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Scripture and the Pope: Part 5
2008-06-05 20:13:00 Here is Part 5 in my debate with Amy on papal infallibility as it is found in Scripture. Also see Parts 1, 2, 3, and 4.Pax Christi,phatcatholic - - - - - - - - - -I apologize ahead of time that most my comments are not backed with Scripture at this point. I have made most of those already in previous posts. While I put little stock in my own opinions as compared to the authority of Scripture, I am responding to the best of my ability from a biblical worldview rather than by book, chapter and verse. I have prayed extensively about this, as I consider truth claims no light matter that can be made without great accountability. (To whom much has been given, much is required.)I do think that the lack of Scriptural support is a deficiency in your argumentation. I mean no offense in this at all, but many of your arguments seem to come from your own ideas of what you would like a verse to mean instead of what the context, the original languages, other Scripture passages, and biblical schola...
Exploring Catholicism: Part 2
2008-05-22 19:22:00 [also see Part 1]I have read some catholic apologetics on this stuff and they always show new scriptures, but I would like to understand how Romans 10 I think it is where it says ? If you confess with your mouth Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.? Or the verse John wrote how he ?wrote all these things that you might know you have eternal life.? Or other verses like it fit into the Catholic idea of salvation. Also any others you can think of, those were the ones off the top of my head.First, we have to keep in mind that we are discussing "Once Saved, Always Saved," not sola fide ("faith alone" saves). Now, you cited Rom 10:9 and 1 Jn 5:13. "Fluffy" added Rom 8:1 and Eph 2:8-9 in her comment on Part 1. Time does not permit for me to respond to every passage that Protestants use to support OSAS, but I can respond to these. I have links to articles that should adequately address the rest.First, chapter 8 of Paul's letter to the Roma...
Exploring Catholicism: Part 1
2008-05-20 19:38:00 I have recently began a conversation, via email, with someone who is considering a return to the faith of his youth, after being away from Catholicism since high school. He has allowed me to post our conversation on my blog, with the hope that others may be able to benefit from it as well. Here is our first exchange.Pax Christi,phatcatholic- - - - - - - - - -What is the plan of salvation according to the Catholic church? again I get mixed up what I have heard from the Catholic church and from anti-Catholics, Is there assurance of salvation? I have heard that there is not, yet I was at a Catholic funeral recently and they were very strongly pronouncing that the deceiced was with God. If there is what is it based on?Well, Catholics believe that salvation is a process of sanctification that culminates in eternal life with God after death. We are not ultimately "saved" until we die in union with Christ. This means that there is no "assurance of salvation" or "once-saved-always-saved" un...
Q&A Potpourri
2008-05-18 05:59:00 I recently answered the following questions over at WikiAnswers. If you are knowledgeable in the faith, I suggest joining WikiAnswers and answering some questions yourself. It's a great way to witness to our Catholic faith. Now, on to the Q&A:What is compline?The Modern Catholic Dictionary, defines compline as: "the concluding hour of the Divine Office. Its origins in the West are commonly ascribed to St. Benedict (480-547). At first it was recited after the evening meal or before retiring. It now follows Vespers. As Night Prayer, it consists of a hymn, one or two psalms, a short reading from Scripture, a versicle and response, the Nunc Dimittis of Simeon, and a concluding prayer. (Etym. Latin completorium, complement)"When did the Holy Spirit originate?The Holy Spirit is God. This means that He has no beginning or end. Thus, there is no point in time in which we can say that the Holy Spirit first came to be and there is no point in time in which we can say that the Holy Spirit did...
Crosswalking Catholicism
2008-05-16 18:47:00 You all may be familiar with a Protestant website called Crosswalk. Many people, including myself, use their "Bible Study Tools" for Scripture study because they include various translations of Scripture, along with a wide variety of commentaries, concordances, dictionaries, encyclopedias, lexicons, and other reference works. It really is an amazingly helful website.At any rate, I noticed today an article on their homepage entitled, "Why Do Catholics Have a Pope?", by Sarah Jennings (Crosswalk.com Family Editor). Of course, that sparked my interest, so I gave it a read. I was very pleasantly surprised to find that it was THE most accurate explanation of the papacy by a Protestant that I had ever read! What a relief!!Honestly, I expected the usual misunderstandings: Catholics worship the pope, the pope thinks he is Jesus on earth, the pope replaces Jesus as head of the Church, everything the pope says is inspired by the Holy Spirit, the pope can do no wrong, yaddah, yaddah, yaddah. T...
Scripture and the Pope: Part 3
2008-05-04 15:00:00 Here is Part 3 in my debate with Amy on the authority and infallibility of Peter (and his successors) as it is found in Scripture. Also see Parts 1 and 2.Pax Christi,phatcatholic - - - - - - - - - -Though my digestion of your post is incomplete, and I have no hope of addressing everything you have written, I will do my best to reply. My reply is very incomplete. Thank you, in advance, for putting up with the length of this.The length doesn't bother me at all. I try to be as concise as possible, but sometimes you just have to write a lot in order to defend a position, and I'm okay with that.Some of your post matches up with what I have learned my entire life in studying the Bible.Some things you have written, I hold as truth, the first of them being that,?All things pale in comparison to Jesus.?Second, I also agree with your view that people?s names hold great importance.Good to know.Thirdly, your point on keys and authority pointing back to the Davidic kingdom ("Among these was a ...
Scripture and the Pope: Part 2
2008-05-02 05:59:00 Here is Part 2 in my debate with Amy on the authority of the pope and the Scriptural witness to this authority. Also see Part 1.Pax Christi,phatcatholic - - - - - - - - - -Thank you for engaging me in this discussion. I know you are busy. I have been praying for you and the cute girl in your profile pic.Thank you!! That means a great deal to me. We certainly need your prayers. You'll be happy to know that my fiancee's name is Amy too!...to the fact that we are both Switchfoot fans, there can be no debate on this.Great!Again we have a point where no contention can be made: The Bible is authoritative because it has been inspired by God (God-breathed). (2 Tim. 3:16, 17)Good to know.Now I have a question: 1)How do you know for sure: "his words are protected from error by a charism of the Holy Spirit given to the Successor of St. Peter."Can you direct me to scripture that supports this?Well, as I'm sure you know, the foundational passage is Mt 16:13-20, where we find a truly amazing c...
Mary: The Quickest Way to Jesus?
2008-05-01 00:02:00 You may recall from this post that I recently emailed Dr. Mark Miravalle regarding seraphim's question about Mary being the "quickest" or "easiest" way to Jesus. Well, I'm still waiting for a response from him, but I did receive a response from one of his assistants. Here is what he wrote to me: Thanks for writing. I'll ask Mark about that ladder rosary. I've never heard about that. I know what you mean about feeling awkward. I struggled with this for some time. However, this is the teaching of many of the saints, including St. Louis de Montfort, St. Maximilian Kolbe, and others.The reason the road "directly" to Jesus is more difficult is because it is, in reality, indirect. This indirect path to the Lord, which ultimately leads to him, involves inner resistance to his Mother, a disposition contrary to the Gospels, particularly John 19:25-27. Choosing this ladder rather than the other one causes a soul to "choose between." This is not the reality of heaven. Choosing the ladder t...
Scripture and the Pope: Part 1
2008-04-30 19:19:00 What follows is Part 1 in what I think will be a very fruitful dialogue with Amy, who owns a blog called "The Way I Say." I happened upon her blog because I was looking for a poem about redemption for a presentation on that topic and she just happened to have exactly what I needed. Since then she has made some very helpful comments on my blog and I look forward to our dialogue together.That said, here is her first post to me:First of all, do you like switchfoot, because that is a most important matter to clear up?Do you give as much authority to the Pope's words as you do to scripture?I definitely like Switchfoot! I hope that's ok :DAs for your second question, I don't want to give a simple "Yes" or "No" answer because I'm afraid it might imply things I don't intend. I will say that, when the pope speaks as the Successor of St. Peter, in his role of feeding and tending God's people, on a matter of faith and morals that is to be binding on the whole Church, then his words requi...
On Baptism by Immersion
2008-04-11 04:34:00 I recently received the following question via the combox in my sidebar:Baptism by immersion only: I went to catholic.com but I need some more stuff on this. I just got back from getting my rump handed to me on this one. Can ya help?Well, without knowing what their exact arguments are, I can't really say a whole lot. But, I can point you to various articles online that address this issue:Baptism: Immersion Only?Catholic Baptism and ImmersionDoes Col 2:15 Disprove Baptism by Sprinkling or Pouring?Is Baptism by Immersion Only?On the Legitimacy of Baptism by Sprinkling or PouringWere All Biblical Baptisms by Immersion?A lot of those links were broken, so I had to look up the archived version. They should work now, but if for some reason they don't, just leave a comment and let me know.Remember that immersion is a legitimate form of baptism in the Catholic Church, and it is actually the form that best symbolizes the dying to sin and rising to new life that truly takes place in baptism...
Taming the Tongue
2008-04-09 02:17:00 I recently received the following question, via email:What is the Catholic teaching on cursing? It seems today that it is almost the vernacular for college students. Is it ever appropriate to cuss?I scoured the Catechism and was unable to find anything specifically about "cussing" or using foul language. But, there are a few articles that are related, and these might be helpful.As Christians, we must comform our words to the mind of Christ and follow His example (no. 1694). God's presence and His truth must be honored in all speech (no. 2153). He is "the Lord of all speech" (no. 2152), and human speech is either in accord with or in opposition to God who is Truth itself (no. 2151). Living in accordance with Truth includes displaying an uprightness and sincerity in speech (no. 2468). The purpose of speech is to communicate truth (no. 2485).Abusive language is forbidden by the fifth commandment (no. 2073), and anyone who is angry with his brother is liable to judgment (no. 2302-2303)...
On the Stigma of Stigmatics
2008-04-03 01:25:00 Almost a month ago, "Steve" emailed me the following question:I saw on TV that Padre Pio's body was exhumed for veneration. I tried to search for more info online because the segment was brief. Unfortunately, I ended up coming across some hostile Web sites claiming that Padre Pio was a fraud, and that someone at the Catholic Hospital in Rome referred to him as a psychopath. It further alleged that miracles like incorruptible saints are frauds because either the bodies have been proven to have been treated, or there is gross exagerration/wishful thinking. It also claimed that the Stigmata is false because the wounds appear differently and in different locations for Stigmatics.I am certainly not an expert on this subject, but I will try my best to respond to the points that you have raised.First of all, concerning the accusations that Padre Pio was a "fraud," the Church definitively put that matter to rest when they declared him a saint.You have to keep in mind that canonization is n...
Answering the "Fundamental Questions": Part 2
2008-03-28 19:28:00 This is the conclusion of my response to the challenge sent to me by "E.L." See Part 1 for Questions 1-4.That said, on to Question #5:(5) Is the resurrection a resurrection of the dead or the living? Why did Jesus not agree with Martha when she connected the resurrection to the Last Day? Has the resurrection already taken place and if so when?To answer the first question, the resurrection is of the dead. In other words, when Jesus comes again, the bodies of all who have died will rise again and be united once again with their souls. The righteous souls will receive glorified bodies. The wicked souls will receive bodies that will only add to their torment.Why did Jesus not agree with Martha when she connected the resurrection to the Last Day? From what I can tell, he did not actually disagree with her. Instead, I think he simply refocused her attention. Here is the passage in question:Jn 11:21-27 Martha said to Jesus, "Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died. 22 An...
Answering the "Fundamental Questions": Part 1
2008-03-28 03:06:00 I recently received the following challenge from "E.L.":I see on your website that you are interested in defending the Catholic Church. May I suggest that in order to do this you should be able to answer the following fundamental questions:What is the difference between the Kingdom of Heaven ruled by Jesus Christ and the Kingdom of God the Father?What exactly is the New Covenant? What does the New Covenant promise?Why is Baptism connected to the Kingdom of Heaven? What does baptism do for us?What is the Church? Is it a building or residence as Scripture suggests? Who lives there? What is the connection between the pope and the Church? Does the pope have authority to govern the Church?Is the resurrection a resurrection of the dead or the living? Why did Jesus not agree with Martha when she connected the resurrection to the Last Day? Has the resurrection already taken place and if so when?If God gave us dominion or ownership rights over creation did He also give us ownership rights ov...
On the Morality of Masturbation: Part 3
2008-03-05 21:59:00 Below is Anon's second response to my stance on masturbation (see also my original post and his first response). It's basically just more of the same, as I hope to reveal.Pax Christi,phatcatholic- - - - - - - - - -First, let me say that I respect that the goal here is to create good in the world and prevent bad. So we are aligned there, and I respect you for it. There is certainly an abundance of unhealthy sexuality in our society, and that is to be frowned upon. However, it doesn?t mean we have to throw the baby out with the bathwater, as it were.I agreeTo say we shouldn?t do it because it says so in book X on page Y avoids real analysis.You can't minimize my argument like that. I gave many more reasons for condemning masturbation other than, "Because the Church says so." That said, I don't know if you're a Catholic or not, but we believe that the Magisterium's authority on matters of faith and morals comes from Jesus Christ Himself. So, if the Church says masturbation is wro...
Repent, and Do What?
2008-02-09 22:21:00 I recently received the following question: Ok, so I'm still confused about this but has some idea, but need clarification. Mk 16:16-17 He who believes and is baptized will be saved; but he who does not believe will be condemned. 17 And these signs will accompany those who believe: in my name they will cast out demons; they will speak in new tongues;Acts 2:38-39 And Peter said to them, "Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. 39 For the promise is to you and to your children and to all that are far off, every one whom the Lord our God calls to him."For the word baptized from these verses, do they mean the same? What does be baptized mean? I've recently heard some bad interpretation of this and I don't know how to properly explain it to them. They use it as a backup that it is God's will that every Christian be baptized in the Holy Spirit (Baptism in the Holy Spirit w...
Gene Bridges on the Holy Water Debate
2008-02-05 21:53:00 Gene Bridges, from Triablogue recently had this to say about my use of Scripture in the holy water debate. I would like to respond to him in full. Hopefully, this can remain a charitable discussion. Normally, I would reserve comment for after the debate, but given DA has been helping Nick in the Holy Water debate, and that fact that DA has yet to actually, you know, exegete any of the texts in his list of Scriptures allegedly justifying the use of holy water in the NT church, I couldn't resist.Just to be clear, all of the arguments in the formal debate itself are mine. He has only "helped me" insofar as he defended my opening statement against others (such as yourself) who were commenting on the debate while it was taking place.Nick writes, responding to TF:Turretinfan: If we were trying to make unclean spirits clean, sprinkling holy water on them might make sense. But we are not, so it doesn?t. Ritual uncleanness for which the OT prescribed washing is unlike spiritual uncleanness,...
Postures of Prayer: Part 2
2008-01-24 02:23:00 You may recall an earlier post in which I responded to Rhology's claim that the postures that Catholics take in reverence of the saints amount to idol worship. Well, he made a follow-up comment on that post, so I would like to respond to that as well.Dulia is distinct from latria, yes. Nobody is arguing otherwise.What I am pointing out is that there are certain contexts in which the distinction advanced by RCC and EOC does not hold by what God has said, and religious actions is one of those categories. That's why I keep pointing out the religious worship/non-religious non-worship contexts in your counter-examples.But, don't you see? It's only in the context of worshipping someone as God that there is no distinction. When you put your examples together with my examples, the message from God becomes this: "When your dulia of someone is akin to latria, it is wrong (cf. your examples). But, when it is simply giving honor where honor is due, it is ok. You are called to give such hono...
Holy Water Debate: Parts 3-6
2008-01-17 17:57:00 I have a major update to make in the Holy Water debate. First off, here is what we have accomplished so far:Part 1: Phatcatholic Opening StatementPart 2: Phatcatholic Answers Questions 1, 2, and 3Part 3: Turretinfan Opening StatementPart 4: Turretinfan Answers Questions 1, 2, and 3Part 5: Turretinfan RebuttalPart 6: Phatcatholic RebuttalThe only thing left is for each of us to write our Concluding Statements. This has been an interesting debate and it has caused me to do a ton of research into a topic I might not have studied otherwise. It has also sparked quite a debate in the blogosphere, thanks to Dave Armstrong's post (see the comments on that post and his follow-up).What follows us my Rebuttal Statement. As always, comments are welcome.Pax Christi,phatcatholic- - - - - - - - - -I am using this rebuttal to respond to your opening statement. In that statement, you wrote the following:There are three examples of water being used in healing, Naaman in the Jordan, the pool of Bethe...
New Feature for Phatcatholic Apologetics
2007-09-04 20:20:00 Thanks to the graciousness of Fr. Michael S. Murray OSFS and the Oblates of St. Francis de Sales (Wilmington-Philadelphia Province), I present a new freature of my blog:Each day I will post a different selection from the writings of St. Francis, as they appear in the book Every Day with St. Francis de Sales, edited by Fr. Francis J. Klauder (purchase here). I think his priceless words of wisdom will be a great addition to my blog, and I hope that this will be something that you all will look forward to reading, perhaps before you start your day. I may post my thoughts on the day's selection from time to time, but for the most part I want St. Francis to just speak for himself and for each listener to be effected by St. Francis in his or her own way.Here is today's selection: September 4th:"My God, could there be any greater blindness than ours? Full of miseries and vileness, we want to appear and to be esteemed as someone really important! It is our self-love which so blinds us! Go... |
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