Look at the picture below, and tell me which of the cords is the one powering the lamp: Obviously, it’s the middle one. You can know this because the lamp is on (you can see its light), and because you can see where the other two cords begin. You know this even though you can see… Continue reading Power Cords and Apostolic Succession
Tag: papacy
Answering Seventh Day Adventism
There are two major distinctive claims of Seventh Day Adventism, which separate it from the rest of Christianity: First, that Christians are supposed to keep Saturday, the Sabbath, holy. They oppose worshiping on Sunday, arguing that it’s against the Ten Commandments and generally anti-Scriptural. Second, that the founder of Seventh Day Adventism, Ellen G. White,… Continue reading Answering Seventh Day Adventism
“Why Did Jesus Build His Own Church?” and Other Reflections on Matthew 16
This past Sunday’s readings were on the papacy. The First Reading was from Isaiah 22:19:23, in which the LORD to Shebna, master of the palace: “I will thrust you from your office and pull you down from your station. On that day I will summon my servant Eliakim, son of Hilkiah; I will clothe him… Continue reading “Why Did Jesus Build His Own Church?” and Other Reflections on Matthew 16
Is the “Rock” Peter, or His Faith?
HocCogitat asked, in response to Part V of my series on the role of St .Peter in Scripture: But even Augustine holds that Christ was referring to Peter’s confession as the rock, not his person. And this is obviously the only reasonable interpretation because Christ calls Peter Satan later in the same chapter. Obviously, what… Continue reading Is the “Rock” Peter, or His Faith?
Catholics, Orthodox, and the Robber Council
A couple weeks ago, I wrote about the Second Council of Ephesus, which was expected to be an Ecumenical Council. Unfortunately, the “council’s” decrees were heretical, and it was immediately denounced by the pope, who nicknamed it the “Robber Council.” This history is important, because it shows that the validity of an Ecumenical Council turns upon… Continue reading Catholics, Orthodox, and the Robber Council
Pope Leo XIII on “the Great Washington” and the “Well-Ordered Republic” of the United States
Happy Fourth of July! Here’s Pope Leo XIII, writing in January 6, 1895, about how fortunate the Catholics in America are for religious freedom, and for men like “the great Washington”: Nor, perchance did the fact which We now recall take place without some design of divine Providence. Precisely at the epoch when the American… Continue reading Pope Leo XIII on “the Great Washington” and the “Well-Ordered Republic” of the United States
Why Does God Call David a Man After His Own Heart?
In Acts 13, during Paul’s first homily to the Gentiles, in Pisidian Antioch, he explains some Jewish history. At one point (Acts 13:22), he says: After removing Saul, He made David their king. He testified concerning him: ‘I have found David son of Jesse a man after My own Heart; he will do everything I… Continue reading Why Does God Call David a Man After His Own Heart?
The Charismatic Movement and the Catholic Church
One of the points of disagreement within Christianity is between “Cessationists” (who believe that some of the extraordinary gifts of the Holy Spirit, like tongues and prophesy, died out with the Apostles) and the “Continuationists” (who say that those gifts never died out). I’m not looking to settle that dispute today. Rather, I wanted to point out something… Continue reading The Charismatic Movement and the Catholic Church
Catholic April Fool’s Joke Taken To a New Level
Unam Sanctam Catholicam, a traditionalist Catholic blog, had not one, but two, elaborate April Fool’s Day Hoaxes. The first: JOHN PAUL II’S BEATIFICATION POSTPONED INDEFINITELYThe second: RECTIFICARE ERRATA NRO’s Kathyrn Jean Lopez admitted to getting duped by the first joke. The second joke is a fake encyclical written by Pope Benedict condemning everything from Medjugorje, to Communion in… Continue reading Catholic April Fool’s Joke Taken To a New Level
Pope Peter, Part V: Upon This Rock
This is the fifth and final post in the “Pope Peter” series which set out to establish Peter’s primacy from Scripture. Monday looked at the ministry Jesus assigned Peter to, in caring for the Twelve, in Luke 22; Tuesday showed that Peter was the shepherd Jesus promised in John 10; Wednesday showed Jesus tethering Himself to Peter,… Continue reading Pope Peter, Part V: Upon This Rock