Free Republic

In Galatians, Paul boasts of boldly denouncing Cephas for allowing Judaizers from Jerusalem to bully Gentiles. This scene is often cited to undermine the claim of papal infallibility, asserting that Peter, whose was actually named “Cephas” by Christ, committed heresy. I’ve argued against this on the basis that the bible actually doesn’t tell us that Cephas proclaimed heresy, only that he committed the sin of allowing false teaching to go uncorrected. Certainly that is a common sin among recent church leaders. No-one disputes the fact that Peter was really named “Cephas.” The gospel of John makes clear that “Peter” (or,...

Internationally Recognized Egyptian Geologist/Cleric Zaghloul Al-Naggar on Al-Jazeera: Old, New Testaments Are Forgeries In an interview with Al-Jazeera TV, prominent Egyptian geologist and cleric Dr. Zaghloul Ragheb Al-Naggar called Egypt's ruling party "illegal and unconstitutional," and said that the Old and New Testaments were "forgeries" and that "the things the Old Testament says about the creation of Man are completely wrong."Dr. Al-Naggar, who holds a Ph.D. in geology from Wales University, U.K., is a member of the Geological Society of London, the Geological Society of Egypt, and the American Association of Petroleum Geologists in Tulsa, Oklahoma. He has lectured at...

Catholic Church Challenges Protestants on why they worship on Sunday when the correct Biblical day is SaturdayPart 1 Most Christians assume that Sunday is the biblically approved day of worship. The Roman Catholic Church protests that it transferred Christian worship from the biblical Sabbath (Saturday) to Sunday, and that to try to argue that the change was made in the Bible is both dishonest and a denial of Catholic authority. If Protestantism wants to base its teachings only on the Bible, it should worship on Saturday. Over one hundred years ago the Catholic Mirror ran a series of articles...

Adding Insult to Injury: Africa, AIDS, and Victim-Blaming By Chuck Colson 9/5/2008 Approximately 30 million people in sub-Saharan Africa are thought to be infected with the HIV virus. Unlike the West, from the start, HIV/AIDS in Africa has ravaged the non-drug-using heterosexual population. Let me put it this way: People whose Western counterparts are not at risk for HIV/AIDS have been the epidemic’s principal victims in Africa. Why? This has prompted many people to blame the victims in ways that played on the worst racial stereotypes and prejudices: Researchers and experts argued that “Africans were simply incapable of being anything...

The story of Mary will be told once again this Christmas time. But what is the Bible's teaching about Mary? The biblical viewpoint The Bible believes in a Divine Saviour, and a Divine Saviour can be expected to come in a remarkable way. It is a presupposition of New Testament thought which needs no argument, nor many references. The only accounts we have in the New Testament of the virgin conception of Jesus appear in the Gospels of Matthew and Luke. Luke was a medical doctor (Colossians 4:14) and in the course of his careful research (Luke 1:1-4) he probably...

When comments from old sermons thrust the Rev. Jeremiah Wright unfavorably into the national spotlight during the Democratic primaries, the Chicago pastor maintained wide support among black churchgoers who have admired him for decades. And few black churches have stayed more loyal than Elmwood United Presbyterian in East Orange, where Wright next Sunday will begin a weeklong church revival, titled "Recapturing Our Prophetic Voice." He has led revivals there every September since 1989. Wright's ties to the church come from his 22-year friendship with the Rev. Robert Burkins, Elmwood Presbyterian's longtime pastor. The two met in the mid-1980s, when Wright,...

In 1943 during WW2, an army Sgt., Ed Davis, was working in Iran near the Turkish border, in charge of locals hired by our army to build a road through Iran to the Soviet border, which would carry supplies to the Soviets instead of flying them in. In short, Ed did a tremendous favor for a little Kurdish village near Ararat. His workers were mostly Kurds and the chief of the village came to Ed and asked if he would like to see Noah's Ark. He said the summer on the mountain had been hottest in many years and the...

The denial of the One True Church:"John to the seven Churches that are in Asia..." Rev 1:4 "Anyone can see from the very beginning of Christianity that there were many denominations, for the Bible is 'very clear' to show us this in that verse, and in many others!" This is what I have been told by those who refuse to believe that the Catholic Church is the one true Church which Jesus Christ founded. It is too bad that non-Catholics cannot understand the fact that all of those Churches were founded by the Apostles who were all infused with the...

When a group of Joseph Ratzinger's former students congratulated him on the day after his 2005 inauguration as Pope Benedict XVI, the new pope greeted them with a piece of happy news. "The first thing he said to us was, ‘We will continue the Schulerkreis,'" recalled the Rev. D. Vincent Twomey, an Irish theologian who studied under Ratzinger at the University of Regensburg in the 1970s. The Schulerkreis, or "student circle," is a seminar/retreat that Benedict holds with his ex-graduate students every summer. This year's session will be held Aug. 30, at Castel Gandolfo, the papal summer residence southeast of...

The Catholic historian, A. Dufourcq, called the papacy of 1447 to 1527, la papauté princière, “the papacy of princes.�[1] This trenchant appellation conveys Fr. Maurice Sheehan’s meaning when he says “these popes were more men of culture or rulers than popes.�[2] Regardless of the scandalous particulars of their military extravagances, personal profligacy, or political intrigues, what is common to these popes is that “they had other interests, other things on their minds besides being pope.�[3] Therein lies the problem. In explaining how the Renaissance Papacy was a cause of the Reformation, we should not fall into a monism, as if...

A Protestant church in Georgia has added a drive-thru service, says the Post Bulletin. By the time the Rev. Norman Markle started his sermon, everyone was still in their vehicles -- just as planned. The 150-year-old New Hope United Methodist Church is offering a drive-in service, hoping to attract new visitors with an unusual worship experience. "Maybe they don't have a church or don't care to get dressed up to go to church; let's find a way to eliminate all that," Markle said. "People go where they're comfortable." The service has all the markings of traditional worship -- hymns, a...

Royden Wood leaves the courthouse with his wife Linda yesterday after being charged with six new counts of sexual assault. (Mike Hensen, Sun Media) Already awaiting sentencing on 12 charges, a former London pastor was back in court yesterday -- charged with six counts of sexual assault.   Royden Wood, former pastor of London's Ambassador Baptist Church, was released after a bail hearing with conditions, a $10,000 deposit and his employer acting as a surety.  Wood declined comment as he left the court, holding his wife's hand and accompanied by his employer, Earl Dunn, owner of a Muskoka-area marina where...

Oh No! The Catholic haters will hate this article! I doubt whether they will be posting their vile remarks on this thread!

WASHINGTON (Map, News) - District Heights Mayor James L. Walls, also an associate minister at a local church, will keep his jobs, for now, after being charged with soliciting a male prostitute in the District of Columbia early Thursday morning, his colleagues said. The 30-year-old fast-rising black political star — he holds positions with nationwide civic groups and the local NAACP chapter, among others — has been charged with solicitation for lewd and immoral purposes after he allegedly attempted to pick up an undercover District officer who was posing as a male prostitute around 12:30 a.m. at Sixth and F...

Leaders of the Southern Baptist Convention have condemned sexual predators and are urging churches to flush out molesters using federal background checks. But a simple search on the convention's Web site shows they have yet to purge their own house of predators. SBC's MinisterSearch, a Web database for finding clergy members, contains the names of pastors both indicted and convicted of sexual abuse. Among them is a former Cordova pastor charged in October with rape and sexual battery. "It's a double standard," said David Brown, an abuse victim and coordinator for the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests in...

Wedding customs of the faithful range from solemn to colorful In the big picture of life, all weddings are the same — they're about two people joining their lives (and families) together. But, of course, all weddings are a little bit different, too, based on the couple's background and preferences. Those who opt for a civil ceremony might want a simple exchange of vows at the county courthouse or an elaborate gathering with the wedding party dressed in period costumes. Protestant weddings also can vary, depending on the denomination, church and officiating clergy. Some faiths (Catholic) have a lot of...

A High Point pastor faces misdemeanor charges after being accused of soliciting sex online. Randleman police said they arrested Otis Durham outside the Wal-Mart here at 10 a.m. Tuesday. Durham, 55, is pastor of the Sandy Ridge United Methodist Church in High Point. He was charged with solicitation of prostitution and solicitation of crimes against nature and is free on a $1,000 bond. Det. R.K. Hardy said today that a Randleman woman contacted police Friday after getting an unwanted sexual solicitation online. Hardy said he posed online as the woman and arranged for a time and place to meet the...

Nondenominational Adjective 1. Not restricted to a particular religious denomination; "a nondenominational church". Source: WordNet 1.7.1 Copyright © 2001 by Princeton University. All rights reserved. ___________________________________________ Unfortunately, our previous nondenominational caucus got deleted for unknown reasons. To clarify for all... before I get accused of belonging to a denomination, I departed the Free Methodist Church in Sept, where I pastored, and have not yet found a new church. Unable to participate in any caucus threads, I think there needs to be a place for non denominational Christians I would like to use this caucus to begin accumulating names for a...

Journey to the Truth May 23rd, 2008 by Anna Pier Day I argued with the priest — the strong-willed one — who sat opposite me in the confessional. For every argument I presented, though, his response was the same: a calm, understanding, but firm, “There are no exceptions to the Church’s teaching against contraception.”Truth be told, if the Church had been less wise and had made exceptions, our family situation might have qualified as one. A few months earlier, after the birth of our youngest son, I had suffered from an acute depression with accompanying suicidal thoughts and a brief...

Pope: From the Greek word papas, a term of endearment meaning "papa" or "daddy." With the recent, historic visit of Pope Benedict XVI to the U.S., many Christians may be wondering what exactly Catholics believe about the robed figure with the German accent and his line of predecessors. Why do Catholics have a Pope? Do Catholics worship him? Is his authority political, spiritual, or is he just a figurehead?While I had a basic understanding of the Catholic papacy before his visit, I didn't fully grasp it. So, in an effort to better understand this central figure in Christendom and...

Ecumenical (and hence “infallible�) Council of the Roman Catholic Church, said the following: It firmly believes, professes, and proclaims that those not living within the Catholic Church, not only pagans, but also Jews and heretics and schismatics cannot become participants in eternal life, but will depart "into everlasting fire which was prepared for the devil and his angels" [Matt. 25:41], unless before the end of life the same have been added to the flock; and that the unity of the ecclesiastical body is so strong that only to those remaining in it are the sacraments of the Church of benefit...

Refutation of Protestant Polemicist William Webster's Critique ofCatholic Tradition and Newmanian Development of Doctrine  Dave Armstrong  vs. William Webster  William Webster is a prolific opponent of the Catholic Church and author of  many papers and published books along these lines. This is a response to his Internet essay,  Rome's New and Novel Concept of Tradition: Living Tradition (Viva Voce - Whatever We Say) A Repudiation of the Patristic Concept of Tradition, which is reproduced in its entirety and thoroughly answered. The subject headings are my own. Mr. Webster's words will be in blue.  TABLE OF CONTENTS(hyper-linked)I. Protestant Historians on Church...

A TRIUMPH AND A TRAGEDY James Akin I broke off a piece of the popsicle in my hand and placed it carefully in the mouth of my dying wife. Renee lay on her back, restless in the hospital bed, suffering from an advanced case of colon cancer which we had discovered a little more than a month before. She ate several more pieces of popsicle as I broke them off for her, then said she could eat no more, so I let her rest. When our parish priest arrived, he and I went into a conference room down the...

Lisa Keister has scanned the Bible and found nearly 2,000 verses in the New Testament that touch on the topic of money. It's those very verses that may be keeping many conservative Protestants from building up long-term wealth, she says. Jesus warned his followers not to "store up for yourselves treasures on Earth," and later cautioned that it will be "hard for a rich person to enter the kingdom of heaven." Perhaps the best known is the admonition that "the love of money is the root of all evil." According to data analyzed by Keister, a Duke University sociologist, the...

A task force drafting a statement on sexuality for the nation's largest Lutheran group said Thursday that the church should continue defining marriage as the union of one man and one woman. However, the panel did not condemn same-gender relationships. The committee expressed regret that historic Lutheran teachings have been used to hurt gays and lesbians, and acknowledged that some congregations already accept same-sex couples. The report released by the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America is part of the denomination's yearslong effort to bridge internal differences over the Bible and homosexuality.

Schism is not a "catastrophic" event and is preferable to placating those who do not treat gays as equal simply for the sake of unity, a Canadian Anglican theologian says. "There are moments when treating unity as kind of absolute virtue that's higher than anything else is not necessarily the right thing," Rev. Paul Gibson said in an interview, concerning an essay he wrote that was posted on the Anglican Church of Canada's Web site yesterday. He wrote the essay in relation to the present schism in the Anglican Church over same-sex blessings, and concluded that a unified church that...

THE 95 THESES by Martin Luther 1. When our Lord and Master Jesus Christ said, "Repent" (Mt 4:17), he willed the entire life of believers to be one of repentance.2. This word cannot be understood as referring to the sacrament of penance, that is, confession and satisfaction, as administered by the clergy.3. Yet it does not mean solely inner repentance; such inner repentance is worthless unless it produces various outward mortification of the flesh.4. The penalty of sin remains as long as the hatred of self (that is, true inner repentance), namely till our entrance into the kingdom of...

VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Rumors that the Vatican is set to rehabilitate Martin Luther, the 16th-century leader of the Protestant Reformation, are groundless, said the Vatican spokesman, Jesuit Father Federico Lombardi. News reports in early March alleged that Pope Benedict XVI was dedicating a planned September symposium with former doctoral students to re-evaluating Luther, who was excommunicated and condemned for heresy. The story "does not have any foundation, insofar as no rehabilitation of Luther is foreseen," Father Lombardi told the Italian news agency ANSA March 8. Vatican officials said the topic of the pope's annual summer gathering of former students...

Pastor convicted of soliciting sex from teenager Associated Press WEST CHESTER, Pa. - A Philadelphia pastor who has condemned homosexuality and was known for using a bullhorn to preach to passers-by at colleges was convicted Wednesday of soliciting sex from a teenager. Jurors deliberated for 3 1/2 hours before convicting the Rev. Craig Stephen White of criminal solicitation to commit involuntary deviate sexual intercourse and related offenses. White, 40, who faces a minimum of three years on the most serious charge, showed no reaction, and neither did his wife. His mother wept and said, "He's innocent; he's innocent." Chester County...

SCHENECTADY -- To commemorate Tuesday's 35th anniversary of the Supreme Court ruling that affirmed a woman's right to an abortion, clergy blessed this city's new Planned Parenthood clinic in a ceremony dubbed "On Sacred Ground.""Today is more than about the building and about bricks and mortar," Planned Parenthood spokeswoman Linda Scharf said. "It's a blessing to demonstrate the support of the clergy." Since Jan. 22, 1973, when the high court handed down the landmark Roe vs. Wade decision, two sides of the issue have squared off. Opponents have campaigned to overturn unrestricted abortion laws, while proponents have stood firm for...

by Steven Ertelt LifeNews.com Editor January 24, 2008 Albany, NY (LifeNews.com) -- In an act that is sure to generate guffaws from the pro-life community, a group of pro-abortion clergy in Schenectady held a ceremony at a local abortion business to bless it and call it "sacred ground." Religious officials who are pro-life call the ceremony sacrilegious by blessing a place that kills the life God creates.

Washington, DC (LifeNews.com) -- A pro-life organization for members of the Methodist Church says it hopes the Protestant Christian denomination will reform its long-standing pro-abortion views. The group hopes Methodists will be open to the message of Bishop William Willimon of Birmingham, who will be delivering a pro-life speech on Tuesday before the March for Life. LifeWatch, the unofficial United Methodist pro-life caucus, says Bishop Willimon will address the group in the chapel of the United Methodist Building, headquarters of the pro-abortion United Methodist Board of Church and Society. LifeWatch will urge the governing United Methodist General Conference this spring...

JACKSONVILLE - After 14 years of leading a Jacksonville church, the Rev. Darrell Gilyard had put behind a messy chapter in his life when reports of affairs with church members forced his resignation from a Dallas, Texas-area church. But during the weekend, allegations of sexual misconduct again put a cloud over Gilyard's ministry. Gilyard, 45, took a voluntary paid leave of absence from Shiloh Baptist Church after a mother's report to the sheriff's office that she found obscene text messages on her daughter's cell phone from a phone owned by the preacher. Gilyard, who lives in a gated community and...

<p>Elizabeth English is a mother of two, a partner in a four-year relationship, a social worker. On Saturday, she will add one more title: Catholic priest.</p> <p>English is a member of a small, independent Catholic church that does not recognize papal authority and ordains women to the priesthood.</p>

Monrovia - An evangelical pastor described the atrocities he and his men committed during the Liberian civil war, including magical rituals that involved slaughtering children and eating their hearts. Joshua Milton Blahyi spared no details on Tuesday as he told Liberia's Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) of his years with one of the most feared militias of the war. Dressed in an immaculate suit, Blahyi, 37, said it was for the TRC to decide whether he should be given an amnesty or prosecuted. "I am willing to go to court if necessary," he said. "And I will repeat just what...

2008 marks the one hundredth anniversary of the Chair of Unity Octave, which has evolved into an annual pan-Christian week of prayer running from January 18-25. Prayer, it seems, is what is most required in the early 21st century quest for Christian unity, a quest that reached a peek of euphoria in the mid-1960s and that has suffered many disappointments ever since. Cardinal Walter Kasper, president of the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity, briefed his brother cardinals on the current state of the ecumenical enterprise at the consistory this past November 23. Kasper made several important points in the...

A retired pastor from Canada was sentenced to three years in prison today after telling a McHenry County judge he was sexually harassed by the 4-year-old Lake in the Hills girl he pleaded guilty to molesting. Kenneth R. Cooke, 73, appeared to have reasonable chance at a probation sentence given his age, health problems and lack of criminal history heading into his sentencing hearing this afternoon. But the Calgary man who once headed his own ministry likely blew his chance of avoiding prison when he took the witness stand and painted his pre-school age victim as a sexual aggressor. "On...

Union Parish Sheriff’s deputies arrested Kenneth Duchesne, the pastor at Beulah Baptist Church Tuesday afternoon, and charged him with two counts of aggravated incest. Duchesne, 35, was arrested at approximately 12:30 p.m. on Tuesday in the parking lot of Wal-Mart after the Sheriff’s Office received a complaint on Monday. Dusty Burroughs, a deacon at the church, said the congregation was shocked by the arrest. “It’s hurt the church pretty good,’’ Burroughs said. “We’re trying to deal with it and move on.’’ Duchesne had been the preacher at Beulah Baptist, located north of Farmerville between Farmerville and Spearsville, for less than...

CHANDLER, Ariz. -- A Sunday school teacher who was arrested on suspicion of molesting a 5-year-old girl at a church blamed his actions on his “high blood pressure,” according to a police report. Terence James Greenwood, 62, a married father of two children, also cast blame on his “medication,” or the possibility he had “mental problems,” the report said. Greenwood faces six felony charges, including child molestation, sexual conduct with a minor and indecent exposure. Greenwood has been a member of the Chandler United Methodist Church for years, but just started helping in the classrooms in September, according to the...

A Sunday school teacher at a Chandler church has been arrested on suspicion of molesting a child in his care. Terry Greenwood, 62, of Chandler is accused of forcing a 5-year-old girl to perform oral sex on him last month, according to a police report released Monday. Under questioning by detectives, Greenwood admitted he sexually assaulted the girl twice at Chandler United Methodist Church, 251 W. Chandler Blvd., police said. Greenwood was taken into custody on Dec. 21, the report said. He was booked into jail on suspicion of four counts of child molestation, one count of sexual conduct with...

Here's a really splendid bit of Mariophobic Response Syndrome from the Boar's Head Tavern, written in an unconsciously funny way (at least to this Catholic's ears): You have no idea how hard I am working on the right attitude toward Roman Catholicism, but here you have the addition of ANOTHER Marian feast right in the middle of Christmas It's the words "right in the middle of Christmas" that crack me up the most. Mary, intruding on the Christmas story like that! What could the Mother of God possibly have to do with the birth of God the Son? And yes,...

SHEPHERDSVILLE, Ky. (WAVE) -- WAVE 3 has learned that a man who is a local high school wrestling coach, a substitute teacher and a youth minister has been arrested. The Bullitt County Sheriff's Department says the Shepherdsville man sexually abused a 15 year old girl at the church. WAVE 3 Investigator Scott Harvey has the details. We had a chance to speak to the victim's mother who -- obviously distraught -- described 25-year-old Clayton Pruett as a wolf in sheep's clothing. She now has a strong warning for all parents. "Don't trust people that are alone with your children," said...

BLOOMINGTON -- A former minister and substitute teacher accused of sexually abusing teenage boys won’t go to trial in December because of a defense move to try to get concurrent sentences if he is convicted in state and federal courts. Defense attorney Steve Skelton asked that the state trial of James Love be delayed because of federal child pornography charges pending in Peoria. He said his client has a better chance of receiving a concurrent sentence if he pleads or is found guilty on the local charges after the federal trial, rather than before. The state charges say he sedated...

NORTH ANSON -- The Carrabec High School administrator accused of unlawful sexual contact with a minor has stepped down as minister of an evangelical church. Frank "Skip" Gleason, assistant principal and athletic director at Carrabec, resigned Sunday as pastor of Maranatha Assembly on Church Street after accusations against him became public. Meanwhile, supporters of Gleason rallied around him, saying they doubt that the charges are true, but that the publicity has already done irreparable harm to a good man. The alleged abuse of a 15-year-old Carrabec High School student occurred off school grounds, the arresting officer said Monday. Sheriff's Detective...

COLLEGE STATION, Texas — Many Catholics praised the speech Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney delivered here Dec. 6 (see Register editorial, page 8). It powerfully affirmed the role of religion in public life But Romney ducked one key question some Christian voters are asking in the context of his candidacy: What does his Mormon faith actually believe about God and Jesus?Indeed, given that Mormon theology differs so radically from orthodox Christianity, can Mormonism even be regarded as being part of the Christianity?Romney said in his speech that “I believe in my Mormon faith, and I endeavor to live by it,”...

Without the clergy guiding them, and with religion still a very important factor in the average person's life, their fate rested in their own hands, Simpson said. The rise of fundamentalist interpretations during the English Reformation can be used to understand the global political situation today and the growth of Islamic extremism, Simpson said as an example. "Very definitely, we see the same phenomenon: newly literate people claiming that the sacred text speaks for itself, and legitimates violence and repression," Simpson said, "and the same is also true of Christian fundamentalists."

On December 7, Gener8Xion Entertainment, a prominent Protestant film company, will release “Noëlle.” Catholic League president Bill Donohue disputes the claim that the movie is merely “a parable of forgiveness and grace”:“We’ve seen the movie and it’s a gem. In the synopsis provided by Gener8Xion, it accurately describes Jonathan Keene as ‘a young Catholic priest seemingly devoid of genuine human emotion’; his job is ‘to do what he does best: shut down a failing parish.’ Then there is ‘the child-like Fr. Simeon Joyce, a faithful but disillusioned priest who blatantly disregards church regulations, uses church monies to pay an old...

The publisher of a local Irish newspaper is calling on the organizers of the city's annual St. Patrick's Day parade to begin overhauling the event's image by inviting Northern Ireland's Protestant leader to be a leader of next year's procession.Irish Voice publisher Niall O'Dowd said in interviews Tuesday and in an editorial to be published Wednesday that the parade could "symbolize a new era for hope" if it were led next March by Ian Paisley and his Catholic partner in the territory's new power-sharing government, the Sinn Fein deputy leader Martin McGuinness.The parade typically draws about 2 million spectators.Paisley, head...

Rome, 1 Nov. (AKI) - A Vatican-backed historian has attacked the film "Elizabeth: The Golden Age" for being a “distorted anti-papal travesty” that risks dividing the West in the face of Islam. Professor Cardini, who holds the chair of medieval history at Florence University and formerly taught at the Lateran University in Rome, a Vatican body, said the film aimed to “secularise and de-Christianise” Europe. The film, starring Cate Blanchett in the lead role, charts the latter years in the life of England's Tudor queen, Elizabeth, and the role of religion that led the Protestant monarch to war against Spain's...

Pope Benedict XVI is to hold an extraordinary consistory of cardinals later this month to promote ecumenical dialogue with non-Catholic Christians. The gathering of 202 cardinals from 67 countries will take place on the eve of the consistory on November 24, convened by the Pope to create 23 new cardinals. The debate on ecumenism will be led by Cardinal Walter Kasper, head of the Pontifical Council for Christian Unity. It follows the Vatican's dialogue with Orthodox leaders at Ravenna last month and an inter-faith conference at Naples attended by the Pope and the Archbishop of Canterbury and organised by...