Free Republic

As of late, I’ve been wrestling with and pondering on, a number of topics pertaining to issues surrounding where we are in the last days. These are in no particular order. First Thought: There is an idea that one can be both a sincere believer in Jesus Christ, as well as sincerely not interested in the Lord’s return. Now, most of these believers wouldn’t come out and say they aren’t interested in the Lord’s return, but they absolutely live that statement. To me, at least, this seems like two diametrically opposed belief systems that a) one could swear fealty and...

1. ISAIAH 17 We do know that tensions continue to escalate in Syria as Israel continues to bomb Iranian military installations. This does not, however, appear to discourage Iran from building up its military in the area.Israel has been carrying out a campaign-between-the-wars since 2013 to prevent Iran and its proxies, including Hezbollah, from obtaining advanced weapons to use against the Jewish state and from entrenching themselves in Syria.The attacks have three main purposes. They are: 1. To diminish Iranian capabilities being shipped to Hezbollah and other Iranian militias working to open a low-intensity military front threatening Israel’s northern border;...

Christians face EXTINCTION in Iraq after ISIS forced 125,000 to flee their homes, Archbishop warns. Rt Rev Bashar Warda said Christian community has dwindled to just 125,000 Despite ISIS being expelled from Mosul in July 2017, many have not returned. Accused Christian leaders of being afraid of being accused of Islamophobia. Christians are facing extinction in Iraq after ISIS forced 125,000 people to flee their homes, the Archbishop of Irbil has warned. Rt Rev Bashar Warda said the Christian community had been reduced by 83% between the end of Saddam Hussein's regime and 2014. It then dwindled further when the...

From a reader…QUAERITUR: Who is a member of the Roman Catholic Church? Is baptism all that is required? What about people baptised into the RC Church who later in life do not believe in some of the teachings of the RC Church (eg regarding homosexuality) but still go to Mass & Holy Communion? Can they still claim to be members? This seems like a simple question, calling for a simple answer.  It isn’t.From the perspective of the world, the Church, like any other “club” should have clearly demarcated lines of membership, with an initiation process, rules for membership, and penalties...

There is coming soon a stupendous supernatural event. Some will die because of the chaos it causes. Some will cry out to God because of what it causes them to realize. It really is coming upon the Earth, soon. In 1217 AD a German Rabbi of great devotion, Rabbi Judah ben Samuel, was given a vision from Elijah regarding the city of Jerusalem. It went something like the following, expressed in Jubilee periods of 50 years, not actual Jubilees but periods of fifty year increments. Six Jubilees from 1217 AD and Jerusalem will come under rule by the Turks. [In...

I was asked to go to a neighboring parish and address some fundamental questions related to the necessity of the Church. Many today question the need for a church or The Church and claim they can have Jesus without the Church. And thus the fundamental question “Who needs the Church?” ought to be addressed.I propose here a rather more doctrinal answer to the question and hope tomorrow to offer a more personal answer. But, the fundamental answer I offer to “Who needs the Church?” is that everyone does, because the Church is the Body of Christ.To the related questions “Why...

By an utterly free and mysterious decree of his own wisdom and goodness, the eternal Father created the whole world. His plan was to dignify men with a participation in his own divine life. When in Adam men had fallen, he did not abandon them, but ceaselessly offered them help to salvation, in anticipation of Christ the Redeemer, ‘who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature’. All the elect, before time began, the Father ‘foreknew and predestined to become conformed to the image of his Son, that he should be the firstborn among many brethren’.

The readings from the Feast of the Assumption still echo in my mind. I am particularly mindful of their announcement of victory: I heard a loud voice in heaven say: “Now have salvation and power come, and the Kingdom of our God and the authority of his Anointed One. Rev (12:10) Then comes the end, when [Christ] hands over the Kingdom to his God and Father, when he has destroyed every sovereignty and every authority and power. For he must reign until he has put all his enemies under his feet. The last enemy to be destroyed is death, for...

Recently I have found a persistent line of questioning in reference to the traditional understanding of the Lord’s promise to the Church: the gates of Hell shall not prevail against it (Matt 16:18) . Yesterday on the blog a reader stated the question quite well:This is just a curiosity question, but why is it that “gates” is always phrased by Catholics as if they were an offensive weapon being wielded against the Church? I’ve never heard them used as such ….But in the normal usage of the word “gates” wouldn’t it be that the Church is doing the attacking against...

Chick-fil-A reported record sales last Wednesday as thousands showed support for owner Dan Cathy and his stance on Biblical marriage. However, while individual believers stood in long lines to publicly endorse God’s plan for the family and vent their frustration at the media’s criticism of Dan Cathy’s Biblical stance, a number of churches seemed to opt out of the conflict. While the mayors of three large cities and a few University administrators were publicly threatening to ban Chick-fil-A, and while the discussion was the hot news topic of the week, there were many ministers who said little or nothing at...

The greatest blot against our national record in the sight of Almighty God is the innocent blood we shed under the guise of individual rights. We treasure and sanctify our human rights, idolizing liberty,but we do not honor Life, which is the greatest gift the Lord has given His Church. In Truth, it is we who belong to His True Church who are most responsible for the destruction that swiftly approaches our shores. We have brought it upon ourselves, because we have valued wealth, property and a whole host of depravities more than the Sanctity Of Human Life. Jeremiah 22:3...

Coinciding with the 37th anniversary of the infamous Roe v Wade Supreme Court decision, a decision that is responsible for the legalized murder of more than 50 million innocent human beings, Planned Parenthood, the largest abortion provider in America, has built a 78,000 square foot abomination in Houston, Texas.

1. Fear of Man: your regard for God and His opinion must trump the trepidation of the creature God created from spit and mud. Come on, man of God, don’t fear the crowd ... 4. Last Days Madness: Many ministers do not get involved in political issues because they believe that “it simply doesn’t matter” since “the end has come.” These defeatists believe that any change in the jet stream, war, earthquakes, a warming globe, the success of a corrupt politician—or even a new Shakira video—are “proof” that God is getting really, really ticked off and that His only recourse...

CANNES, France (Reuters) - Journalists gave eagerly awaited film "The Da Vinci Code" a cool reception at its first press screening on Tuesday, a day ahead of the world premiere of the adaptation of Dan Brown's controversial novel. The release of the big-budget Hollywood thriller has already prompted a wave of protests from Christians across the world who believe the theories put forward in the novel are blasphemous. One of the central characters suggests Jesus Christ married Mary Magdalene and they established a dynasty which elements within the Church would stop at nothing to try to cover up. The outcry...

Fundamentals of Catholicism by Father Robert Altier Lesson 10: The Church (Part 2) In the previous lesson, we were talking about Peter, and now we want to move into his successors and look at the primacy of the Pope. The purpose of the papacy is to preserve the unity and the solidarity of the Church for all time. You have to have a head; there has to be a point of unity, otherwise we split up. All you have to do is look at any of the groups that have broken from the Church. Immediately, they start splintering into all...

Fundamentals of Catholicism by Father Robert Altier Lesson 9: The Church (Part 1) [Class begins with the recitation of the Our Father] We are going to cover one of the most important topics, especially of our day, and that is the topic of ecclesiology. The word ecclesiology means “the study of the Church.” That comes from the Greek word ekklesia. Ekklesia means “an assembly, a gathering, a community” – or the Church. It means a convocation or a meeting of people. When we talk about the Catholic Church, the word Catholic means “universal, complete, whole, total,” or something along those...

I've Got To Get Some Things Off My Chest Greg Austin! www.gregaustin.org Don't Read This I warned you - I asked you NOT to read this, but here you are anyway . . . . Consider yourself warned! I've gotta say something. It's going to make some good, Emerging Church folks mad and it's going to offend "Ex-Church" friends alike. Some "Institutional Church" people won't like what I'm going to say any better. What I need to say is going to be extremely controversial, and knowing I'm going to stir folks up, I'm going to speak out anyway. Get mad...

Sunday morning arrived, like so many before, with a mix of sunlight and chirping birds outside my bedroom window and a warm greeting from my tiny son, lying beside my wife and me. My wife rose quickly, announcing her plan to jump in the shower and get ready for Sunday school at the Baptist church, not far from our house in suburban Chicago, that she and our two children attend. As for me, in what has become my ritual nowadays, I turned over and pulled the covers up around my head. Soon I overheard my 9-year-old daughter's familiar question: "Mommy,...

Over the last few years, there’s been increasing political and cultural pressure to keep Christian influence out of public affairs. We’ve seen it in restrictions on prayer at public events, on posting of the Ten Commandments and the recent Supreme Court case. We see it when politicians or the media describe evangelical Christians as “bigots.” One of my greatest worries is that the Church will oblige the secularists by retreating into our safe sanctuaries. I’ve had religious leaders tell me that all we need to do is lead people to Christ and keep them in our churches, and that’s the...

Robert Mugabe's purge of the poor, code-named "Operation Murambatsvina", which has cut a swathe of destruction across the country and displaced more than a million Zimbabwean's from their homes and workplaces, must rank as the greatest single terrorist act for which he is ultimately responsible after Gukurahundi - the brutal campaign of the mid 1980s led by the notorious Fifth Brigade which resulted in the slaughter of between 20,000 and 40,000 Matabele. ... As the horror of the Mugabe tsunami becomes clear for all to see, the question arises where is the Church in all this? Surely the Church has...