Exposing the Heresies of the Catholic Church: Mary Worship. It requires believing that Irenaeus (or someone Irenaeus is reliant upon) is rewriting nearly two hundred years of history about the Church in Rome, the literal center of the Roman Empire, and a place of tremendous importance to the early Church. Robert Eno and Eamon Duffy (a third, Fr. Point: While both sides believe the Bible is infallible, we deny that the church or the pope has an infallible interpretation of it. 6. For this is how the apostolic churches record their origins. - The NT writers and Christ certainly validated the OT in several ways: Endorses the account of Jonah Matthew 12:40 Verifies the authorship of Daniel Matthew 24:15 Quotes from Isaiah 6, 29, 42, 50, 53 Matthew 13, 14, 15 Verifies the inspiration of the Genesis account of creation Matthew 19:4-6 Confirmed the Genesis flood and life of Noah Matthew 24:37-39 Directly quotes from Deuteronomy 8:3 - Although there may be NT allusions to the Apocrypha (cf. - While we agree that there are only two ultimate destination (heaven/hell), Catholics have added purgatory to heaven. - We believe that the Bible is categorically opposed to that based on the following: Ephesians 2:8 For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; 9 not as a result of works, that no one should boast. Perhaps the greatest embarrassment to the self-claimed infallible church is its fallible judgment about Galileo Galilei (A.D. 1564-1642) who adopted the Copernican view that the, sun, not the earth, was the center of the solar system. Money/wealth goes to the church and even expected for indulgences, etc. Instead, it is supported by little more than blind appeals to authority, relying on skeptical scholars when they cast doubt on the papacy, while ignoring when those same scholars cast doubt on the Virgin Birth or physical Resurrection. It is far more reasonable to recognize that the absence of one or more elements in one passage does not mean that they are nonexistent. I had a conversation with someone in which, if I recall correctly, they said John 14:26 and John 16:13-15 mean that we don't need to rely on church history or even anyone higher than ourselves (such as a pastor) because whatever the "Spirit" causes us to believe it's definitely the truth and everyone else is wrong. - This comes as a surprise, but Roman Catholics believe in the absolute necessity of the death of Christ on a cross as an atoning sacrificial payment for our sins. b. - There is a common core to Catholic and evangelical ethics. Are all of them lying, or rewriting history? 5) So lets look at what Catholicism says in answer to their top ten questions. Therefore had the Lord Jesus compassion . 5. Of course, Catholics agree with this. In our study this evening, we want to present the following: 1) A few CLARIFYING POINTS about Roman Catholic doctrine 2) COMMON GROUND between Roman Catholics and what we believe 3) DIFFERENCES with Roman Catholic teachings and what we believe the Bible teaches. Theres actually a lot to like about the video. For them, there is a hopeless dilemma. The Bible doesnt teach that. 4) This passage discusses religious elitism and the sin in so calling someone by the religious title of Rabbi, Teacher, Father, Master. For now, though, I want to turn back to Irenaeus, who says that Peter and Paul founded Rome, and lists their successors down to his own day (c. 180): The blessed apostles [Peter and Paul], then, having founded and built up the Church, committed into the hands of Linus the office of the episcopate. If we look at the overall context of this passage, we can see that Paul makes reference to oral Tradition three times (cf. Catholics believe in deity of Jesus Christ. And it also ignores the historical context: the Muratorian fragment, a biblical canon from around the year 170 explains that the Shepherd of Hermas isnt considered Scripture because Hermas wrote the Shepherd very recently, in our times, in the city of Rome, while bishop Pius, his brother, was occupying the [episcopal] chair of the church of the city of Rome. The author uses this detail, not to prove that Pius I was Bishop of Rome from 142 to 157, but simply to explain when the book was written, and by whom. [Student Notes: For further study, see Millard Erickson, Christian Theology, p. 756-775, where he deals with the significance, the evidence, the objections, and the theological meaning of the virgin birth.] Encourage personal bible study - let the Word of God speak it is a powerful, living book that is the truth from God Himself - each of us need to be Bereans and search the Scriptures and honestly, Catholics and Baptists both can be guilty of failing to be good students of the Word and therefore we dont know exactly what the Bible says about a particular issue C. Address the real problem and solution - the real problem is not what church you attend, its the problem of sin and our relationship with God only the Word of God the Holy Spirit can help us as we choose to obey God. While there is too much history for us explain in one evening, we do want to offer a comparison of this world religion to our understanding of the truth from God's Word. Here we stand; we can do no other. G. Catholics have added the confessional to the priest - The Roman Catholic Church teaches that Catholics must confess all serious sins to a priest in the sacrament of penance [Note: The issue of serious sins (mortal verses venial) will have to be addressed at another time]. 2. But they are pious romance, not history, and the fact is that we have no reliable accounts either of Peters later life or of the manner or place of his death. For example: a. A sacrament has two aspects: the OUTWARD SIGN and the INNER GRACE conveyed by it. What the prophets spoke was the word of God regardless of whether or not their utterances were recorded later as written Scripture. . Catholic Supremacy @PapalOrthodixie. Scripture teaches that death is final, and a destiny of woe or bliss is immediate. - While we may differ with that decision, nonetheless, an effort is being put forth to make a difference for Christ. Its true that Roman Catholics and conservative evangelical Protestants often find themselves on common ground fighting the same enemies particularly the secular world in issues such as abortion, homosexuality, drugs, crime, and even family values. C) try to convert them? 1:12, 2:1-2; cf. . 9) Christians are supposed to confess their sins one to another (James 5:16), but this is a far cry from the formal type of confession the Catholic church would have us to believe. The divine essence is common to the three Persons, and they are not separable. Counter-Reformation, also called Catholic Reformation or Catholic Revival, in the history of Christianity, the Roman Catholic efforts directed in the 16th and early 17th centuries both against the Protestant Reformation and toward internal renewal. Heresy is an emotionally loaded term that is often misused. Jesus rebuked the Pharisees for negating the final authority of the Word of God with their religious traditions (Matt. Sep 17, 2016. All of these people were observers of the Church of Rome, all of them were participants in the Church of Rome, all of them describe the leadership of Rome in this same sort of way: as multiple persons, and again, theres often an interchange between elders and bishops, they use those terms more or less interchangeably, so you dont have any kind of a clear sense with most of them of anything like a bishop. - Maybe youve heard the statement: We all serve the same God were just getting to heaven different ways. Is that really true? c. Infant baptism - The Roman Catholic Church teaches that every newborn child must be baptized. - According to them, an infant receives the benefits of Christs death through the sacrament of baptism. To give two examples from the Old Testament itself: a. Ezra, a priest and scribe, studied the Jewish law and taught it to Israel, and his authority was binding under pain of imprisonment, banishment, loss of goods, and even death (cf. . It is not really by grace alone through faith alone. Jesus says, "I testify on my behalf and so does the Father who sent me." The two witnesses are the Son and the Father (as distinct persons), not the Son and God (as distinct persons). Scientifically scrutinized Eucharistic miracles (Surely, Eucharistic miracles are an incredible confirmatory sign of an essential Catholic teaching: the Real Presence of Christ in the Eucharist. 22:8-9). 3:8). And what about the Muratorian fragment, which mentions Pius being the Bishop of Rome, even before Anicetus? However, even if Peter is the rock referred to by Christ, he was not the only rock in the foundation of the church because Jesus gave all the apostles the same power ("keys") to "bind" and "loose" that he gave to Peter Matthew 18:18 "Truly I say to you, whatever you shall bind on earth shall be bound in heaven; and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven. There are also numerous other places in which Peter is listed first among the Apostles, and even as somehow distinct from the other Apostles (e.g., calling the Twelve Peter and the Eleven, [see Acts 2:14]), etc. - But the fact is, some of the councils, such as the local councils of Hippo and Carthage in North Africa, were heavily influenced by Augustine, a very powerful voice in the acceptance of the Apocrypha. I. We have looked at five questions and their answers and shown how Catholicism misuses the scriptures. That is not the case. The atheist blogger Bob Seidensticker explains the crux of the problem well: Christians correctly point out that the historical grounding for the Jesus story has some compelling points. So how does Duffy disprove these historical claims? The Eucharist is the most important of all sacraments to Catholics. Welcome! 5:16) and our rulers (Rom. . Further, it is useless to pray to one who is ignorant of the prayer. When the phrases word of God or word of the Lord appear in Acts and the epistles, they almost always refer to oral preaching, not to Scripture. They can only go to the Bible themselves and perhaps come up with another doctrinal version of some disputed doctrine to add to the list. The historian Suetonius reported that Julius saw a divine messenger who urged him to cross. [Student Notes Evidence for sola Scriptura: In addition to what has already been stated above, consider the following: 1. Of course the Resurrection is more important, and so its hardly surprising that the early Christians spoke more about Jesus rising from the dead than about the juridical primacy of the Roman See. Brown knowing Greek and being well-read doesnt make his argument any stronger. The Sadducees also rejected all authoritative oral teaching and essentially believed insola scriptura. B. Catholics do not believe that the Pope is infallible in all that he teaches. - Catholics believe that only a few people will go directly to heaven. 3) Jesus was speaking of truth in John 14:16, not infallibility. Pagans dont worship their idols either, they worship the spirit behind the idol. Supreme Court rulings cannot be overturned except by a future ruling or constitutional amendment. a) Hear the word; Romans 10:17 Faith comes by hearing . 11. This was the word of God even though some of it was not recorded in writing. . - We agree on the infallibility of the Bible, but we deny the Popes infallibility when he speaks ex cathedra. - Catholics and evangelicals are opposed to moral relativism. - In addition, Lukes account [Luke 24:46-48] of the same event shows that Jesus was not establishing a sacrament of the church, but was speaking of the responsibility of His disciple to proclaim the gospel to the lost! 3. Why not? It would seem that we ought to pray to God alone. ( Catechism, 77-78) We often write Tradition, with a capital 'T', to mean Sacred Tradition. The fact that a Pope can be fallible at any point even undermines the doctrine of infallibility! Choose (C). - We believe that while Luke 1 says she was the most blessed person among women because she carried the Son of God in her womb (Luke 1:28,35, 42). 4. Denominationalism and divisions are vigorously condemned. - The Churchs basis for this belief rests on John 20 22-23: John 20:22 And when He had said this, He breathed on them, and *said to them, " Receive the Holy Spirit. 5:18; cf. Its contrary to all of the available evidence. - When Christ died on the cross, the veil of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom the holy of holies became accessible by all believers not just the high priest once a year who offered up the sacrifice for the people. 2) Revelation 5:10 says, And hast made us unto our God kings and priests: and we shall reign on the earth. Who are these? Protestants extrapolate onto the text what isnt there. To accurately present in a culturally sensitive manner the specific world life views of various world religions. points out: A first problem with this scenario is its lack of historical plausibility. 2:13). and 100 A.D. Nearly 1,500 years later, the Roman Catholic Church infallibly pronounced them as part of the canon at the Council of Trent in A.D. 1546. 25:3, 7-8 [NIV]). The authority of the pope. 1 In the biblical narrative, Mary is last mentioned in Acts 1 where she is found praying with the other disciples before Pentecost. The phrase "It is written," is repeated ninety times in the New Testament. If they could respond to him by pointing out that his own Church was in the process of innovating a papacy and rewriting its own history, dont you think that they would? Goals: 1. In other words, unlike the other six letters, this letter isnt about Church governance. So, in order to engage in any discussion about truth, the obstacle of relativism must be overcome. One either believes there is one truth in any given theological dispute (whatever it is) or adopts a relativist or indifferentist position, where contradictions are fine or the doctrine is so minor that differences dont matter.. They believe there are moral absolutes that God has given believers and unbelievers on which all society should base their government these are called the natural law (from Romans 2:12-15). 6. - In addition, it not necessary to take Jesus literally when He said, "this is my body" or "eat my flesh." a. The Bible says you should not worship or make graven idol or bow down before them (Exodus 20). We believe that while we are saved by faith alone, nevertheless, the faith that saves us inevitably produces good works. 2:20). Works are not a condition of justification but a result of it. - Now, while we do have areas of agreement, we believe the Catholics have ADDED to the fundamentals, in essence, changing the very nature of those doctrines. To conclude, remember that this is the STRONGEST argument against Catholicism. It requires rejecting all of the second century evidence for apostolic succession as pious romance or worse, and theres zero positive evidence actually supporting it. Luke 10:7) and Epistles were considered "Scripture" too (2 Pet. The Catholic Church compiled the Bible and spread Christianity all over the world, and according to protestants, Christ used a false church to . They were the theological liberals of that time. 7. This list was in peaceful possession in the Western Church until the Reformation, and it was necessary to reaffirm it at the Council of Trent (DS 150203) and at Vatican I (DS 3029). - Catholics believe you should pray to God, but you can also pray to God through Mary. While the New Testament quotes mostly from the Septuagint, which contained the Apocrypha it is not certain that the Septuagint (LXX) of the first century contained the Apocrypha and Jesus and the apostles never once quoted them. Heb. On October 31, 1517, Martin Luther nailed his famous 95 theses at Wittenberg and began the Reformation. . Edit: also to refute it, even if you did have all the human experiences ever you'd still have no idea what it takes to be God. This Tradition is in total harmony with and consistent with Scripture. 3) Validation does Christ and the NT writers validate the OT and/or the Apocrypha? The timing of this event is unknown but imminent. But Ignatius seventh letter is to the Romans, and it is markedly different in tone. Its worth recognizing that this is simply an argument from authority: Walls isnt giving any evidence, other than that the scholars hes hand-picked say what he wants them to say. - Both believe in moral absolutes rooted in the nature and will of God and revealed through God's self-disclosure to humans in both nature (general revelation) and Scripture (special revelation). 2) Tonight we want to look at Catholicism. - Now, we would differ theologically with even that position but it is incorrect to say that Catholics pray to Mary in the same way a Catholic prays to God. Puritan Board Freshman. But believing in evolution on scientific evidence is a far cry from rejecting apostolic succession simply because Fr. Point: The Roman Catholic Council of Trent infallibly proclaimed the Apocrypha as part of the inspired Word of God 1,500years after the books were written and in an obvious defense against Protestantism. 8. Its just a widespread dogmatic, a priori rejection of supernatural claims. Duffy says that there is no sure way to settle on a date by which the office of ruling bishop had emerged in Rome, and so to name the first Pope, but the process was certainly complete by the time of Anicetus in the mid-150s, when Polycarp, the aged Bishop or Smyrna, visited Rome, and he and Anicetus debated amicably the question of the date of Easter.. - No apocryphal book claims to be written by a prophet and one apocryphal book, 1 Maccabees 9:27, even disclaims being prophetic. Answer: Here are a few things that I try to keep in mind: BE INFORMED: You have to equip yourself. Walls claimed that several figures (Clement, Ignatius, Hermas, and Justin) described (1), but thats simply false, as shown above. Bodily resurrection of Jesus and all believers. There is a sense of community and security within the system. Word in Holy Scripture often refers to a proclaimed, oral teaching of prophets or apostles. With that said, lets look at each argument in order: There are a lot of places in the Bible in which Jesus seems to treat Peter as the head of the Apostles: the famous scene in which he seems to build the Church upon Peter in Matthew 16:17-19; the time that he says to let the greatest among you become as the youngest, and the leader as one who serves and then calls Peter to serve the other Apostles by strengthening them (Luke 22:26, 32); the multiple fishing miracles and teachings in which Jesus seems to treat Peter as the fisherman, the Church as the net, and the laity as the fish (cf. Don't worry about this kind of thing as it is irrelevant. The Catechism of the Catholic Church states, "Incredulity is the neglect of revealed truth or the willful refusal to assent to it. - But 2 Timothy 2:15 clearly states, For there is one God, and one mediator also between God and men, the man Christ Jesus. - Catholic belief that prayers can be directed to Mary and to the Saints. In A.D. 1616, the Copernican theory was condemned at Rome. Absolute necessity of the atonement of the death of Jesus. 2) 1 Corinthians 15:29 speaks of baptism for the dead and has nothing to do with prayer. We do not believe in three gods but in one God. Heed the plan that it has for mans salvation today! The Word on Fire Bible Vol. There have been about thirty-five anti-popes in the history of the Church. Ignatius wrote about it repeatedly, Clement treated it as apostolically-ordained, Irenaeus points to it to fight heresies, and each apostolic church kept the records to show its succession from the Apostles. In the Council of Jerusalem (Acts 15:630), we see Peter and James speaking with authority. Titus 3:5 He saved us, not on the basis of deeds which we have done in righteousness, but according to His mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewing by the Holy Spirit. But the Bible affirms that Jesus was the heir (Matthew 1:1). En route to martyrdom, Ignatius passed through the Roman provinces of Asia Minor and Thracia (present-day Turkey and Greece). That leaves Walls with exactly one argument: that since Clement doesnt explicitly say that hes the Bishop of Rome in his letter dating to c. 96 AD, therefore he wasnt, and there must have been a plurality of bishops. 13:1-7). I say appears because my neighbor still believes in purgatory. 17:89). 3. The time gap from original manuscripts to our oldest complete copies is relatively small. Walls treats Duffy and Brown as if they were independent sources, and cites the duo/trio as evidence of a scholarly consensus: So again, I emphasize, Im citing the Roman Catholic historians. (4) Psychologically and sociologically: There is an unmatched hierarchy with a unified authoritative system. III Project. - Marin Luther, a leader in the Protestant Reformation against many Catholic doctrines, Sola Scriptura (Scripture alone) Council of Worms (A.D. 1521): "Unless I am convinced by the testimonies of Scripture or evident reason-for I believe neither the Pope nor Councils alone, since it is established that they have often erred and contradicted themselves-I am the prisoner of the Scriptures. 3. Catholics believe in an eternal heaven and eternal hell. Updated on June 25, 2019. The Greek term for "brother" (adelphos) here is the normal word for "blood brother." Protestants defendingsola scripturawill claim that Jesus and Paul accepted the authority of the Old Testament. - They are never cited with introductory phrases like "thus says the Lord" or "as it is written" or "the Scriptures say," such as are typically found when canonical books are quoted. As far as I can tell, Brown is the only one who both has expertise in the area and rejects the Catholic claim to apostolic succession. 1. And to use an analogy, lets examine a similar passage: And his gifts were that some should be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, some pastors and teachers, to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ; so that we may no longer be children, tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the cunning of men, by their craftiness in deceitful wiles. You're a Catholic, follow Catholic lines of thought and spend your time working on understanding Catholic theology. If we cant accept these claims just on the basis of an appeal to authority, well have to actually look at the arguments. Claiming Christians must suffer for our own sins is the ultimate insult to Christ's atoning sacrifice because that would say that there are consequences of sin for which Christ didnt die. The Pharisees, despite their corruptions and excesses, were the mainstream Jewish tradition, and both Jesus and Paul acknowledge this. Walls appears to be basing this claim off of both Eno and Duffy, the latter of whom says that Ignatius of Antioch wrote a series of letters to other churches, largely consisting of appeals to them to unite round their bishops.