Last week, I warned against being defined by your sexual orientation or history. This raises a central issue, going far beyond sexual orientation: how do we define ourselves? We live in a world with a wealth of competing identities, and it’s easy to define ourselves by something incidental, or at least, something non-central. For example, are… Continue reading Finding Our Identity in Christ
Tag: Bible
Does 1 Maccabees Deny Its Own Inspiration?
Wojciech Stattler, Maccabees (1842) In arguing against the Deuterocanon (the so-called “Apocrypha”), Protestant apologists take frequent recourse to the following three verses from 1 Maccabees that allegedly “prove” that no prophets exist at the time that the Deuterocanon was written: “So they tore down the altar, and stored the stones in a convenient place on… Continue reading Does 1 Maccabees Deny Its Own Inspiration?
The Caliph’s Catch-22: Protestant Arguments Against the “Apocrypha”
There’s a story (probably legendary) about the destruction of the great Library of Alexandria: John the Grammarian, a Coptic priest living in Alexandria at the time of the Arab conquest in 641 AD, came to know ‘Amr, the Muslim general who conquered the city. The men were each other’s intellectual peers, and John became the… Continue reading The Caliph’s Catch-22: Protestant Arguments Against the “Apocrypha”
The Awesome Power of the Five-Step “Lectio Divina” Method to Scripture
James Tissot, Jesus Teaches in the Synagogues (1886) In his 2010 encyclical Verbum Domini (“The Word of the Lord”), Pope Benedict XVI advocated a particular approach to Scripture as a key, both to our personal sanctification, and to Christian ecumenism: Listening together to the word of God, engaging in biblical lectio divina, letting ourselves be… Continue reading The Awesome Power of the Five-Step “Lectio Divina” Method to Scripture
Is “The Rock” of Matthew 16:18 St. Peter? Or His Confession of Faith?
One of the most hotly-contested passages in Catholic-Protestant dialogues is the “Upon This Rock” passage in Matthew 16:18. After the Apostle Simon confesses faith in Jesus as the Messiah (the Christ), Jesus says to him “And I tell you, you are Peter, [Petros] and on this rock [petra] I will build my church, and the… Continue reading Is “The Rock” of Matthew 16:18 St. Peter? Or His Confession of Faith?
“By Mercy-ing and by Choosing Him”: Pope Francis and the Feast of St. Matthew
Pope Francis has made no secret of his affinity for the calling of St. Matthew (Matthew 9:9-13). His papal motto is from a homily on the call of Matthew, and it was on the Feast of St. Matthew, sixty years ago today, that Francis had a religious experience that led him to the priesthood: [O]n the… Continue reading “By Mercy-ing and by Choosing Him”: Pope Francis and the Feast of St. Matthew
The Catholic Church Against the Bible?
One of the most frequent criticisms of the Catholic Church is that She teaches Her members to trust Her, instead of the Sacred Scriptures: that the Bible and the Catholic Church sometimes disagree, and that Catholics are forced to choose the Church over the Bible. Other variations of this argument are that we take “the Church… Continue reading The Catholic Church Against the Bible?
Six Reasons to Reject “the Perspicuity of Scripture”
Near the root of what divides Protestantism from Catholicism is a question concerning the clarity (or, in technical parlance, the “perspicuity”) of Sacred Scripture. The Catholic view is that Scripture needs interpretation; the typical Protestant view is that Scripture is so clear that there are no ambiguities needing authoritative interpretation by the Church. Rembrandt, The Baptism… Continue reading Six Reasons to Reject “the Perspicuity of Scripture”
Five Senses in which the Eucharist is the Host
Pope John XXIII elevating the Host Ever wonder why we refer to the Eucharistic species as “the Host”? The Latin hostia means “sacrifice,” and it is from this definition that the Eucharistic Host takes the name, as a reminder that in the Eucharist, Christ is the Sacrifice for our sins. But the Latin word hostia comes from hostis, which… Continue reading Five Senses in which the Eucharist is the Host
Pope Francis, Foot-Washing, and the Cross
Meister des Hausbuches, Christ Washing the Feet of the Apostles (1475) The more I read about our new Holy Father, the happier I am. He seems to combine outspoken orthodoxy with flagrant and outspoken love of the poor and downtrodden. In short, there is plenty for Catholics (and non-Catholics) of all stripes to like. One… Continue reading Pope Francis, Foot-Washing, and the Cross