It does not preclude, but in the absence of other information, it is an indicator.

What on earth are you talking about? You quote it yourself: "The cup of blessing that we bless, is it not a participation in the blood of Christ? The bread that we break, is it not a participation in the body of Christ?

"Absence of information?"

And what does it mean to eat without discerning the body? Just before that verse, we find:...

. Huh?

[27]  Wherefore whoever shall eat this bread, and drink this cup of the Lord, unworthily, shall be guilty of the body and blood of the Lord. [28]  But let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of that bread, and drink of that cup. [29]  For he that eateth and drinketh unworthily, eateth and drinketh damnation to himself, not discerning the Lord's body. ... [31]  For if we would judge ourselves, we should not be judged.

Your exegesis flatly contradicts the Apostle Paul.

Great post!

Isn’t it funny how the faithless knuckleheads always come crawling out of the woodwork as soon as you post something upright and wholesome?

Please do not disparage goats. We just got several milkers for the first time, and they are remarkable personable productive animals. They are also somewhat willful, which is in contradistinction to sheep, which are just plain stupid. When Jesus invoked the image of the sheep on the right hand and the goats on the left, I think, and this is my personal interpretation here, that He was singling out their willfullness as what gets them (aka us) in trouble. But as an animal created by God for our benefit, the goat ranks very high. Anyone who knows anything about A2 beta-casein would know this.

Peace, and thanks for your good works, and good will towards all!

Thank you, my precious brothers and sisters for your faithfulness in answering the call to pray for our Troops. I ask the LORD to bless your week with the beauty of the LORD Jesus Christ.

" How great is His goodness and how great is His beauty!"

~Zechariah 9:17,KJV~

“I have a question for you both. If you were on a desert island. All by yourself. No churches, no priests, no other people. And all you had access to was a pocket sized New Testament...And you knew your days on the island were numbered. What would be going through your mind and heart as you prepare to face your death? What would you be spending all your time doing?”

Last time I checked, most Catholic have 10 fingers and 10 toes. So here goes:

In nomine Patris, et Filii, et Spiritus Sancti. Amen

Credo in Deum Patrem omnipotentem, Creatorem caeli et terrae. Et in Iesum Christum, Filium eius unicum, Dominum nostrum, qui conceptus est de Spiritu Sancto, natus ex Maria Virgine, passus sub Pontio Pilato, crucifixus, mortuus, et sepultus, descendit ad inferos, tertia die resurrexit a mortuis, ascendit ad caelos, sedet ad dexteram Dei Patris omnipotentis, inde venturus est iudicare vivos et mortuos. Credo in Spiritum Sanctum, sanctam Ecclesiam catholicam, sanctorum communionem, remissionem peccatorum, carnis resurrectionem, vitam aeternam. Amen.

PATER NOSTER, qui es in caelis, sanctificetur nomen tuum. Adveniat regnum tuum. Fiat voluntas tua, sicut in caelo et in terra. Panem nostrum quotidianum da nobis hodie, et dimitte nobis debita nostra sicut et nos dimittimus debitoribus nostris. Et ne nos inducas in tentationem, sed libera nos a malo. Amen.

AVE MARIA, gratia plena, Dominus tecum. Benedicta tu in mulieribus, et benedictus fructus ventris tui, Iesus. Sancta Maria, Mater Domini nostri, ora pro nobis peccatoribus, nunc, et in hora mortis nostrae. Amen. X3

GLORIA PATRI, et Filio, et Spiritui Sancto. Sicut erat in principio, et nunc, et semper, et in saecula saeculorum. Amen.

....you get the picture? :)

But besides praying, meditating on the Sacred Scriptures (hopefully with a decent translation, or preferably the latin vulgate of Jerome), and communing with Jesus, His mother, and the saints, I would take up carving, fishing, making musical instruments. I would enjoy not having to pay taxes. I would learn how to train dolphin and build castles out of sand. Fly kites, invent gun powder, learn to paint, ....would it not be fun?

While I appreciate your calm and reasoned tone, the actual content of your post belies a set of assumptions and presumptions that are anything but reasonable.

The set of generally agreed upon "essential" doctrines you allude to simply does not exist. "Essentials" among the reformed are as wide and varied as their denominations. doctrines such as "eternal security" are by no means universally accepted by Biblical Protestants, and one need only ask an adherent to that doctrine to quickly learn they consider it anything but peripheral.

Likewise, the notion that some nebulous group in the Catholic church is depending on their works or their Church for salvation is as cynical and mean-spirited as the pagans who insist preachers are skirt-chasing, money grubbing, hypocrits.

If such non-disprovable slander is "following Christ," I suspect such a follower will ultimately find themselves in the company of many a sorrowful goat.

Further, and speaking from experience, I find the claim that evangelicals display more evidence of regeneration, laughable. Leaving aside the question of how exactly one quantifies such qualities, of what evidence are the "fruits of the spirit" and "doctrinal unity" after surrounding oneself exclusively with those who agree with your particular interpretation of scripture?

WELL PUT, imho.

Thx.

I personally have a bias that I don’t think God would be sloppy enough to leave the ARK OF THE COVENANT IN MUSLIM/ISHMAEL HANDS/LANDS—at least not with them being aware of it, having any control over it.

IMPRESSIVE. THANKS.

Scripture readings taken from the Jerusalem Bible, published and copyright © 1966, 1967 and 1968 by Darton, Longman & Todd

I say with St. Paul that it is the knowledge and imitation of Christ that makes us righteous and leads us to everlasting life.

Ambiguous, Elaborate and clarify what really justifies you, and on what basis to you gain eternal life.

THANKS.

While I personally have an affinity for some of Wyatt’s stuff . . . it is certainly good to have someone without his baggage.

From: Luke 1:39-47

The Visitation

---

[39] In those days Mary arose and went with haste into the hill country, to a city
of Judah, [40] and she entered the house of Zechariah and greeted Elizabeth.
[41] And when Elizabeth heard the greeting of Mary, the babe leaped in her womb;
and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit [42] and she exclaimed with a loud
cry, “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb! [43]
And why is this granted me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me? [44]
For behold, when the voice of your greeting came to my ears, the babe in my
womb leaped for joy. [45] And blessed is she who believed that there would be
a fulfillment of what was spoken to her from the Lord.”

*********************************************************************************************
Commentary:

39-56. We contemplate this episode of our Lady’s visit to her cousin St. Elizabeth
in the Second Joyful Mystery of the Rosary: “Joyfully keep Joseph and Mary com-
pany...and you will hear the traditions of the House of David.... We walk in haste
towards the mountains, to a town of the tribe of Judah (Luke 1:39).

“We arrive. It is the house where John the Baptist is to be born. Elizabeth grate-
fully hails the Mother of her Redeemer: Blessed are you among women, and
blessed is the fruit of your womb. Why should I be honored with a visit from the
mother of my Lord? (Luke 1:42-43).

“The unborn Baptist quivers...(Luke 1:41). Mary’s humility pours forth in the “Mag-
nificat”.... And you and I, who are proud—who were proud — promise to be humble”
(St. J. Escriva, “Holy Rosary”).

39. On learning from the angel that her cousin St. Elizabeth is soon to give birth
and is in need of support, our Lady in her charity hastens to her aid. She has no
regard for the difficulties this involves. Although we do not know where exactly
Elizabeth was living (it is now thought to be Ain Karim), it certainly meant a jour-
ney into the hill country which at that time would have taken four days.

>From Mary’s visit to Elizabeth Christians should learn to be caring people. “If we
have this filial contact with Mary, we won’t be able to think just about ourselves
and our problems. Selfish personal problems will find no place in our mind” (St.
J. Escriva, “Christ Is Passing By,” 145).

42. St. Bede comments that Elizabeth blesses Mary using the same words as
the archangel “to show that she should be honored by angels and by men and
why she should indeed be revered above all other women” (”In Lucae Evangelium
Expositio, in loc.”).

When we say the “Hail Mary” we repeat these divine greetings, “rejoicing with
Mary at her dignity as Mother of God and praising the Lord, thanking Him for
having given us Jesus Christ through Mary” (”St. Pius X Catechism”, 333).

43. Elizabeth is moved by the Holy Spirit to call Mary “the mother of my Lord”,
thereby showing that Mary is the Mother of God.

44. Although he was conceived in sin—original sin—like other men, St. John the
Baptist was born sinless because he was sanctified in his mother’s womb by the
presence of Jesus Christ (then in Mary’s womb) and of the Blessed Virgin. On
receiving this grace of God St. John rejoices by leaping with joy in his mother’s
womb—thereby fulfilling the archangel’s prophecy (cf. Luke 1:15).

St. John Chrysostom comments on this scene of the Gospel: “See how new and
how wonderful this mystery is. He has not yet left the womb but he speaks by
leaping; he is not yet allowed to cry out but he makes himself heard by his ac-
tions [...]; he has not yet seen the light but he points out the Sun; he has not yet
been born and he is keen to act as Precursor. The Lord is present, so he cannot
contain himself or wait for nature to run its course: he wants to break out of the
prison of his mother’s womb and he makes sure he witnesses to the fact that the
Savior is about to come” (”Sermo Apud Metaphr., Mense Julio”).

45. Joining the chorus of all future generations, Elizabeth, moved by the Holy
Spirit, declares the Lord’s Mother to be blessed and praises her faith. No one
ever had faith to compare with Mary’s; she is the model of the attitude a creature
should have towards its Creator — complete submission, total attachment.Through
her faith, Mary is the instrument chosen by God to bring about the Redemption;
as Mediatrix of all graces, she is associated with the redemptive work of her Son:
“This union of the Mother with the Son in the work of salvation is made manifest
from the time of Christ’s virginal conception up to His death; first when Mary, ari-
sing in haste to go to visit Elizabeth, is greeted by her as blessed because of her
belief in the promise of salvation and the Precursor leaps with joy in the womb of
his mother [...]. The Blessed Virgin advanced in her pilgrimage of faith and faith-
fully persevered in her union with her Son unto the cross, where she stood (cf.
John 19:25), in keeping with the Divine Plan, enduring with her only-begotten Son
the intensity of His suffering, associating herself with His sacrifice in her mother’s
heart, and lovingly consenting to the immolation of this Victim which was born of
her” (Vatican II, “Lumen Gentium”, 57f).

The new Latin text gives a literal rendering of the original Greek when it says
“quae credidit” (RSV “she who has believed”) as opposed to the Vulgate “quae
credidisti” (”you who have believed”) which gave more of the sense than a literal
rendering.

*********************************************************************************************
Source: “The Navarre Bible: Text and Commentaries”. Biblical text from the
Revised Standard Version and New Vulgate. Commentaries by members of
the Faculty of Theology, University of Navarre, Spain.

Published by Four Courts Press, Kill Lane, Blackrock, Co. Dublin, Ireland, and
by Scepter Publishers in the United States.

From: Luke 1:26-38

The Annunciation and Incarnation of the Son of God

---

[26] In the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a city of Galilee
named Nazareth, [27] to a virgin betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph,
of the house of David; and the virgin’s name was Mary. [28] And he came to her
and said, “Hail, full of grace, the Lord is with you!” [29] But she was greatly trou-
bled at the saying, and considered in her mind what sort of greeting this might
be. [30] And the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found
favor with God. [31] And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son,
and you shall call His name Jesus. [32] He will be great, and will be called the
Son of the Most High; and the Lord God will give to Him the throne of His father
David, [33] and He will reign over the house of Jacob for ever; and of His King-
dom there will be no end.” [34] And Mary said to the angel, “How can this be,
since I have no husband?” [35] And the angel said to her, “The Holy Spirit will
come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore
the child to be born will be called holy, the Son of God. [36] And behold, your
kinswoman Elizabeth in her old age has also conceived a son; and this is the
sixth month with her who was called barren. [37] For with God nothing will be
impossible.” [38] And Mary said, “Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord; let it
be done to me according to your word.” And the angel departed from her.

*********************************************************************************************
Commentary:

26-38. Here we contemplate our Lady who was “enriched from the first instant
of her conception with the splendor of an entirely unique holiness; [...] the vir-
gin of Nazareth is hailed by the heralding angel, by divine command, as ‘full of
grace’ (cf. Luke 1:28), and to the heavenly messenger she replies, ‘Behold the
hand maid of the Lord, be it done unto me according to thy word’ (Luke 1:38).
Thus the daughter of Adam, Mary, consenting to the word of God, became the
Mother of Jesus. Committing herself wholeheartedly to God’s saving will and im-
peded by no sin, she devoted herself totally, as a handmaid of the Lord, to the
person and work of her Son, under and with Him, serving the mystery of Re-
demption, by the grace of Almighty God. Rightly, therefore, the Fathers (of the
Church) see Mary not merely as passively engaged by God, but as freely co-
operating in the work of man’s salvation through faith and obedience” (Vatican
II, “Lumen Gentium”, 56).

The annunciation to Mary and incarnation of the Word constitute the deepest
mystery of the relationship between God and men and the most important
event in the history of mankind: God becomes man, and will remain so forever,
such is the extent of His goodness and mercy and love for all of us. And yet
on the day when the Second Person of the Blessed Trinity assumed frail hu-
man nature in the pure womb of the Blessed Virgin, it all happened quietly,
without fanfare of any kind.

St. Luke tells the story in a very simple way. We should treasure these words
of the Gospel and use them often, for example, practising the Christian custom
of saying the Angelus every day and reflecting on the five Joyful Mysteries of
the Rosary.

27. God chose to be born of a virgin; centuries earlier He disclosed this through
the prophet Isaiah (cf. Isaiah 7:14; Matthew 1:22-23). God, “before all ages
made choice of, and set in her proper place, a mother for His only-begotten Son
from whom He, after being made flesh, should be born in the blessed fullness of
time: and He continued His persevering regard for her in preference to all other
creatures, to such a degree that for her alone He had singular regard” (Pius IX,
“Ineffabilis Deus,” 2). This privilege granted to our Lady of being a virgin and a
mother at the same time is a unique gift of God. This was the work of the Holy
Spirit “who at the conception and the birth of the Son so favored the Virgin Mo-
ther as to impart fruitfulness to her while preserving inviolate her perpetual vir-
ginity” (”St. Pius V Catechism,” I, 4, 8). Paul VI reminds us of this truth of faith:
“We believe that the Blessed Mary, who ever enjoys the dignity of virginity, was
the Mother of the incarnate Word, of our God and Savior Jesus Christ” (”Creed
of the People of God”, 14).

Although many suggestions have been made as to what the name Mary means,
most of the best scholars seem to agree that Mary means “lady”. However, no
single meaning fully conveys the richness of the name.

28. “Hail, full of grace”: literally the Greek text reads “Rejoice!”, obviously refer-
ring to the unique joy over the news which the angel is about to communicate.

“Full of grace”: by this unusual form of greeting the archangel reveals Mary’s
special dignity and honor. The Fathers and Doctors of the Church “taught that
this singular, solemn and unheard-of-greeting showed that all the divine graces
reposed in the Mother of God and that she was adorned with all the gifts of the
Holy Spirit”, which meant that she “was never subject to the curse”, that is,
was preserved from all sin. These words of the archangel in this text constitute
one of the sources which reveal the dogma of Mary’s Immaculate Conception
(cf. Bl. Pius IX, “Ineffabilis Deus”; Paul VI, “Creed of the People of God”).

“The Lord is with you!”: these words are not simply a greeting (”the Lord be
with you”) but an affirmation (”the Lord is with you”), and they are closely con-
nected with the Incarnation. St. Augustine comments by putting these words
on the archangel’s lips: “He is more with you than He is with me: He is in your
heart, He takes shape within you, He fills your soul, He is in your womb” (”Ser-
mo De Nativitate Domini”, 4).

Some important Greek manuscripts and early translations add at the end of the
verse: “Blessed are you among women!”, meaning that God will exalt Mary over
all women. She is more excellent than Sarah, Hannah, Deborah, Rachel, Judith,
etc., for only she has the supreme honor of being chosen to be the Mother of
God.

29-30. Our Lady is troubled by the presence of the archangel and by the confu-
sion truly humble people experience when they receive praise.

30. The Annunciation is the moment when our Lady is given to know the voca-
tion which God planned for her from eternity. When the archangel sets her mind
at ease by saying, “Do not be afraid, Mary,” he is helping her to overcome that
initial fear which a person normally experiences when God gives him or her a
special calling. The fact that Mary felt this fear does not imply the least trace
of imperfection in her: hers is a perfectly natural reaction in the face of the su-
pernatural. Imperfection would arise if one did not overcome this fear or rejected
the advice of those in a position to help—as St.Gabriel helped Mary.

31-33. The archangel Gabriel tells the Blessed Virgin Mary that she is to be the
Mother of God by reminding her of the words of Isaiah which announced that the
Messiah would be born of a virgin, a prophecy which will find its fulfillment in
Mary (cf. Matthew 1:22-23; Isaiah 7:14).

He reveals that the Child will be “great”: His greatness comes from His being
God, a greatness He does not lose when He takes on the lowliness of human
nature. He also reveals that Jesus will be the king of the Davidic dynasty sent
by God in keeping with His promise of salvation; that His Kingdom will last for-
ever, for His humanity will remain forever joined to His divinity; that “He will be
called Son of the Most High”, that is that He really will be the Son of the Most
High and will be publicly recognized as such, that is, the Child will be the Son
of God.

The archangel’s announcement evokes the ancient prophecies which foretold
these prerogatives. Mary, who was well-versed in Sacred Scripture, clearly
realized that she was to be the Mother of God.

34-38. Commenting on this passage John Paul II said: “’Virgo fidelis’, the faith-
ful Virgin. What does this faithfulness of Mary mean? What are the dimensions
of this faithfulness? The first dimension is called search. Mary was faithful first
of all when she began, lovingly, to seek the deep sense of God’s plan in her and
for the world. ‘Quomodo fiet?’ How shall this be?, she asked the Angel of the
Annunciation [...].”

“The second dimension of faithfulness is called reception, acceptance. The
‘quomodo fiet?’ is changed, on Mary’s lips, to a ‘fiat’: Let it be done, I am ready,
I accept. This is the crucial moment of faithfulness, the moment in which man
perceives that he will never completely understand the ‘how’: that there are in
God’s plan more areas of mystery than of clarity; that is, however he may try,
he will never succeed in understanding it completely[...].”

“The third dimension of faithfulness is consistency to live in accordance with
what one believes; to adapt one’s own life to the object of one’s adherence. To
accept misunderstanding, persecutions, rather than a break between what one
practises and what one believes: this is consistency[...].”

“But all faithfulness must pass the most exacting test, that of duration. There-
fore, the fourth dimension of faithfulness is constancy. It is easy to be consis-
tent for a day or two. It is difficult and important to be consistent for one’s
whole life. It is easy to be consistent in the hour of enthusiasm, it is difficult to
be so in the hour of tribulation. And only a consistency that lasts throughout
the whole life can be called faithfulness. Mary’s ‘fiat’ in the Annunciation finds
its fullness in the silent ‘fiat’ that she repeats at the foot of the Cross” (”Homily
in Mexico City Cathedral”, 26 January 1979).

34. Mary believed in the archangel’s words absolutely; she did not doubt as
Zechariah had done (cf. 1:18). Her question, “How can this be?”, expresses
her readiness to obey the will of God even though at first sight it implied a con-
tradiction: on the one hand, she was convinced that God wished her to remain
a virgin; on the other, here was God also announcing that she would become
a mother. The archangel announces God’s mysterious design, and what had
seemed impossible, according to the laws of nature, is explained by a unique
intervention on the part of God.

Mary’s resolution to remain a virgin was certainly something very unusual, not
in line with the practice of righteous people under the Old Covenant, for, as St.
Augustine explains, “particularly attentive to the propagation and growth of the
people of God, through whom the Prince and Savior of the world might be pro-
phesied and be born, the saints were obliged to make use of the good of matri-
mony” (”De Bono Matrimonii”, 9, 9). However, in the Old Testament, there were
some who, in keeping with God’s plan, did remain celibate—for example, Jere-
miah, Elijah, Eliseus and John the Baptist. The Blessed Virgin, who received
a very special inspiration of the Holy Spirit to practise virginity, is a first-fruit of
the New Testament, which will establish the excellence of virginity over mar-
riage while not taking from the holiness of the married state, which it raises to
the level of a sacrament (cf. “Gaudium Et Spes”, 48).

35. The “shadow” is a symbol of the presence of God. When Israel was jour-
neying through the wilderness, the glory of God filled the Tabernacle and a
cloud covered the Ark of the Covenant (Exodus 40:34-36). And when God gave
Moses the tablets of the Law, a cloud covered Mount Sinai (Exodus 24:15-16);
and also, at the Transfiguration of Jesus the voice of God the Father was heard
coming out of a cloud (Luke 9:35).

At the moment of the Incarnation the power of God envelops our Lady — an ex-
pression of God’s omnipotence. The Spirit of God—which, according to the ac-
count in Genesis (1:2), moved over the face of the waters, bringing things to life
— now comes down on Mary. And the fruit of her womb will be the work of the
Holy Spirit. The Virgin Mary, who herself was conceived without any stain of sin
(cf. Pius IX, “Ineffabilis Deus”) becomes, after the Incarnation, a new tabernacle
of God. This is the mystery we recall every day when saying the Angelus.

38. Once she learns of God’s plan, our Lady yields to God’s will with prompt
obedience, unreservedly. She realizes the disproportion between what she is
going to become—the Mother of God—and what she is—a woman. However, this
is what God wants to happen and for Him nothing is impossible; therefore no
one should stand in His way. So Mary, combining humility and obedience, res-
ponds perfectly to God’s call: “Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord; let it be
done according to your word.”

“At the enchantment of this virginal phrase, the Word became flesh” (St. J.
Escriva, “Holy Rosary”, first joyful mystery). From the pure body of Mary, God
shaped a new body, He created a soul out of nothing, and the Son of God uni-
ted Himself with this body and soul: prior to this He was only God; now He is
still God but also man. Mary is now the Mother of God. This truth is a dogma
of faith, first defined by the Council of Ephesus (431). At this point she also
begins to be the spiritual Mother of all mankind. What Christ says when He
is dying—’Behold, your son..., behold, your mother” (John 19:26-27) — simply
promulgates what came about silently at Nazareth. “With her generous ‘fiat’
(Mary) became, through the working of the Spirit, the Mother of God, but also
the Mother of the living, and, by receiving into her womb the one Mediator,
she became the true Ark of the Covenant and true Temple of God” (Paul VI,
“Marialis Cultus”, 6).

The Annunciation shows us the Blessed Virgin as perfect model of “purity”
(the RSV “I have no husband” is a euphemism); of “humility” (”Behold, I am
the handmaid of the Lord”); of “candor” and “simplicity” (”How can this be?”);
of “obedience” and “lively faith” (”Let it be done to me according to your word”).
“Following her example of obedience to God, we can learn to serve delicately
without being slavish. In Mary, we don’t find the slightest trace of the attitude
of the foolish virgins, who obey, but thoughtlessly. Our Lady listens attentively
to what God wants, ponders what she doesn’t fully understand and asks about
what she doesn’t know. Then she gives herself completely to doing the divine
will: ‘Behold I am the handmaid of the Lord; let it be done to me according to
your word’. Isn’t that marvellous? The Blessed Virgin, our teacher in all we do,
shows us here that obedience to God is not servile, does not bypass our con-
science. We should be inwardly moved to discover the ‘freedom of the children
of God’ (cf. Romans 8:21)” (St. J. Escriva, “Christ Is Passing By”, 173).

******************************************************************************************
Source: “The Navarre Bible: Text and Commentaries”. Biblical text from the
Revised Standard Version and New Vulgate. Commentaries by members of
the Faculty of Theology, University of Navarre, Spain.

Published by Four Courts Press, Kill Lane, Blackrock, Co. Dublin, Ireland, and
by Scepter Publishers in the United States.

From: Revelation 11:19a; 12:1-6a, 10ab

The Sounding of the Seventh Trumpet

---

[19] Then God’s temple in heaven was opened, and the ark of his covenant was
seen within his temple.

The Woman Fleeing from the Dragon

---

[1] And a great portent appeared in heaven, a woman clothed with the sun, with
the moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars; [2] she was
with child and she cried out in her pangs of birth, in anguish for delivery [3] And
another portent appeared in heaven; behold, a great red dragon, with seven heads
and ten horns, and seven diadems upon his heads. [4] His tail swept down a third
of the stars of heaven, and cast them to the earth. And the dragon stood before
the woman who was about to bear a child, that he might devour her child when
she brought it forth; [5] she brought forth a male child, one who is to rule all the
nations with a rod of iron, but her child was caught up to God and to his throne,
[6] and the woman fled into the wilderness, where she has a place prepared by
God.

[10] And I heard a loud voice in heaven, saying, “Now the salvation and the power
and the kingdom of our God and the authority of his Christ have come.

*********************************************************************************************
Commentary:

19. The seer introduces the heavenly temple (the location par excellence of God’s
presence), paralleling the earlier mention of the temple of Jerusalem (cf. 11:1-2).
The opening of the temple and the sight of the Ark of the Covenant show that the
messianic era has come to an end and God’s work of salvation has been comple-
ted. The ark was the symbol of Israel’s election and salvation and of God’s pre-
sence in the midst of his people. According to a Jewish tradition, reported in 2
Maccabees 2:4-8, Jeremiah placed the ark in a secret hiding place prior to the
destruction of Jerusalem, and it would be seen again when the Messiah carne.
The author of the Apocalypse uses this to assure us that God has not forgotten
his covenant: he has sealed it definitively in heaven, where the ark is located.

Many early commentators interpreted the ark as a reference to Christ’s sacred
humanity, and St Bede explains that just as the manna was kept in the original
ark, so Christ’s divinity lies hidden in his sacred body (cf. “Explanatio
Apocalypsis”, 11, 19).

The heavenly covenant is the new and eternal one made by Jesus Christ (cf. Mt
26:26-29 and par.) which will be revealed to all at his second coming when the
Church will triumph, as the Apocalypse goes on to describe. The presence of
the ark in the heavenly temple symbolizes the sublimity of the messianic king-
dom, which exceeds anything man could create. “The vigilant and active expec-
tation of the coming of the Kingdom is also the expectation of a finally perfect
justice for the living and the dead, for people of all times and places, a justice
which Jesus Christ, installed as supreme Judge, will establish (cf. Mt 24:29-44,
46; Acts 10:42; 2 Cor 5: 10). This promise, which surpasses all human possibi-
lities, directly concerns our life in this world. For true justice must include every-
one; it must explain the immense load of suffering borne by all generations. In
fact, without the resurrection of the dead and the Lord’s judgment, there is no
justice in the full sense of the term. The promise of the resurrection is freely
made to meet the desire for true justice dwelling in the human heart” (SCDF,
“Libertatis Conscientia”, 60).

The thunder and lightning which accompany the appearance of the ark are remi-
niscent of the way God made his presence felt on Sinai; they reveal God’s migh-
ty intervention (cf. Rev 4:5; 8:5) which is now accompanied by the chastisement
of the wicked, symbolized by the earthquake and hailstones (cf. Ex 9:13-35).

1-17. We are now introduced to the contenders in the eschatological battles
which mark the final confrontation between God and his adversary, the devil. The
author uses three portents to describe the leading figures involved, and the war it-
self. The first is the woman and her offspring, including the Messiah (12:1-2); the
second is the dragon, who will later transfer his power to the beasts (12:3); the
third, the seven angels with the seven bowls (15:1).

Three successive confrontations with the dragon are described—1) that of the Mes-
siah to whom the woman gives birth (12:1-6); 2) that of St Michael and his angels
(12:7-12); and 3) that of the woman and the rest of her offspring (12:13-17) These
confrontations should not be seen as being in chronological order. They are more
like three distinct pictures placed side by side because they are closely connec-
ted: in each the same enemy, the devil, does battle with God’s plans and with
those whom God uses to carry them out.

1-2. The mysterious figure of the woman has been interpreted ever since the time
of the Fathers of the Church as referring to the ancient people of Israel, or the
Church of Jesus Christ, or the Blessed Virgin. The text supports all of these inter-
pretations but in none do all the details fit. The woman can stand for the people
of Israel, for it is from that people that the Messiah comes, and Isaiah compares
Israel to “a woman with child, who writhes and cries out in her pangs when she
is near her time” (Is 26:17).

She can also stand for the Church, whose children strive to overcome evil and to
bear witness to Jesus Christ (cf. v. 17). Following this interpretation St Gregory
wrote: “The sun stands for the light of truth, and the moon for the transitoriness
of temporal things; the holy Church is clothed like the sun because she is pro-
tected by the splendor of supernatural truth, and she has the moon under her
feet because she is above all earthly things” (”Moralia”, 34, 12).

The passage can also refer to the Virgin Mary because it was she who truly and
historically gave birth to the Messiah, Jesus Christ our Lord (cf. v. 5). St Bernard
comments: “The sun contains permanent color and splendor; whereas the moon’s
brightness is unpredictable and changeable, for it never stays the same. It is quite
right, then, for Mary to be depicted as clothed with the sun, for she entered the
profundity of divine wisdom much further than one can possibly conceive” (”De
B. Virgine”, 2).

In his account of the Annunciation, St Luke sees Mary as representing the faithful
remnant of Israel; the angel greets her with the greeting given in Zephaniah 3:15 to
the daughter of Zion (cf. notes on Lk 1:26-31). St Paul in Galatians 4:4 sees a wo-
man as the symbol of the Church, our mother; and non-canonical Jewish literature
contemporary with the Book of Revelation quite often personifies the community
as a woman. So, the inspired text of the Apocalypse is open to interpreting this
woman as a direct reference to the Blessed Virgin who, as mother, shares in the
pain of Calvary (cf. Lk 2:35) and who was earlier prophesied in Isaiah 7:14 as a
“sign” (cf. Mt 1:22-23). At the same time the woman can be interpreted as stan-
ding for the people of God, the Church, whom the figure of Mary represents.

The Second Vatican Council has solemnly taught that Mary is a “type” or sym-
bol of the Church, for “in the mystery of the Church, which is itself rightly called
mother and virgin, the Blessed Virgin stands out in eminent and singular fashion
as exemplar both of virgin and mother.Through her faith and obedience she gave
birth on earth to the very Son of the Father, not through the knowledge of man
but by the overshadowing of the Holy Spirit, in the manner of a new Eve who
placed her faith, not in the serpent of old but in God’s messenger, without wave-
ring in doubt. The Son whom she brought forth is he whom God placed as the
first-born among many brethren (cf. Rom 8:29), that is, the faithful, in whose ge-
neration and formation she cooperates with a mother’s love” (Vatican II, “Lumen
Gentium”, 63).

The description of the woman indicates her heavenly glory, and the twelve stars
of her victorious crown symbolize the people of God—the twelve patriarchs (cf.
Gen 37:9) and the twelve apostles. And so, independently of the chronological
aspects of the text, the Church sees in this heavenly woman the Blessed Virgin,
“taken up body and soul into heavenly glory, when her earthly life was over, and
exalted by the Lord as Queen over all things, that she might be the more fully
conformed to her Son, the Lord of lords (cf. Rev 19:16) and conqueror of sin and
death” (”Lumen Gentium”, 59). The Blessed Virgin is indeed the great sign, for,
as St Bonaventure says, “God could have made none greater. He could have
made a greater world and a greater heaven; but not a woman greater than his
own mother” (”Speculum”, 8).

3-4. In his description of the devil (cf. v. 9), St John uses symbols taken from the
Old Testament. The dragon or serpent comes from Genesis 3:1-24, a passage
which underlies all the latter half of this book. Its red color and seven heads with
seven diadems show that it is bringing its full force to bear to wage this war. The
ten horns in Daniel 7:7 stand for the kings who are Israel’s enemies; in Daniel a
horn is also mentioned to refer to Antiochus IV Epiphanes, of whom Daniel also
says (to emphasize the greatness of Antiochus’ victories) that it cast stars down
from heaven onto the earth (cf. Dan 8:10). Satan drags other angels along with
him, as the text later recounts (Rev 12:9). All these symbols, then, are designed
to convey the enormous power of Satan. “The devil is described as a serpent”,
St Cyprian writes, “because he moves silently and seems peaceable and comes
by easy ways and is so astute and so deceptive [...] that he tries to have night
taken for day, poison taken for medicine. So, by deceptions of this kind, he tries
to destroy truth by cunning. That is why he passes himself off as an angel of
light” (”De Unitate Ecclesiae”, I-III).

After the fall of our first parents war broke out between the serpent and his seed
and the woman and hers: “I will put enmity between you and the woman, be-
tween your seed and her seed; he shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise
his heel” (Gen 3:15). Jesus Christ is the woman’s descendant who will obtain vic-
tory over the devil (cf. Mk 1:23-26; Lk 4:31-37; etc.). That is why the power of evil
concentrates all his energy on destroying Christ (cf. Mt 2:13-18) or to deflecting
him from his mission (cf. Mt 4:1-11 and par.). By relating this enmity to the be-
ginnings of the human race St. John paints a very vivid picture.

5. The birth of Jesus Christ brings into operation the divine plan announced by the
prophets (cf. Is 66:7) and by the Psalms (cf. Ps 2:9), and marks the first step in
ultimate victory over the devil. Jesus’ life on earth, culminating in his passion, re-
surrection and ascension into heaven, was the key factor in achieving this victory.
St John emphasizes the triumph of Christ as victor, who, as the Church confes-
ses, “sits at the right hand of the Father” (”Nicene-Constantinopolitan Creed”).

6. The figure of the woman reminds us of the Church, the people of God. Israel
took refuge in the wilderness to escape from Pharaoh, and the Church does the
same after the victory of Christ. The wilderness stands for solitude and intimate
union with God. In the wilderness God took personal care of his people, setting
them free from their enemies (cf. Ex 17:8-16) and nourishing them with quail and
manna (cf. Ex 16:1-36). The Church is given similar protection against the powers
of hell (cf. Mt 16:18) and Christ nourishes it with his body and his word all the
while it makes its pilgrimage through the ages; it has a hard time (like Israel in
the wilderness) but there will be an end to it: it will take one thousand two hun-
dred and sixty days (cf. notes on 11:3).

Although the woman, in this verse, seems to refer directly to the Church, she
also in some way stands for the particular woman who gave birth to the Messiah,
the Blessed Virgin. As no other creature has done, Mary has enjoyed a very
unique type of union with God and very special protection from the powers of evil,
death included. Thus, as the Second Vatican Council teaches, “in the meantime
[while the Church makes its pilgrim way on earth], the Mother of Jesus in the glo-
ry which she possesses in body and soul in heaven is the image and beginning
of the Church as it is to be perfected in the world to come. Likewise she shines
forth on earth, until the day of the Lord shall come (cf. 2 Pet 3:10), a sign of
certain hope and comfort to the pilgrim people of God” (”Lumen Gentium”, 68).

10-12. With the ascension of Christ into heaven the Kingdom of God is estab-
lished and so all those who dwell in heaven break out into a song of joy. The
devil has been deprived of his power over man in the sense that the redemptive
action of Christ and man’s faith enable man to escape from the world of sin. The
text expresses this joyful truth by saying that there is now no place for the accu-
ser, Satan whose name means and whom the Old Testament teaches to be the
accuser of men before God: cf. Job 1:6-12; 2:1-10). Given what God meant crea-
tion to be, Satan could claim as his victory anyone who, through sinning, disfi-
gured the image and likeness of God that was in him. However, once the Re-
demption has taken place, Satan no longer has power to do this, for, as St John
writes, “if any one does sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ
the righteous; and he is the expiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also
for the sins of the whole world” (Jn 2:1-2). Also, on ascending into heaven, Christ
sent us the Holy Spirit as “Intercessor and Advocate, especially when man, that
is, mankind, find themselves before the judgment of condemnation by that ‘accu-
ser’ about whom the Book of Revelation says that ‘he accuses them day and
night before our God”’ (John Paul II, “Dominum Et Vivificantem”, 67).

Although Satan has lost this power to act in the world, he still has time left, be-
tween the resurrection of our Lord and the end of history, to put obstacles in
man’s way and frustrate Christ’s action. And so he works ever more frenetically,
as he sees time run out, in his effort to distance everyone and society itself from
the plans and commandments of God.

The author of the Book of Revelation uses this celestial chant to warn the Church
of the onset of danger as the End approaches.

*********************************************************************************************
Source: “The Navarre Bible: Text and Commentaries”. Biblical text from the
Revised Standard Version and New Vulgate. Commentaries by members of
the Faculty of Theology, University of Navarre, Spain.

Published by Four Courts Press, Kill Lane, Blackrock, Co. Dublin, Ireland, and
by Scepter Publishers in the United States.

Perhaps even David believed in transubstantiation:

(2 Sam 23:15-17) “And David longed, and said, Oh that one would give me drink of the water of the well of Bethlehem, which is by the gate! {16} And the three mighty men brake through the host of the Philistines, and drew water out of the well of Bethlehem, that was by the gate, and took it, and brought it to David: nevertheless he would not drink thereof, but poured it out unto the LORD. {17} And he said, Be it far from me, O LORD, that I should do this: is not this the blood of the men that went in jeopardy of their lives? therefore he would not drink it. These things did these three mighty men.”

If Jn. 6:53 is the R.C. Eucharist, then that is what the apostles would have preached as a means of regeneration, rather than belief in Jesus words, which are “spirit and life.” Jesus “meat and drink” was to do His Father’s will,(Jn. 4:34) He lived by the father, as we are to live by Him, (see Jn. 6:57), and we are to live by His every word, (Mt. 4:4).

It is hardly conceivable the apostles, esp. “Protestant” Peter, who was kosher as late as Acts 10, would unquestionably eat Jesus corporeal flesh and blood (which one must believe it is, to be effectual, according to Rome). Peter did not even want Jesus to wash his feet, how much less would he simply submit to eating Jesus blood.

Jews and Greek were both heavy in symbolic language, eating is heavily used metaphorically, and Jeremiah said, “Thy words were found, and I did eat them;”(Jer. 15:16), but do not eat the fruit of lies, (Hos. 10:13) that misconstrue what is written.

Zechariah 2:14-17

Third vision: the measurer

---

[10] Sing and rejoice, O daughter of Zion; for lo, I come and I will dwell in the
midst of you, says the Lord. [11] And many nations shall join themselves to the
Lord in that day, and shall be my people; and I will dwell in the midst of you, and
you shall know that the Lord of hosts has sent me to you. [12] And the Lord will
inherit Judah as his portion in the holy land, and will again choose Jerusalem.”

[13] Be silent, all flesh, before the Lord; for he has roused himself from his holy
dwelling.

*********************************************************************************************
Commentary:

2:1-13. What the prophet now sees and hears concerns the city of Jerusalem.
It is going to be remodeled as an open city, without walls; its defence will be
provided by God himself and therefore more people will be able to live there. The
man with the measuring line is an angel, as are the other two figures mentioned.
The idea of measuring the city in order to rebuild it is also found in Ezekiel 40-42
and Jeremiah 21:38-40 and, later, Revelation 11:1.

The vision is followed by an oracle (vv. 6-10) in which the Lord speaks through
the angel. He invites the Jews to leave Babylon and return to the holy land. This
is a call that is also found in Isaiah and Jeremiah (cf. Is 48:20); Jer 50:8; 51:6). It
could be that some were reluctant to move. God promises that in Judah they will
be safe from other nations because they are his beloved people, the “apple of his
eye” (v. 8), and his angel will defend them. Moreover, he will settle there, and
many nations will become his people (vv. 10-11).

Presence of the Lord, security against enemies and a way for the nations to be-
come people of God – these are the features that Judah and Jerusalem will have
following the return from exile. In this sense, they prefigure the Church. Com-
menting on v. 4, St Jerome points out: “Reading in a spiritual sense, all of these
things are to be found in the Church, which is without walls, or, as the Septuagint
puts it, katakarpos; that is, filled with an abundance of fruit and a great multitude
of men and asses […]. The men and the asses [cattle, animals] stand for the two
people, the Jews and the Gentiles; those who came to faith in Christ through the
fulfillment of the Law are called men; we, however, who were idolatrous an lived
as though in a wilderness, being far from the Law, and alone, because of our dis-
tance from the prophets who suffered, are the asses […]. But these animals hear
the voice of the good shepherd, and know him, and they follow him” (Commentarii
in Zachariam, 2, 4).

2:10. This call for rejoicing similar to that made by the prophet Zephaniah (cf.
Zeph 3:14) and one made later (9:9), is repeated in the angel Gabriel’s greeting to
the Blessed Virgin when he tells her that she is to conceive the Messiah (cf. Lk
1:28). That event will truly bring about what is said here, for Mary is “the mother
of him in whom ‘the whole fullness of deity dwells bodily’ (Col 2:9)” (Catechism of
the Catholic Church, 722). John Paul II sees Mary, the Mother of the Redeemer,
prefigured in the title “daughter of Zion” found here: “Her presence in the midst of
Israel – a presence so discreet as to pass almost unnoticed by the eyes of her
contemporaries – shone very clearly before the Eternal One, who had associated
this hidden ‘daughter of Sion’ (cf. Zeph. 3:14; Zeph. 2:10) with the plan of salva-
tion embracing the whole history of humanity” (Redemptoris Mater, 3).

2:13. The Catechism of the Catholic Church, 2143, interprets the silence as one
“of loving adoration”. This is the attitude that all will have when they see what God
will do for Judah and Jerusalem; for Christians, it is the attitude they will have to-
wards the incarnation, passion, death and resurrection of our Lord and towards
what God does for his Church.

*********************************************************************************************
Source: “The Navarre Bible: Text and Commentaries”. Biblical text from the
Revised Standard Version and New Vulgate. Commentaries by members of
the Faculty of Theology, University of Navarre, Spain.

Published by Four Courts Press, Kill Lane, Blackrock, Co. Dublin, Ireland, and
by Scepter Publishers in the United States.

Not sure where you get all your proof texts from, but the few you mentioned cannot be considered all the info there is on the subject

They represent the mainstream. The state of Israel sees Messianic "Jews" as Christians.

Dr. Mark Cambron (now deceased), had a specific Christian ministry to the Jews in Miami, FL

And that proves what?

As to worshipping YAHWEH/Jehovah, he IS the only true God and Jesus Christ is God in the flesh.

Sure, except that the Christian God also includes the Son and the Holy Spirit which the Jews reject, so obviously the Christian God is not the same as the Hebrew God YHWH.

Isaiah 7:14, 9:6 both prophesy that the Messiah would be the Incarnate God.

He did no such thing. That is something the Christians made up.

There are other OT verses as well, as you know, so to say the early Hebrews did not believe in a divine Messiah is simply not correct

Obviously you don't know the history of Israel. Messianic apocalypticism does not appear before the Maccabean revolt in 160 BC. All the alleged OT prophesies of the coming messiah in the OT were written either at that time (Daniel) or are misinterpreted to mean what they do not mean.

There would have been no reason to have a messiah before the 2nd century BC revolt. The Jews believed the punishment and suffering they endured was something they deserved for disobeying God and that it was all God's doing for their digressions. Why would they need a messiah for that? LOL!

There is nothing more blasphemous for Judaism than a "divine messiah."

And there are hundreds of Messianic prophesies, not just seven.

Written after the fact (as in Daniel) or misinterpreted.

Now the Muslim god, Allah, is NOT the same as YAHWEH. Not even close

Maybe you can enlighten us as to why? I am listening...

To simply say it is just the Arabic word for god is to ignore the description of Allah given by Mohammed. No comparision at all.

How so?

There is a reason the term Judeo/Christian is used in this country as it recognizes the worship of the one true God.

You are right about "this country" and nowhere else in the world, for a good reason. And the term is use only by a segment of Evangelical Christians and idiots like bill O'Reilley. The (real) Jews would never use it. The Jews think of Christians what the mainline Christians think of Mormons.

How can Judeao-Christian recognize the worship of the one true God? The Jews reject Christ as God. They literally reject the Christian God! Do you eve realize that? Probably not because you wouldn't be saying such nonsense.  Now, the Christians say that they worship the same God of the OT as the Jews do, but that's obviously a one-way belief. The Jews don't share that belief and in fact are offended that we interpret their own faith and God for them.

In Judaism there is no room for other divine persons.

St. John Neumann and the Doctrine of the Immaculate Conception (Catholic Caucus)
Our Jewish Roots: The Immaculate Conception [Ecumenical]
I Love that Woman! My Unworthy Reflections on The Immaculate Conception
Mary Immaculate: Patroness of the United States [Catholic/Orthodox Caucus]
Catholic/Orthodox Caucus: The Immaculate Conception: A Marvelous Theme - Novena Starts Nov. 30

THE IMMACULATE CONCEPTION - Satan's Mighty Foe(Catholic Caucus)
Historian reveals how Pius IX decided to proclaim dogma of Immaculate Conception (Catholic Caucus)
The Immaculate Vs. the Proud
Immaculate Conception Novena -- starts November 30th [Catholic/Orthodox Caucus]
Blessed John Duns Scotus Champion Of Mary's Immaculate Conception (CATHOLIC CAUCUS)

The Crusade of Mary Immaculate - St. Maximilian Kolbe (Catholic Caucus)
The Early Church Fathers on the Immaculate Conception - Catholic/Orthodox Caucus
Three Reasons the Church’s Enemies Hate The Immaculate Conception
Her saving grace - the origins of the Immaculate Conception
Mary Is a Model Who Works With Us and in Us

U.S. Catholic bishops to renew consecration of nation to Immaculate Conception
Catholic Meditation: To the Immaculate Conception on this Election Day
My visit to the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception
On Solemnity of Immaculate Conception - "In Mary Shines the Eternal Goodness of the Creator"
Pope makes pilgrimage to Mary statue in Rome, marking the feast of the Immaculate Conception

Pope: Mary the Immaculate Conception... (text of BXVI speech)
"Tota pulchra es, Maria, et macula originalis non est in te" (The Immaculate Conception)
The Immaculate Conception — Essential to the Faith
"Who Are You, Immaculate Conception?"
TURKEY Ephesus: The Feast of the Immaculate Conception at Mary’s House
Coming Dec 8th. Feast of the "Immaculate Conception"

Why the Immaculate Conception?
Catholic Encyclopedia: Immaculate Conception (The Doctrine and Its Roots)
The Immaculate Conception of Our Lady December 8
Mary's Immaculate Conception: A Memorable Anniversary
Ineffabilis Deus: 8 December 1854 (Dogma of the Immaculate Conception)

Why do we believe in the Immaculate Conception?
John Paul II goes to Lourdes; reflections on the Immaculate Conception
Your Praises We Sing--on the Dogma of the Proclamation of the Immaculate Conception, Dec. 8th
Eastern Christianity and the Immaculate Conception (Q&A From EWTN)
Memorandum on the Immaculate Conception [Newman]

Prayer Campaign Started to Convert Pro-Abortion Catholic Politicians to Pro-Life

[Catholic Caucus] One Million Rosaries

From an Obama bumper sticker on a car:

~ PRAYER ~

St. Michael, the Archangel, defend us in battle
 Be our protection against the wickedness
and snares of the devil;
May God rebuke him, we  humbly pray,
 and do thou, O Prince of the heavenly host,
 by the power of God,
 Cast into hell Satan and all evil spirits
who prowl through the world seeking the ruin of souls.
 Amen
+

Advent -- A Season of Hope
A New Holiday Tradition -- Construct a Jesse Tree with your family during Advent
Pope on Advent: With Jesus, there is no life without meaning

Advent: Awaiting God's Justice -- Pope Benedict XVI
St. Andrew: Lighting the way for Advent
Advent Reflections for 2008
Bringing our fallen-away relations back to Church during Advent
History and Symbolism of the Advent Wreath

Rediscovering Advent in the (St.) Nick of Time
Catholic Traditions for Advent and Christmas
Mary's Gift of Self Points the Way, "The Blessed Mother and Advent", Part 1 of 4
The Perfect Faith of the Blessed Virgin "The Blessed Mother and Advent", Part 2 of 4
Theotokos sums up all that Mary is: "The Blessed Mother and Advent", Part 3 of 4

Reclaiming the Mystery of Advent, Part One: The Meaning of Advent
Renewing the Mystery of Advent, Part Two: The Witness of John the Baptist
Why “Gaudete?”, Part Three (Third Sunday of Advent)
Sunday before Nativity
Holy Mary and the Death of Sin - "The Blessed Mother and Advent", Part 4 of 4

Catholic Liturgy - Rose-Colored Vestments on Gaudete Sunday
Advent through Christmas -- 2007
Immaculate Conception Novena -- starts November 30th [Catholic/Orthodox Caucus]
Advent 2007 -- Day by Day
Making Advent a Reality (the seasons are out of whack)

The Advent Workshop -- lots of information and activities
Jesse Trees (genealogy of Jesus activity for families)
Advent Wreath & Candles (Prayers for the Family)
Advent Overview
Reclaiming the Mystery of Advent, Part One: The Meaning of Advent

Celebrating Christ’s Advent [Archbishop Raymond Burke]
Praying through Advent -- 2006
The Paradox of Advent
Experience the Joy of Advent
Advent: the Reason for the Season

The Advent Wreath
Advent Activity - The Jesse Tree
That incredible shrinking Advent-Christmas season (Christmas should start, not end, Dec. 25)
Advent Thoughts: Some of the Church Fathers on the Divinity of Christ
The Relationship Between Advent and the Change in the Seasons (Dom Guéranger)

The (Miraculous) Image of Our Lady of Guadalupe [Catholic Caucus]
Remembering Our Lady of Guadalupe [Catholic Caucus]
Our Lady of Guadalupe Feast: December 12 [Repost]
Brief History of the Apparitions of Our Lady of Guadalupe [Catholic Caucus]

The History of Our Lady of Guadalupe [Ecumenical]
2 Questions related to Faith & Apologetics. A Feast day & Our Lady of Guadalupe [Catholic Caucus]
The Image of Our Lady of Guadalupe
Our Lady of Guadalupe called 'Mother Without Borders' in Los Angeles (Catholic Caucus)
Hernándo Cortés and Our Lady

Our Lady of Guadalupe, Patroness of the Church Militant (Catholic Caucus)
Scientists certify Our Lady of Guadalupe tilma
STRANGE LIGHT CLAIMED IN GUADALUPE IMAGE AFTER MEXICO CITY OKAYED ABORTION
STRANGE LIGHT CLAIMED IN GUADALUPE IMAGE AFTER MEXICO CITY OKAYED ABORTION -- posted on News Forum
The Story of Guadalupe: Hope for Our Violent World

Our Lady of Guadalupe: Protectress of the Unborn
Was Our Lady of Guadalupe Wrong?
METHODIST CHURCH DISPLAYS VIRGIN OF GUADALUPE
GUADALUPE DEVOTION IS CROSSING INTO PROTESTANT DENOMINATIONS
A Novena to Our Lady of Guadalupe

Relic From Guadalupe Tilma to Tour U.S.
The Amazing Truth of Our Lady of Guadalupe
Our Lady Of Guadalupe
Celebrating 470 years of an ongoing miracle, the apparition of Our Lady of Guadalupe 1531
Science Stunned by Virgin of Guadalupe´s Eyes

What a beautiful prayer! Praise the LORD for His Goodness! I stand in agreement in the Most Powerful Name of Jesus and say amen.

Thank you for including the Soldiers Prayer, it is one I will pray during my personal prayer time.

>You simply do not know what you are talking about when it comes to St. Paul’s office. He was an Apostle, which by definition also places him squarely among the bishops.<

No, we are not talking about exercising some functions which apostles and bishops did, but about formally being a bishop, who was in charge of a local flock, not a traveling evangelist whom no wife could likely keep up with. Regardless, since the rest of the apostles themselves were married, including Peter, then and your desperate focusing on Paul’s celibacy will not provide the necessary warrant for requiring all bishops/elders to be celibate. The explicit Biblical statements on the matter refute such an idea, but blind loyalty to Rome compels the defense the indefensible.

>priestly and episcopal celibacy are not explicitly mandated by Scripture, our response is “so what?” We have never elevated the practice to a doctrine; it is merely a discipline, which could, in theory, change tomorrow. .<

As stated before while it is only church law, the fact is that it is an warranted requirement,<

>Nevertheless, 1 Corinthians 7 makes a powerful witness to the soundness of the practice, even if there is nothing there that absolutely mandates it<

The latter has always been the issue here, not whether celibacy is virtuous, but that all bishops must have that gift.

I am sorry that you fail comprehend that I am not saying the church ceased to exist, with some true believers in it, and at least a basic form of its structure, but that it was corrupted, and needed reformation, which is not yet complete. Perpetuating the corruptions of Rome which you suppose makes it the true church is counter productive to that end, and yet is it not Scripure, but Rome sad historical records that you rest upon. God can raise up a true church today, on an island, using a man, who like Peter, effectually confessed Christ as Lord, as Jesus said he could raise up sons of Abraham from stones. It is faith which produces Biblical obedience that is key, not outward show and autocratic corruptions of faith, which is what Rome glories in.

Also, your rejection of those like Jerome who rejected the Apocrypha,and adoption of it, like false doctrines, does not establish its canonicity.

>You make a reference to “mortal sin,” and say it does not necessarily damn anyone.<

Sorry. I get tired. Let me clarify:

“While praying for deceased idolaters may be compassionate, if problematic - as Rome excludes [that] there is hope for those who die in mortal sin, and [though] I would not see this [praying for the dead] as necessarily damning those who may ignorantly engage in such, [yet] in no place will you find this [praying for the dead] being sanctioned in any other book of the Bible.

It is Rome that infers hope for these apparent idolaters in 2 Mac.

>Sola Scriptura, as a concept, is biblically bankrupt and internally self-refuting.<

Not so, properly understood. Once Scripture was given, then it became the standard by which progressive revelation was tested. Thus Acts 17:11, and the constant referencing and allusions to it by Jesus and the apostles, while Jesus rebuked additions such as the law of Corban which contradicted it. Unlike the bottomless pit of church tradition, the Scriptures are declared to be wholly inspired, and while the Word of God includes things not written down, they cannot contradict it or fail to have manifest support. The apostles preaching was the word of God, but as the Bereans shows, it was Biblical. And the apostles were clearly attested to be such by mighty signs and wonders,(2Cor. 12:12), and which, along with the O.T., provided warrant for what they said. But besides lacking such manner of Divine attestation, or the clear establishment for Rome which the O.T. high priest had for his prophetic office (while a Caiaphas type head could not even remain in a true church), since the canon is closed, to make church tradition equal to it is essentially adding to the canon. In this case, the baby and the bath water are equal.

Nothing above Scripture should convince me, by which all revelation is proved by, rather than a self-proclaimed infallible magisterium.

Alleluia Ping!

Please notify me via FReepmail if you would like to be added to or taken off the Alleluia Ping List.

For your reading, reflection, faith-sharing, comments, questions, discussion.

And some more:

Minor Basilicas as of 2006

I got curious here and started digging.

First Twelve Minor Basilicas in the U. S. from Catholic Culture site

"Notice that the body formed from the dust was not alive until the breath of life, which means 'soul/spirit' was breathed into his nostrils."We both believe that God was the Creator. Nothing else is important.

Sacred Heart, Co-cathedral, Charleston, WV

So why didn’t the bible scholars publish the exact or superior value of Pi based on the Bible?

Why is it always like Chekov in the Star Trek series, (”It was a Russian inwention.”) after the fact, claiming priority?

Because Christianity is hopelessly behind, derivitive, with nothing new to offer besides child molestors protected by the Church Hierarchy, and smugness that your mythical guilt is more forgiven than anyone else’s mythical guilt.

With this purely political alliance/issue, RC Sproul is truly weird! All who profess belief in Christ must come together on these matters of life, religious liberty, marriage -PERIOD-, flawed document/theology,etc aside.

Amen in the Gracious Name of Jesus Christ.

Thank You, LORD for this dear sister's devotion to the Troops and to Your Word.

Mormons dont “get involved”...
They follow orders...”...
They “savation” depends on it...”...
As for Christian Churches...”...
What do you do at your church ??? ”...

The mormon cult is extremely sad. Full of brainwashed folk who hopefully find their way out to Christianity. That's all I hope for.
Joe Smith was a putz to the extreme measure. As anyone knows, Joe was a profiteeer and never a prophet. Not even close. Ever.

Amen! God’s Holy Word is TRUE. And Awesome!

The Bible, God’s Inspired Word, is His Gift to mankind and an amazing gift it is!

I would encourage any who are still skeptics of the truth of the Bible but who genuinely want to know the truth - about who they are, about who God is, about why they are here, about what has happened in the past and what is coming in the future, to take another look at the Holy Bible.

START READING IT.

ASk God simply and humbly to show you the TRUTH.

Leave the rest to His Holy Spirit who will transform your very life!!!

Maybe that’s what people fear.

But God says to FEAR NOT, because HE BRINGS TO US GOOD TIDINGS OF JOY THAT SHALL BE TO ALL PEOPLE!

This Good News is just that - the BEST News of all time.

Find out about it, give the Bible a chance to have a say.

Stop listening to anybody else - just let God speak to you through His word.

But ask God for His guidance before you read.

Then Thank Him for helping you understand His Word.

You won’t be sorry!

A higher percentage of US POW’s died in Chicom custody during the Korean War than died during WWII in Japanese captivity. When you consider that the WWII numbers include the Bataan Death March, that’s a pretty significant stat.

The text gives two measurements which represent two separate circles. The outer circle is ten cubits in diameter (or about 31.4 cubits around) while the inner circle is about 9.42 cubits in diameter (or 30 cubits around) :

3(A)Now he made the sea of (B)cast metal ten cubits from brim to brim, circular in form, and its height was five cubits, and thirty cubits in circumference.

26It was a handbreadth thick, and its brim was made like the brim of a cup, as a lily blossom; it could hold two thousand baths.

Here is a different bath to examine

And here is a lily blossom

The author finds it important to give us a measure for its circumference as well as a measure of the diameter from brim to brim. If we know the measure of the diameter, the author does not need to also give us a measure for the circumference. The reader already has enough information to understand the size of the opening.

However, the author finds it important to give us the shape as well and that this shape is not a uniform circle but it is in the form of a lily blossom. If we only have the diameter from brim to brim we still would not know the diameter or circumference of the inner circle.

Now lets take these two numbers to another level to understand the level of understanding of numbers used in the bible. They are never merely estimates void of specific meaning. The number 10 indicates divine order- 10 commandments, Noah was 10th generation, the tithe. And 3 in the OT indicates divine perfection. Combined as 30, it indicates divine order and perfection.

I agree, there are inaccuracies with information on this post, and it should be removed to protect all those involved. Discussion can occur when the issue is resolved in a private manner. For anyone wishing for more accurate info, please refer to insidehighered.com. follow this link: http://www.insidehighered.com/news/2009/11/30/vincent

“... the Apostolic Signatura, which likes to keep its involvement in individual cases more secretive ...”

does anyone else see a problem with this? hasn;t this been the issue for years now - the desire of the church to do everything in secret?

Pond scum - dust of the earth; po-tay-to - po-taht-to.

Neither are alive. Notice that the body formed from the dust was not alive until the breath of life, which means 'soul/spirit' was breathed into his nostrils. And Christ the WORD says that no one can 'see' the kingdom of God until they are born from above into this flesh age, just like the 'process' He did. Moses pens not one WORD in Genesis when the souls/spirits were created. The purpose of flesh to house the soul/spirit and the 'process' through which Christ as the children would partake is what makes the tale of evolution unsettled science.

I don’t think you understand the distinctions between faith and reason that I made in my post.