed in the following links:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://answeringcatholicclaims.blogspot.com/2016/10/matthew-16-keys-binding-and-loosing.html"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">https://answeringcatholicclaims.blogspot.com/2016/10/matthew-16-keys-binding-and-loosing.html</span></a><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://answeringcatholicclaims.blogspot.com/2016/09/matthew-16-who-or-what-is-rock.html"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">https://answeringcatholicclaims.blogspot.com/2016/09/matthew-16-who-or-what-is-rock.html</span></a><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://answeringcatholicclaims.blogspot.com/2009/09/pillar-and-foundation.html"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">https://answeringcatholicclaims.blogspot.com/2009/09/pillar-and-foundation.html</span></a><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://answeringcatholicclaims.blogspot.com/2011/08/hi-jacking-of-john-2023.html"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">https://answeringcatholicclaims.blogspot.com/2011/08/hi-jacking-of-john-2023.html</span></a><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="http://answeringcatholicclaims.blogspot.com/2009/12/apostolic-succession.html"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">http://answeringcatholicclaims.blogspot.com/2009/12/apostolic-succession.html</span></a><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">John’s attempt
to use Scripture to show that the Catholic Church is infallible falls far short
of its goal.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%;">John’s System<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">It’s a
losing battle, but John gives it his best shot and waxes eloquent in his
explanation of how he arrives at his conclusion:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“My theological system
is based on the teachings of the 2000-year old Catholic Church which I believe,
after careful consideration of the available evidence, and there is a lot of
evidence - historical, scriptural, logical, etc. - was founded by Jesus Christ
and is guided by the Holy Spirit and operates with the authority of Jesus
Christ which He Himself gave to it.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">But unfortunately,
John had to use his <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">fallible</i>
reasoning, step by step, to come to this conclusion!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This happens in each of those steps in this
process, yet John thinks he is bypassing this issue of man’s fallibility.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He is not.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">John Martignoni
greatly downplays fallibility, but if it weren’t for his fallible reasoning, he
would have never discovered his “infallible Church” (even though his conclusion
is wrong).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So, if John’s fallible
reasoning is good enough to get him to that conclusion (after plowing through
the logical data, Scripture, tons of church history, studying the multitude of
church fathers, studying Sacred Tradition, etc., etc.), wouldn’t that same
fallible reasoning be good enough to simply read and understand Scripture in
the first place?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If your fallible
reasoning can help you navigate through <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">all
that</i>, you should be able to trust it to understand and interpret Scripture.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Apparently, the Catholic Church can’t trust
you to read Scripture directly, but they can trust you to go through all the
above process with no issues!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Interesting logic.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="background: white; font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Conclusion<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">It is not
only John Martignoni, but there are many Catholic apologists that emphasize the
Catholic Church’s ability to “infallibly interpret” the Bible.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">We need to
ask, though, exactly how much of the Bible is actually interpreted <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">infallibly</i> by the Church?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>No one really knows, since Catholics disagree
on the number of verses with such a status.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>But know this for sure… it is only <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">an
incredibly</i> <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">tiny fraction</i> of the
Scriptures that the Catholic Church has interpreted with such certainty!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If infallible interpretation is so critical
(and the Catholic Church seems to think that it is), then why are so <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">few </i>verses rendered as “infallibly”
determined?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What about the “certainty” <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">of the rest of the verses </i>in the Bible?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">If you
appeal to common sense (or something like it) then why can’t <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Protestants</i> do the same thing?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">The Catholic’s certainty is not any greater than ours.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>See also this link:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="http://answeringcatholicclaims.blogspot.com/2015/10/martignoni-and-authority-to-interpret.html"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">http://answeringcatholicclaims.blogspot.com/2015/10/martignoni-and-authority-to-interpret.html</span></a><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Catholics will
say, “But if you misunderstand something in Scripture, the ‘Living Church’ can
correct you, unlike the Bible.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">But
misunderstandings don’t just happen to Protestants.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><br />
There are plenty Catholics who also misunderstand “infallibly-interpreted” Church
teachings.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">But the
Bible is indeed a living book <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(Hebrews 4:12)</i></b>, given to us by the
Word of God, Himself <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(John 1:1)</i></b>, and its words will judge
us on the last day <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(John 12:48)</i></b>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is not
the Catholic Catechism that will judge us on the last day.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And neither will the Catholic Church.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It will be the words of Jesus Christ, the
Messiah, penned inside the greatest book the world has ever known.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is a miraculous, God-proven and God-breathed
book <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(2
Timothy 3:16)</i></b>, with its contents perfectly interwoven by God.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And if a person studies it, he will soon see
that it does indeed correct misunderstandings, if you take it <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">in context</i>, and in its totality.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is a life-changing book of such great
magnitude, yet it can be understood sufficiently by mere humans whose hearts
are right.</span><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">So what’s the answer
when we disagree with someone else about Bible passages?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Horror of horrors [for some Catholics], it
simply comes down to us debating the Bible using<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"> our fallible minds</i> (along with decent biblical hermeneutics, common
sense and a humble attitude -<b style="font-style: italic;">Luke 8:15</b>). <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">John Martignoni, I
hope that you will be humble enough to recognize (and admit!) that your worn-out
arguments about man’s uncertainty due to his fallibility don’t hold water.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Stop misleading your audience.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Since this is a losing battle for <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">any </i>Catholic, let’s put this false
teaching to rest.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></p>Russellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17823479491839694646noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6730083483661000120.post-79963298464204606412022-04-13T00:44:00.000-07:002022-04-13T00:44:23.698-07:00PENAL SUBSTITUTIONARY ATONEMENT (Part 2)<p> </p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; color: #252525; font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">In an
article by Stephen J. Wellum,</span><span face=""Arial","sans-serif"" style="background: white; color: #252525; font-size: 12.5pt; line-height: 115%;"> </span><span style="background: white; color: #252525; font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Professor of
Christian Theology at Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, he states:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“In his classic
book, <em><span face=""Calibri","sans-serif"" style="mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">The
Cross of Christ</span></em> (IVP, 2006), John Stott famously wrote: ‘At
the root of every caricature of the cross there lies a distorted Christology’
(159). I couldn’t agree more, yet it’s crucial to remember that a true
Christology is also dependent on a correct theology proper. Thus, it’s more
precise to say: ‘At the root of every caricature of the cross is a distorted
doctrine of God.’ If we get God wrong, we will never grasp the problem of sin,
and its glorious solution in Christ and his cross. In fact, all common
objections to penal substitutionary atonement (PSA) are ultimately rooted in
sub-biblical ideas regarding the triune God of Scripture.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; color: #252525; font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">See
here:</span><span style="background: white; font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://www.9marks.org/article/answering-4-common-objections-to-psa/"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">https://www.9marks.org/article/answering-4-common-objections-to-psa/</span></a></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">I think that sums it
up pretty well.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In Part 1 of this
series, I shared some thoughts on the Penal Substitutionary Atonement (PSA)
view and said that it was the most graphic demonstration of God’s love shown to
mankind.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And I do believe that a wrong
view of the atonement will give one a distorted view of the nature and
character of God.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">I also mentioned that
Catholics don’t agree with PSA as it seems to be a problem for them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They, as well as some Protestants, feel that
the idea of Jesus being punished for man’s sin is barbaric.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>God’s wrath could not possibly fall on His
Son.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Jesus is, and always was, innocent
and (according to them) <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">punishing</i> Him
would be wrong.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But I think that a close
look at the typology of the Old Testament animal sacrifices would clearly
reveal the concept of PSA to be valid.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="background: white; font-size: 22pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Origin of Animal Sacrifice<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%;">Just to
clear the air, some compare Old Testament animal sacrifices with heathen
rituals, and claim that the Old Testament based its sacrifices on these heathen
ceremonies.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But the heathen were not the
first to use them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The truth is that God
was the first One to use animal sacrifices – and it started with Adam and
Eve.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Once they sinned, they realized
that they were naked, so they used fig leaves to cover themselves.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But God took innocent animals, killed them,
and used their skins to cover Adam and Eve, making them greatly aware of the
seriousness of their disobedience <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(Genesis 3:21)</i></b>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The Lord made the same point when dealing
with Cain and Abel <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(Genesis 4:3-5</i></b>) and with the Jews in the wilderness <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(Leviticus
chapters 3-5) </i></b>when they wanted forgiveness and offered up sacrifices.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Every Jew in the Old Testament understood
what was going on in those sacrifices.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They
saw that an innocent animal loses its life in order to pay for the sins of the
one who brings the sacrifice.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was the
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">animal</i> who suffered the wrath and
punishment intended for the sinner.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%;">You see, in
God’s scheme of things, blood MUST be shed for the forgiveness of sins <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(Hebrews
9:22)</i></b>, and He used innocent animals to portray this fact.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But this practice of animal sacrifice was
temporary, since it was fulfilled, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">once
for all</i>, by Jesus on the cross <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(Hebrews 9:12; 10:11-14)</i></b>.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%;">John the
baptist made an incredible statement about Jesus:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“<span style="background: white; color: #001320;">The next day he saw Jesus coming to him, and said, “Behold,
the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!”</span> </span></i></b><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%;">(John 1:29 - NASV)</span></i></b><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%;">This
monumental statement by John the baptist told everyone what was going to
happen.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>John understood the fact that
all Old Testament animal sacrifices pointed to Jesus.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And remember, it was mandatory that those
sacrifices should be without blemish <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(Leviticus 1:3; Deuteronomy 15:21)</i></b>,
just as Jesus was <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(Hebrews 9:14)</i></b>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The
typology of the Old Testament foreshadows the perfect sacrifice of Jesus in the
New Testament. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">There’s no escaping the Old Testament typology
of atonement through animal sacrifices, where the innocent was punished for the
guilty.</span><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“<span style="background: white; color: #001320;">He made Him who knew no sin <span style="mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">to be</span> sin in our behalf, so that we might become the
righteousness of God in Him.” (</span>2 Corinthians 5:21- NASV) <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">This is very strong language, but it
satisfies the symbolism of the Old Testament sacrifices.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">I have said all this to demonstrate to
Catholics and others the fact that Jesus’ atonement was indeed God’s wrath
poured upon Him, showing PSA to be true.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="background: white; font-size: 22pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">The Suffering Servant<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">What did Jesus do for
us at the cross?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>According to <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Psalm
53</i></b>:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="text-align: left; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%; text-indent: -0.25in;">·<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%; text-indent: -0.25in;">He bore our griefs and carried our sorrows
(Psalm 53:4)</span><span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; text-indent: -0.25in;"> </span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="text-align: left; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%; text-indent: -0.25in;"> He was wounded for our transgressions and
bruised for our iniquities (<b><i>v. 5</i></b>)</span><!--[if !supportLists]--></p>
<p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 20pt;">·</span><span style="font: 7pt "Times New Roman";"> </span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;">T</span></span></span><span style="background: white; font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">he <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">punishment</i> that brought us peace was upon Him (<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">v. 5</i></b>)</span><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="background: white; font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">We were healed [spiritually]
by His stripes (<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">v. 5</i></b>)</span><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="background: white; font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">The iniquity of mankind was
laid upon Him (<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">v. 6</i></b>)</span><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">He was stricken [punished] for the
transgression [wrongdoing] of God’s people (<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">v. 8</i></b>)<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">He bore our iniquities/wrongdoings (<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">v. 11</i></b>)<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">He bore the sin of many (<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">v. 12</i></b>) <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">He made intercession for us [the
transgressors] (<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">v. 12</i></b>)<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Notice the language here in <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Psalm
53</i></b>: The Psalmist is saying over and over that He (Jesus Christ) carried
a weight, a burden. He <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">bore </i>griefs; He
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">carried </i>sorrows; man’s punishment was
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">upon</i> Him; iniquity was <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">laid upon</i> Him; and He <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">was bearing our burden</i> of sin.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Wrath is attached to sin.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In the Old Testament, God expressed His wrath
by placing the man’s sins upon the innocent animal.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In the same way, in the New Testament, God
has expressed His wrath by placing mankind’s sins upon His innocent Son.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Again, there is no escaping the fact that
Jesus endured God’s wrath/punishment.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Imputation<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">As I stated in Part 1, His taking our
sin and us receiving His righteousness is all possible because of the doctrine
of <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">imputation</i>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>J.V. Fesko, <span style="background: white;">Professor
of Systematic and Historical Theology at Reformed Theological Seminary,
Jackson, Mississippi<span style="color: #4d5156;">,</span></span></span><span face=""Arial","sans-serif"" style="background: white; color: #4d5156; font-size: 12.5pt; line-height: 115%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">defines
imputation in this way:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; color: #272727; font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“The
doctrine of imputation teaches that while Adam’s sin is imputed to us because
he is our natural federal head, God imputes or accredits the righteousness and
suffering of Jesus to those who are in him and, conversely, imputes the sins of
those redeemed to Christ.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; color: #272727; font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">See
here:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/essay/the-doctrine-of-imputation/"><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/essay/the-doctrine-of-imputation/</span></a></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%;">The apostle
Paul speaks of imputation in <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Romans 4:6, 8, 11, </i></b>and<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">
22-24. </i></b><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">The biblical word “imputed” is a legal
term and indicates an <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">undeserved</i>
status - Jesus’ righteousness was imputed to us (though we are undeserving) and
our sins were imputed to Him (though He is undeserving of it, i.e.,
sinless).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>His righteousness was legally
“accounted” or “credited” to us.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%;">Again, this is only possible due to <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">imputation</i>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Logically speaking, if Jesus’ righteousness was
imputed to us, then our sins (and the punishment and suffering attached to them)
had to be imputed to Him.</span><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="background: white;">Just as
righteousness is imputed to man, sin and separation were imputed to Jesus.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22pt; line-height: 115%;">What the Atonement Was Not</span></b><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%;">Some will
complain that the PSA view depicts a “human sacrifice,” and that the Bible
forbids that <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(2 Kings 16:2-3)</i></b>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But
the atonement of Jesus Christ was not such a “human sacrifice” for at least two
reasons.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%;">First, Jesus
is not just human, but He is also divine.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%;">Second, His
punishment on the cross was <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">voluntarily </i>accepted
by Him.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%;">Human
sacrifices were repeated over and over and dedicated to demonic idols (e.g.,
Baal, Molech, etc.) with the intention to honor and appease false gods.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Jesus’ atonement was a one-time offer to the
one true God to redeem mankind.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Big
difference.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%;">Something
else – Jesus <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">did not</i> suffer in
Hell.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He went to Hell to preach to the
“spirits in prison” <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(1 Peter 3:18-20)</i></b>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But
His suffering – and His victory – was <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">on
the cross</i>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That’s where atonement
happened and that’s where forgiveness occurs, not in Hell. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22pt; line-height: 115%;">How Bad Was It?<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%;">What was the
extent of His suffering?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Can any human
know for sure?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Remember, Jesus wasn’t
the only one who died on a cross.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Over
the centuries, there were many who had been crucified, some suffering <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">several days</i> on a cross before
dying.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Jesus spent only six hours on His
cross, but I refuse to believe that any of the others suffered <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">more</i> than He did.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Something more than just physical pain was
going on at Jesus’ crucifixion.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There
was something supernatural happening there, something in the spiritual
realm.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%;">Maybe He
suffered something <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">equivalent</i> to
eternity in Hell.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I don’t know.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Perhaps, since He is an eternal being, an
eternity was somehow “compressed” into those few hours of suffering in that
deep darkness <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(Luke 23:44-45)</i></b>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We
don’t know, </span><span style="background: white; font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">but at least some of
what happened on the cross is certainly a <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">mystery,</i>
ye</span><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%;">t, we dare not
minimize His suffering there.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Whatever
happened, He is God and He was able to endure such suffering.</span><span style="background: white; font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22pt; line-height: 115%;">The Ugliness of Sin<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%;">Dr. Michael
Brown (a famous Jewish biblical scholar, radio host and author who understands
well the Old Testament sacrificial system) said this about the atonement:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p style="background: white;"><span face=""Calibri","sans-serif"" style="color: #222222; font-size: 20pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“Each human being owed a debt that none of us could
pay back. But the Son of God, with His infinite ‘credit,’ said, ‘I will pay for
all of it.’ So, at one and the same time, God can be perfectly just and
perfectly merciful.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p style="background: white;"><span face=""Calibri","sans-serif"" style="color: #222222; font-size: 20pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">And He shows us how deeply He loves us by showing us
how ugly sin is. If He simply said, ‘I look the other way; I forgive you,’ it
doesn’t show us the ugliness of sin. It doesn’t show us God’s justice. It
doesn’t give us a picture of the exchange that took place through the cross. We
now receive what Jesus deserves, and He took what we deserve. This produces a gratefulness
far beyond what simply saying ‘I forgive you’ could ever produce, and it produces
a hatred of sin in our lives because we’ve seen the ugly consequences of it.
So, without that aspect of the cross, we do not understand the love of God.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%;">See here:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://decisionmagazine.com/gods-wrath-atonement/"><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%;">https://decisionmagazine.com/gods-wrath-atonement/</span></a><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Conclusion<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Jesus’ atonement on the cross is the
focal point of all human history and the determining factor of every human’s
eternal destiny.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You must accept it or
deny it, but no one can afford to ignore it – nor should anyone downplay
it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Let’s be careful how we present His
atonement.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The magnitude of that event
cannot be fully grasped by mere humans.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">The extent to which God went to
purchase vile and ungrateful mankind is nothing less than shocking, yet truly
priceless.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Again, we need to be careful
never to diminish the amount of suffering He endured on that cross.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In that event, God expressed both the
ultimate punishment for sin, and His unfathomable love for man.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Human fathers and mothers no doubt
love their offspring, and many, if not most, would venture to die for their
precious children.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But no human could
ever love someone as much as Jesus has loved us.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The cross proves this fact.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">One might ask, “Who was it that put
Jesus on that bloody cross?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Was it the
Roman soldiers?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Was it the Jewish
leaders?”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The truth is that it was <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">all of us, including</i> <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">you and me</i>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You might say, “But my sins are little
compared to someone like Adolf Hitler’s!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Jesus may have had to suffer a lot for him, but He didn’t have to suffer
that much for <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">me</i>!”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">No, I’m sorry, my friend.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">James 2:10</i></b> says:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“For whosoever shall
keep the whole law, and yet offend in one <span style="mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">point</span>, he is guilty of all.”<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">If you think your sin
is no big deal, then why did God go to such extremes?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Why the bloody cross and the horrendous
suffering?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">You see, even our
“tiniest” sins are excessively ugly.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>God
is an <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">infinitely holy</i> God and that
means that breaking the tiniest part of His Law makes you deserving of the same
Hell that Adolf Hitler deserves!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The
only difference between you and him is the degree of punishment, once
there.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> But i</span>t will be no comfort to look across
the vast, smoke-filled landscape of burning sulfur and see Adolf Hitler
suffering more than you are.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That won’t
remove<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"> you </i>from there.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">According to<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"> 2
Peter 3:9</i></b>: <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“<span style="color: #001320;">The Lord is not slack concerning <span style="mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">His</span> promise, as some count
slackness, but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish
but that all should come to repentance.”</span></span></i></b><span face=""Arial","sans-serif"" style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">No one on earth <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">has</i> to go to Hell.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We all have a choice.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Simply put your trust in that shocking
display of love at Calvary.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Trust Him
and His suffering on the cross (and that alone) to be forgiven, to get into
Heaven, and to escape the wrath of God. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>Russellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17823479491839694646noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6730083483661000120.post-51589566837798464842022-03-30T21:17:00.000-07:002022-03-30T21:17:52.847-07:00PENAL SUBSTITUTIONARY ATONEMENT (Part 1)<p><span style="font-size: 20pt;">I have
stated before that a person’s doctrine (belief system) is so very important
because it shapes his beliefs about the nature and character of God.</span><span style="font-size: 20pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 20pt;">And for those who claim to be Christians, one
of the topics of utmost importance is the atonement of Jesus Christ (i.e., the
suffering and death that he experienced on the cross over two-thousand years
ago) and its effects.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">There are
several different views of the atonement, and great minds and great scholars
have debated this topic for centuries.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Some of the most popular views include (but are not limited to) the
“Christ as Ransom” theory, the “Christ as Substitute” theory, the “Penal
Substitutionary” theory, the “Moral Influence” theory, and the “Christus
Victor” theory.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>See this link:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://andrewspringer.medium.com/five-views-on-the-atonement-of-christ-d71dddca9b84"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">https://andrewspringer.medium.com/five-views-on-the-atonement-of-christ-d71dddca9b84</span></a><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">There is
probably at least <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">some</i> merit in most,
if not all of, the theories of the atonement out there.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">But for our
purposes in this article, we will be discussing the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Penal Substitutionary Atonement </i>(PSA) view, which seems to be the
most popular view in evangelical circles.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>In this view, Jesus is said to have received the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">actual</i> <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">punishment</i> for the
sins of all mankind.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He became our
substitute in the sense that God punished Him (the innocent) rather than us
(the guilty).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He took our sins away (<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">John
1:29</i></b>) when He suffered and died in our place.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He endured the wrath we so rightly deserve.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But, in turn, we get <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">His</i> righteousness.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This
transaction has been rightly labeled “the Great Exchange”: <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“<span style="background: white; color: #001320;">God made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so
that in Him we might become the righteousness of God.” </span></span></i></b><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">(<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">2 Corinthians 5:21</i></b>)</span><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">One definition
of PSA that I’ve heard is this:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">“The
doctrine of penal substitution states that God gave Himself, in the person of
His Son, to suffer instead of us the death, punishment and curse due to fallen
humanity as the penalty for our sin.” [Quoted by Mike Winger, from the book, “<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Pierced for Our Transgressions</i>” written
by Steve Jeffery, Michael Ovey and Andrew Sach]. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">See here:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=497109820931222"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=497109820931222</span></a><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%;">What Do Catholics Believe?<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">I am not
aware of any official view of the Catholic Church on this topic, but most
Catholics of which I am aware are against PSA.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">They
generally believe that Jesus did not experience the Father’s wrath in our
place.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The Catechism of the Catholic
Church does say that “… Jesus accomplished the substitution of the suffering
Servant, who ‘makes Himself an offering for sin,’ when ‘He bore the sin of
many,’ and who ‘shall make many to be accounted righteous,’ for ‘He shall bear their
iniquities’… Jesus atoned for our faults and made satisfaction for our sins to
the Father.” (CCC #615) <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Ok, so far
so good, but it seems that Catholics don’t see Christ’s work on the cross as a
literal vicarious (substitutionary) <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">punishment
</i>toward Him.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The popular Catholic
website, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Called to Communion,</i>
describes Jesus’ atonement as “… a sacrifice of love that was more pleasing to
the Father than the combined sins of all men of all time are displeasing to
Him, and thus made satisfaction for our sins… The Passion is a revelation of
the love of God, not the wrath of God.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>See here:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://www.calledtocommunion.com/2010/04/catholic-and-reformed-conceptions-of-the-atonement/"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">https://www.calledtocommunion.com/2010/04/catholic-and-reformed-conceptions-of-the-atonement/</span></a><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">They are
telling us that what Jesus suffered is NOT punishment, therefore not penal
substitution.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They feel that it is
Christ’s “positive gift” of love to the Father, rather than God pouring out His
wrath on His Son.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Is it Really Wrath and Punishment?<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">If Jesus
died in the sinner’s place, it would logically have to mean that He took the
sinner’s <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">punishment</i>.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Dr. Leon
Morris, a leading New Testament scholar, ties together propitiation
(appeasement, restoration) and God’s anger/wrath concerning the atonement:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“If there is ‘a
righteous anger’ of God, and the New Testament is clear that there is, then it
cannot be ignored in the process of forgiveness' (The Cross in the New
Testament, p. 349). Propitiation, then, a turning away of God's wrath, lies at
the heart of Christ's redemptive work.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">See here:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://thirdmill.org/magazine/article.asp/link/fre_leahy%5Efre_leahy.Wrath.Atonement.html/at/The%20Wrath%20of%20God%20in%20Relation%20to%20the%20Atonement"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">https://thirdmill.org/magazine/article.asp/link/fre_leahy%5Efre_leahy.Wrath.Atonement.html/at/The%20Wrath%20of%20God%20in%20Relation%20to%20the%20Atonement</span></a><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Morris also implies
that propitiation </span><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">presupposes</span></i><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;"> wrath and he delves into the Greek
here:</span><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="http://internetbiblecollege.net/Lessons/Propitiation%20Removing%20Gods%20Anger.htm"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">http://internetbiblecollege.net/Lessons/Propitiation%20Removing%20Gods%20Anger.htm</span></a><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">It’s funny how sometimes the simplest
example is the most helpful.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The
repentant thief on the cross near Jesus can teach us a valuable lesson
here.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In his own simple way, he
accurately summed up the doctrine of PSA.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Speaking to the unrepentant thief, he said:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“Do you not even fear God, since you
are under the same sentence of condemnation? And we
indeed <span style="mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">are suffering</span> justly,
for we are receiving what we deserve for our crimes; but this man
[Jesus] has done nothing wrong.” (Luke 23:40-41 - NASV)</span></i></b><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">What the repentant thief does next
reveals his understanding of Jesus’ work there.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>He turns to Jesus (without long prayers or a list of his great
accomplishments in life) and simply says, <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">“<span style="background: white; color: #001320;">Lord,
remember me when You come into Your kingdom” (v. 42).</span></i></b><span style="background: white; color: #001320;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>He understood that Jesus wasn’t doing this for Himself, but that Jesus
was being punished for <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">him, </i>the
sinner.</span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Earlier in this
series of events, Jesus spoke of the “cup” of which He was about to partake :<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“<span style="color: #001320;">… the cup which my Father hath given me, shall I not
drink it?”</span></span></i></b><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">
(<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">John
18:11)<o:p></o:p></i></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“…</span></i></b><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Take this cup from Me…”</span></i></b><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"> (<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Mark 14:35-36)<o:p></o:p></i></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Compare this with<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"> </i></b></span><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Isaiah 51:17 – “…the cup of God’s wrath/fury/anger…
[toward sin]”</span></i></b><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Jesus knew He would experience the cup of
God’s wrath.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That’s why He used those
statements in <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">John 18</i></b> and <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Mark 14</i></b> above.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">1 Peter 2:24 </span></i></b><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">says that He “bore our sins.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“Bearing sin” necessarily means bearing the
PENALTY for sin, which is God’s wrath.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">In spite of what the folks at <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Called to Communion</i> say, the atonement
demonstrates both God’s love (toward mankind) AND His wrath (toward sin).</span><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%;">“It Just Doesn’t Seem Right”<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Many
Catholics (and even some Protestants) consider the doctrine of PSA to be “cosmic
child abuse” or a “barbarous child sacrifice.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>They believe that something like this can only be done by a “Divine
Bully.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">World famous
atheist Richard Dawkins says of the atonement of Jesus Christ that it is
“vicious, sado-masochistic and repellent… If God wanted to forgive our sins,
why not just forgive them, without having himself tortured and executed in
payment?”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">But is the
atonement about an angry, sadistic God with a big stick in His hand?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And why would God punish a holy and pure
being for someone <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">else’s</i> sins?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Isn’t He a God of love and isn’t He supposed
to be fair?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If He’s all-powerful, couldn’t
He just forgive, as Dawkins suggests?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">No, you see,
God can’t “just forgive sin” without dealing with it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">must
</i>be angry with sin. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">God, Himself, would be evil
if He didn’t hate sin.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">God never hated Jesus, but hated the sin He
bore.<span style="background: white;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></span><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">By His own standard, He has to
address it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If not, then He would be <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">indifferent</i> <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">and uncaring</i> about the effects of sin on other people’s lives!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Thus, even His wrath itself is actually one
of the expressions of His love.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">The
atonement was not a divine temper tantrum, nor a childish emotional outburst of
anger on the Father’s part.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There is a
difference between human wrath and God’s wrath. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Jesus voluntarily laid down His life (<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">John
10:17-18</i></b>).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was a
judicial/legal suffering on Jesus’ part.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Again, the
atonement was not</span><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">
a “hissy fit” – it was, as someone said, a <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">controlled</i>
expression of justice.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Everything about
the atonement was done in full agreement between Father, Son and Holy Spirit
(the Trinity), and it was decided before the foundation of the world <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(Acts
2:23; 1 Peter 1:20)</i></b>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And
speaking of the Trinity…<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Does PSA “Destroy” the Trinity?<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“And
about the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, saying, Eli, Eli, lama
sabachthani? that is to say, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?” </span></i></b><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">(<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Matthew
27:46</i></b>)<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">There
are some that say that this verse <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">can’t</i>
mean what it appears to mean.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They tell
us that if the Son really was forsaken, that would destroy the relationship of
the Trinity, or at least dismantle it</span><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">. </span><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It would seem to mean
that God was divided against Himself.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So
Jesus could not have been forsaken by the Father, right?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But yet, the words are right there in verse
46 and they have to mean <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">something</i>!<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; color: #001320; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">I would
suggest that it <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">was indeed</i> a
separation/forsaking of some kind.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It
could not have been an absolute forsaking, but must necessarily have been
temporary from a human standpoint.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>God
seems to have temporarily held back His mercy from His Son while Jesus carried
the burden of the sins of mankind.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The
Father turned His face away for a moment, since He can’t look upon sin, and J</span><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">esus experienced the sense of abandonment that
we should have received!<span style="background: white; color: #001320;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This was something that had never happened
before, and it will never happen again.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Jesus did not actually <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">literally</i> become sin, or become a <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">literal</i> sinner, and He was never <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">actually guilty</i> of sin.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Here’s
where imputation comes in!</i> <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(Colossians 2:13-14)</i></b><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He was simply <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">treated</i> as though He had sin; He was treated as guilty, even though
He wasn’t.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The unbearable weight of sin
was placed upon Him.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But, b</span><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">eing God, Jesus was able to endure
that separation and punishment.</span><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">This was a divinely planned
interruption that the Trinity prepared from the beginning of time for the
salvation of the world.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It needed to be
this way.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="background: white;">My
friends, the Trinity is intact.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>PSA does
not harm the Father, the Son, nor the Holy Spirit.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Their bond and relationship continues
forever.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">I would hope that
Catholics (and many Protestants) would reconsider their view about the Penal Substitutionary
Atonement theory, since it is the most graphic demonstration of God’s love
toward mankind.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">We will continue next
time with Part 2.<o:p></o:p></span></p>Russellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17823479491839694646noreply@blogger.com1