Posted on 07/22/2007 7:40:38 PM PDT by xzins
Wednesday, 11 July 2007
Yesterday's Reuters headline: "The Vatican on Tuesday said Christian denominations outside the Roman Catholic Church were not full churches of Jesus Christ." The actual proclamation, posted on the official Vatican Web site, says that Protestant Churches are really "ecclesial communities" rather than Churches, because they lack apostolic succession, and therefore they "have not preserved the genuine and integral substance of the Eucharistic Mystery." Furthermore, not even the Eastern Orthodox Churches are real Churches, even though they were explicitly referred to as such in the Vatican document Unitatis Redintegratio (Decree on Ecumenism). The new document explains that they were only called Churches because "the Council wanted to adopt the traditional use of the term." This new clarification, issued officially by the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, but in fact strongly supported by Pope Benedict XVI, manages to insult both Protestants and the Orthodox, and it may set ecumenism back a hundred years.
The new document, officially entitled "Responses to Some Questions Regarding Certain Aspects of the Doctrine on the Church," claims that the positions it takes do not reverse the intent of various Vatican II documents, especially Unitatis Redintegratio, but merely clarify them. In support of this contention, it cites other documents, all issued by the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith: Mysterium Ecclesiae (1973), Communionis notio (1992), and Dominus Iesus (2000). The last two of these documents were issued while the current pope, as Cardinal Ratzinger, was prefect of the Congregation. The Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith was born in 1542 with the name Sacred Congregation of the Universal Inquisition, and for centuries it has operated as an extremely conservative force with the Roman Catholic Church, opposing innovation and modernizing tendencies, suppressing dissent, and sometimes, in its first few centuries, persecuting those who believed differently. More recently, the congregation has engaged in the suppression of some of Catholicism's most innovative and committed thinkers, such as Yves Congar, Hans Küng, Charles Curran, Matthew Fox, and Jon Sobrino and other liberation theologians. In light of the history of the Congregation of the Faith, such conservative statements as those released this week are hardly surprising, though they are quite unwelcome.
It is natural for members of various Christian Churches to believe that the institutions to which they belong are the best representatives of Christ's body on earth--otherwise, why wouldn't they join a different Church? It is disingenuous, however, for the leader of a Church that has committed itself "irrevocably" (to use Pope John Paul II's word in Ut Unum Sint [That They May Be One] 3, emphasis original) to ecumenism to claim to be interested in unity while at the same time declaring that all other Christians belong to Churches that are in some way deficient. How different was the attitude of Benedict's predecessors, who wrote, "In subsequent centuries much more serious dissensions appeared and large communities became separated from full communion with the [Roman] Catholic Church--for which, often enough, men of both sides were to blame" (Unitatis Redintegratio 3). In Benedict's view, at various times in history groups of Christians wandered from the original, pure Roman Catholic Church, and any notion of Christian unity today is predicated on the idea of those groups abandoning their errors and returning to the Roman Catholic fold. The pope's problem seems to be that he is a theologian rather than a historian. Otherwise he could not possibly make such outrageous statements and think that they were compatible with the spirit of ecumenism that his immediate predecessors promoted.
One of the pope's most strident arguments against the validity of other Churches is that they can't trace their bishops' lineages back to the original apostles, as the bishops in the Roman Catholic Church can. There are three problems with this idea.
First, many Protestants deny the importance of apostolic succession as a guarantor of legitimacy. They would argue that faithfulness to the Bible and/or the teachings of Christ is a better measure of authentic Christian faith than the ability to trace one's spiritual ancestry through an ecclesiastical bureaucracy. A peripheral knowledge of the lives of some of the medieval and early modern popes (e.g., Stephen VI, Sergius III, Innocent VIII, Alexander VI) is enough to call the insistence on apostolic succession into serious question. Moreover, the Avignon Papacy and the divided lines of papal claimants in subsequent decades calls into serious question the legitimacy of the whole approach. Perhaps the strongest argument against the necessity of apostolic succession comes from the Apostle Paul, who was an acknowledged apostle despite not having been ordained by one of Jesus' original twelve disciples. In fact, Paul makes much of the fact that his authority came directly from Jesus Christ rather than from one of the apostles (Gal 1:11-12). Apostolic succession was a useful tool for combating incipient heresy and establishing the antiquity of the churches in particular locales, but merely stating that apostolic succession is a necessary prerequisite for being a true church does not make it so.
The second problem with the new document's insistence upon apostolic succession is the fact that at least three other Christian communions have apostolic succession claims that are as valid as that of the Roman Catholic Church. The Eastern Orthodox Churches, which split from the Roman Catholic Church in 1054, can trace their lineages back to the same apostles that the Roman Catholic Church can, a fact acknowledged by Unitatis Redintegratio 14. The Oriental Orthodox Churches, such as the Coptic and Ethiopic Orthodox Churches, split from the Roman Catholic Church several centuries earlier, but they too can trace their episcopal lineages back to the same apostles claimed by the Roman Catholic Church as its founders. Finally, the Anglican Church, which broke away from the Roman Catholic Church during the reign of King Henry VIII, can likewise trace the lineage of every bishop back through the first archbishop of Canterbury, Augustine. In addition to these three collections of Christian Churches, the Old Catholics and some Methodists also see value in the idea of apostolic succession, and they can trace their episcopal lineages just as far back as Catholic bishops can.
The third problem with the idea of apostolic succession is that the earliest bishops in certain places are simply unknown, and the lists produced in the third and fourth centuries that purported to identify every bishop back to the founding of the church in a particular area were often historically unreliable. Who was the founding bishop of Byzantium? Who brought the gospel to Alexandria? To Edessa? To Antioch? There are lists that give names (e.g., http://www.friesian.com/popes.htm), such as the Apostles Mark (Alexandria), Andrew (Byzantium), and Thaddeus (Armenia), but the association of the apostles with the founding of these churches is legendary, not historical. The most obvious breakdown of historicity in the realm of apostolic succession involves none other than the see occupied by the pope, the bishop of Rome. It is certain that Peter did make his way to Rome before the time of Nero, where he perished, apparently in the Neronian persecution following the Great Fire of Rome, but it is equally certain that the church in Rome predates Peter, as it also predates Paul's arrival there (Paul also apparently died during the Neronian persecution). The Roman Catholic Church may legitimately claim a close association with both Peter and Paul, but it may not legitimately claim that either was the founder of the church there. The fact of the matter is that the gospel reached Rome, Alexandria, Antioch, Edessa, and other early centers of Christianity in the hands of unknown, faithful Christians, not apostles, and the legitimacy of the churches established there did not suffer in the least because of it.
All the talk in the new document about apostolic succession is merely a smokescreen, however, for the main point that the Congregation of the Faith and the pope wanted to drive home: recognition of the absolute primacy of the pope. After playing with the words "subsists in" (Lumen Gentium [Dogmatic Constitution on the Church] 8) and "church" (Unitatis Redintegratio 14) in an effort to make them mean something other than what they originally meant, the document gets down to the nitty-gritty. "Since communion with the Catholic Church, the visible head of which is the Bishop of Rome and the Successor of Peter, is not some external complement to a particular Church but rather one of its internal constitutive principles, these venerable Christian communities lack something in their condition as particular churches." From an ecumenical standpoint, this position is a non-starter. Communion with Rome and acknowledging the authority of the pope as bishop of Rome is a far different matter from recognizing the pope as the "visible head" of the entire church, without peer. The pope is an intelligent man, and he knows that discussions with other Churches will make no progress on the basis of this prerequisite, so the only conclusion that can be drawn is that the pope, despite his protestations, has no interest in pursuing ecumenism. Trying to persuade other Christians to become Roman Catholics, which is evidently the pope's approach to other Churches, is not ecumenism, it's proselytism.
Fortunately, this document does not represent the viewpoint of all Catholics, either laypeople or scholars. Many ordinary Catholics would scoff at the idea that other denominations were not legitimate Churches, which just happen to have different ideas about certain topics and different ways of expressing a common Christianity. Similarly, many Catholic scholars are doing impressive work in areas such as theology, history, biblical study, and ethics, work that interacts with ideas produced by non-Catholic scholars. In the classroom and in publications, Catholics and non-Catholics learn from each other, challenge one another, and, perhaps most importantly, respect one another.
How does one define the Church? Christians have many different understandings of the term, and Catholics are divided among themselves, as are non-Catholics. The ecumenical movement is engaged in addressing this issue in thoughtful, meaningful, and respectful ways. Will the narrow-minded view expressed in "Responses" be the death-knell of the ecumenical movement? Hardly. Unity among Christians is too important an idea to be set aside. Will the document set back ecumenical efforts? Perhaps, but Christians committed to Christian unity--Catholic, Orthodox, and Protestant alike--will get beyond it. The ecumenical movement is alive and well, and no intemperate pronouncement from the Congregation of the Faith, or the current pope, can restrain it for long. Even if ecumenism, at least as it involves the Roman Catholic Church's connection with other Churches, is temporarily set back a hundred years, that distance can be closed either by changes of heart or changes of leadership.
I therefore must conclude that you do not believe the words of Christ.
For had ye believed Moses, ye would have believed me: for he wrote of me. But if ye believe not his writings, how shall ye believe my words? (John 5:46-47 KJV)
Indeed.
Do you believe the Holy Spirit indwells believers?
If you do believe the Holy Spirit indwells believers, do you believe it is dormant?
I believe our LORD and SAVIOUR and what He promised.
John 16:13 However, when He the Spirit of truth, has come, He will guide you into all truth...
Great Point!
Spoken like a true Gnostic.
Circular logic. You believe that you have the Holy Spirit in you. The Holy Spirit guides you to inerrant truth. The truth that you have come to is that that Holy Spirit guides your beliefs and actions. You believe that you have the Holy Spirit in you...
The Holy Spirit will indeed guide all men to truth. The learning institution that Jesus left for us is the instrument through which the Holy Spirit works.
Private interpretation has led to the pig’s breakfast that most Protestants have made of their own personal theologies.
Elitist snobbery as well as irresponsibility.
Catholics worship God, not man made straw men. How many times does the Bible say that we are to be judged by our actions and those found to act badly will be sent to everlasting hellfire?
Step up to the plate and act like a man. Or woman, if you prefer. Take responsibility. The Lamb will Judge you. And it isn’t going to be whether or not the indwelling Holy Spirit (or intestinal discomfort) has directed you to a particular misreading of the Bible (or maybe it might...).
Don't misread what I said Kosta. In no way did I satanize or ridicule your Church, or any other. What I did say was to hold what churches say to the light of God's word. That has to be the deciding factor, not holding His word to what the churches say, any churches.
I don't identify you with Luther or Calvin, but with your own selves.
Thank you Kosta, I appreciate that.
It would be proper to leave the Church out of this and direct your comments at my opinions.
I'm trying to. That is what I have been saying in my last few posts to you.
You personally refuse to know more about the Bible but take the pretty bound volumes that you have at home as the "original" product. That's fine with me. But don't try to peddle your own conviction as universal truth.
No I don't. I understand there have been errors in translation. However, what I have to work with is my KJV Companion bible, in which corrections are pointed out. I also use the Concordance to try my best to understand what the original meaning of the words are. Even with mistakes in translations I can see that overall the Bible is Divinely Inspired and is there for us to study.
If you really do not believe and follow any man, then how can you follow your own convictions?
Again, I never said that. You learn from your church, from your teachers but what they teach you should be held against His Word. That is all I'm saying. If it isn't in the Word, or if it's against what God taught then it is false.
Why is what you believe any more true than that of any other human or even the Church?
I try to base what I believe only on the written Word but, being human and in no way a scholar, I will be wrong on some issues, perhaps many. If and when I am I expect to be corrected and shown the truth of the matter. That is what I have been asking for on this thread. If I have misunderstood the meaning of the scriptures about the 3 ages and what happened in the Garden I certainly expect someone to step up and tell me where and how I am in error. I will listen.
It is placing yourself above everyone else while claiming you don't follow any man.
I try to follow those that teach what is contained in the Bible, including you Kosta. There are some things that I have learned and believe and it seems wrong to not tell others.
There is a scripture (I can't find it) but essentially it says, "To whom much is given, more is expected". To me that means if you are given an understanding you should tell others. If you don't, if you keep it to yourself, then how are you helping God or others? Will He continue to bring more understanding of scripture to you if what he has given stops with you?
.......Ping
You seem to spend time trying to cast doubt on the scriptures. Do you believe that God delivered them to us? That God has certified them? Did you know that scripture can speak to us without being written down? (Galatians 3:8)
John 8:46 Which of you convinceth me of sin? And if I say the truth, why do ye not believe me?It is the message that validates the messenger.
You really should have pinged the above to your #2679.
They would’ve kissed you on the cheek. :>)
It is an amazing Book, isn't it Seven?
Perhaps that is why men disagree so often.
That has to be part of His plan too. If it was simple to understand and everyone agreed would it be the Divinely Inspired work that it is?
....Ping
Well...I guess that means you aren't Mormon?
....Ping
Yeah, but then they might put me on a list.
As LPFOKETT GAHCOEEP-w/o*, I shall remain listless.
Ping-Pong: P-Marlowe has a great point Kosta. It does seem the only scriptures you agree with are the ones about the church. Most others you seem to hold in disdain
Kosta50: If you really do not believe and follow any man, then how can you follow your own convictions? Why is what you believe any more true than that of any other human or even the Church? It is placing yourself above everyone else while claiming you don't follow any man.
Wmfights: Everytime I see this type of thinking I realize how weak the EO and RC believe GOD to be. It has been made very clear by EO and RC posters that your church does not believe in the power of the HOLY SPIRIT to transform the inner heart of the elect.
Markbsnr: The premise of the elect automatically relegates us to irresponsibility, which contradicts great swathes of the Gospels, never mind the entire Bible.
P-Marlowe: I am not surprised that you did not deny my accusation that you dismiss much of what Jesus attested to because there is no verifiable evidence. I therefore must conclude that you do not believe the words of Christ.
Wmfights: Do you believe the Holy Spirit indwells believers? If you do believe the Holy Spirit indwells believers, do you believe it is dormant?
IMHO, the greatest difficulty in communicating among Christians is between those who are filled in the Holy Spirit and thus know Jesus Christ personally and those who have either not sought Him or who have resisted Him - and therefore rely on either their own sensory perception and reasoning or that of others.
Quench not the Spirit. I Th 5:19
For it is written, I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and will bring to nothing the understanding of the prudent...For the Jews require a sign, and the Greeks seek after wisdom: But we preach Christ crucified, unto the Jews a stumblingblock, and unto the Greeks foolishness; But unto them which are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God, and the wisdom of God. Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men; and the weakness of God is stronger than men. I Corinthians 1:19-25
Ye are of God, little children, and have overcome them: because greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world. They are of the world: therefore speak they of the world, and the world heareth them. We are of God: he that knoweth God heareth us; he that is not of God heareth not us. Hereby know we the spirit of truth, and the spirit of error. - I John 4:4-6
Howbeit we speak wisdom among them that are perfect: yet not the wisdom of this world, nor of the princes of this world, that come to nought: But we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, [even] the hidden [wisdom], which God ordained before the world unto our glory: ... But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him. But God hath revealed [them] unto us by his Spirit: for the Spirit searcheth all things, yea, the deep things of God. For what man knoweth the things of a man, save the spirit of man which is in him? even so the things of God knoweth no man, but the Spirit of God. Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the spirit which is of God; that we might know the things that are freely given to us of God. Which things also we speak, not in the words which man's wisdom teacheth, but which the Holy Ghost teacheth; comparing spiritual things with spiritual. But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know [them], because they are spiritually discerned... But we have the mind of Christ. II Cor 2:6-16
However, there may be truth in the assertion that some of the doctrines and traditions of men actually work against the followers being filled by the Spirit of God.
Some for instance might suggest the followers should resist Him for fear He might be Satan deceiving them which is to say God cannot protect them from Satan, so they must protect themselves. Others might say that they control who receives or does not receive the baptism of the Holy Spirit, which is to say they command God. Still others might say that the followers must embrace their teachings to avoid error which is to say, trust us, don't trust God.
Even so, no force of any kind can prevail between God and His kids. It can however rob them of their peace and joy in this mortal life. And the blowback on those who insinuated themselves is severe indeed.
But whoso shall offend one of these little ones which believe in me, it were better for him that a millstone were hanged about his neck, and [that] he were drowned in the depth of the sea. Matthew 18:6
It is the spirit that quickeneth; the flesh profiteth nothing: the words that I speak unto you, [they] are spirit, and [they] are life. John 6:63
And Jesus answering said unto them, Do ye not therefore err, because ye know not the scriptures, neither the power of God? Mark 12:24
Knowing this first, that no prophecy of the scripture is of any private interpretation. For the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man: but holy men of God spake [as they were] moved by the Holy Ghost. 2 Peter 1:20-21
Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; no more can ye, except ye abide in me. I am the vine, ye [are] the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing. John 15:4-5
Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths. Proverbs 3:5-6
No man hath seen God at any time. If we love one another, God dwelleth in us, and his love is perfected in us. Hereby know we that we dwell in him, and he in us, because he hath given us of his Spirit.
And we have seen and do testify that the Father sent the Son [to be] the Saviour of the world. Whosoever shall confess that Jesus is the Son of God, God dwelleth in him, and he in God.
And we have known and believed the love that God hath to us. God is love; and he that dwelleth in love dwelleth in God, and God in him.
Herein is our love made perfect, that we may have boldness in the day of judgment: because as he is, so are we in this world. There is no fear in love; but perfect love casteth out fear: because fear hath torment. He that feareth is not made perfect in love. We love him, because he first loved us.
If a man say, I love God, and hateth his brother, he is a liar: for he that loveth not his brother whom he hath seen, how can he love God whom he hath not seen? And this commandment have we from him, That he who loveth God love his brother also. I John 4:12-21
Don't sweat the details.
To God be the glory!
Amen!
It's been said the Reformation was a rediscovery of the truth of the indwelling Holy Spirit in the lives of God's children.
And foremost in that rediscovery after centuries of denial was John Calvin and reformers such as John Owen...
Why should this be the case? Because the Reformation's emphasis on the ministry of the Spirit took salvation out of the hands of the Church and put it back where it belonged, in the hands of God!...""...He (Owen) realised that central to the Reformation's rediscovery of the gospel had been the place, person and power of the Spirit. He saw (as Warfield later did) that Calvin was the theologian of the Holy Spirit. This was what made reformed Christianity different. In this point at least he might well have agreed with the view of Edmund Campion (the famous sixteenth-century Jesuit missionary in England) that the greatest difference between Rome and Geneva lay in the doctrine of the person and work of the Spirit.
But the truth is we are part of a spiritual world, and nothing is contrary to God's will, one way or another.
"I, even I, am he that blotteth out thy transgressions for mine own sake, and will not remember thy sins." -- Isaiah 43:25
No question about loving and following God.
The problem is those who claim that the indwelling Spirit is leading them to this conclusion, to that action or to the other theology, often to the apparent contradiction of Scripture, and of nearly all of the others who claim the same condition.
I have a picture of you, A-G, from your posts, and it is radically different from many others who also claim that the indwelling Spirit is guiding them as well, but to radically different philosophies, conclusions, interpretations and actions. I do not gainsay the idea of the Holy Spirit indwelling, indeed, since the Bible tells us so, then it is so. I believe that He is within me as well.
But what other possible conclusion can we come to than that the Holy Spirit is one voice amongst the internal babble of whims, desires, lusts and addictions and that most people only catch a little of what is being said.
That is one of the great pieces of temporal evidence that the Church is meant to be the guide. Without the Church, all else is anarchy, with every Tom Dick and Harry claiming Spiritual Guidance as the rationale behind their clearly distinctive directions. Never mind that the Bible tells us the role of the Church, as well.
I figured that post would bring you out of hiding. Where have you been?
The notion of free will exists throughout the Bible starting with Adam and Eve. Calvin was dead wrong and are are his followers.
Free will means that we can accept or reject God; we merely have the consequences to pay. Are you a proponent of the man as robot theory? Do you believe that God created men for heaven or hell and that we are merely scripted players marching to God’s tune?
I have noticed that too.. Some by what they say are articles(dogma) of the ministry of Holy Spirit ROB the Holy Spirit of his ministry and install clergy into that position.. Amazing display of a spiritual pratt fall.. or backing over and falling backwards over spiritual truth..
God bless them anyway.. Even so-called heretics are seeking god.. Even atheists are seeking god, that god being themselves.. No getting away from it.. Humans seek god even when they don't want to.. An amazing little known or recognized fact.. What you sacrifice time, resources, or effort for, you worship.. or LOVE.. no matter how briefly..
Even reading the name Calvin makes me laugh out loud. He created for himself an ugly portrait of our God. Worse still, he suckered millions into believing that garbage.
[spit]
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