Posted on 11/01/2009 3:53:11 AM PST by GonzoII
Lectionary Statistics
How much of the Bible is included in the Lectionary for Mass?
Not as much as you might think, yet far more than was included in the Roman Missal before the Second Vatican Council!
The bishops assembled at Vatican II declared, "The treasures of the Bible are to be opened up more lavishly so that a richer fare may be provided for the faithful at the table of God's word. In this way the more significant part of the Sacred Scriptures will be read to the people over a fixed number of years" (Sacrosanctum Concilium, #51). As the following tables show, the current Lectionary for Mass does indeed offer a "richer fare" of biblical readings during the Eucharistic liturgy than was available before Vatican II. However, since many parts of the Bible (esp. the Old Testament) are still not included in the Lectionary, one must go beyond the readings used at Mass to cover the entire Bible.
The following tables compare the current edition of the Lectionary for Mass (1981 Latin, 1998/2002 USA editions)
with the pre-Vatican II Missale Romanum (substantially unchanged between 1570 and 1969, with a few modifications in 1951)
and the complete New American Bible (see the bottom of this page for a key to the column headings).
Readings from the Old Testament:
Before Vatican II, each Catholic Mass included only two biblical readings, which were normally referred to as "The Epistle" (since the first reading was almost always taken from one of the New Testament letters) and "The Gospel." Readings from the Old Testament were never used on Sundays, but only at the Easter Vigil, the Vigil of Pentecost, the feast of Epiphany and its octave, during Holy Week, and on some weekdays (esp. Ember days, weekdays of Lent, the feasts of some saints, and some votive Masses).
Since Vatican II, Masses on Sundays and major feast days include three biblical readings, the first of which is usually taken from the Old Testament (except during the Easter Season, when the first reading is from the Acts of the Apostles). The OT reading is normally very brief and thematically related to the Gospel reading of the day, so there is no detectable order or semi-continuous pattern from one Sunday to the next. Weekday Masses usually have only two readings, the first of which is taken from either the OT or the NT, according to a two-year weekday cycle.
OT | Name of Book | NAB | Pre-Vatican II Missal: Vigils & Feasts |
Current Lectionary: Sundays & Major Feasts |
Current Lectionary: Sundays & Weekdays |
||||
# Chap. | # Vv. Total | Vv. Used | % Used | Vv. Used | % Used | Vv. Used | % Used | ||
1 | Genesis | 50 | 1533 | 100** | 6.5 % | 138 | 9.0 % | 428 | 27.9 % |
2 | Exodus | 40 | 1213 | 28 | 2.3 % | 112 | 9.2 % | 208 | 17.1 % |
3 | Leviticus | 27 | 859 | 0 | 0 % | 9 | 1.0 % | 42 | 4.9 % |
4 | Numbers | 36 | 1289 | 0 | 0 % | 11 | 0.9 % | 81 | 6.3 % |
5 | Deuteronomy | 34 | 959 | 9 | 0.9 % | 52 | 5.4 % | 106 | 11.1 % |
6 | Joshua | 24 | 658 | 0 | 0 % | 9 | 1.4 % | 42 | 6.4 % |
7 | Judges | 21 | 618 | 0 | 0 % | 0 | 0 % | 51 | 8.3 % |
8 | Ruth | 4 | 85 | 0 | 0 % | 0 | 0 % | 21 | 24.7 % |
9 | 1 Samuel | 31 | 810 | 0 | 0 % | 31 | 3.8 % | 148 | 18.3 % |
10 | 2 Samuel | 24 | 695 | 0 | 0 % | 19 | 2.7 % | 110 | 15.8 % |
11 | 1 Kings | 22 | 817 | 0 | 0 % | 37 | 4.5 % | 166 | 20.3 % |
12 | 2 Kings | 25 | 719 | 0 | 0 % | 14 | 1.9 % | 100 | 13.9 % |
13 | 1 Chronicles | 29 | 943 | 0 | 0 % | 0 | 0 % | 0 | 0 % |
14 | 2 Chronicles | 36 | 821 | 0 | 0 % | 8 | 1.0 % | 17 | 2.1 % |
15 | Ezra | 10 | 280 | 0 | 0 % | 0 | 0 % | 21 | 7.5 % |
16 | Nehemiah | 13 | 405 | 0 | 0 % | 8 | 2.0 % | 19 | 4.7 % |
17 | Tobit | 14 | 245 | 0 | 0 % | 0 | 0 % | 71 | 29.0 % |
18 | Judith | 16 | 340 | 0 | 0 % | 0 | 0 % | 0 | 0 % |
19 | Esther | 16 | 272 | 0 | 0 % | 0 | 0 % | 7 | 2.6 % |
20 | 1 Maccabees | 16 | 922 | 0 | 0 % | 0 | 0 % | 54 | 5.9 % |
21 | 2 Maccabees | 15 | 556 | 0 | 0 % | 8 | 1.4 % | 35 | 6.3 % |
22* | Job | 42 | 1068 | 0 | 0 % | 11 | 1.0 % | 87 | 8.1 % |
24* | Proverbs | 31 | 915 | 0 | 0 % | 24 | 2.6 % | 47 | 5.1 % |
25 | Ecclesiastes | 12 | 222 | 0 | 0 % | 4 | 1.8 % | 34 | 15.3 % |
26 | Song of Solomon | 8 | 117 | 0 | 0 % | 0 | 0 % | 7 | 6.0 % |
27 | Wisdom of Solomon | 19 | 436 | 0 | 0 % | 42 | 9.6 % | 102 | 23.4 % |
28 | Sirach/Ecclesiasticus | 51 | 1372 | 0 | 0 % | 48 | 3.5 % | 208 | 15.2 % |
29 | Isaiah | 66 | 1291 | 24** | 1.9 % | 166 | 12.9 % | 322 | 24.9 % |
30 | Jeremiah | 52 | 1364 | 0 | 0 % | 38 | 2.8 % | 162 | 11.9 % |
31 | Lamentations | 5 | 154 | 0 | 0 % | 0 | 0 % | 8 | 5.2 % |
32 | Baruch | 6 | 213 | 30** | 14.1 % | 27 | 12.7 % | 44 | 20.7 % |
33 | Ezekiel | 48 | 1273 | 14** | 1.1 % | 48 | 3.8 % | 180 | 14.1 % |
34 | Daniel | 14 | 530 | 24** | 4.5 % | 5 | 0.9 % | 178 | 33.6 % |
35 | Hosea | 14 | 197 | 16 | 8.1 % | 11 | 5.6 % | 38 | 19.3 % |
36 | Joel | 4 | 73 | 0 | 0 % | 5 | 6.8 % | 27 | 37.0 % |
37 | Amos | 9 | 146 | 0 | 0 % | 13 | 8.9 % | 51 | 34.9 % |
38 | Obadiah | 1 | 21 | 0 | 0 % | 0 | 0 % | 0 | 0 % |
39 | Jonah | 4 | 48 | 10** | 20.8 % | 6 | 12.5 % | 39 | 81.3 % |
40 | Micah | 7 | 105 | 0 | 0 % | 4 | 3.8 % | 24 | 22.9 % |
41 | Nahum | 3 | 47 | 0 | 0 % | 0 | 0 % | 8 | 17.0 % |
42 | Habakkuk | 3 | 56 | 0 | 0 % | 5 | 8.9 % | 12 | 21.4 % |
43 | Zephaniah | 3 | 53 | 0 | 0 % | 8 | 15.1 % | 13 | 24.5 % |
44 | Haggai | 2 | 38 | 0 | 0 % | 0 | 0 % | 18 | 47.4 % |
45 | Zechariah | 14 | 211 | 0 | 0 % | 5 | 2.4 % | 24 | 11.4 % |
46 | Malachi | 3 | 55 | 0 | 0 % | 6 | 10.9 % | 18 | 32.7 % |
OT Summary:
OT Section | NAB | Pre-Vatican II Missal: Vigils & Feasts |
Current Lectionary: Sundays & Major Feasts |
Current Lectionary: Sundays & Weekdays |
||||
# Chap. | # Vv. Total | Vv. Used | % Used | Vv. Used | % Used | Vv. Used | % Used | |
Torah/Law | 187 | 5853 | 137 | 2.3 % | 322 | 5.5 % | 865 | 14.8 % |
Historical Books | 316 | 9186 | 0 | 0 % | 134 | 1.5 % | 862 | 9.4 % |
Wisdom Books (w/o Psalms) | 163 | 4130 | 0 | 0 % | 129 | 3.1 % | 485 | 11.7 % |
Four Major Prophets | 191 | 4825 | 92 | 1.9 % | 284 | 5.9 % | 894 | 18.5 % |
Twelve Minor Prophets | 67 | 1050 | 26 | 2.5 % | 63 | 6.0 % | 272 | 25.9 % |
OT Total (w/o Psalms) | 924 | 25044 | 255 | 1.0 % | 932 | 3.7 % | 3378 | 13.5 % |
Readings from the New Testament:
Before Vatican II, the same readings were used each year for the various Masses in the Roman Missal. The first reading was usually from one of Paul's Letters or the Catholic Epistles. The Gospel readings were most often taken from Matthew or John, less frequently from Luke, and only rarely from Mark.
Since Vatican II, much more of the New Testament is included in the Lectionary for Mass. The Acts of the Apostles is used as the first reading on the Sundays and weekdays during the Easter season. The Gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke are read semi-continuously on the Sundays of Ordinary Time on a three-year cycle, while passages from the Gospel of John are used mostly during the seasons of Lent and Easter and on several major feast days. Excerpts from all other NT books and letters are used as the second reading at Masses on Sundays and major feasts according to a three-year cycle, and/or weekday Masses on a two-year cycle. (Click on any of the previous underlined links for more details.)
NT | Name of Book | NAB | Pre-Vatican II Missal: Sundays & Major Feasts |
Current Lectionary: Sundays & Major Feasts |
Current Lectionary: Sundays & Weekdays |
||||
# Chap. | # Vv. Total | Vv. Used | % Used | Vv. Used | % Used | Vv. Used | % Used | ||
1 | Matthew | 28 | 1071 | 373 | 34.8 % | 594 | 55.5 % | 916 | 85.5 % |
2 | Mark | 16 | 678 | 30 | 3.4 % | 414 | 61.1 % | 653 | 96.3 % |
3 | Luke | 24 | 1151 | 188 | 16.3 % | 650 | 56.5 % | 1011 | 87.8 % |
4 | John | 21 | 879 | 256 | 30.0 % | 526 | 59.8 % | 813 | 92.5 % |
5 | Acts | 28 | 1007 | 35 | 3.5 % | 165 | 16.4 % | 492 | 48.9 % |
6 | Romans | 16 | 433 | 69 | 15.9 % | 117 | 27.0 % | 228 | 52.7 % |
7 | 1 Corinthians | 16 | 437 | 75 | 17.2 % | 162 | 37.1 % | 244 | 55.8 % |
8 | 2 Corinthians | 13 | 256 | 40 | 15.6 % | 48 | 18.8 % | 123 | 48.0 % |
9 | Galatians | 6 | 149 | 45 | 30.2 % | 47 | 31.5 % | 90 | 60.4 % |
10 | Ephesians | 6 | 155 | 57 | 36.8 % | 96 | 61.9 % | 141 | 91.0 % |
11 | Philippians | 4 | 104 | 25 | 24.0 % | 47 | 45.2 % | 73 | 70.2 % |
12 | Colossians | 4 | 95 | 16 | 16.8 % | 35 | 36.8 % | 62 | 65.3 % |
13 | 1 Thessalonians | 5 | 89 | 16 | 18.0 % | 39 | 43.8 % | 69 | 77.5 % |
14 | 2 Thessalonians | 3 | 47 | 0 | 0.0 % | 17 | 36.2 % | 28 | 59.6 % |
15 | 1 Timothy | 6 | 113 | 0 | 0.0 % | 20 | 17.7 % | 51 | 45.1 % |
16 | 2 Timothy | 4 | 83 | 0 | 0.0 % | 25 | 30.1 % | 39 | 47.0 % |
17 | Titus | 3 | 46 | 9 | 19.6 % | 8 | 17.4 % | 28 | 60.9 % |
18 | Philemon | 1 | 25 | 0 | 0.0 % | 8 | 32.0 % | 19 | 76.0 % |
19 | Hebrews | 13 | 303 | 17 | 5.6 % | 84 | 27.7 % | 188 | 62.0 % |
20 | James | 5 | 108 | 11 | 10.2 % | 31 | 28.7 % | 99 | 91.7 % |
21 | 1 Peter | 5 | 105 | 33 | 31.4 % | 36 | 34.3 % | 57 | 54.3 % |
22 | 2 Peter | 3 | 61 | 0 | 0.0 % | 7 | 11.5 % | 15 | 24.6 % |
23 | 1 John | 5 | 105 | 13 | 12.4 % | 33 | 31.4 % | 95 | 100.0 % |
24 | 2 John | 1 | 13 | 0 | 0.0 % | 0 | 0.0 % | 6 | 46.2 % |
25 | 3 John | 1 | 15 | 0 | 0.0 % | 0 | 0.0 % | 4 | 26.7 % |
26 | Jude | 1 | 25 | 0 | 0.0 % | 0 | 0.0 % | 6 | 24.0 % |
27 | Revelation | 22 | 404 | 0 | 0.0 % | 38 | 9.4 % | 129 | 31.9 % |
NT Summary:
NT Section | NAB | Pre-Vatican II Missal: Sundays & Major Feasts |
Current Lectionary: Sundays & Major Feasts |
Current Lectionary: |
||||
# Chap. | # Vv. Total | Vv. Used | % Used | Vv. Used | % Used | Vv. Used | % Used | |
Gospels (4) | 89 | 3779 | 848 | 22.4 % | 2184 | 57.8 % | 3393 | 89.8 % |
Acts | 28 | 1007 | 35 | 3.5 % | 165 | 16.4 % | 492 | 48.9 % |
Pauline Letters (7) | 61 | 1493 | 270 | 18.1 % | 468 | 31.3 % | 846 | 56.7 % |
Deutero-Paulines (6) | 26 | 539 | 82 | 15.2 % | 201 | 37.3 % | 349 | 64.7 % |
Hebrews | 13 | 303 | 17 | 5.6 % | 84 | 27.6 % | 188 | 62.0 % |
Catholic Epistles (7) | 21 | 432 | 57 | 13.2 % | 107 | 24.7 % | 292 | 67.6 % |
Book of Revelation | 22 | 404 | 0 | 0 % | 38 | 9.4 % | 129 | 31.9 % |
NT w/o Gospels | 171 | 4178 | 461 | 11.0 % | 1063 | 25.4 % | 2296 | 54.9 % |
NT Grand Total | 260 | 7957 | 1309 | 16.5 % | 3247 | 40.8 % | 5689 | 71.5 % |
Key to the Column Headings:
Main Lectionary Page | 1998/2002 USA Edition | 1992 Canadian Edition |
Links to Other Websites | 1970 USA Edition | Roman Missal (Pre-Vatican II) |
Return to the HOME PAGE of Felix Just, S.J.
This page was last updated on January 2, 2009.
web version copyright © 1999--2006
The Liturgical Calendar
Liturgical Calendar 2009 (Dec 2008 through Nov 2009)
November 30, 2008 is the first Sunday of Advent
Liturgical Calendar 2010 (Dec 2009 through Nov 2010)
November 29, 2009 is the first Sunday of Advent
Liturgical Calendar 2011 (Dec 2010 through Nov 2011)
November 28, 2010 is the first Sunday of Advent
The Liturgical Year begins with the First Sunday of Advent
List of Seasons with links
They also have the major hours accessible by smartphone. Only takes about 15 minutes each for the morning and evening; maybe 20 minutes for the Office of Readings (which can be done at any time).
You have *no* idea who you’re dealing with, regarding matters of liturgy, exegesis and theology.
Retreat honorably.
*Now*.
:)
It seems the first table is following a Two Year Cycle....
Ping greatly appreciated!
Baloney.
” Using the scripture to challenge the authority of the Catholic Church is ALWAYS a case of “a ‘little knowledge’ can be dangerous.”
“Passing judgement” on the Catholic Church using the Bible is as supercilious and naive as “correcting” great literature using a grammar text.”
If one grants the Magisterium the authority to add teachings based on ‘Sacred Tradition’, which does NOT mean traditions passed down verbally from the Apostles, then your statement is correct.
I guess it is up to one’s tolerance for innovation to decide if Purgatory, or Priests offering sacrifice is too great an innovation to be true. If one accepts continuous revelation (continuous clarification????), then Catholic doctrine may be true. If one believes the Apostles knew all the truth that was needed for salvation and holy living, then Catholic doctrine is not.
Percentage read, the 39 Books of the Old Testament [Excluding the Psalms]:
10% or more OT: 28 books (4 Apocrypha)
20% or more OT: 16 books (3 Apocrypha)
30% or more OT: 6 books (0 Apocrypha)
40% or more OT: 2 books (0 Apocrypha)
80% or more OT: 1 book (0 Apocrypha)
Percentage read, the 27 Books of the New Testament:
20% or more NT: 27 books
30% or more NT: 24 books
40% or more NT: 23 books
50% or more NT: 18 books
60% or more NT: 14 books
70% or more NT: 10 books
80% or more NT: 7 books
90% or more NT: 5 books
100% of the NT: 1 book
Reproducing the summary charts from the article:
OT Summary:
OT Section | NAB | Pre-Vatican II Missal: Vigils & Feasts |
Current Lectionary: Sundays & Major Feasts |
Current Lectionary: Sundays & Weekdays |
||||
# Chap. | # Vv. Total | Vv. Used | % Used | Vv. Used | % Used | Vv. Used | % Used | |
Torah/Law | 187 | 5853 | 137 | 2.3 % | 322 | 5.5 % | 865 | 14.8 % |
Historical Books | 316 | 9186 | 0 | 0 % | 134 | 1.5 % | 862 | 9.4 % |
Wisdom Books (w/o Psalms) | 163 | 4130 | 0 | 0 % | 129 | 3.1 % | 485 | 11.7 % |
Four Major Prophets | 191 | 4825 | 92 | 1.9 % | 284 | 5.9 % | 894 | 18.5 % |
Twelve Minor Prophets | 67 | 1050 | 26 | 2.5 % | 63 | 6.0 % | 272 | 25.9 % |
OT Total (w/o Psalms) | 924 | 25044 | 255 | 1.0 % | 932 | 3.7 % | 3378 | 13.5 % |
NT Summary:
NT Section | NAB | Pre-Vatican II Missal: Sundays & Major Feasts |
Current Lectionary: Sundays & Major Feasts |
Current Lectionary: |
||||
# Chap. | # Vv. Total | Vv. Used | % Used | Vv. Used | % Used | Vv. Used | % Used | |
Gospels (4) | 89 | 3779 | 848 | 22.4 % | 2184 | 57.8 % | 3393 | 89.8 % |
Acts | 28 | 1007 | 35 | 3.5 % | 165 | 16.4 % | 492 | 48.9 % |
Pauline Letters (7) | 61 | 1493 | 270 | 18.1 % | 468 | 31.3 % | 846 | 56.7 % |
Deutero-Paulines (6) | 26 | 539 | 82 | 15.2 % | 201 | 37.3 % | 349 | 64.7 % |
Hebrews | 13 | 303 | 17 | 5.6 % | 84 | 27.6 % | 188 | 62.0 % |
Catholic Epistles (7) | 21 | 432 | 57 | 13.2 % | 107 | 24.7 % | 292 | 67.6 % |
Book of Revelation | 22 | 404 | 0 | 0 % | 38 | 9.4 % | 129 | 31.9 % |
NT w/o Gospels | 171 | 4178 | 461 | 11.0 % | 1063 | 25.4 % | 2296 | 54.9 % |
NT Grand Total | 260 | 7957 | 1309 | 16.5 % | 3247 | 40.8 % | 5689 | 71.5 % |
Wow, you've always been succinct, but that's a little TOO brief ;o)
one would STILL need a mechanism to perform the same function as the Magisterium, without which the concept of heresy becomes meaningless.
Get a “Shorter Christian Prayer” (No, really, it doesn’t matter how tall you are) and keep it handy. If you just give yourself the assignment of reading the Morning and Evening Psalms and Canticles you’ll be doing a fine thing. The rest will come easily at its own time.
At the risk of saying what everybody already knows, the Sunday Mass Lectionary is a 3 year cycle, while the weekday Mass Lectionary is a two year cycle.
Q. If Purgatory is and innovation of the Catholic Church how is it that the Jews, prior to Christ and the establishment of the Catholic Church, taught that one should pray for the dead.
I cite the historical book of 2-Maccabees Ch. 12 for evidence:
"39 And upon the day following, as the practice had been, Judas and his company came to take up the bodies of those who were slain, and to bury them with their kinsmen in their fathers' graves. 40 Now under the coats of every one who was slain they found things consecrated to the idols of the Jamnites, which is forbidden the Jews by the law. Then every man saw that this was the cause for which they were slain. 41 All men therefore, praising the Lord, the righteous Judge, who had opened the things that were hid, 42 resorted unto prayer and besought Him that the sin committed might wholly be put out of remembrance. Besides, that noble Judas exhorted the people to keep themselves from sin, inasmuch as they saw before their eyes the things that came to pass for the sins of those who were slain. 43 And when he had taken a gathering throughout the company to the sum of two thousand drachmas of silver, he sent it to Jerusalem to offer a sin offering, doing therein very well and honorably, in that he was mindful of the resurrection. 44 (For if he had not hoped that those who were slain should have risen again, it would have been superfluous and vain to pray for the dead.) 45 And also in that he perceived that there was great favor laid up for those who died godly, it was a holy and good thought. Thereupon he made a reconciliation for the dead, that they might be delivered from sin. " Third Millennium Bible
If you just give yourself the assignment of reading the Morning and Evening Psalms and Canticles youll be doing a fine thing.
That’s what I attempt to do, but my goal is to move on up to as much of the Breviary as possible as it is powerful prayer and I would liked to get schooled by the office of readings.
Thanks for the tip.
Did the Jews accept 2 Maccabees as scripture? Nope.
Can one pay cash for forgiveness of sins? Nope, for we read, “Indeed, under the law almost everything is purified with blood, and without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness of sins.”
And now?
“24For Christ has entered, not into holy places made with hands, which are copies of the true things, but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God on our behalf. 25Nor was it to offer himself repeatedly, as the high priest enters the holy places every year with blood not his own, 26for then he would have had to suffer repeatedly since the foundation of the world. But as it is, he has appeared once for all at the end of the ages to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself. 27And just as it is appointed for man to die once, and after that comes judgment, 28so Christ, having been offered once to bear the sins of many, will appear a second time, not to deal with sin but to save those who are eagerly waiting for him.”
Of course, you can assume the payment made was for a blood offering that would make everything OK, but the whole scene of Jesus cleansing the Temple kinda puts a damper on that, too. Although I have no doubt that at one time, that passage was used to show paying for an indulgence was OK...
The real problem with Purgatory is not that it relies on a verse (or maybe 3) in the Apocryphal books to set up such a sweeping doctrine, but that it contradicts the finished work of Jesus Christ. Justification, in the New Testament, after the resurrection of Jesus, is spoken of in the past tense.
“And every [Jewish] priest stands daily at his service, offering repeatedly the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins. But when Christ had offered for all time a single sacrifice for sins, he sat down at the right hand of God, waiting from that time until his enemies should be made a footstool for his feet. For by a single offering he has perfected [past tense] for all time [not just the moment] those who are being sanctified.
And the Holy Spirit also bears witness to us; for after saying,
“This is the covenant that I will make with them
after those days, declares the Lord:
I will put my laws on their hearts,
and write them on their minds,”
then he adds,
“I will remember their sins and their lawless deeds no more.”
Where there is forgiveness of these, there is no longer any offering for sin.”
So NO! There is no cash payment, no good-deed doing, NOTHING left to do to secure our forgiveness of sin. Nothing but to believe in Jesus, for “Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already”.
“Therefore, brothers, since we have confidence to enter the holy places by the blood of Jesus, by the new and living way that he opened for us through the curtain, that is, through his flesh, and since we have a great priest over the house of God, let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, with our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water. Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for he who promised is faithful.” — Hebrews 10
No penance you do will win you merit with God, nor can any Mass performed or gift given to the Church win you merit with God. JESUS provides the merit to those who believe. And God says, “I will remember their sins and their lawless deeds no more.”
Perhaps because I’m the father of two adopted kids, I would paraphrase Heb 10:14 as “For by a single offering he has adopted for all time those who are being made part of his family”. The kids I adopted couldn’t speak a word of English when I adopted them. They took a long time to start to act like their parents...but the adoption was once, for all time.
It is finished!
“...one would STILL need a mechanism to perform the same function as the Magisterium, without which the concept of heresy becomes meaningless.”
That is the role of elders in the church. Matt 18 covers unrepentant sin, and heresy would be a part of that:
15 “If your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault, between you and him alone. If he listens to you, you have gained your brother. 16But if he does not listen, take one or two others along with you, that every charge may be established by the evidence of two or three witnesses. 17If he refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church. And if he refuses to listen even to the church, let him be to you as a Gentile and a tax collector. 18Truly, I say to you, whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven. 19Again I say to you, if two of you agree on earth about anything they ask, it will be done for them by my Father in heaven. 20For where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I among them.”
It is also an individual responsibility:
“For many deceivers have gone out into the world, those who do not confess the coming of Jesus Christ in the flesh. Such a one is the deceiver and the antichrist. Watch yourselves, so that you may not lose what we have worked for, but may win a full reward. Everyone who goes on ahead and does not abide in the teaching of Christ, does not have God. Whoever abides in the teaching has both the Father and the Son. If anyone comes to you and does not bring this teaching, do not receive him into your house or give him any greeting, for whoever greets him takes part in his wicked works.” - 2 John
Notice: “Everyone who goes on ahead and does not abide in the teaching of Christ, does not have God. Whoever abides in the teaching has both the Father and the Son.”
It would be hard to abide in teaching not yet received...
I came across this quote, supposedly from Pope Jean Paul II on 6 Dec 2000:
“All who live a just life will be saved even if they do not believe in Jesus Christ and the Roman Catholic Church. The gospel teaches us, those who live in accordance with the beatitudes, the poor in spirit, the pure of heart, those who bear lovingly the sufferings of life, will enter God’s kingdom. All who seek God with a sincere heart, including those who do not know Christ and his Church, contribute under the influence of grace to the building of this Kingdom.”
Did he really say that? If so, does anyone know the context?
But I think it reflects his vision of a merciful God.
We are discussing 2 Maccabees as an authentic historical document, which it is. Now how is it that the Jews thought it a good thing to pray for the dead?
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.