The pope, who has run in prominent Catholic theological circles for decades, and a brilliant theologian himself, is in a unique position to pass judgment on the theological fads which many Catholics fall prey to. The latest fads are those in which the newest and latest evidence seems to disprove this or that Catholic teaching,… Continue reading Pope Benedict on Theological Fads
Tag: apologetics
Kagan, Partial-Birth Abortion, and the “Proper Place” of Science
The big story surrounding Obama’s Supreme Court nominee, Elena Kagan, is that while she was working for the Clinton White House, she secretly drafted a “scientific opinion” for the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists claiming that partial-birth abortions were necessary. In other words: Kagan’s boss, President Bill Clinton, wanted partial-birth abortion to remain legal.… Continue reading Kagan, Partial-Birth Abortion, and the “Proper Place” of Science
Assurance of Salvation and “Evanescent Grace”
Nick, responding to my earlier post on assurance of salvation, brought up a very good point: John Calvin clearly taught something called *evanescent grace* in which God gives a ‘fake grace’ to the Reprobate to make them *think* and act as if they were Saved, and this only so that He could damn them with… Continue reading Assurance of Salvation and “Evanescent Grace”
Two Short Arguments for Infant Baptism
The debate over infant Baptism is precisely one of the reasons that Tradition is necessary. The Bible just isn’t clear whether the Apostles baptized babies or not. There are references to “households” being baptized, but it’s far from clear whether those households included young children or not. And since it was the first generation of… Continue reading Two Short Arguments for Infant Baptism
When Does Human Life Begin?
The central argument motivating the pro-life movement is that a new life begins at the union of sperm and egg, called either “conception” or “fertilization” (there’s been a clever move by pro-choicers to redefine conception as “implantation,” in true Orwellian fashion, so fertilization may be the better term). For the vast majority of people, the… Continue reading When Does Human Life Begin?
Did Jesus Use the Greek Version of the Bible?
Kerath25, in response to my post this morning, asked: I’d heard that there is some evidence that Jesus Himself used the Septuagint. On a simple search, most of the results that I’d come across were people seeking to refute this theory, and I didn’t find any convincing evidence to support the theory that Jesus used… Continue reading Did Jesus Use the Greek Version of the Bible?
St. Jerome on the Deuterocanon
Catholic Bibles, as you probably know, are larger than Protestant Bibles. Or more specifically, we Catholics have the following books, which Protestants don’t: Tobit, Judith, Wisdom, Sirach (a.k.a. Ecclesiasticus), Baruch, and 1st and 2nd Maccabees. In addition to that, we have longer versions of Esther and Daniel. And finally, we have the Letter of Jeremiah.… Continue reading St. Jerome on the Deuterocanon
Assurance of Salvation?
A number of Protestants find it singularly compelling that they “know” that they’re eternally saved. I’ve always found this line of reasoning sort of strange. To the last individual, they’ve argued or admitted that: The saved can know that they’re saved; The damned often think that they’re saved, but they aren’t (obviously); Even those saved… Continue reading Assurance of Salvation?
Fourth Century Icons of Jesus and the Apostles Found
This is a pretty cool story. Underneath an office building in a working-class part of Rome, they’ve discovered some ancient ruins (probably a noblewoman’s tomb) containing the oldest icons dedicated to Peter, Paul, Andrew, and John.* The icons date to the early 300s. Since it’s Rome, it’s fitting that these four followers of Christ were… Continue reading Fourth Century Icons of Jesus and the Apostles Found
Fr. Robert Barron on the Trinity
One of the best and simplest explanations of the Trinity is explained by Fr. Barron here:He notes that only if you affirm the Trinity can you affirm the notion that “God is Love” (1 John 4:8).